Lincoln Book Festival Review
The T in LGBT: Everything You Need to Know About Being Trans by Arlie Pallant
Arlie is a Creative Writing Student at the University of Lincoln, currently working on her debut fantasy novel. When not writing or wrangling her cats she’s probably trying a new tabletop game or making artisan dice.
Youtube and trans advocate Dr Jamie Raines took the stage at Lincoln Art Centre for a Q&A about his life and to promote his book: The T in LGBT: Everything You Need to Know About Being Trans.
Known for his candid and informative videos documenting his experiences as a trans man, Raines' visit drew a diverse audience eager to hear about his journey, both on and off the page.
The book started as a memoir of Jamie’s life, but he recounted, alongside his wife Shaaba, how it morphed into more of a handbook to help others. It includes sections on his life, support for allies, and navigating transition. The talk began about the behind-the-scenes of writing the book, including his most and least favourite moments to write and the sections he found the hardest and easiest.
However, what made the talk so poignant was how the Q&A format allowed three different voices to be heard on the deeper questions about trans rights and the trans community later. Jamie Raines led most of the questions, but his wife Shaaba, an openly bisexual Youtuber and musician, touched on a lot of the topics as both a trans ally and as someone who supported Jamie through writing. They also frequently passed questions back to the interviewer Ben Anderson, the gay creative and executive director of Lincoln Arts Centre for a third perspective.
Jamie’s style as a speaker was informal and engaging. He had a natural talent for making the crowd laugh without trying. He felt genuine on stage even through carefully worded statements on subjects like whether growing as a YouTube creator has made him feel more or less protected online.
However, my favourite answers were definitely hearing him speak of trans joy. He explained how easy it is for trans issues to become a big political debate about who deserves rights, and made a point to share the joy and domesticity of being trans as well, both in the talk and in his book. The final topic of the night was inviting the audience to share stories of trans joy and Shaaba shared a story where Jamie was about to meet an orangutan that supposedly hated men and how he’d said “Am I about to be outed as trans by an orangutan?!”
Seeing the love between Jamie and Shaaba on stage really touched me and my partner, as our dynamic of my partner being trans and me as a trans ally matched theirs. Hearing them mention the harder periods early in transition and how Shaaba so expertly added her view without ever speaking over Jamie made me feel understood.
I saw multiple people in the room through the talk sharing looks with those they went with or holding hands between the seats.
For many in the room, this event was about more than just a book Q&A, it was an opportunity to hear from someone who had educated us in our formative years, and for many the first openly trans person they’d heard of. The line for book signings wrapping around the theatre at the end was a testament to how many lives they have changed.
