Becoming Dangerous

"A fierce and voluble refutation of the patriarchy and its soul-crushing oppression of female power. These writers make clear that as witches, femmes, and queers, they will use their own strength, ingenious rituals, beauty routines, and spells to rise above and beyond the limits of racism/classism and objectifications set by a male-dominated society. While bound by a thread of magic, these are inspiring feminist writings for readers of feminist literature, however identified.” --Library JournalEdgy and often deeply personal, the twenty-one essays collected here come from a wide variety of writers. Some identify as witches, others identify as writers, musicians, game developers, or artists. What they have in common is that they’ve created personal rituals to summon their own power in a world that would prefer them powerless. Here, they share the rituals they use to resist self-doubt, grief, and depression in the face of sexism, slut shaming, racism, patriarchy, and other systems of oppression.ContentsIntroduction Notes from the Editors Content WarningUnfuckable—Cara EllisonTrash-Magic: Signs & Rituals for the Unwanted—Maranda ElizabethUncensoring My Ugliness—Laura MandanasFemme as in Fuck You: Fucking with the Patriarchy One Lipstick Application at a Time—Catherine HernandezBefore I Was a Woman, I Was a Witch—Avery EdisonUndressing My Heart—Gabriela HerstikGarden—Marguerite BennettReddit, Retin-A, and Resistance: An Alchemist’s Guide to Skincare—Sam MaggsThe Future is Coming for You—Deb ChachraMy Witch’s Sabbath of Short Skirts, Long Kisses, and BDSM—Mey RudeBuzzcut Season—Larissa PhamThe Harpy—Meredith YayanosFingertips—merrittRed Glitter—Sophie Saint ThomasTouching Pennies, Painting Nails—Sim BajwaRitual in Darkness—Kim BoekbinderGayuma—Sara DavidPushing Beauty Up Through the Cracks—Katelan FoisyRitualising My Humanity—J. A. MichelineSimulating Control—Nora KhanI Am, Myself, a Body of Water—Leigh Alexander Contributors Acknowledgements