First Draft Theater

Jackson Bird

The online rehearsal space for semi-retired influencer and wannabe historian, Jackson Bird, to explore unexpected connections, overlooked stories, and the past and future of our changing world. Some of it may one day become a second draft. firstdrafttheater.substack.com

Episodes

  1. 10/30/2025

    Halloween as Queer Resistance

    On this All Hallow's Eve Eve, I'm diving into the history of Halloween—specifically its ties to social inversion, political action, and contradictions—to investigate why it is that gay people seem to love Halloween so much. Also, holy bad audio, Batman. I got a new mixer and did a terrible job adjusting the levels. If I weren't trying to get this episode out in time for Halloween, I would've re-recorded to save your ears. So thanks for bearing with me on this one. Links mentioned: Get the full works cited at http://patreon.com/jacksonbird One of several wonderful obituaries of David J. Skal https://archive.ph/ADZm0 David J. Skal's books https://www.librarything.com/author/skaldavidj My latest appearance on Harry Potter and the Sacred Text https://www.harrypottersacredtext.com/episodes/every-once-in-a-while-we-like-to-take-step-back- Everything I've said to condemn Harry Potter https://www.jacksonbird.cool/single-post/almost-everything-i-ve-said-publicly-about-harry-potter-and-the-author-who-torched-her-legacy Join my Stitch Streams on Mondays at 6 PM ET http://twitch.tv./jackisnotabird Music courtesy of Epidemic Sound. They're an amazing resource for creators. Want in? Use my referral link to sign up and I'll get a li'l kick back: https://www.epidemicsound.com/referral/37uu44 Get full access to First Draft Theater at firstdrafttheater.substack.com/subscribe

    26 min

  2. 06/27/2025

    Hello from JOMO-ville 👋🏻

    How to experience the joy of missing out. L I N K S M E N T I O N E D JOMO proliferations: - First book: https://bookshop.org/a/826/9780865717671 - App: https://jomo.so/ - Song by Eric Hutchinson: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQFhOQHCaUM - Movement: https://experiencejomo.com/ - Comic: https://www.leunig.com.au/works/recent-cartoons/769-jomo JOMO citations: - https://health.clevelandclinic.org/jomo-the-joy-of-missing-out - https://www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/2024/01/04/fomo-jomo-joy-missing-out/ - https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0033294120980970 Other: - https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2024/08/same-sex-couples-geographic-variation.html - ‘How to Read a Book’: https://bookshop.org/p/books/how-to-read-a-book-revised-and-updated-mortimer-j-adler/1408400?ean=9780671212094&next=t&affiliate=826 - ‘Into the Unknown: Making Frozen 2’ Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vQPPEka0ls - Type 2 Fun: https://www.rei.com/blog/climb/fun-scale - “What is Trans JOMO?” by Flint Del Sol: https://substack.com/@justflintisfine/p-160260900 - Trans day of Staying In and Having a Nice Snack: https://www.instagram.com/p/CNEx3k1BHUl/?hl=en End Notes: - ‘The Sirens’ Call’ by Chris Hayes: https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-sirens-call-how-attention-became-the-world-s-most-endangered-resource-chris-hayes/21744711?ean=9780593653111&next=t&affiliate=826 - ‘Slow Productivity’ by Cal Newport: https://bookshop.org/p/books/slow-productivity-the-lost-art-of-accomplishment-without-burnout-cal-newport/20143790?ean=9780593544853&next=t&affiliate=826 - ‘The Power of Ritual’ by Casper ter Kuile: https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-power-of-ritual-turning-everyday-activities-into-soulful-practices-casper-ter-kuile/18996866?ean=9780062881823&next=t&affiliate=826 - Many resources on tech shabbats by Tiffany Shlain: https://www.tiffanyshlain.com/tech-shabbat - “An Obituary for Reading the Internet” by Anne Helen Peterson: https://annehelen.substack.com/p/an-obituary-for-reading-the-internet - Mozilla’s announcement about shutting down Pocket: https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/future-of-pocket Jack of All Trades: - SciShow Tangents Poetry Collection’: **https://complexly.store/products/tangents-poetry-collection - My short video about what I learned my first winter in New England: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Xa851HYV3vc - My long video about why I left NYC: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCtjoE7jAD0&feature=youtu.be - Get in touch with my speaking bureau: https://www.freshspeakers.com/speakers/jackson-bird/ - Or email me directly at jacksonbirdbiz@gmail.com Follow me: - http://firstdrafttheater.substack.com - http://jacksonbird.cool - http://youtube.com/jackisnotabird - http://instagram.com/jackisnotabird - https://bsky.app/profile/jackisnotabird.cool - http://twitch.tv/jackisnotabird Get full access to First Draft Theater at firstdrafttheater.substack.com/subscribe

    33 min

  3. 11/09/2024

    "Nobody can take away from you who you are."

