Liam Klenk's Blog, page 29

Allow us to come home to Ourselves

An article I wrote for one person in particular (this is for you Lily!)

… but ultimately for all of us.

Read the full featured story here.

(Thank you Vada magazine!)

Honorable Mention for Paralian

Yay, Paralian has just received an honorable mention at this year’s Rainbow Awards. Read more here. I’m immensely happy. Big thanks to the Rainbow Awards judges!

Imagine …

“Some men are born in their bodies, others have to fight for it.”

This is not just another quote. Gender dysphoria unfortunately is a reality for many. I myself was struggling with it for many years until I finally transitioned from Stefanie to Liam when I was twenty-three years old. A weight, as unbearably heavy as the Himalayan mountain range resting on my shoulders, finally, amazingly, gave way to the weight of a feather the moment I took steps towards letting myself be the real me.

We transgender people don’t make these things up. It’s not a mood. It’s not a phase. We are not having a case of mental indigestion. We are, in all seriousness, not at home in our own bodies. We were born like this. Souls stranded in a wrongly-gendered physical shell. It simply happened, “luck of the draw”, through no fault of our own.

Once we understand who we truly are, all we want is to feel complete and be allowed to come home to ourselves.

Imagine being trapped in your own body…

In Paralian, I am trying to describe this profound forlornness…

(Excerpt taken from Chapter 10, “River Limmat”)

“As a child, I had instinctively known who I was but hadn’t been able to articulate that awareness. Over the years, the hormonal changes of my body, as well as the gender stereotypes reinforced all around me, had clouded my judgment and confused me. Longing to fit in, I had lost myself in stages as my gender identity became more and more obscured. It was as if I had been clutching my useless passport in hand while stranded in an increasingly isolated and ruined airport building. Windows had been boarded up. The electricity had failed step-by-step, leaving me in deepening darkness. But I had never stopped searching for exits, even while dodging the debris falling onto me from crumbling ceilings.”

Imagine…

“Some men are born in their bodies, others have to fight for it.”

This is not just another quote. Gender dysphoria unfortunately is a reality for many. I myself was struggling with it for many years until I finally transitioned from Stefanie to Liam when I was twenty-three years old. A weight, as unbearably heavy as the Himalayan mountain range resting on my shoulders, finally, amazingly, gave way to the weight of a feather the moment I took steps towards letting myself be the real me.

We transgender people don’t make these things up. It’s not a mood. It’s not a phase. We are not having a case of mental indigestion. We are, in all seriousness, not at home in our own bodies. We were born like this. Souls stranded in a wrongly-gendered physical shell. It simply happened, “luck of the draw”, through no fault of our own.

Once we understand who we truly are, all we want is to feel complete and be allowed to come home to ourselves.

Imagine being trapped in your own body…

In Paralian, I am trying to describe this profound forlornness…

(Excerpt taken from Chapter 10, “River Limmat”)

“As a child, I had instinctively known who I was but hadn’t been able to articulate that awareness. Over the years, the hormonal changes of my body, as well as the gender stereotypes reinforced all around me, had clouded my judgment and confused me. Longing to fit in, I had lost myself in stages as my gender identity became more and more obscured. It was as if I had been clutching my useless passport in hand while stranded in an increasingly isolated and ruined airport building. Windows had been boarded up. The electricity had failed step-by-step, leaving me in deepening darkness. But I had never stopped searching for exits, even while dodging the debris falling onto me from crumbling ceilings.”

Silver Award for Paralian

Busy day today



Just now Paralian received a Silver Award from The Hungry Monster Book Review. To say it in the Monster’s own voice, “The Silver Award is bestowed on books that expertly deliver complex characters, intricate worlds, and thought provoking themes. The ease with which the story is told is a reflection of the author’s talent in exercising fluent, powerful, and appropriate language.” More here.

This marks the 3rd award Paralian has received from book review platforms in the last 6 months!

