Charlie Claire Burgess (they/them)
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thewordwitch.bsky.social
Charlie Claire Burgess (they/them)
@thewordwitch.bsky.social
1.7K followers 510 following 1.2K posts
🏳️‍⚧️🏳️‍🌈 Gender anarchist, dirty Aquarius, devoted heretic, that witch // books: QUEER DEVOTION (5.20.25), RADICAL TAROT // decks: FIFTH SPIRIT TAROT, THE GAY MARSEILLE TAROT // www.thewordwitchtarot.com
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thewordwitch.bsky.social
Just recorded a VERY COOL interview with a podcast I’m a huge fan of! We were originally supposed to record 2 weeks ago, but I got sick. I pulled cards for whether to reschedule. For no, I pulled The Hanged One. For yes, Page of Pents. And here he is again in my daily draw today! TAROT WORKS Y’ALL.
Two cards from The Gay Marseille Tarot propped on the corner of Charlie’s altar. The cards are the Ace of Coins (Pentacles) and the Page of Coins (Pentacles). The Ace has a stylized coin with leopard print and a 4-petaled violet in the center, with budding vines growing from it. The Page shows a trans guy in green overalls that show his top surgery scars, a straw hat, and a diabetic arm patch. He stands in a tilled garden and holds up a larger-than-life coin in one hand and smiles at it.
June 3, 2025 at 8:25 PM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
Yesterday’s book release party for QUEER DEVOTION was epically lovely!! Here’s just a few of my favorite shots. Thank you so much to everyone who came out to celebrate with me and to Seagrape Apothecary for hosting! My heart is full. 🌈💗
Charlie is standing behind a podium and speaking. They’re wearing a black suit vest with a silver watch chain, black knee-length trouser shorts, and Doc Marten combat boots. Their bare arms are covered in black and grey tattoos. Their hands are lifted in front of them because they talk with their hands. To their left is an ASL interpreter and to their right is a display of Queer Devotion books and limited edition candles that Charlie collaborated on with Seagrape Apothecary. A wide shot of the reading that shows the room with every seat full! Charlie stands at the front. The room is paneled in warm wood behind them. To the right is a wall of geometric bookshelves filled with books, candles, and witchy goods and a dusty pink rainbow mural. Edison bulbs dangle from a gnarled tree limb that extends across the space overhead. Guests sit in an assortment of folding chairs, couches, and along a long wood table with benches. Charlie is wearing a face mask and giving a thumbs up beside an absolutely luxurious, decadent, and gigantic charcuterie board piled with fruits and cheeses, which is probably the fanciest thing that has ever been assembled in their honor. Charlie is holding a large bouquet of flowers in rainbow colors and laughing with a huge smile on their face.
May 31, 2025 at 1:15 AM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
This is TOMORROW!! After postponing the Queer Devotion release party for over a week, I’m COVID-free and ready to party! 🎉🕺🌈🪩

If you’re in PDX, join me at Seagrape Apothecary tomorrow, 5/29, 5-7pm for readings, refreshments, giveaways, a limited batch candle collab, & lots of queer joy!
A flyer with a photo of Charlie and the Queer Devotion book cover on a mint green background that says “Queer Devotion Book Release Party. New date! Thursday, May 29th, 5-7pm. Seagrape Apothecary, 2823 NE Sandy Blvd, PDX. Masks required & provided.”
May 28, 2025 at 7:30 PM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
QUEER DEVOTION sighting in the wild at @alwaysherebooks.bsky.social, where I’m doing an author talk, Q&A, and book signing this Saturday, 5/31, 6-8pm!
Copies of Queer Devotion stacked face-up on a table, surrounded by other books by LGBTQIA+ authors, including “Marsha” by Tourmaline, “The Starving Saints” by Caitlin Starling, and the new “WITCH” anthology. The overall vibe is of brightly colored queer joy. Queer Devotion sits face-out on a light green shelf next to Fifth Spirit Tarot and Radical Tarot (all by Charlie). A shelf talker card under the book says “Upcoming event! Join us for an evening of readings, Q&A, and devotion with Charlie Burgess. May 31st, 2025.”
May 28, 2025 at 7:21 PM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
When it’s your book’s publication day and you’re sick but still festive 😂🥳
May 20, 2025 at 10:35 PM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
MY BOOK IS BORN 🌈💞🎉 Queer spirituality is revolutionary in a world that demonizes us, but history tells us that queer & trans people have been part of the sacred story from the beginning, and we’re not going anywhere. WE’RE HERE. WE’RE QUEER. AND WE’RE DIVINE. 🌈💖🪽