    Post-election thoughts on coping and not waiting for permission Links: Transgender History: The Roots of Today's Revolution by Susan Stryker: https://bookshop.org/p/books/transgender-history-the-roots-of-today-s-revolution-susan-stryker/7605046?ean=9781580056892 Loren Rex Cameron tribute service: https://vimeo.com/854714199 Body Alchemy by Loren Rex Cameron https://archive.org/details/2023-07-24-64becdf-6d-94be-transsexualportraitsfull-compressed Recommendations: The reFRESH newsletter on Substack: https://refreshnewsletter.substack.com/ FRESH Labs' The Green Room podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/freshlabsthegreenroom/episodes/Episode-3--Shannon-Watts---How-your-flaws-can-be-your-superpower-e2pi10f Ahsante Bean's democracy video series: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kqUsmlaOefY Shakespeare In a Divided America by James Shapiro: https://bookshop.org/p/books/shakespeare-in-a-divided-america-what-his-plays-tell-us-about-our-past-and-future-james-shapiro/12077112?ean=9780525522317 Small excerpt of the chapter I mentioned: https://lithub.com/shakespeare-and-the-culture-wars-on-the-movement-for-color-blind-casting/ What I've Been Up To: My latest video, about moving and big life changes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCtjoE7jAD0 Selected short-form videos: - My 2023 Twilight phase (Instagram version) - The unexpected hobby I took up after the podcast ended (Instagram version) - This top-recommended Halloween destination is also one of my favorites to visit for Christmas (Instagram version) - A fun way to track the books you read in a year (Instagram version) - A 2-for-1 Ghostbusters travel recommendation (Instagram version) Get full access to First Draft Theater at firstdrafttheater.substack.com/subscribe

    17 min

  4. 12/07/2023

    Sorted 2

    If you, like me, think my book ‘Sorted’ could use an update, I have a recommendation for you. Links: My first book, Sorted: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Sorted/Jackson-Bird/9781982130770 Blog post about everything I've said about Harry Potter and the Author Who Torched Her Legacy: https://www.jacksonbird.cool/single-post/almost-everything-i-ve-said-publicly-about-harry-potter-and-the-author-who-torched-her-legacy The episode of How do you like it so far? that I was on: https://www.howdoyoulikeitsofar.org/1325-2/ Timestamps for How do you like it so far?: 0:00 - Origin story 10:45 - TERF Talk 38:00 - HBO’s upcoming Harry Potter series 46:20 - What I’ve been up to in recent years, and what I think about making art for different mediums as well as on topics beyond HP / trans stuff Recommendations: Material Girls podcast: https://www.ohwitchplease.ca/material-girls Rachel Maddow on Seth Meyers: https://youtu.be/oNnyTqae-zM?si=pGzv-k6sjT0Hcg66&t=30 Cher's new Christmas album: https://open.spotify.com/album/4Eeeg4yMb5qtMEm0lk6lDM?si=nnIE1aMHTCmztlHP97rpVw Earth, Wind, and Fire's 2014 Christmas album: https://open.spotify.com/album/2clJOOkMz707eU2OnHgS0z?si=9z3KliFmSoW9RM5KLFE55A Chris Daily's latest Christmas album: https://chrisdaily.bandcamp.com/album/seasonal-sounds Paul DeGeorge's Christmas mixes: http://pauldegeorge.com/index.php/xmas-mixes/ Resource document: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZWq5PwfCMRd54Ovs61Jtr8Mxfhqp1tvaiu5sy1b_LsM/edit?usp=sharing What I've Been Up To: See me in The Infinite Wrench: https://www.nyneofuturists.org/tiw Donate to our 20th anniversary fundraiser: https://pages.donately.com/newyorkneofuturists/fundraiser/jack-s-ny-neo-futurist-20th-anniversary-fundraising-page Latest episode of Harry Potter and the Sacred Text that I guest hosted: https://www.harrypottersacredtext.com/episodes/this-week-vanessa-and-jackson-bird-explore-the-theme-of-possibility-in-chapter-eighteen-of-harry-potter-and-the-order-of-the-phoenix-they-discuss-the-room-of-requirement-dobbys-newly-free-life-and-umbridges-stifling-oversight-throughout-the-episode-we-consider-the-question-how-do-we-discern-what-kinds-of-change-are-possible-in-our-current-stage-of-life--next-week-were-looking-at-the-entire-series-through-the-theme-of-intellectual-humility My latest YouTube video: https://youtu.be/H433bjjxR0A Get full access to First Draft Theater at firstdrafttheater.substack.com/subscribe

