Why is Poop Political?

•October 20, 2025 • Leave a Comment

On Saturday, President Trump posted an AI generated video of himself in a fighter jet wearing crown dumping shit onto the No Kings protestors. Around the same time, something was cooking in my brain about sentient poop. The feces, having become sentient, was in rebellion against humanity and seeking autonomy. And so I wrote this poem (which you will find in the soon-to-be released “Doodoodality: Shots Fired From Uranus”)

Once the turds gained sentience
They expressed great resentment
At comparison to a certain President
Who was often called orange excrement

“What an insult that is to fecal matter,
For even the most petite shit splatter
Nourishes plants, and gives insects food
Which is why we consider it incredibly rude
To compare us to such a self-centered dude.”

Now, some of you may be wondering why I’m writing about the fecalarity, an event where fecal matter becomes sentient, and writing a freaking poetry chapbook about it with my karaoke metal band NypSlyp.

Well, the fact is, poop is political… 46% of the global population lacks access to safely managed sanitation, and 1/3rd lack access to safe drinking water. The stillsuits Fremen wore in Frank Herbert’s Dune pressed the 75% of water out of solid waste, although that’s often glossed over in movies based on the book, which tend to focus on sweat and urine, because a lot of people think poop is gross.

When Pooet Laureate Anton Cancre – the editor of Haipoo: Poospectives in Pooetry, invited me to participate in his upcoming multiauthor haipoo collection Haipoo: 2 Poo 2 Furious, I was delighted. Scatalogical humor is hilarious, juvenile, liberating, and a fertile territory for politcal humor, which is why there are so many jokes about the orange turd in office.

I asked if my karaoke metal band NypSlyp could collaborate, and as the sometimes horrified staff of the Mint Karaoke Lounge will tell you, all three members of NypSlyp are obsessed with feces and love talking about crap. As a matter of fact, that’s part of why and how our original commitment to create 10 haipoo grew into an additional chapbook filled with limmershits and other forms of pooetry focusing on the fecalarity – the sentience of poop.

My dear wifey Skunkheart Chris Hughes literally worships a shit goddess and wrote this pithy haipoo about the actual value of something people think of as having no worth:

Question: what else grows
Our food and our flowers, if
Not our holy shit?

Feces is the basis of food-growing fertilizer, a renewable source energy (biofuel, and methane gas), and even certain life-saving medical technology like Fecal Microbiota Transplants (FMT). Trace metals are extracted from feces. There are many examples of human and animal feces being used to create bricks, or silt to bind bricks together, in construction. Raising infants and toddlers means being comforable with feces, as does having most kinds of pets.

The third member of NypSlyp, the mysterious Backup, known for his creamy mudslides, has deep thoughts on the sentience of feces:

Tao of Poop
If a turd gets cut in half,
does it turn into two sentient turds,
like an earthworm?
What if a little splatter of shit
goes on one side of the toilet?
Is it alive?

Learn more about NypSlyp and The Fecalarity this Halloween, when Doodooality: Shots from Uranus debuts in bookstores and bathrooms near you. And look our 10 haipoo excretion into Anton’s amazing and long-awaited, star-studded volume of pooetry, Haipoo: 2 Poo 2 Furious in Spring of 2026!

*** photo is of a 3D printed poop emoji (printed by Backup), lounging atop a cocktail glass at The Mint Karaoke Lounge. Photo was taken by Sumiko Saulson.

enjoying your life is a subversive act

•October 16, 2025 • 1 Comment

This is perhaps a controversial opinion, but I think that enjoying your life is a subversive act when you’re part of intersectional groups that are under attack by the government.

And even though I haven’t seen it stated this way by others, I’m pretty sure that I’m not the only one feeling it.

Me and Princess had a big fairy wedding, and I noticed that over the last week another couple in our community had a big fairy wedding. I feel like big queer fairy weddings are pretty much flipping the middle finger at Trump and all of his bullshit. Like we’re out here experiencing queer joy and y’all can’t stop it.

My fellow by BIPOC horror poets are out there killing it right now and every time I see one of them winning I feel like it is joy and resistance in the same package. Like we’re out here living our best life while the government’s trying to stop us out of existence. All of my LGBTQ and BIPOC authors out there doing their thing, the artists, the cartoonists, the zine makers. Making art as a form of resistance like the hippies did it and the punk rockers did it in days of lore, days I’m old enough to remember in the case of punk rock, like rappers did it selling mixtapes out of the trunk of their car.

Every single one of my three sweeties in my polycule is out there getting gender reassignment surgery and I feel like that’s people living their best life and pretty much doing it despite the fact that the government is mounting up its forces to oppress us. Like we’re doing what we do and people feel like an urgency to do it now before the government tries to stop us, but even with that urgency there is a pure joy in living authentically.

