Joel Sedano

Joel Sedano (they/them) is a queer, trans non-binary, disabled Chicanx of Indigenous descent from Tribes from Western Guanajuato. They are a poet, photographer, performer, director, painter, and beader. Joel's poetry has been featured most recently in Pan(*)cha Zine's "Supernatural" issue, Querencia Press' horror anthology It Always Finds Me, and Encephalon Journal among other publication sources. They are also a landscape photographer with works published in Lux the Zine and WerkHaus Zine.

Title of Project:

Unmasking the Villain: Crafting A Personal Poetics

Project Description:

"Unmasking the Villain: Crafting A Personal Poetics” explores my creative writing process during 2022-23 grappling with the political and social issues impacting Transgender and Gender Nonconforming (GNC) individuals. Drawing from my unpublished manuscript, Villain, I investigate how horror films, reimagined as ekphrastic poems, help me make sense of the real-life horror experiences affecting my community.

Project Inspiration:

Kevin Killian's collection Argento Series, Sam Moore's collection Long Live the New Flesh, performances by Blacklips Performance Cult, Night Gowns revue.

Areas of Academic Interest/Research:

Poetry, Horror and Science-Fiction, Queer of Color Critique, Trans* Studies, Environmental Humanities, Visual and Performance Art