Meet Teghan Hammond

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Teghan Hammond a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Teghan, so great to have you with us and we want to jump right into a really important question. In recent years, it’s become so clear that we’re living through a time where so many folks are lacking self-confidence and self-esteem. So, we’d love to hear about your journey and how you developed your self-confidence and self-esteem.

I was about 13 when I realized that I am transgender. At the time, I had never met another person like me. I had just found that being trans was possible. The messages I heard about being queer at all were very negative, so I didn’t come out to anyone until I was an adult. Thinking of myself as something unlovable destroyed my confidence at that young age before it could really develop. After hiding myself for years, I finally met another trans person outside of the internet. I was ecstatic. Seeing him have acceptance from our friends was a big help, and pretty soon I wasn’t scared to express my feelings and explore myself. I decided to spend a summer in Seattle, working for a queer nonprofit, where I truly got to see stories of queer and trans joy. I came back to the Midwest with a stronger sense of self and a new confidence in my path. I would come out to my family, my school, and the world as trans without fear. From that day on I had a new love for myself and so much confidence, all thanks to being able to live my genuine life. That’s why I want to create stories that inspire and show young queer people that it’s okay to have joy and live authentically.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

Mel and I are gearing up for Lucy, Uncensored to launch in October! We are working with our publicist to set up 2 book launch parties, which I am super excited about. I want the word to really get out there so our novel is widely available for young people who are trying to find their place and have queer joy within a society that too often abuses us.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

Growing up queer, it took a lot of resilience to deal with the bullying, the hate from media, and the hate I internalized. I learned to love myself despite all the negative around me. I just kept pushing forward knowing that one day I would find my place. Empathy, too, was vital. Whenever there was hostility against anyone in my life, my empathy let me connect with other outcasts and find my little chosen family.
And lastly, I’d say my culinary skills were a big help. I could not have gotten this far without good food and good coffee fueling me

Who has been most helpful in helping you overcome challenges or build and develop the essential skills, qualities or knowledge you needed to be successful?

Mel! She has always been my strongest ally, helping me come out to our parents, supporting me as best she could, sending me a hundred stories of trans joy. Writing our novel together, she is the one with the background as an author. She taught me so many tools and really brought me to a place of being able to create a good work of fiction. I would say my writing is very much me, but I model myself after Mel quite a bit. She is my inspiration!

Contact Info:

• Instagram: teghanandromeda

Image Credits

Book cover created by Venessa Vida Kelley