Freda Epum
@fredaepum.bsky.social
✨ Writer, artist, and consultant.
📍OH 🌽 & AZ 🌵
📚 THE GLOOMY GIRL VARIETY SHOW: A MEMOIR (Jan' 25 @feministpress)
PhD-ing in English Lit
Newsletter @ fredaepum.substack.com
#fibromyalgia #chronicillness | 🇳🇬 🏳️🌈
www.fredaepum.com
📍OH 🌽 & AZ 🌵
📚 THE GLOOMY GIRL VARIETY SHOW: A MEMOIR (Jan' 25 @feministpress)
PhD-ing in English Lit
Newsletter @ fredaepum.substack.com
#fibromyalgia #chronicillness | 🇳🇬 🏳️🌈
www.fredaepum.com
Pinned
Freda Epum
@fredaepum.bsky.social
· Apr 9
This image captures the joy of 155 strangers signing up to hear me to talk about my first book.
Reposted by Freda Epum
AWP recap in photos. 📸 Great readings, lovely writers. Completely exhausted, but good vibes overall. @zoebossiere.bsky.social @womanistbae.bsky.social @earthtokb.bsky.social @fredaepum.bsky.social @krysmalcolmbelc.bsky.social
April 1, 2025 at 1:03 AM
AWP recap in photos. 📸 Great readings, lovely writers. Completely exhausted, but good vibes overall. @zoebossiere.bsky.social @womanistbae.bsky.social @earthtokb.bsky.social @fredaepum.bsky.social @krysmalcolmbelc.bsky.social
Reposted by Freda Epum
📝 @fredaepum.bsky.social
Out now from @feministpress.bsky.social
Paperback: bookshop.org/a/90290/9781...
Ebook also available on Bookshop.org
Out now from @feministpress.bsky.social
Paperback: bookshop.org/a/90290/9781...
Ebook also available on Bookshop.org
April 4, 2025 at 1:10 PM
📝 @fredaepum.bsky.social
Out now from @feministpress.bsky.social
Paperback: bookshop.org/a/90290/9781...
Ebook also available on Bookshop.org
Out now from @feministpress.bsky.social
Paperback: bookshop.org/a/90290/9781...
Ebook also available on Bookshop.org
Reposted by Freda Epum
sometimes it seems like people want to get published like it will Solve Their Problems and I just want to confirm that after you publish they don't give you a new childhood, you still have to live with yourself, it's just that some of that self is on display this month at a Review
May 27, 2025 at 1:40 PM
sometimes it seems like people want to get published like it will Solve Their Problems and I just want to confirm that after you publish they don't give you a new childhood, you still have to live with yourself, it's just that some of that self is on display this month at a Review
Reposted by Freda Epum
Hey there! There's a GoFundMe campaign to help someone get a set of false teeth, as they’re on disability and can’t afford it on their own. Every donation, no matter how small, makes a real difference, so please consider clicking the link below to contribute or share it with others.
April 16, 2025 at 4:25 AM
Hey there! There's a GoFundMe campaign to help someone get a set of false teeth, as they’re on disability and can’t afford it on their own. Every donation, no matter how small, makes a real difference, so please consider clicking the link below to contribute or share it with others.
Reposted by Freda Epum
HHS plans to remove gender dysphoria from disability protections under Section 504—but 17 GOP AGs are still pushing a lawsuit that could gut all federal disability protections. Schools, hospitals, and workplaces could refuse accommodations. #DisabilityRights #TransRights
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Federal government to remove gender dysphoria from protected disabilities list
It’s unclear what the move means for a related lawsuit that could dismantle protections for all people with disabilities.
19thnews.org
April 16, 2025 at 5:03 AM
HHS plans to remove gender dysphoria from disability protections under Section 504—but 17 GOP AGs are still pushing a lawsuit that could gut all federal disability protections. Schools, hospitals, and workplaces could refuse accommodations. #DisabilityRights #TransRights
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This image captures the joy of 155 strangers signing up to hear me to talk about my first book.
April 9, 2025 at 3:28 PM
This image captures the joy of 155 strangers signing up to hear me to talk about my first book.
Thanks for having me @debutiful.bsky.social!
Listen to @fredaepum.bsky.social read from THE GLOOMY GIRL VARIETY SHOW on the First Taste Reading Series!
🍏 podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/f...
🔊 open.spotify.com/episode/5qLG... @feministpress.bsky.social
🍏 podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/f...
🔊 open.spotify.com/episode/5qLG... @feministpress.bsky.social
March 25, 2025 at 3:36 AM
Thanks for having me @debutiful.bsky.social!
Next stop on the Gloomy Girl tour! See you soon LA!
You don’t wanna miss this one! #AWP25 @earthtokb.bsky.social @zoebossiere.bsky.social @fredaepum.bsky.social @krysmalcolmbelc.bsky.social Save your spot now! Link for suggested fire relief donations in the event description.
