I started taking testosterone in February of 2024, a decision made after years of teetering back and forth between comfort and safety. I wanted to be seen as myself. I wanted to look in the mirror and recognize the person who was looking back at me. But I also didn’t want the inherent danger that came with being trans in public—not the flaunting of my identity, but just the mere fact of my existence in the eyes of others. I didn’t decide it lightly.
Parker Dean (he/him) is a queer and trans writer based in the Seattle area. Originally from California, he is committed to exploring Seattle, its museums, its parks, and all the cozy spaces in between. As a recent graduate of UW Bothell's Creative Writing and Poetics MFA program, he brings to the table a hunger for literature and the arts. Parker Dean is currently the Non-Fiction editor-in-chief of Silly Goose Press LLC, and his work can be found or is forthcoming in Bullshit Lit!, Troublemaker Firestarter, and Clamor. If not writing, he is usually birdwatching in the wetlands or nursing a chai latte at his desk.
