Winter A. Chen is a transgender Singaporean Chinese poet, performer, and artist based in London. She loves learning K-Pop choreography and playing an unhealthy amount of League of Legends. Her words can be found at whispersinwinter.wordpress.com

the stiletto poem: a ‘sharpened’ duplex

winter chen

In the hands of a queen,
a poem is a stiletto.

My poems are stiletto nails
growing like crystal claws

in the dark. I crystallised my glowing
heart into a sharp object.

I love playing with sharp objects,
feeling the edges where a word or line

break cuts deep. Wordlessly edging,
I bring all the bad boys to heel.

What makes a good heel?
Nothing less than eight inches

Nothing more powerful in chess
than a queen & her middle finger to fate.