How do you create an interesting comics series on yoga? How did kalaripayattu, yoga and fantasy all come together? I flashback to 2017 and the story of how YogYodhas was born.

If you have not read A Black Queer History of the United States yet, you are so lucky to have this fantastic book in your future! And lucky for me that this is also an excellent opportunity to speak to two dream guests: C. Riley Snorton and Darius Bost speak about gender trouble in the Black queer archives, how Black and queer histories need to be thought together and why grounding oneself in community is part of what it means to survive.   References: C. Riley Snorton and Darius Bost’s A Black Queer History of the United States (2026) C. Riley Snorton’s Nobody is Supposed to Know: Black Sexuality on the Down Low (U of Minnesota Press, 2014) C. Riley Snorton’s Black on Both Sides: A Racial History of Trans Identity (U of Minnesota Press, 2017) Darius Bost’s Evidence of Being: The Black Gay Cultural Renaissance and the Politics of Violence (U of Chicago Press, 2019) Cathy J. Cohen “Deviance as Resistance: A New Research Agenda for the Study of Black Politics” (2014) William Cathay/Cathay Williams Phil Black The Funmakers Ball Cheryl Dunye’s The Watermelon Woman Erica R. Edwards Marsha P. Johnson Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (STAR) Combahee River Collective National Black Justice Coalition “Black Lesbian Thought” with Briona Simone Jones @c.rileysnorton dbost@uic.edu @windycitybq Saul Williams and Anisia Uzeyman’s Neptune Frost Jellicle Ball Essex Hemphill’s Ceremonies: Prose and Poetry       Questions you should be able to respond to after listening: -      Why do Black and queer history need to be thought of together? How are they sometimes separated? -      Darius speaks about the book having two parts. What is each about? -      Riley speaks about gender and sexual deviance as forms of survival or escape. What does this mean? Can you name an example? -      What does Darius say about the relationship between civil rights ideology and non-normative gender? -      Why is it important to speak about collectives as well as individuals when engaging with Black queer history?

Come along for a deep dive into mixed pronouns in queer, trans and nonbinary narratives with none other than Sue Lanser, your favourite narratologist’s favourite narratologist. Sue and I talk about why we might need to rethink the concept of gender disguise narratives, where we find mixed pronouns in literary histories and why mixed pronouns often become sensual in literature. My favourite bit: Sue asks me about my personal hero, the Grinch. This conversation is part of a miniseries that accompanies my book Queer Forms and Pronouns: Gender Nonconformity in Anglophone Literature (Oxford University Press, 2026). I hope you like hearing more from your host, but not to worry: we will be back to our usual format in just a few weeks.     References Sue Lanser’s The Sexuality of History Sue Lanser’s Narrative Theory Unbound Sue Lanser’s “Trans-forming Narratology” Narrative 32.2 (2024) Jeanette Winterson’s Written on the Body Le Roman de Silence Michel de Montaigne’s Journal de Voyage Margaret Cavendish’s Assaulted and Pursued Chastity Lyly’s Galatea Chevalièr(e) d’Éon Alex Myers’ Revolutionary Deborah Samson Jenny Fran Davis’ Dykette Isaac Fellman’s Dead Collections Spiel, Katta, Os Keyes, and Pınar Barlas. 2019. ‘Patching Gender: Non-Binary Utopias in HCI’. Extended Abstracts of the 2019 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, May 2, 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1145/3290607.3310425. The Grinch Dr Seuss Jim Carrey Benedict Cumberbatch Les Feinberg Maggie Nelson Harry Dodge Jen Manion Dean Spade       Questions you should be able to respond to after listening: -      What role does narrative agency play in the difference between external and intrinsic pronoun ascription? -      Why does Susan suggest that we need to revisit Shakespeare’s and other’s gender disguise narratives? -      Susan mentions how characters that are perceived as masculine but use she/her are much more frequently ridiculed than characters viewed as feminine who use he/him. Why do you think that is? -      How has feminism expanded what ‘she/her’ can mean? -      How does mixing pronouns do similar or different work from singular they? -      Why does the Grinch, according to Lena, have big they energy?

