THE HEART'S BLACKMARKET: A TRIBUTE TO JUSTIN CHIN

Justin Chin passed away on December 24th in San Francisco. Friends of and writers influenced by his perverse, hilarious, heartbreaking and fearless poetry gather to read works by, about and for him.  Readers include: Ali Liebegott, Beth Pickens, Tara Jepsen, Michelle Tea, Myriam Gurba, Ryka Aoki de la Cruz, Trebor Healey, Raquel Gutierrez and Clint Catalyst .

Ali Liebegott is the author of the book-length poem The Beautifully Worthless, and the novels The IHOP Papers and Cha-Ching! She writes for the Emmy award-winning television show Transparent. She is former Managing Director of RADAR Productions, and the founder of Writers Among Artists, a San Francisco-based queer literary non-profit which supported Justin's work.

Beth Pickens is the former Managing Director of RADAR Productions and oversaw Justin's time at the organization's writers' retreat and the awarding of a completion grant to Justin for his book 98 Wounds. She is a consultant to artists.

Tara Jepsen is the former host of K'Vetch, a weekly queer open mic hosted in a gay male bathhouse in San Francisco, which Justin was a frequent guest at. Her debut novel, Like a Dog, is forthcoming from Sister Spit Books / City Lights.

Michelle Tea is the author of the young adult books Mermaid in Chelsea Creek and Girl at the Bottom of the Sea, the memoir How to Grow Up, and other titles. She is the founder and former Executive Director of RADAR Productions. 

Myriam Gurba is the author of the story collections How Some Abuelitas Keep Their Chicana Granddaughters Still While Painting Their Portraits in Winter and Dahlia Season; the poetry collection Wish You Were Me and many self-published zines and chapbooks. 

Ryka Aoki de la Cruz is the author of the award-winning poetry chapbook Sometimes Too Hot the Eye of Heaven Shinesand the full-length volume Seasonal Velocities. She is a professor of English at Santa Monica College and of Queer Studies at Antioch University.

Trebor Healey is the author of A Horse Named Sorrow, Through it Came Bright Colors, Faun, and other works. He has received award from the Lambda Literary Foundation, the Publishing Triangle and the Violet Quill.

Raquel Gutierrez is the author of the chapbooks Running in Place: poems about INSTITUTIONALITY, #whiteboo andBreaking Up with Los Angeles. She has long been a writer and live performer, and is the publisher of Econo Textual Objects.

Clint Catalyst is the author of Cottonmouth Kisses and the co-editor of Pills, Thrills, Chills and Heartache: Adventures in the First Person. He is a writer, actor, spoken word performer and stylist.

Irene Suico Soriano is a Filipina American poet, Film & Literary Independent Curator and shelter animal advocate that focuses on geriatric and terminally ill animals that enter the LA city and county shelter system. She lives in Silver Lake with her three rescued dogs Cadi, Maxon & Papoo and wishes they could have met Justin even just once.