Neon Trails & the Wild Unknown
A Poem by Connor Wolfe
There are times
when all I can take in
lies between my headlights.
Roaming the road,
I am not alone.
I contain multitudes.
At least,
that’s what the good book says—
the vagabond’s bible
on the nightstand.
Posting up in the fallout motel along Route 66
praying to the patron saint of perpetual motion
—have mercy on us—we who are going and going,
never arriving.
There is only so far
this old car can bring me.
We drive through the night
only to crawl out of the car
on all-fours.
The end of the road
is the beginning
of the wild unknown.
Connor Wolfe (they/them) is a writer, publisher, and advocate whose work spans over two decades and fourteen titles. They are the founder of Wayfarer Magazine and Wayfarer Books, independent platforms committed to amplifying voices from the margins. Wolfe’s literary contributions have earned six Pushcart Prize nominations, the Gold Nautilus Medal for Poetry, multiple Foreword Review Book Awards, and the Nautilus Silver Medal in 2022. Their innovative approach to publishing led to two terms on the Board of Directors for the Independent Book Publishers Association, a TEDx talk at Yale University, and a degree from Harvard University through grant programs.
A lifelong advocate for mental health, trans rights, and radical authenticity—the act of breaking silence to reclaim power—Wolfe stepped into national conversations following their 2018 TEDx Talk on trauma, creativity, and survival.
In 2024, they volunteered in the Collections Department at the Museum of Anthropology at Ghost Ranch, assisting in the repatriation of sacred objects under the newly updated Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act. After wintering along the Rio Puerco beneath Cerro Pedernal, Wolfe is now traveling with their three-legged black cat, momo—documenting, writing, and staying in motion, as all beat poets must.
