I am proud to announce that my short story "People Like Us" is now available in We Deserve To Exist!
Based on the Kelly Clarkson song of the same name, People Like Us is set in a world without color, where mysterious entities have been seeking out and eliminating anyone who doesn't conform to their idea of what humanity should be.
This includes queer people and magic users, and my main character—a non-binary magic user—is doing their best to help people while also staying under the radar.
They are a psychopomp, a concept common in ancient mythology. Someone who can travel to the land of the dead, who often accompanies freshly deceased souls to make sure they arrive in the underworld.
My character does this for trans people. You see, gender dysphoria in this world makes you very visible to the bad people. It makes you colorful.
So they help people die, just temporarily, although there is often, unfortunately, the temptation to stay that way. And then they help the souls come back, into a new body that fits better.
But what happens when they meet the brightest, most rainbow colored non-binary child… who doesn't want a new body?
Content warnings for transphobia, gender dysphoria, death and resurrection, dead bodies not described in any detail, temporary suicide (if that is a thing?), suicidal ideation, and persecution of marginalized people.
But even with all of that darkness as its foundation, this is one of my most helpful and beautiful stories in my opinion.
Also, there is a very good dog in it.