It was an incredible honour to have THE Susan Stryker join me for a chat about ambiguous pronouns, trans literature and linguistic creativity. Susan’s wealth of knowledge on pronouns across languages and literary history was incredibly enriching and allowed me to speak about some of my favourite examples of ambiguous pronoun use in literature. This conversation is part of a miniseries that accompanies my book Queer Forms and Pronouns: Gender Nonconformity in Anglophone Literature (Oxford University Press, 2026). I hope you like hearing more from your host, but not to worry: we will be back to our usual format in just a few weeks.   References: Susan Stryker’s “My Words to Victor Frankenstein above the Village of Chamounix” Susan Stryker’s Transgender History Susan Stryker, Stephen Wittle, Aren Aizura (eds) The Transgender Studies Reader Susan Stryker’s Changing Gender: The History and Future of a Concept (August 2026) Sara Taylor’s The Lauras Gian Lorenzo Bernini’s The Sleeping Hermaphrodite (1620) Teagan Bradway Maia Kobabe’s Gender Queer (2019) Lal Zimman Rivers Solomon Aphra Behn’s “To The Fair Clorinda” and “The Widow Ranter” Thomas(ine) Hall Nathaniel Bacon Mel Y. Chen Andrea Lawlor’s Paul Takes the Form of a Mortal Girl Andrea Gibson’s “Your Life”   Questions you should be able to respond to after listening: -      Which pronouns are ambiguous when it comes to gender in English? Which ones are ambiguous in your first or favourite language? -      What creates ambiguity when we use pronouns? How might this ambiguity be productive? -      Susan explains why gendered pronouns in English function in an unusual way compared to other languages. What is something new you learned about this? -      We speak about why literature can teach us something about pronoun use that we might overlook when focusing on grammar. What is that? -      Can you name one of the examples of ambiguous pronoun use in literature we discuss?      

Welcome to a miniseries about gender nonconformity pronouns in literature! In this episode, the amazing linguist Laura Paterson asks me many clever questions about singular they in literature. We talk about the function of pronouns, common misunderstanding about singular they, and neutral versus gender-nonconforming use of this fantastic third person pronoun. Whether you would like reading recommendations (Virginia Woolf, Lamya H, Rae Spoon…) or some insight into what singular they can do in creative and academic writing, this episode might have some answers – or questions – for you.   References Lena Mattheis’ Queer Forms and Pronouns: Gender Nonconformity in Anglophone Literature (Oxford University Press, 2026) Laura Paterson (ed.) The Routledge Handbook of Pronouns (Routledge, 2023) Anna Livia Lamya H’s Hijab Butch Blues (2023) Rae Spoon’s Green Glass Ghosts (2021) Jeanette Winterson’s Written on the Body (1992) Anne Garréta’s Sphinx (1986) Charlie Josephine’s I, Joan (2022) The Globe https://www.shakespearesglobe.com/identity-in-i-joan/ Kit Heyam Laura Paterson and Georgina Turner (eds) Approaches to Discourses of Marriage (Routledge, 2024) Lal Zimman   Questions you should be able to respond to after listening: -     What is a pronoun? -     How does Lena define gender-nonconformity pronouns? -     Why is it relevant whether a narrator comments on pronoun use or not? Which examples does Lena provide? -     Which literary texts do Laura and Lena mention? Which one would you like to read and why? -     What do Laura and Lena discuss about pronouns in academic writing? Do you have an established practice for this?