bookshop.org/a/101472/978...
A selfie of Charlie holding a copy of Queer Devotion and smiling big. The book cover is illustrated in the style of medieval illuminated manuscripts, but with queer figures of myth and history added, including Joan of Arc, Venus, a satyr, and Sappho feeding grapes to a woman whose head rests in her lap. Charlie has a huge smile and is wearing tortoiseshell glasses and a black suit vest with a watch chain. Their short hair is half brown and half platinum and curls around their forehead. Their arms are covered in black and grey tattoos of botanicals and insects.
May 20, 2025 at 7:07 PM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
My book comes out TOMORROW!! 🥳🎉🌈 But the release party is not happening tomorrow, because I have COVID. The party WILL go on — just on a new date! Thurs. May 29th! 🕺 I am congested, but not defeated! See you then!
A flyer that says “Queer Devotion Book Release Party, NEW DATE, Thursday, May 29th, 5-7pm. Seagrape Apothecary, 2823 NE Sandy Blvd, PDX. Masks required & provided.”
May 19, 2025 at 7:18 PM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
Was taking photos with my book for release day and accidentally eye fucked the camera 😜
A selfie of Charlie looking steamily at the camera. They are smirking very slightly and filtered sunlight is lighting their short, wavy, split-dyed hair from behind. They’re wearing tortoiseshell glasses and a black suit vest with a watch chain. Their exposed arms are covered with black and grey tattoos of botanicals, insects, and a crow.
May 15, 2025 at 12:06 AM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
If you’re in Portland, OR, come celebrate with me! I’ll be having a book release party at my fave witch shop, Seagrape Apothecary, on the 20th, 5-7pm, AND an author talk & book signing at my fave queer book shop, @alwaysherebooks.bsky.social , on the 31st, 6-8pm.
A graphic with text that says, “Celebrate with Me!” Followed by the details for 2 events. Event 1: Queer Devotion Book Release Party! Tuesday, May 20th, 5-7pm, Seagrape Apothecary. Author Talk + Signing + Snacks & Drinks + Book & card deck raffle. ASL interpretation provided. Event 2: An Evening of Queer Devotion. Saturday, May 31st, 6-8pm, Always Here Books. Author Talk + Q&A + Book Signing. Face masks required & provided at all events.
May 14, 2025 at 9:55 PM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
QUEER DEVOTION drops NEXT TUESDAY, May 20th! Are you ready?
A graphic with a quote from Queer Devotion by Charlie Claire Burgess: "The Divine is so queer that They break down the divides between male and female, cis and trans, gay and straight, divine and mundane. The monotheistic world of "God the Father" — as well as the hierarchical and dichotomized world of male versus female, white versus black, human versus nature, body versus spirit, and us versus them—crumbles and dissolves in the gaze of the Divine. So I'll say it: God, Goddess, Goddexx, Deity, the Gods by any name-the Divine is Queer."
May 14, 2025 at 9:51 PM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
LESS THAN 1 WEEK TILL QUEER DEVOTION!! 💞🌈💫🏳️‍⚧️🏳️‍🌈🙏🏻😇
A graphic with a quote from Queer Devotion by Charlie Claire Burgess: "Queerness is indefinable in its vastness of wild and strange diversity, incapable of totalizing categorization. So is the Divine. If you believe in a celestial Creator/ix of the cosmos, a being unfathomable to the human mind, that's pretty queer. If you believe that God is in everyone, then God is all-gendered and all-sexed, attracted to every type of body and gender under the sun—ipso facto, queer. If you believe further that God/dess or Goddexx or the Divine is in everything, in nature as well as in humans, then the Divine is human and nonhuman. The Divine is animal and vegetable and mineral, flame and liquid and gas and the void of outer space.”
May 14, 2025 at 9:48 PM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
Y’all I was up till 2am last night finishing the 21-page take-home PDF for my Queer Devotion class because I can’t stop when I’m on a roll and I pathologically over-provide. 😅 MAKE IT WORTH IT, TAKE MY CLASS 🙏🏻🌈💞 You’ll love it, I know you will!!

