Some People Are Trains

'you need to be a warrior right now,especially in Wetherspoon's where you're slightly scaredto take a pissand for comfort you search 'Mudlarking' on your phone,as you squat in the cubicle with one footpressed hard against the doorin case someone should come inand realise what you are.' Jackson Phoenix Nash is an essential new poetic voice. Funny, tragic, deeply lived, his poems snap you wide awake. 'There is an artful balance of humour and melancholy that makes these poems into a gorgeously unforgettable experience for the reader. Jackson's poetry embodies both trans joy and trans vulnerability in such a candid and heartfelt way that it leaves a beautiful mark on the mind.' Golnoosh Nour 'This collection is essential reading: powerful, arresting, brave, heartbreaking and funny. Jackson's 'glissando' journey from 'geezerbird' through 'decomposing girlhood' and 'premature elation' to 'phoenix' is told with wry humour, deft imagery and open-hearted candour. It ought to be on every school syllabus.' Maggie Butt

Jackson Phoenix Nash (he/him) is a queer transgender writer and teacher from Essex. His poetry and fiction have appeared in Propel, Under the Radar, Rattle, Channel, Baffling Magazine and many more. Jackson is a fellow of the Lambda Literary Writer's Retreat for Emerging LGBTQ Voices. He was shortlisted for the Creative Future Writer's Award in 2020, and in 2022 was selected for Creative Future's Next Up development programme. His PhD in Gender Studies explored trans YA fiction and popular culture.