I think that the open threats against our way of life is part of why people are really feeling more than ever motivated to hold on to whatever joy we can.

And that doesn’t mean that we aren’t out there protesting. That doesn’t mean we are out there voting. That doesn’t mean that we aren’t actively resisting in other ways like making political zines and stickers and disseminating subversive literature. It just means that we’re keeping up our strength for the fight by making sure that we center our happiness in difficult times.

The photo from Princess and Sumiko’s wedding was taken by Tiffany Eilat 

My Year in Poetry! Nine Anthologies I’m In.

•October 2, 2025 • Leave a Comment

Here is a round of the collections, anthologies, and magazines I’ve had poetry published in over the past year (it includes two December 2024 publications and the rest are 2025 to date). Proud to have had the opportunity to work with so many wonderful editors and to be a part of so many important, amazing, creative, fun and relevant works. Here are what they are and where to find them:

“The Bones of My Poetry Crack,” in the StokerCon Souvenir Anthology, Burial Day Books, June 2025, edited by Danielle Ackley-McPhail https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/236598978-stokercon-2025-souvenir-anthology

“Monstrous,” “Ghost in my Heart,”, “A Consumption of Cancer” and “Heartbreaker,” in The Horror Zine Magazine Fall 2025, The Horror Zine Books, August 12, 2025,, edited by Jeani Rector https://www.amazon.com/Horror-Zine-Magazine-Fall-2025/dp/B0FM8453H4/

“My Ghosts Have Dreams,” This Way Lies Madness (Beyond and Within), Flame Tree Collections, October 14, 2025, edited by Lee Murray and Dave Jeffery
https://www.amazon.com/This-Lies-Madness-Beyond-Within/dp/180417906X

“A Rise in Red” in Nightmerica: Corruptions of the American Dream, Dragon’s Roost Press, July 4, 2025, edited by Amanda Worthington
https://www.amazon.com/Nightmerica-Corruptions-American-Amanda-Worthington/dp/1956824685

“Canticle of the Cosmic Vampire,” in Spacefunk!, MVmedia, LLC, January 25, 2025, edited by Milton Davis https://www.mvmediaatl.com/product-page/spacefunk

“Heal Me With Your Purr,” in Black Cat Tales: An Anthology of Black Cats, Black Cat Publishing, June 2025 edited by Francesca Maria and Mark S Causey https://geni.us/blackcattales

“When We Laid Down Our Arms” in Don’t Ask, Ghosts Tell: An LGBTQ+ Horror Anthology, Tundra Swan Press, June 2025 edited by Vince Liaguno and Sirrah Medeiros https://www.amazon.com/Dont-Ask-Ghosts-Tell-Anthology/dp/1965712010/

“The Must of Your Body Covers Me” in Dark Spores: Stories We Tell After Midnight Volume 4, December 2024, edited by Carol Gyzander and Rachel a Brune
https://www.amazon.com/Dark-Spores-Stories-After-Midnight/dp/1952388155/

“Should I Worry Myself To Death?” in Sleeve of Hearts edited by Lindsey Goddard
https://www.amazon.com/Sleeve-Hearts-Lindsey-Goddard-ebook/dp/B0DRP7S8FJ

Throwback Press Clip from 1987!

•July 28, 2025 • Leave a Comment

From the Tenderloin Times, October 1987

Demonic Art Possesses the 509

by Preston Brady HI

Art was frightening, so scary that I some passers-by were afraid to enter, ^even in broad daylight. But three neighborhood artists, Mars, Saito, and Sumiko Saulson weren’t about to settle for simply hanging some paintings on the walls. They completely transformed the 509 Cultural Center on Ellis Street into a live museum in the group show, “A Haunting Collection of Art Overshadowed by the Macabre.”

These three Hospitality House art students set the mood for their September 20 exhibition with ghostly music. On a small stage, each artist had designed what resembled an altar. Watched over by a faceless mannequin in a black dress, the altars included candles, incense, brass goblets, and chains. Saito’s altar, entitled “Isabella’s Hair,” even included what appeared to be real human hair.

Saulson’s altar was entitled “The Altar of the Fickle Worshipper,” and Mars’ was called “Past, Present and Future in a Roundabout Way.”

However dramatic the overall presentation of the show, some of the paintings succeeded in their own right. Saito’s “Gates to the Beyond” is a stunning rainbow of pastels blending water, sky and crescent moon in a series of three panels.

