M. Kerlan (he/they) is a queer writer and artist living in central Illinois.
M. is a lover of books, language, and forms that jostle the boundaries of genre and craft.
His varied projects orbit impressions of love, gender, sexuality, libraries, mental health, & the everyday.
M. was formerly a child in upstate New York and later a young adult in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in creative nonfiction; gender, sexuality, & women’s studies; and children’s literature.
Recently, they moved out to Illinois to live in rural midwestern quiet with their wonderful partner and cats. He can be found somewhere making art and things out of words, reading, climbing rocks, or studying in pursuit of his master’s degree in library & information sciences.
recent publications
"Being Trans is Good, Actually" | Medium's Gender from the Trenches
"Standing on the Precipice of Myself" | Medium's Gender from the Trenches
"On Being Full of Spiders" | Medium's Gender from the Trenches
"On Seeking Joy in a Vacuum" | Pendemic (Ireland) | Pandemic (Netherlands) | Santa Fe Writer's Project Quarterly
"Thought Pollution: on Sanity in Crisis" | Another Chicago Magazine