“In Headless, poet Sean Hanrahan takes us on a winding road that twists through desire, intellectual curiosity, and various explored icons—pop culture, mythic, historic, political, sexual—traveling with a speaker always seeking to understand who and what society expects him to be. If art is a conversation with everything before and after, then so is identity, moving from “paper silhouette of a boy” to reveling in the middle-aged body, declaring “we are all of us orchids.” The self is multifaceted, multitalented, and—belying the title—multiheaded. Hanrahan, at the height of his poetic power, has learned to navigate this hydralike path and “choose the sacramental in-between.” In these pages, we are blessed to be invited to walk beside him.” – Chad Frame, author of Little Black Book.

Sean Hanrahan is the author of Headless, Safer Behind Popcorn and Ghost Signs, Hardened Eyes on the Scan and Gay Cake . His work has also been included in various anthologies and journals, he has taught classes titled “A Chapbook in 49 Days,” “Ekphrastic Poetry,” “Poetry Embodied,” and has hosted and read at poetry events throughout Philadelphia.

Adam Gianforcaro is the author of the poetry collection Every Living Day and Poems to Stage Dive to. A Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net nominee, his work can be found in Ninth Letter, The Offing, Poet Lore, Third Coast, Northwest Review, and elsewhere.

Alison Lubar teaches high school English by day and yoga by night. They are a queer, nonbinary, biracial Nikkei femme whose life work has evolved into bringing mindfulness practices to young people. They’re the author of The Other Tree, and METAMOURPHOSIS, as well as four chapbooks and is a board member for Philadelphia’s Blue Stoop.

Amy Saul-Zerby is the author of Paper Flowers, Imaginary Birds, Deep Camouflage, and Choose Your Own Beginning, her poems have appeared in various journals and she is the Director of Marketing and Development for The Free Books Project and Editor-in-Chief of Voicemail Poems.

Aaren Perry Host – Open Reading Follows