Daniel Wilkinson/Expanded writings
My expanded writing practice is rooted in the assembly of archives through pseudogender queer pseudonyms, a method I term writing in drag. This approach is not merely an act of fictionalisation but a deliberate construction of believable realities—immersing in the lived experience of imagined identities. Through diaries, images, books, and ephemera, I weave together narratives that anticipate the past, reimagine queer histories, and speculate on alternative futures. Each pseudonymous character exists in response
to their given time and environment, shaping a layered exploration of identity, perception, and historical absence.
Currently, my research is focused on the intricate relationship between the senses and how they influence our understanding of past events. At the core of this lies the intersection of queerness and sensory experience—how both shape and inform the charged, evocative history of queer communities, and the struggle to be seen and heard. Sensory perception, often overlooked
in traditional historiography, holds the power to unlock hidden queer narratives, revealing how bodies, spaces, and memories are coded, distorted, and reclaimed.
My latest publication, Peonies Are Impossible, examines these ideas through a shared memory of a plate of steaming brown gnocchi—an ephemeral moment rendered significant through recollection and narrative layering. The text draws on fairy-tale archetypes and mischievous storytelling,
set against the imagined landscape of the Blue Mountains, a metaphorical domain inspired by Derek Jarman’s Blue. Through a series of topsy-turvy scenarios, the writing dismantles heteronormative bias and questions whether an ideal-real for queer identity can exist within imposed structures.
Looking ahead, I aim to expand this research, using various mediums further to articulate the connections between queerness and sensory expression.
My work continues to examine how queer lives and experiences are shaped by the senses, offering new perspectives on how we navigate, resist, and inscribe meaning onto the world around us. Through expanded writing,
I seek to challenge fixed narratives and bring to light the sensory dimensions of queer existence—how we remember, how we perceive,
and how we write ourselves into being.
Examples of my writing: Zinzan Hand
Zinzan Hand (1690 - 2000)
My work centres on the construction of pseudogender queer characters and their worlds, exploring how their existence challenges contemporary understandings of sex, social class, and literacy. Through Zinzan Hand—an intersex figure, economically and socially displaced, and a counterpoint to Virginia Woolf’s indulged Orlando—I examine how queer identity was articulated across different eras, shaped by both historical constraints and possibilities. This research is not only about reconstructing the past but also about questioning how such narratives could—or should—be presented today.
At the heart of this inquiry is an engagement with experimental expanded writing, a practice that moves beyond conventional textual forms. This includes non-verbal representations—drawing, illustration, and sound notation—that offer a more fluid, sensory-based approach to storytelling. By incorporating these elements, I seek to stretch the boundaries of how queer histories are written, remembered and reimagined.
The first book in this series will be available in the summer of 2025.
A vase of flowers with a fish on a dish. Fiona Sarison, 1961
The following text from Peonies are impossible, 2023.
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