Trans-forming Literature: An interview with Andrea Lawlor
Andrea Lawlor's debut novel Paul Takes the Form of a Mortal Girl has a protagonist who can change his body at will, creating a narrative that explores space between male and female without relying on established transsexual narratives. This week, Juliet talks to Lawlor about the novel - one of the first by a trans/non-binary author on a major publisher - and the state of trans/non-binary literature more generally. SELECTED REFERENCES ANDREA LAWLOR, Paul Takes the Form of a Mortal Girl (2017) - https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/apr/05/andrea-lawlor-dont-want-to-be-representative-of-a-type Travis Alabanza - https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2019/mar/27/travis-alabanza-interview-future-theatre Dodie Bellamy - http://www.thewhitereview.org/feature/interview-dodie-bellamy/ Jay Bernard - https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/apr/05/speaking-out-jay-bernard-surge-side-a-poet IMOGEN BINNIE, Nevada (2013) - https://www.lambdaliterary.org/reviews/04/02/nevada-a-novel-by-imogen-binnie KATE BORNSTEIN, Gender Outlaw (1994) - https://www.refinery29.com/en-gb/2016/02/103271/kate-bornstein-interview-transgender JOE BRAINARD, 'I Remember' (1975) - https://frieze.com/article/i-remember BRIGID BROPHY, In Transit (1969) - http://everybodysreviewing.blogspot.com/2014/10/review-of-brigid-brophys-in-transit-by.html Judith Butler KAI CHENG TOM, Fierce Femmes and Notorious Liars (2018) - https://caseythecanadianlesbrarian.com/2018/07/13/i-believe-in-dangerous-stories-a-review-of-fierce-femmes-and-notorious-liars-by-kai-cheng-thom/ AKWAEKE EMEZI, Freshwater (2018) - https://www.akwaeke.com/freshwater LESLIE FEINBERG, Stone Butch Blues: A Novel (1993) - https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/23/opinion/sunday/the-best-book-for-2018-is-25-years-old.html Gender Trash From Hell (zine) - http://archive.qzap.org/index.php/Detail/Object/Show/object_id/337 R. L. GOLDBERG, 'Towards Creating a Trans Literary Canon' (2018) - https://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2018/10/23/toward-creating-a-trans-literary-canon Caspar Heinemann - https://www.the87press.com/product-page/novelty-theory-caspar-heinemann ROZ KAVENEY, Tiny Pieces of Skull (2015) - https://boingboing.net/2016/06/09/30-years-on-roz-kaveneys.html C. L. LESTER, Trans Like Me (2017) - https://www.virago.co.uk/translikeme/ E. J. Levy - https://medium.com/@jackdoyle_76250/the-trans-take-towards-a-trans-public-history-deb1bc9d822b Torrey Peters - http://www.torreypeters.com CASEY PLETT, Little Fish (2018) - https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/books/reviews/article-review-casey-pletts-little-fish-looks-forward-to-trans-futures Nat Raha - https://www.versobooks.com/blogs/2245-the-limits-of-trans-liberalism-by-nat-raha John Rechy - https://lareviewofbooks.org/article/interview-john-rechy JORDY ROSENBERG, Confessions of the Fox (2018) - https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/27/books/review/jordy-rosenberg-confessions-of-the-fox.html SEVERO SARDUY, Cobra (1972) - https://www.nytimes.com/1975/03/09/archives/cobra.html RIVERS SOLOMON, An Unkindness of Ghosts (2017) - https://www.npr.org/2017/10/06/548665897/unkindness-of-ghosts-transposes-the-plantations-cruelty-to-the-stars?t=1558972023965 SANDY STONE, 'The "Empire" Strikes Back: A Post-Transsexual Manifesto' (1987/91) - https://sandystone.com/empire-strikes-back.html Transgender Studies Quarterly - https://www.dukeupress.edu/tsq-transgender-studies-quarterly GORE VIDAL, Myra Breckenridge (1968) - https://www.latimes.com/books/la-ca-jc-myra-breckinridge-20180223-story.html VIRGINIA WOOLF, Orlando (1928) - https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/sep/03/different-sex-same-person-how-woolfs-orlando-became-a-trans-triumph