journal entries

Cheryl B.

photo by Syd London

Cheryl B. died yesterday, Saturday morning. I’m not sure what I can say yet. A couple other people are able to be more articulate than me: Sassafras Lowrey at Lambda Literary.org, Kathleen Warnock at Too Many Hats. Edit: Here’s a few more, Anne Elliott on Ass Backwords, Rachel Kramer Bussel on Lusty Lady.

We made a little video for Cheryl at April’s Sideshow.

Sideshow Loves Cheryl from Sinclair Sexsmith on Vimeo.

I’d like to post some videos of her poetry soon. I miss her.

Published by Sinclair Sexsmith

Sinclair Sexsmith (they/them) is "the best-known butch erotica writer whose kinky, groundbreaking stories have turned on countless queers" (AfterEllen), who "is in all the books, wins all the awards, speaks at all the panels and readings, knows all the stuff, and writes for all the places" (Autostraddle). ​Their short story collection, Sweet & Rough: Queer Kink Erotica, was a 2016 finalist for a Lambda Literary Award, and they are the current editor of the Best Lesbian Erotica series. They identify as a white non-binary butch dominant, a survivor, and an introvert, and they live outside Seattle as an uninvited settler on traditional, ancestral, & unceded Snoqualmie land.

14 thoughts on “Cheryl B.”

  1. aisforalisha says:

    i’m so glad i got to meet her because of you, but to sum things up, this is bullshit and i’m mad as hell. :(

    *sigh*

  2. a. says:

    Again, “fuck cancer! We love you, Cheryl.”

    Take your time to decide about Sideshow. I will really miss her readings, though.

  3. I love this photo of Cheryl, never seen it before. Your tags too. I miss her a lot.

  4. m says:

    I’m so sorry. Thinking of you & all who loved her.

  5. j says:

    I’m so sorry for this huge loss. I never knew her, just loved her work. My thoughts are with you and those who loved her.

  6. Blue says:

    :( :( :(

  7. riotfemme says:

    I was so very sorry to hear this terribly sad news. My thoughts are with all who held her dear.

  8. Jitter says:

    I’m so sorry to hear this. I didn’t know her personally but I’m thinking of all her friends and loved ones.

  9. A says:

    What incredibly sad, sad news. My heart goes out to you, kelli and all of cheryl’s closed loved ones in this painful time of figuring out what happens after. I’m so sorry. What a beautiful light she was.

  10. Abby Tallmer says:

    I had the privilege of meeting Cheryl on a few occasions as a fellow freelancer at GO Magazine; I also occasionally edited her (paid non-fiction) work, which didn’t really need any editing at all.

    She was an amazing poet and writer/artist as well as a really sweet, nice person and she inspired many other writers, including myself. I wish I could have gotten to know her better but alas she was already sick when we met. She seems like an amazing woman who certainly made her mark on the NY scene and who certainly will be missed by many.

    My heart goes out to her family, including her writing family, and her loved ones, most of all Kelli D., who I don’t know but of course know of. I’m certain that Cheryl’s spirit and her work will live on to inspire countless other writers and artists,but I guess that is small reassurance to those who miss her so much already.

  11. MH says:

    I interviewed Cheryl once for a Time Out New York article ages ago and she was lovely to me. I also was a fan of her work, and read both her regular blog and wtfcancerdiaries. I last saw her when she read at Bluestockings in February of last year. It was a great reading. She was such a charismatic performer. I really wish I got to know her better; she sounds like she was one of a kind. Such an awful tragedy, and gone much too soon. My condolences to you, and her other loved ones.

  12. gradland says:

    Shit. I never met Cheryl, but loved her poetry and her WTF Cancer Diaries blog. This is just horrible and wrong.

  13. I just saw this and am so, so sorry for Kelli, for her family and for you. It’s so wrong.