Trans Poetica: A Pride Month Literary Plática

Kick off Pride Month on Thursday, June 5th with Gemini Ink in collaboration with Letras Latinas for “Trans Poetica: A Pride Month Literary Platica,” an intimate poetry reading and discussion about the challenges and joys of sustaining Queer and Trans Latinx literary communities across Texas. 

Award-winning writer and literary activist, Anel I. Flores, will moderate this discussion. This event will include Pushcart Prize nominated poet Keagan Wheat, Burns (Sundress Publications, 2026) author SG Huerta, and Watcha (Deep Vellum, 2024) author and Spanish translator Stalina Villarreal. These writers from across Texas will come together in San Antonio for an evening of centering Latinx Trans voices in a time of censorship, fear, and denial. 

Light refreshments will be served. Signed books will be available for purchase following the panel discussion.

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Moderator

Anel I. Flores is a trans-, queer Latina/x writer, artist, activist and life-coach. They are a visionary creative whose extensive body of work captures the essence of LGBTQIA+ experiences. Anel I. Flores is a highly accomplished author, having penned notable works including La Fea and the Lambda literary award-nominated book, Empanada: A Lesbiana Story en Probaditas. Her upcoming novel, Cortinas de Lluvia, is set to be released in 2025 along with the 2nd edition of Empanada, which includes a Spanish translation. 

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Keagan Wheat (he/him) is a trans, Latinx, disabled poet, educator, and visual artist from Houston. In 2020, he released Viaticum. The Houston Transgender Unity Committee awarded him the Media and Arts Award for 2024. He’s a Pushcart Prize nominee with work appearing in The Acentos Review, Anomaly, Variant Literature and more. Check out his interviews with Brooklyn Poets and Latinx Lit. Find them on social media @kwheat09.

SG Huerta is a queer Xicanx writer, editor, and organizer. They are the Poetry Editor of Abode Press and the author of two poetry chapbooks and the nonfiction chapbook GOOD GRIEF (fifth wheel press 2025). Their work has appeared in Barrelhouse, Honey Literary, Infrarrealista Review, and elsewhere. Find them at sghuertawriting.com. They believe Palestine will be free from the river to the sea.

Stalina Emmanuelle Villarreal (she/they) sees, hears, feels, and communicates across mediums and cultures. She’s a deep-watching ekphrastic poet, a photographic eco-essayist, a broad-stroke sketch artist, a sonic improv performer, a sound-sensitive literary translator, and an assistant professor of English. Her debut collection of poetry called Watcha is out now from Deep Vellum Publishing. Their poetry can be found in the Rio Grande Review, Texas Review, The Acentos Review, Defunkt Magazine, and elsewhere.