I’m always on the lookout for YA novels that aren’t about the endlessly amusing and interesting (apparently) lives of cis, white, straight, middle-class and/or rich youth, and here’s an author who has written a very promising one! I haven’t read Squd yet, but am looking forward to doing so. I also am interested in what she says about identifying as femme in a recent interview with Lambda Literary:
In my life, I have endless questions about what “womanhood” means to me. I don’t really identify as a “woman” anymore. Some words I use instead are boygirl, nonbinary, part-time boy, and gender cyborg. But almost everyone still experiences me as a woman, and I feel deep allegiance to women. So, where does that leave me with “womanhood”? I don’t know. I’ve been dressing more “masculine” lately, even though I still identify as a femme, because it’s the fastest shortcut to letting strangers know that I’m gender-weird. My personality is so “feminine”–I’m giggly, and squishy, and very expressive. It feels important somehow to be expressing that from within this more masculine physical container, to merge the two.
Deep gratitude to Mariah MacCarthy for thinking hard about real life, the complexities, nuances, and queerness, and for taking the time to write a YA about a real girl as opposed to a cardboard cut out.
https://www.mariahmaccarthy.com
Every Friday, I showcase a queer femme goddess. I want to feature you! Write to me at thetotalfemme@gmail.com and let me shine a spotlight on your beautiful, unique, femme story! If you’ve written a femme story or poem or song, oh, please let me post it! New Femme Friday feature starting fall 2018: Books from which queer femmes can draw inspiration. What are your trusted sources of light and love? Please share!
At the Total Femme, my intention is to post three times a week: Meditations for Queer Femmes on Monday, Pingy-Dingy Wednesday on Wednesday and Femme Friday on Friday. Rather than play catch-up in a stressful fashion on those weeks when life prevents posting, I have decided to just move gaily forward: if I miss a Monday, the next post will be on Wednesday, and so on. Thank you, little bottle of antibiotics for inspiring me in this! (“…if it’s almost time for the next dose, skip the missed dose and continue your regular dosing schedule. Don’t take a double dose to make up for a missed one.”)
The Total Femme 