Booking is now open for my September residential writing retreat themed around ‘Making Herstory’! If you’re enthralled by the prospect of researching and writing about women in history; if you want to know more about why it’s generally harder to unearth information about historical women than about men - and how to negotiate these challenges; and if you’d love to experiment with fresh ways of crafting narratives about women’s history, in a group of like-minded women, in a beautiful Victorian spa town, being fed delicious food, then this retreat is most definitely for you!
My next FREE online, monthly, Feminist Creative Writing Group will take place on Monday 3 August, 8pm-9.30pm. Everyone (female-only) is very welcome, whether you’re a published author or a compete beginner; whether you’ve attended one of the groups before, or whether this is your first time. There’s a bit of talking, in which I explain the context for the writing exercise; then we do a writing exercise for 30-45 mins; and then we discuss. It would be lovely to see you there!
I’ve got a special treat for you this week: I’m talking to Milli Hill, author of the best-selling ‘What About Women’ Substack, about her new book The Body Myth: Reclaiming the Powerful Truth About Being Female.
The Body Myth is a compelling. and often moving, exploration of life in a female body, in which Milli dissects - and overturns - all those patriarchal myths about femaleness being a source of inherent weakness. Instead, she reveals how the female body is, in fact, a masterpiece (or should that be mistresspiece?) of sophisticated design, conferring major strengths such as heightened immunity and capacity for endurance. However, women are forced to live in a world which is fundamentally shaped around men and male bodies, meaning that many aspects of femaleness - such as our fluctuating physical capacities throughout the month - are poorly accommodated or understood. So The Body Myth is also an impassioned political plea for change, seeking to draw us closer to a world in which women’s bodies are valued for their own distinctive capacities, not as poor relations to the ‘default’ or ideal of the male physique.
The Body Myth is published on Thursday this week: huge congratulations, Milli! These days, pre-order sales - ie. books which are ordered prior to publication date - are hugely important because booksellers, librarians, many reviewers and even publishers themselves base decisions about how enthusiastically to promote a book on those very early sales figures. So, if you like the sound of Milli’s new book, you can support her by pre-ordering a copy - and the link below even gives you 40% off, once you’re at checkout! In the meantime, I hope you enjoy our interview.
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