    14 min

  5. 04/12/2023

    Can Substack Notes Replace Twitter?

    Some notes on Substack Notes, a few (unintentionally queer) recommendations, and updates from my projects. Links: The first episode of Techmeme Ride Home I guest hosted this week, which includes more on the Substack vs. Twitter beef https://art19.com/shows/techmeme-ridehome/episodes/e7ac2988-631f-4ddb-a848-02837c8dbaaa Everything to know about using Notes https://on.substack.com/p/notes-faq Why I'm ehhhh on Substack generally https://mashable.com/article/substack-writers-leaving-misinformation Framing Agnes trailer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DYnzUodIl14 Sharing Space from The Trevor Project, episode one featuring Daniel Radcliffe https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBFvppAL48U The Northern Boys' "Give It To Me" music video (audio NSFW) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zljDDcTnTG0 My Cool Stuff Ride Home segment on the Northern Boys https://art19.com/shows/coronavirus-daily-briefing/episodes/ece9b8a8-dbd4-4181-96a8-84841991f629 The Gender Friend by Oakley Rae Phoenix https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-gender-friend-a-102-guide-to-gender-identity-oakley-phoenix/18491568?ean=9781839973574 Tickets for The Infinite Wrench https://www.nyneofuturists.org/tiw Get full access to First Draft Theater at firstdrafttheater.substack.com/subscribe

    10 min

  6. 03/28/2023

    Depressed Goblin Nightmare is the new Manic Pixie Dream Girl

    Plus corn cob crust pizza and an update on the Internet Archive. Links I mentioned: Kate Erbland's review of A Good Person https://www.indiewire.com/2023/03/a-good-person-zach-braff-manic-pixie-dream-girl-1234821853/ Nathan Rabin's review of Elizabethtown https://www.avclub.com/the-bataan-death-march-of-whimsy-case-file-1-elizabet-1798210595 Joseph Goron-Levitt addressing 500 Days of Summer https://www.teenvogue.com/story/joseph-gordon-levitt-tweets-500-days-of-summer John Green addressing Looking for Alaska https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4r4S9iTje0s Cool Stuff Ride Home episode about "goblin mode" being the OED's 2022 Word of the Year https://www.ridehome.info/show/kottke-ride-home/mon-1205-will-sherlock-holmes-go-goblin-mode/ My "Manic Pixie Dream Wannabe" play https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7e2Iz0Fcs4s Lady Charles' "Manic Pixie Dream Boy" music video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5Ayoo8yiT0 Lady Charles' "Godx" music video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7icDShiwoew Little Caesars' Corncob crust pizza https://www.dexerto.com/entertainment/little-caesars-new-corncob-pizza-crust-has-the-internet-split-2092465/ Pretzel crust announcement https://www.tiktok.com/@littlecaesarspizza/video/7215210227950636334 Trans Legislation Tracker https://translegislation.com/ The Trans Week project https://www.trans-week.com/ The Gender Friend by Oakley Phoenix* https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-gender-friend-a-102-guide-to-gender-identity-oakley-phoenix/18491568?ean=9781839973574 Oakley's book launch https://events.willamette.edu/event/memoir-writing-workshop--book-launch-party-1/ The Infinite Wrench https://www.nyneofuturists.org/tiw Online registration for the Moving Trans History Forward conference https://www.uvic.ca/mthf2023/registration/index.php University of Victoria's Trans Archive https://www.uvic.ca/transgenderarchives/ *If you use this Bookshop.org link, I'll get a little kickback Get full access to First Draft Theater at firstdrafttheater.substack.com/subscribe