– Book of the month by Bookbag.co.uk

– Recommended Read by Bookmuse UK

and now the

– Silver Award by The Hungry Monster Book Review

I’ll celebrate a bit tonight with my soulmate, three very hairy cats, and a bit of white wine.

If you haven’t done so yet, please help to take this one step further and vote for Paralian to get shortlisted for the People’s Book Prize. Please vote here.

It only takes a minute to register and leave your vote

Thanks so much in advance. Your support means a lot!

A Chat With Hungry Monsters

Great interview was just published online!

Take a moment and have a look here.

Thanks to the Hungry Monsters for devouring my book and for taking the time to chat with me after!

Exciting New Imprint Just Launched

Just now, an exciting new imprint – Queer Pack – was launched!

I am delighted and proud to be a part of it. Even better, Paralian has the special honour to be the very first book to be published by Queer Pack. I couldn’t be happier (beaming author sitting on couch with purring cats on lap). Have a look at Queer Pack’s brand new website and first blog post. And watch that space. Great things will be coming!

Remembering Oma

Remembering my dear oma, who was born on this day in 1909 and passed away on 26th of December, 1996. What would I have done without you?

“Frida carried herself with dignity. She was delicate, and small, but very strong. When she made spaetzle, a Southern German pasta delicacy, the recipe called for her to beat the dough continuously for half an hour. She did so without a problem while I barely managed five minutes before it felt as if my arm was falling off. Her skin felt like soft, warm leather with thousands of fine wrinkles. When she smiled, her entire face seemed to shine with her strong but tender soul.

My dear oma (as we lovingly call our grandmas in Germany) was modest. All of her clothes were handmade. Her kitchen was cozy and stocked with very few items for herself. The shelf dedicated for me overflowed with cookies and other delicacies she knew I loved. Oma was calm and had a German proverb for every occasion. The one I still remind myself of, whenever life seems to spiral out of control, is: “The stew is never eaten as hot as it is cooked.” Sometimes Oma got upset. On those occasions she would clap her hands together above her head and exclaim, “Ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay-ay!” The effect would be so comical, I wouldn’t know what to do – laugh at her or fold my arms around her in an attempt to comfort her. When Frida listened to me, the world stood still and gave me a chance to catch my breath. When she took me in her arms, I felt safe and loved unconditionally.

Frida was my guiding star. She was strict, yet generous. She was serious, yet had a beautiful sense of humor. Most importantly, she was loyal and had the biggest heart of anyone I have ever known. She became my knight, or rather, dame in shining armor and made it her purpose in life to make time for me whenever Konrad and Hildegard did not. She quietly saved my soul, by being an indestructible protectress who was always there no matter what happened to me, no matter what I did, no matter how devastated she felt herself. My oma became the only rock in the raging tide, keeping me sane throughout my childhood and teenage years.”

(Excerpt from Paralian, Chapter 3, “North Sea”)

You’re always with me, never to be forgotten.

Bookmuse Review of Paralian

Wonderful review of Paralian by Bookmuse.

Take a timeout from whatever you’re doing right now and read it here

Bucket List

What will the future bring … ? I don’t care much about amassing material wealth but, oh wow, my head is spinning just thinking of all the points on my bucket list…

The six most important ones have been fulfilled already:

– travel the world and live abroad

– become a professional scuba diver

– spend lots of time underwater

– write a book about my life journey

– find my soul mate

– be happy

But may I be greedy? There are quite a few more points on that list tickling my consciousness:

– write many books

– travel to all Pacific islands

– travel more of the world

– spend more time underwater

– see Galapagos

– learn to fly a plane

– jump out of a plane (preferably with a parachute)

– find a tiny house somewhere at the ocean

– escape the grind by keeping a low standard of living

– have less instead of more

– give a TED talk

– make a real difference

– never stop living life to the fullest

Lots to do then looking ahead. And of course to not forget to enjoy the present with all my heart, too!