www.eventbrite.com/e/queer-devo...
A flyer graphic for Queer Devotion: The Class! Liberate Your Spiritual Practice. May 10th, 6-8pm PT, online or in-person, Seagrape Apothecary, 2823 NE Sandy, PDX. In the center is an image from Dante Gabriel Rossetti’s painting of Joan of Arc, where she holds a sword in both hands raised over her shoulder and gazes upward with an intense look of devotion. A flyer graphic for Queer Devotion: The Class! What You Can Expect in this Class: Explorations of queer & trans-aligned deities & sacred stories from history, myth, and legend. Divinity beyond the gender binary. Expansions of what deity & devotion can mean through the lived practice of queering. Tools for starting or refreshing an affirming spiritual practice that can bolster us through challenging times. A PDF handout to take home + class recording available to rewatch for 30 days. May 10th, 6-8pm PT, online or in-person, Seagrape Apothecary, 2823 NE Sandy, PDX.
May 5, 2025 at 7:42 PM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
I’ve got a real good mom, y’all. 😂🥰
A screen grab of a text conversation between Charlie and their mom. Their mom’s text says, “Okay, so as I was hanging up, I awkwardly said “love you girl” followed by “love you guy” so it balances out to non-binary. 🫣😬😳 I’m trying.” Charlie’s text response says, “The scales have been balanced! All is well. ⚖️✨🤣”
May 4, 2025 at 2:03 AM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
3. I have hyper flexible thumbs, often (incorrectly) called “double jointed.” It’s a fun party trick that grosses people out every time. ☺️
Charlie demonstrating their hyper flexible thumb. Basically, the bottom thumb joint bends both ways, so it looks like the thumb is popped out or bent back unnaturally where it meets the palm.
May 1, 2025 at 10:44 PM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
If you’ve been waiting to pre-order Queer Devotion, Barnes & Noble is having a 25% off preorders sale today through Friday! Code: PREORDER25 tinyurl.com/24jzwp45
The cover of Queer Devotion with the text “Barnes & Noble Pre-order sale! 25% off! Code: PREORDER25. 4/23 - 4/25. Must be a B&N Rewards member - becoming a member is FREE.” The book cover shows the title in blackletter font, surrounded by medieval illuminated manuscript-style marginalia illustrations, including Venus, Joan of Arc, a satyr, and a dragon blowing rainbow flames.
April 23, 2025 at 7:30 PM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
Today I did drop-in tarot readings at my fave local witch shop for their 10th birthday party, & I earned enough $$ to get a spontaneous flash tattoo from one of my fave tattoo artists, who just happened to be doing flash at the same event.

Sometimes, the universe is good and nice things happen. ☺️
A photo of a new tattoo, still a wee bit red and bloody, under a film bandage, on Charlie’s lower leg. The black linework tattoo is of a glass jar filled with an assortment of plants and herbs that symbolize strength, including calendula, thistle, and cinnamon.
April 14, 2025 at 1:44 AM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
Sometimes the cards are so literal! Yesterday I went to staff fighting class at my martial arts studio for the first time. There were five of us in the beginner class. My card of the day? 5 of Wands. 🤣
The 5 of Wands from the Smith-Waite Centennial Tarot shows five people in different colored outfits chaotically fighting each other with long sticks or staffs.
April 13, 2025 at 5:32 PM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
Update: I found a note inside one of them. YOUR LOSS, ELLEN.
A handwritten note in blue ink on a slip of paper tucked inside volume 2 of 78 Degrees of Wisdom. It reads, “Hi Ellen, this is an extra book I’ve had floating around… for you to look at, or let it go. Heart, D Bell”
April 12, 2025 at 1:40 AM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
LOOK WHAT I FOUND in a little free library in my neighborhood. LOOK AT IT. 78 Degrees of Wisdom in its original 2 volumes, 1st edition, Aquarian Press, 1980 and 83. THE LORDESS HATH SMILETH UPON ME AND I AM GLAD HashtagBlessed
Charlie’s hand holding 78 Degrees of Wisdom volumes 1 and 2, by the late great Rachel Pollack. Volume 1 has a royal blue cover with an assortment of Major Arcana tarot cards pictured. Volume 2 has a crimson red cover with an assortment of Minor Arcana cards. In the background is a pollen-covered sidewalk and a sliver of lawn. Not pictured: Charlie freaking out.
April 12, 2025 at 1:33 AM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
Bluesky! I forgot to post this in you! To celebrate my upcoming book’s birth, I’ll be reprising the class that started it all—QUEER DEVOTION: THE WORKSHOP. Early bird ticket prices end TOMORROW, April 12th, so don’t wait!

