Eye to the Telescope
no. 37 “The Sex Issue”
15 July 2020

Nominated: Pushcart Prize

An amateur astronomer meets the Moon.

“The Sex Issue” of Eye to the Telescope is out now, and it includes my randy speculative poem “In a Mirror, Dimming.” This issue of the quarterly online journal from the Science Fiction & Fantasy Poetry Association (SFPA) was edited by Jake Tringali. You might want to check out his “Editor’s Introduction” first for trigger warnings; the poems in this issue tackle topics that range from sex positivity to darker matters, including grappling with trauma.

My poem is about sex with the Moon.

The poem was inspired by someone’s bemused tweet about how so many poets old and new seem to want to have sex with the Moon. I decided to take that challenge! Could I write a poem about sex with the Moon that was queer and unique, not clichéd? The title and allusions to and reversals from 1 Corinthians 13:10 and 13:12 arrived in rewrites as the themes expanded from the original draft.

If you’re curious, you rascal you, give these poems in Eye to the Telescope, “The Sex Issue”, a try. The journal is free to read. There are earlier, sometimes tamer issues to read, too. If you’re interested in learning more about speculative poetry, the SFPA website has a wealth of information and examples. An annual membership to the organization includes issues of their other quarterly publication, Star*Line, as well as the annual Dwarf Stars and Rhysling speculative poetry anthologies.