RSVP to Existence as Resistance: Queer and Trans Memoir | Partiful
Join authors Krys Malcolm Belc (The Natural Mother of the Child: A Memoir of Nonbinary Parenthood), KB Brookins (Pretty: A Memoir), Zoë Bossiere (Cactus Country: A Boyhood Memoir), Jackie Domenus (No ...
partiful.com
March 25, 2025 at 3:34 AM
Next stop on the Gloomy Girl tour! See you soon LA!
Thanks so much @ironhorselitrev.bsky.social! Gloomy Girl is also perfect for upcoming Mental Health Awareness month in May! 😉
For #blackhistorymonth , we want to shout out our contributor @fredaepum.bsky.social , whose work was highlighted in IHLR 21.3.
And congratulations to her for her recent memoir, The Gloomy Girl Variety Show!
https://www.feministpress.org/books-overflow/the-gloomy-girl-variety-show
And congratulations to her for her recent memoir, The Gloomy Girl Variety Show!
https://www.feministpress.org/books-overflow/the-gloomy-girl-variety-show
March 25, 2025 at 3:33 AM
Thanks so much @ironhorselitrev.bsky.social! Gloomy Girl is also perfect for upcoming Mental Health Awareness month in May! 😉
Reposting for awareness.
So we're doing the fugitive slave law again? Right. Gotcha.
A proposed bill in Mississippi would create the “Mississippi Illegal Alien Certified Bounty Hunter Program."
People who help arrest undocumented migrants would be given $1,000.
And the crime of "trespass by an illegal alien" would be punishable by life in prison.
www.supertalk.fm/mississippi-...
People who help arrest undocumented migrants would be given $1,000.
And the crime of "trespass by an illegal alien" would be punishable by life in prison.
www.supertalk.fm/mississippi-...
January 24, 2025 at 9:03 PM
Reposting for awareness.
Still glowing from my book launch last week!
Happy pub day to @fredaepum.bsky.social! Thrilled that Freda's incredible, innovative debut memoir — The Gloomy Girl Variety Show — is now officially out in the world. Been absolutely wonderful working with Freda on the campaign, and appreciate all the support out there for this important book.
January 24, 2025 at 9:00 PM
Still glowing from my book launch last week!
Guys Gloomy Girl is officially on shelves next week! And so is my book launch! I'll be sharing more press and good news throughout this month! First, another Most Anticipated List from the Chicago Review of Books!
chireviewofbooks.com/2025/01/06/o...
chireviewofbooks.com/2025/01/06/o...
Our Most Anticipated 2025 Books - Chicago Review of Books
15 books you need to add to your 2025 reading list.
chireviewofbooks.com
January 6, 2025 at 11:33 PM
Guys Gloomy Girl is officially on shelves next week! And so is my book launch! I'll be sharing more press and good news throughout this month! First, another Most Anticipated List from the Chicago Review of Books!
chireviewofbooks.com/2025/01/06/o...
chireviewofbooks.com/2025/01/06/o...
Feeling so fortunate to be alive at the same time as Nikki Giovanni. I started writing about home in 2015 and love seeing how Nikki Giovanni contemplated home in 1974. Writing helps us find belonging across time. #booksky #blacksky #writingcommunity #history #art #authors #poetry #artists #writing
December 10, 2024 at 9:44 PM
Guys, I'm a Most Anticipated 😭. Thank you so much Debutiful, for naming Gloomy Girl one of the most anticipated debut books of 2025! Who knew my ruminating on hopefully making the list was ✨manifesting✨ Very happy the book's innovative structure is getting some shine. 😌
December 9, 2024 at 11:08 PM
Guys, I'm a Most Anticipated 😭. Thank you so much Debutiful, for naming Gloomy Girl one of the most anticipated debut books of 2025! Who knew my ruminating on hopefully making the list was ✨manifesting✨ Very happy the book's innovative structure is getting some shine. 😌
Gloomy Girl's Amazon ranking shot up over the last week! Thank you to everyone who has pre-ordered! If you read the book and liked it (hopefully 🥹), I would love it if you could leave a review on Amazon or Goodreads. Or request it at your local library or book store. Linking both pages below. 🖤
December 6, 2024 at 10:29 PM
Gloomy Girl's Amazon ranking shot up over the last week! Thank you to everyone who has pre-ordered! If you read the book and liked it (hopefully 🥹), I would love it if you could leave a review on Amazon or Goodreads. Or request it at your local library or book store. Linking both pages below. 🖤
Reposted by Freda Epum
For those who aint aware Spotify Wrapped was brought to yall via the brilliance of a Black Woman’s mind. While yall enjoy the moment today here’s a reminder that Black American creatives are still making huge cultural impact with very little credit and pay. www.refinery29.com/en-us/2020/1...
The Intern Who Created Spotify Wrapped’s Story Format Never Got Her Due
Meet artist Jewel Ham, who designed the Spotify Wrapped social format that we're all addicted to as an intern — and like so many other interns, she never truly got her due.
www.refinery29.com
December 4, 2024 at 3:04 PM
For those who aint aware Spotify Wrapped was brought to yall via the brilliance of a Black Woman’s mind. While yall enjoy the moment today here’s a reminder that Black American creatives are still making huge cultural impact with very little credit and pay. www.refinery29.com/en-us/2020/1...