How many times have you watched the sweaty lesbian fever dream that is Love Lies Bleeding? As you might be able to guess from this episode, Michelle Devereaux and I have stopped counting. Michelle is a feminist film-philosophy expert who joins me to talk about Rose Glass’s super queer neo noir, the interplay of genre conventions and gender dynamics, and all the fun intertexts and easter eggs that we found in Love Lies Bleeding. Whether you’re into bodybuilding and gender transgression or lesbian romance against all odds, this episode is for you.   References Rose Glass’ Love Lies Bleeding (2024) Devereaux, Michelle. "Suspicious Minds and Dead Bodies: Queer Romance and Skepticism in Rose Glass’s Love Lies Bleeding." Film Quarterly 78.2 (2024): 24-32. Devereaux, Michelle. The Stillness of Solitude: Romanticism and Contemporary American Independent Film. Edinburgh University Press, 2019. Devereaux, Michelle.“‘A lot of people are creative’: Process, Perfectionism and the Everyday Sublime in Kelly Reichardt’s Showing Up and First Cow”. Kim Wilkins and Bruce Isaacs, eds. A24: Culture, Aesthetics, Identity. Edinburgh University Press, 2026 (expected). Devereaux, Michelle.“Inherited Trauma, Postcolonial Scepticism and the Harmony of Voice in Jennifer Kent’s The Nightingale”. Film-Philosophy and Australian Cinema. Saige Walton and Matilda Mroz, eds. Edinburgh University Press, 2026 (expected). Devereaux, Michelle and Lash, Dominic (eds.). Love, Desire and Stanley Cavell. London: Routledge, 2026 (expected). MAI: Feminism and Visual Culture: www.maifeminism.com Russian Doll Sofia Coppola Cavell, Stanley. Pursuits of Happiness: The Hollywood Comedy of Remarriage. Harvard University Press, 1981. Cavell, Stanley. Contesting Tears: The Hollywood Melodrama of the Unknown Woman. Harvard University Press, 1996. Comedies of Remarriage Screwball Comedy Out and Wild Sleater-Kinney Bristol Butch Bar Lindner, Katharina. Film Bodies: Queer Feminist Encounters with Gender and Sexuality in Cinema. Bloomsbury Academic, 2017. Bound (1996) The Incredible Hulk Kristen Stewart  Twilight Pumping Iron II: The Women (1985) Bev Francis David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive (2001) and Lost Highway (1997) Winkie’s Diner Lauren Berlant’s epistemic frenzy Teresa de Lauretis  mailto:michelledevereaux@bsky.social Instagram: @michelleldevereaux Kelly Reichardt’s Showing Up (2022) Michelle Williams Derek Jarman’s Caravaggio (1996) Tilda Swinton Sean Bean   Questions you should be able to respond to after listening: 1.      What is Love Lies Bleeding about and why does Michelle suggest it might be more about gender than about sexuality? 2.      How does Michelle describe Lindner’s ‘space of transgender potential’? Can you think of an example for this? 3.      Which genres does Michelle mention to discuss and describe Love Lies Bleeding? How are these genres queered in the film? 4.      What role does the setting play in the film? How might this relate to the ‘space of transgender potential’? 5.      What is your favourite lesbian and/or trans film and why?

Coming to you live from the Spoken Word stage at Out and Wild, the UK’s biggest festival for lesbian, bi, trans and queer women and those who are non-binary! This conversation with the delightful Leilah King has everything you could hope for: laughing, rhyming, swooning, and a whole lot of poetry reading. Tune in to hear Leilah speak about gender nonconformity in football, her journey as a neurodivergent performance poet, and how being half-Iranian affects her experience as a queer woman. CW: mental health, manic state, gendered violence   References: Midnight Picnics in Tehran (2019) We Are Hungry for Androgyny (2023) Polari Press Mary Oliver Sam Kerr Audre Lorde’s Zami Travis Alabanza John Steinbeck’s East of Eden The Grapes of Wrath Charles Bukowski Ivan Coyote’s The Tomboy Survival Guide James Baldwin’s Giovanni’s Room John Betjeman Philip Larkin Soft Butch Time of the Month Gay on Wye   Questions you should be able to respond to after listening: -      Leilah reflects on being a writer as well as a performer. How does performance affect her writing? -      What was Leilah’s open mic night called and why did she set it up? -      Who are some of the writers that have inspired Leilah? Who inspires you? -      Leilah speaks about her intersecting experiences of being queer, neurodivergent and half-Iranian. How does your queerness relate to other parts of your identity?  

The City Council gave first consideration to an amendment that would add a definition of “sex stereotyping” to the local Human Rights Code and shorten Human Rights Commissioner terms from three to two years to comply with state law; the measure passed first consideration unanimously.

Not all men who wear gender-non-conforming clothing wear heels, but many do. This post is for those who want to know what it feels like to wear them but have never dared.