My Bubbe used to say that until the bears had their own historians, the tales of the hunt would always glorify the hunter.
As a fat storyteller, I seek to glorify the hunt on the bear’s terms. All my life my fat body has caused people to speak for me, about me and against me. Telling my stories and reading the stories of other fat folks has shown me the transformational and healing power of flipping the script.
Who can hold you through your pain, your laughter, your confusion and your celebrations like those who experience similar embodiments?
Hot & Heavy: Fat Fierce Girls on Life, Love and Fashion is an anthology edited by a fat superhero named Virgie Tovar. A woman who sparkles, loves and fights for fatties with every fiber of her being. She’s phenomenal, not of this world and doing such amazing work.
Hot & Heavy is the warmth of a hug, the salt of tears and the strength of a swift kick in 5inch heels and most importantly, that reminder that fat means never having to say you’re sorry.
Our power comes from our tales of pain from the too tight jeans, the day we finally found a lover who traced the iridescent sparkle of our stretch marks in worship, the taste of our first guilt free bite of cheesecake or what it felt like to fight back at the words of hate constantly spewed at our big bodies.
Our power as fat bodies will come from us remembering our humanity, our community and our ability to survive. It will come from sharing our stories.
I will say this anthology focuses on fat cis folks who identify as women. For my loved ones and readers who do not find themselves in these stories, I highly encourage you to write and share so that you may give strength to others and honour your struggles and growth. My hope is that we’re working towards a future where a mutiplicity of stories and embodiments and experiences can be shared and celebrated.
Go buy this book and share with the fat loved ones in your life the power of seeing your story in another <3 (click the picture to take you to the Amazon page! it’s only $10 too!)
*photo of me by Fleetwood Legay