Info & tix 👇🏻
www.eventbrite.com/e/queer-devo...
A graphic with gothic blackletter script that says “Liberate Your Spiritual Practice! Queer Devotion: The Workshop.” May 10th, 6-8pm PT, online or in-person, Seagrape Apothecary, 2823 NE Sandy, PDX.” In an arch-shaped cutout in the center is a painting of Joan of Arc by Dante Gabriel Rossetti. Joan’s face in profile is tilted upward, her expression bordering between serious and ecstasy, her thick red hair flowing down her back. She lifts a sword over her shoulder with both hands, her forearms covered in plate armor beneath a sumptuous umber robe, chainmail peeking from the neckline. A graphic with gothic blackletter script that says “What you can expect in this class: Explorations of queer and trans-aligned deities and sacred stories from history, myth, and legend; divinity beyond the binary; expansions of what deity and devotion can mean through the lived practice of queering; tools for starting or refreshing an affirming spiritual practice that can bolster us through challenging times; a PDF handout to take home plus a class recording available to watch for 30 days. May 10th, 6-8pm PT, online or in-person, Seagrape Apothecary, 2823 NE Sandy, PDX.” In an arch-shaped cutout near the bottom is a painting of Joan of Arc by Dante Gabriel Rossetti. Joan’s face in profile is tilted upward, her expression bordering between serious and ecstasy, her thick red hair flowing down her back. She lifts a sword over her shoulder with both hands, her forearms covered in plate armor beneath a sumptuous umber robe, chainmail peeking from the neckline. A graphic of the Queer Devotion book cover between line illustrations of gothic columns. Gothic blackletter script above the book says, ”Coming May 20th.” Below the book, an endorsement from Mat Auryn, author of Psychic Witch, says, “An empowering and illuminating resource for embracing spirituality beyond the binary.” On the book cover, the title is in gothic font: “Queer Devotion: Spirituality Beyond the Binary in Myth, Story, and Practice. Charlie Claire Burgess.” In the Q of the word “Queer,” a tattooed angel with a purple mohawk and red wings blows a trumpet. Around the edges of the cover are marginalia illustrations in the style of medieval illuminated manuscripts, but queer. A dragon blows rainbow flames. Two women in togas feed each other grapes. Joan of Arc rides a white horse and carries a Pride flag. A satyr with top surgery scars plays his pipes. Two fellas cuddle in a corner. A banner floating above the cover says “Pre-order now!”
April 11, 2025 at 4:45 PM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
Heyyyy my book release party suit came in! Nonbinary trans-masc lesbian unlocked. 🔓✨
A photo of Charlie modeling a black 2-piece suit consisting of a vest with a silver pocket/watch chain and knee-length trousers. They’re not wearing a shirt under the buttoned vest, and they have on unlaced black combat boots. Charlie’s light-skinned arms are covered in black and grey tattoos; their short wavy hair is parted in the middle and dyed platinum on one side and light brown on the other. They’re wearing tortoiseshell glasses and several silver necklaces. They’re standing in their apartment, which is basically overflowing with plants and books.
April 10, 2025 at 11:00 PM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
Quote with a movie poster from the year you turned 18.

Instead of going to senior prom, I wore a prom dress to see this movie in theatres and then got dinner at Taco Bell.
A movie poster for Kill Bill Volume 2. Actress Uma Thurman wears black leather pants and jacket and sandals and holds a samurai sword horizontally in front of her with a focused gaze on the viewer. The poster has a bright red background with a yellow racing stripe and the movie title in bold yellow block letters along with “Written and directed by Quentin Tarantino.”
April 10, 2025 at 6:57 AM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
Considering who raised me who could really be surprised at how I turned out
The cast of the TV show Buffy the Vampire Slayer pose in late 90’s fashion in front of a wrought iron fence with a bare tree and spooky mist in the background. A screen grab from the Nintendo 64 video game Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Link plays the ocarina next to a tree stump in the Forest Temple (maybe?) while glimmering fairies fly around him/her/them. (Link is canonically genderqueer. Fight me.) The holy trinity of D&D books—the Players Handbook, the Monster Manual, and the Dungeon Master’s Guide—from the 3rd edition sit on a wooden table.
April 9, 2025 at 5:35 AM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
When I open a new jar of raw honey, I like to do a little divination with the swirls on top. What do you see? (My answer in replies) 🍯😜
A newly opened jar of raw honey, seen from above. An abstract pattern of lighter colored swirls rests on the surface of the amber honey.
April 8, 2025 at 8:54 PM
thewordwitch.bsky.social
Pulled the Emperor on the first and last day of eclipse season 😎

Tarot 🤝 Astrology
The Emperor card from The Gay Marseille Tarot. The Emperor leans on his throne with one leg crossed over the opposite knee. He’s wearing a doublet and hose in shades of pink, teal, and blue, a lavender cap, and white combat boots. Around his neck hangs and a thick gold chain with a pendant that says “Daddy.” He’s holding a scepter capped with a crossed arrow, the combined symbol of Venus and Mars. By his feet is a shield with an eagle on it, spray painted with a red anarchy symbol.
March 29, 2025 at 5:04 PM