Admission: Vanessa Place published my third book with Les Figues. This does not make this essay invalid. It does not make my thinking invalid. It does not make my criticism or praise invalid.

Vanessa Place is a performance of Vanessa Place. I do not know the real Vanessa Place, and sometimes I wish she’d just stand up.

I think about Lady Gaga a lot, her performance. Does she ever wear sweats? I don’t own any sweats, either.