My favorite piece was Saito’s “Isabella Sands,” a beautiful, realistic pastel on a par with the work of well known Tenderloin artist Rose Linda. According to Saito, “Isabella Sands was a woman who in 1735 was accused of being a witch, but the truth of that matter was the family was very poor. So in order that their daughter be able to show herself worthy in society, she learned from old manuscripts she had found.”

Other outstanding pieces included “Face,” “Victim,” “Paisley Hell,” and “Jesus in the Infrared Garden,” by Sumiko Saulson, and “Phoenix Enigma,” by Mars.

Come See Me at BayCon!

•June 30, 2025 • Leave a Comment

Here’s my BayCon Panel Schedule:

Panel TitleDateStart TimeEnd TimeLocation
It was a Dark and Stormy Night: The Birth of Frankenstein7/4/20252:45 PM4:00 PMSierra
Performing Speculative and Horror Poetry7/4/20252:15 PM5:30 PMNewport Beach
Quoth the Raven: Historical and Contemporary Speculative Poetry7/4/202510:00 PM11:15 PMSequioa
A Raisin In The Sun: Harlem Renaissance and The Roots of AfroSurrealist Poetry7/5/202511:30:0012:45:00Afrosurrealism Lounge
Who Put These Monsters in My Romance? All about monster romance7/5/20252:15 PM3:30 PMSierra Room
Poe-etic Ponderings: Influences of Poe on Horror and Other Dark Speculative Poetry7/5/20255:15 PM6:30 PMSierra
Joystick to Screen: The Rise of Horror Video Games on Television7/5/20258:00 PM9:15 PMSequioa
Problematic Favorites7/7/20252:15 PM3:30 PMPonderosa

The Green Hornet & Kato: Detroit Noir City Kickstarter Launching Soon!

•January 23, 2025 • Leave a Comment

Greetings Denizens of the Night:

It is with delight that I share the good news that we’re about 10 days out from the launch of the Kickstarter for The Green Hornet & Kato: Detroit Noir City, a new anthology from Moonstone, edited David Boop, featuring new stories with the heroes of print, comic books, radio, and television The Green Hornet & Kato, along with the usual cast of characters and some all new ones you’re sure to love.

I am so proud that my story, Blind Pig Shakedown, which centers the African American civil rights movement and takes place during the Long Hot Summer of 1967 against the backdrop of the 12th Street Riots, will appear alongside stories by Timothy Zahn & Kevin J. Anderson, Matthew Baugh, Keith R.A. DeCandido, Mary Fan, Michael Haspil, Megan Mackie, Kim May, James A. Moore, and Bill Willingham

The hard-hitting story takes place in the muggy days ramping up to the riot, and puts DA Frank Scanlon, the Green Hornet and Kato up front and center during the historic events and well-documented racial profiling and police corruption that fueled the riots.Above – along with the Green Hornet logo – are Creative Commons images from the 1967 Detroit Riots, which started out at a speakeasy known as a blind pig. Photo credits are US Federal Bureau of Investigation, Phil Cherner, and Sekai.

The Green Hornet & Kato: Detroit Noir City also features a stunning cover by Matt Wagner, a legendary artist in the world of comics. STAY TUNED FOR THE OFFICIAL COVER REVEAL!

Follow the campaign TODAY and JOIN US for Detroit Noir where the Green Hornet and Kato will have their newest adventures brought to you by some of the best authors of this century. The campaign will be opening soon with some great rewards!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/greenhornet/green-hornet-noir

My Schedule at Necronomicon!

•August 3, 2024 • 1 Comment


Friday August 16, 11:00 AM – 12:30 PM

Gender and Weird Fiction, Gender As Weird Fiction — Biltmore Ballroom, Graduate 17th Floor. 

A discussion of the intersection of gender identity and presentation with weird fiction, film, gaming, and arts. Panelists: Juicy Garland, Khôra Martel (M), Sumiko Saulson, Trisha Wooldridge

Saturday August 17, 9:30 – 10:45 AM

Freaky Black Art: History and Contributions of Black Women and Black Nonbinary Authors in Horror and the Weird – Biltmore Ballroom, Graduate Hotel, 17th floor

Panelists discuss the history and contributions of Black Nonbinary and Black Women writers to horror and weird fiction from the Harlem Renaissance to today, highlighting major authors, trends, and milestones. Conversations will focus on Afrosurrealism, the politics of the racial weird, and how key figures influence (or don’t influence) their work. Panelists: Paula D. Ashe (M), Michelle Renee Lane, Hysop Mulero, Zin E. Rocklyn, Sumiko Saulson, Sheree Renée Thomas