Reposted by Freda Epum
One of the single best things you can do for us on #InternationalDayofPeoplewithDisabilities is to wear a mask.
Make public spaces safe for us again. Join us in demanding masks in healthcare. Refuse to leave us by the wayside.
Make public spaces safe for us again. Join us in demanding masks in healthcare. Refuse to leave us by the wayside.
December 4, 2024 at 3:08 AM
One of the single best things you can do for us on #InternationalDayofPeoplewithDisabilities is to wear a mask.
Make public spaces safe for us again. Join us in demanding masks in healthcare. Refuse to leave us by the wayside.
Make public spaces safe for us again. Join us in demanding masks in healthcare. Refuse to leave us by the wayside.
Reposted by Freda Epum
Illinois has put an end to the injustice of cash bail. And it’s working better than anyone expected.
Illinois Has Put an End to the Injustice of Cash Bail
Amid a national backlash against criminal justice reform, Illinois has achieved something extraordinary. It’s working better than anyone expected.
www.thenation.com
December 2, 2024 at 6:32 PM
Illinois has put an end to the injustice of cash bail. And it’s working better than anyone expected.
"I came to theory because I was hurting-the pain within me was so intense...I came to theory desperate, wanting to comprehend-to grasp what was happening around and within me. I saw in theory then a location for healing." - Toni Morrison.
Here’s me at the start of my book and me now. Out Jan 15!
Here’s me at the start of my book and me now. Out Jan 15!
December 3, 2024 at 9:23 PM
"I came to theory because I was hurting-the pain within me was so intense...I came to theory desperate, wanting to comprehend-to grasp what was happening around and within me. I saw in theory then a location for healing." - Toni Morrison.
Here’s me at the start of my book and me now. Out Jan 15!
Here’s me at the start of my book and me now. Out Jan 15!
So I've applied for some grants and fellowships that would allow me to be a full-time writer for a while if I got them! *Fingers crossed*
December 3, 2024 at 6:41 AM
So I've applied for some grants and fellowships that would allow me to be a full-time writer for a while if I got them! *Fingers crossed*
Proud of myself for pushing through to the next newsletter entry! This piece features art from Gloomy Girl. And started as a response to a prompt from new writer friend Zeba Blay in her Pop Culture is Personal class: a manifesto on why we write. As always, here's a sneak peak.
December 1, 2024 at 1:55 AM
Proud of myself for pushing through to the next newsletter entry! This piece features art from Gloomy Girl. And started as a response to a prompt from new writer friend Zeba Blay in her Pop Culture is Personal class: a manifesto on why we write. As always, here's a sneak peak.
I've relaunched my newsletter! 🎉 Finally feeling a little more room to breathe this year and I decided to relaunch my newsletter. Pub day is January 14! Have you pre-ordered? 👀. Here's a sneak peak (links to all sources are in the newsletter itself.
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Why talk about identity and publishing?
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Why talk about identity and publishing?
November 28, 2024 at 2:11 AM
I've relaunched my newsletter! 🎉 Finally feeling a little more room to breathe this year and I decided to relaunch my newsletter. Pub day is January 14! Have you pre-ordered? 👀. Here's a sneak peak (links to all sources are in the newsletter itself.
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Why talk about identity and publishing?
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Why talk about identity and publishing?
Reposted by Freda Epum
Ive noticed the same issue with the history packs.
I didn't bother pointing it out, because what would be the point? It feels weird to ASK to include BIPOC historians, if you can't even see us as part of your community.
I didn't bother pointing it out, because what would be the point? It feels weird to ASK to include BIPOC historians, if you can't even see us as part of your community.
I just looked at a highly circulated starter pack for top science and science communicators and there are 58 men, 27 women, the rest orgs based in the US, and 95% white. Maybe, just maybe, do a bit of curation and check your biases and show some care with what you put out into the wild.
November 26, 2024 at 7:25 PM
Ive noticed the same issue with the history packs.
I didn't bother pointing it out, because what would be the point? It feels weird to ASK to include BIPOC historians, if you can't even see us as part of your community.
I didn't bother pointing it out, because what would be the point? It feels weird to ASK to include BIPOC historians, if you can't even see us as part of your community.
Reposted by Freda Epum
Hi, here are some quick notes about the upcoming holidays.
If your absence from the holiday table is a political act, don’t assume your silence communicates your politics. Tell them why.
“I don’t break bread with people just attempted to poison me.”
If your absence from the holiday table is a political act, don’t assume your silence communicates your politics. Tell them why.
“I don’t break bread with people just attempted to poison me.”
Some Quick Notes Toward The Holidays
I’m just saying.
saeedjones.substack.com
November 25, 2024 at 5:28 PM
Hi, here are some quick notes about the upcoming holidays.
If your absence from the holiday table is a political act, don’t assume your silence communicates your politics. Tell them why.
“I don’t break bread with people just attempted to poison me.”
If your absence from the holiday table is a political act, don’t assume your silence communicates your politics. Tell them why.
“I don’t break bread with people just attempted to poison me.”