Hey y’all! My name is TC Tolbert (he/him/hey grrrl!) and I live within these social geographies: I like walking up a mountain more than walking down; on the Enneagram, I’m a 1; I’m also a Capricorn; when I started testosterone, I chose Oct 21 so I could become a Libra – that was almost 15 years ago and I’m still searching for balance; learning is infinitely more interesting to me than knowing (and scarier, too); along with my partner, I am wildly blessed to get to care for a pit bull who is willing to cuddle any time day or night; I am white and I was born and raised a girl in Hixson, TN as a speaking-in-tongues Pentecostal and I eventually came out as queer, feminist, anti-racist, and trans-masc; I have lived in Tucson since 2003, which occupies the traditional territories of the Tohono O’odham and Pascua Yaqui peoples; I’m honored to be the Project Princess for The Outlaw Project (Tiny Homes for Trans Women of Color in AZ) and Casa Mariposas – prior to the pandemic, my collaborations were through writing, movement, and social activism and this practice of renovation and building is a true transition and joy; I’ve been following my younger sister around and learning from her since she was born – she’s the real builder/home renovation genius and I’m forever her mentee; I never cease to experience a simultaneous grief and deep love any time I pay attention to the world.
My publications include Gephyromania (originally published by Ahsahta Press in 2014, re-released by Nightboat Books in 2022), three chapbooks, one chaplet, and one micro-chap. I’m the co-editor (along with Trace Peterson) of Troubling the Line: Trans and Genderqueer Poetry and Poetics (Nightboat Books 2013). In 2019, I was awarded an Academy of American Poets’ Laureate Fellowship for my work with trans, non-binary, and queer folks as Tucson’s Poet Laureate (2017-2022). I’m a certified Wilderness EMT and I spend my summers leading wilderness trips for Outward Bound. I practice Compositional Improvisation and thank this practice and my teachers for such a radically open way to be alive.
If you’d like to learn more about my writing, teaching, and/or collaborations, please visit www.tctolbert.com. I’m wild with gratitude for you, dear reader – for your heart and your time.