Saturday August 17, 2:00 – 3:15 PM

Transgressive Horror and Weird Fiction – Biltmore Ballroom, Graduate Hotel, 17th floor

Panelists discuss the history and significance of transgressive fiction, a movement that rejects societal conventions and portrays behavior and ideas that may shock or disturb, tracing the lineage of the transgressive with an emphasis on weird and horror  fiction from the 1980s to present. Panelists: Paula D. Ashe, Matthew Cheney (M), Nicole Cushing, Scott Dwyer, Billy Martin, Sumiko Saulson, LC von Hessen

Saturday August 17, 5:00 – 6:15 PM

AUTHOR READINGS — Narragansett Bayview Room, Graduate Hotel, 17th floor

POETRY BLOCK: Adam Bolivar, Billy Martin, Branden O’Brien, Sumiko Saulson, Brian Thao Worra, Meg Smith

Also come see me Book Signing at the Outer Dark table in the Dealer’s Room 3pm – 6pm Friday, and 12 Noon to 2pm Sunday

My schedule at Readercon!

•July 12, 2024 • Leave a Comment

Here’s my schedule for Readercon!

Convincing Your Book Club to Read Speculative Fiction (Friday—today!—at 1pm in Salon A)


EuroDivergence: BIPOC in Community Discuss Alternative Storytelling (Friday 7pm)


Solo reading on Friday 8pm, Blue Hills


Beyond Afrofuturism (Saturday at 1pm)


The Expanding Universe of Speculative Poetry (Saturday at 3pm)

Melancholia is Out!

•July 6, 2024 • Leave a Comment


Dark rhymes and deep thoughts send you on a dive through the void as you read this intensely personal poetry collection. Melancholia will send you into worlds both beyond and within, opening your eyes to truths often left untold in this world and challenging you with the harsh realities and injustices of life, without abandoning the darkly comforting magic that can be found in the shadows.

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Melancholia: A Book of Dark Poetry is out on Bludgeoned Girls Press.

You can pick it up at the Liminal Fiction booth this weekend at BayCon this weekend

Reviews:Angela Yuriko Smith on Ko-Fi wrote:

Sumiko Saulson has once again dared to submerge into dark and twisted realms to resurface with new poems to challenge. Nothing is taboo in this exploration of the mind and what makes us kick, mourn and find the melancholia that waits for us all. Saulson’s poetry invites us to confront the things we try not to think about and embrace the specters within. An intensely profoundly moving poetry collection that speaks of personal truths often left untold while fearlessly confronting our shadow self without flinching.

Rain Graves, Bram Stoker Award Winning author of Barfodder wrote:

“Sumiko Saulson’s storytelling reaches up from the depths of death, through the sediment of time, catching beams of light in Melancholia: A Book of Dark Poetry. From classic monsters, ghosts, dark fantasy, and urban fairytales to the pain and anguish of everyday modern and sci-fi life, there is much to read between the lines. Their personal struggles, strength and shedding light on tough issues are all beautiful, savory blood on the page.”

My Final BayCon Schedule

•June 23, 2024 • Leave a Comment

Thursday 4 July, 2024

Time Zone: (GMT-08:00) Pacific Time (US & Canada)

BoF Urban Fantasy and/or Romantasy

 4:15 PM – 5:30 PM | 1 hour 15 minutes

Santa Clara Marriott – Ponderosa

Which Dystopia Are We In?

 5:45 PM – 7:00 PM | 1 hour 15 minutes

Santa Clara Marriott – Sierra

Speed Friending

 10:00 PM – 11:15 PM | 1 hour 15 minutes

Santa Clara Marriott – Main Stage

Friday 5 July, 2024

Time Zone: (GMT-08:00) Pacific Time (US & Canada)

Writing Beyond Trauma

 10:30 AM – 11:45 AM | 1 hour 15 minutes

Santa Clara Marriott – Writer’s Workshop

A World of Pure Imagination: Mythopoeia Across Genres

 12:00 PM – 1:15 PM | 1 hour 15 minutes

Santa Clara Marriott – Monterey

Introduction to Interactive Literature

 2:45 PM – 4:00 PM | 1 hour 15 minutes

Santa Clara Marriott – Ponderosa

Poetry in Speculative Fiction (103)/Performing Speculative and Horror Poetry

 8:30 PM – 9:45 PM | 1 hour 15 minutes

Santa Clara Marriott – Writer’s Workshop

Saturday 6 July, 2024

Time Zone: (GMT-08:00) Pacific Time (US & Canada)

Imaginary Lovers: When Fantasy Intersects With Romance

 8:30 PM – 9:45 PM | 1 hour 15 minutes

Santa Clara Marriott – Ponderosa