    11 min

  7. 03/22/2023

    Apple TV+’s Role in NASA’s New Moon Suits

    About Those New Moon Suits… Plus, soapy chicken, Blackberry, and SUPER BLOOM. Links I mentioned: Axiom/NASA moonsuit announcement livestream https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5KnOtI4fS3U NYT fashion critic on the moon suits https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/15/style/nasa-axiom-new-spacesuit.html Astounding by Alec-Nevala Lee https://bookshop.org/a/826/9780062571953 Moonrise podcast https://www.washingtonpost.com/podcasts/moonrise/introducing-moonrise/ Paul Rudd asks NASA about the quantum realm https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZp5-TFTlIY The For All Mankind companion podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/for-all-mankind-the-official-podcast/id1552072013 More on the NYT's irresponsible and sloppy reporting on trans issues https://www.glaad.org/new-york-times-sign-on-letter-from-lgtbq-allied-leaders-and-organizations The video I shot of the Super Bloom https://youtube.com/shorts/nL0EXEiBRiE?feature=share The CIA's old policy of not hiring gay people https://www.muckrock.com/news/archives/2018/may/11/cia-polygraph/ The CIA now cruises at SXSW https://www.texasmonthly.com/news-politics/what-is-the-cia-doing-at-sxsw/ Blackberry trailer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXL_HDzBQsM One of my favorite ProZD videos https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUrRsx-F_bs Soapy Costco chicken https://www.bonappetit.com/story/why-costco-rotisserie-chicken-taste-soapy Manhunt by Gretchen Felker-Martin https://bookshop.org/a/826/9781250794642 The Gender Friend by Oakley Phoenix https://bookshop.org/a/826/9781839973574 Oakley's book launch that I'll be at https://events.willamette.edu/event/memoir-writing-workshop--book-launch-party-1/ The Infinite Wrench, which I'll be performing in this spring https://www.nyneofuturists.org/tiw Follow me on YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, or TikTok at jackisnotabird If you use the above links to purchase any of the books I mentioned, I'll get a little kickback. Get full access to First Draft Theater at firstdrafttheater.substack.com/subscribe

    15 min
  8. Why 'First Draft Theater'?

    03/13/2023

    Why 'First Draft Theater'?

    In this introductory episode, I explain the meaning behind the name of this newsletter and give the podcasting feature a test drive. Subscribe on Substack: http://firstdrafttheater.substack.com Watch on YouTube: http://youtube.com/jackisnotabird Links I mentioned: Please Report Your Bug Here by Josh Riedel* https://bookshop.org/p/books/please-report-your-bug-here-josh-riedel/18396148?ean=9781250813794 Almond milk is milk! https://apnews.com/article/us-food-and-drug-administration-business-health-nutrition-ed2acef14a014eef30a0fd24f98be07b David Bowie impersonating other popular musicians https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrtXFTw2ico Which generation controls the Senate? https://www.wcd.fyi/features/senate-generations/ My guest spot on Harry Potter and the Sacred Text https://www.harrypottersacredtext.com/episodes/vulnerability-the-house-elf-liberation-front-book The summer camp-style retreat hosted by Not Sorry https://notsorryworks.com/calling-all-magnificent-people Everything I've said about JKR https://www.jacksonbird.cool/single-post/almost-everything-i-ve-said-publicly-about-harry-potter-and-the-author-who-torched-her-legacy Tickets for The Infinite Wrench https://www.nyneofuturists.org/tiw The Neo-Futurists’ Instagram to check for show updates https://www.instagram.com/nyneofuturists/  The music you heard was “Trumpet Man” by Timothy Infinite, available on Epidemic Sound. Want access to tons of really great tracks? Use my ambassador link: https://www.epidemicsound.com/referral/37uu44 *If you use this Bookshop.Org link, I’ll get a little kickback Get full access to First Draft Theater at firstdrafttheater.substack.com/subscribe

    14 min
  • 8 Episodes

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

The online rehearsal space for semi-retired influencer and wannabe historian, Jackson Bird, to explore unexpected connections, overlooked stories, and the past and future of our changing world. Some of it may one day become a second draft. firstdrafttheater.substack.com

Information

  • Creator
    Jackson Bird
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2025
  • Episodes
    8
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Jackson Bird
  • Show Website
    First Draft Theater