From the Margins

Let’s talk about sex. Or rather, let’s talk about writing about sex and what it means in a cultural context. We talk to Margaret Mallory about why the romance genre gets such a bad rap, and about what sex scenes really add to the story. And because sex isn’t always just butterflies and rose petals, we hear from writers Larissa Pham, Elissa Washuta, and Allison Moon about chronicling their own sexual experiences—including ones they would rather forget. We also hear from our own Anna Katz about what it’s like to work in Seattle’s famous feminist sex shop Toys in Babeland.

Plenty of literary characters are memorable, but what makes a character legendary? In this episode, we explore how great characters are made. We look into the origins of the world’s most famous detective; talk to bestselling novelist Elizabeth George about how she creates characters with lives of their own; and hear from GFP’s VP of Editorial Christina Henry de Tessan about what she looks for in a good literary character. We hear about what happens when you don’t see yourself in the characters you read about in our interviews with author Vikki Vansickle and author and We Need Diverse Books liaison Stacey Lee.