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    The Sensitivity Reader Podcast

    The Sensitivity Reader podcast we will talk about the craft, business, and necessity of diverse stories in research, literature, and other media.
    enSydney Fowler11 Episodes

    Episodes (11)

    S02 Episode 03 The Business of Sensitivity Reading with Erin Servais

    S02 Episode 03 The Business of Sensitivity Reading with Erin Servais

    On this episode, Erin Servais of Dot and Dash LLC and I compare and contrast beta and sensitivity reading, and discuss their work with Dot and Dash LLC and the Minneapolis writing community. We focus on some of the nuances of being a sensitivity reader, self-advocacy, and use make a case for sensitivity readers to increase their rates.

    Links:

    Guest: Erin Servais Dot and Dash, LLC. expert author services for women https://www.dotanddashllc.com/

     
     

    Dot and Dash Writer’s Community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/dotanddashllc/

     

    The Big Five US Trade Book Publishers: https://almossawi.com/big-five-publishers/

     

    Editorial Freelancer’s Association’s Editorial Rates Chart: https://www.the-efa.org/rates/?fbclid=IwAR2AbYAZj44XKJbe8xk7pX7CwMtq2eN2VDq4rlup7Cp6W6BdQxKfQCYxdSQ

    Confidentiality agreements for writers & authors:

    https://www.everynda.com/blog/confidentiality-agreement-writers-authors/

     

    More info about this podcast and Sydney's sensitivity reading services:

    Website: www.sensitivityreader.com

    Email: sensitivityreader@gmail.com

    Social Media: Facebook and Twitter

    Music arrangement and podcast editing by Cara Tucker https://caratucker.com/

    Logo design by Leonard Pollard, commissions open: leonard.pollard@colorado.edu Seriously, he’s amazing. You should see what he can do with embroidery floss.

    Shout out to Nikita Burks-Hale, M.Ed. at Journeygurlmagic.com for all of her support in getting this podcast off the ground. Nikita is a journey coach and podcast editor.

    S02 E02 Representation in Speculative Fiction With Author, Courtney Morgan

    S02 E02 Representation in Speculative Fiction With Author, Courtney Morgan

     "Science fiction is not predictive; it is descriptive." 

    -Ursula K. Le Guin, from the Introduction to The Left Hand of Darkness

    Speculative Fiction includes anything and everything that pushes the boundaries of reality: surrealism, fabulism, horror, science fiction, fantasy, horror, magical realism and more! Join author Courtney Morgan and I for a discussion on blurring the boundaries between the real and the unreal and what literature can do to help us understand oppression and marginalization.

     

    As a special treat, Courtney reads an excerpt from her story, “Womb, Feather, Bone” from her book, The Seven Autopsies of Norah Hanneman

     

    Links:

    Visit Courtney’s website: https://www.courtneyemorgan.com/ for information about her mentorship and workshop offerings and sign up for her newsletter to get rituals and writing prompts based on the moon cycle sent directly to you!

    The Thought Erotic Literary Journal: https://thethoughterotic.com 

     

    Get a copy of The Seven Autopsies of Norah Hanneman

     

    Courtney also teaches writing workshops at Lighthouse Writers Workshop: https://www.lighthousewriters.org/

    Reading List and Mentions:

    Gabriel García Márquez

    Isabel Allende

    Jamaica kincaid

    Edwidge Danticat

    Marcia Douglas

    Aimee Bender

    Karen Russel

    Helen Oyeyemi

    EBook version of “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman

    Film: Mary Shelley, (2017)

    EBook version of Frankenstein, by Mary Wollstonecraft (Godwin) Shelley

    EBook version of  A Vindication of the Rights of Women by Mary Wollstonecraft

    J.R.R. Tolkien

    Ursula K. Le Guin

    More info about this podcast and Sydney's sensitivity reading services:

    Website: www.sensitivityreader.com

    Email: sensitivityreader@gmail.com

    Social Media: Facebook and Twitter

    Music arrangement and podcast editing by Cara Tucker https://caratucker.com/

    Logo design by Leonard Pollard, commissions open: leonard.pollard@colorado.edu Seriously, he’s amazing. You should see what he can do with embroidery floss.

    Shout out to Nikita Burks-Hale, M.Ed. at Journeygurlmagic.com for all of her support in getting this podcast off the ground. Nikita is a journey coach and podcast editor.

    S02 E01 Representation in Horror: A Review of Knives and Skin With Eneri Rodriguez

    S02 E01 Representation in Horror: A Review of Knives and Skin With Eneri Rodriguez

    Join Eneri “Netty” Rodriguez and I for a discussion of representation in the 2019 experimental film, Knives and Skin directed by Jennifer Reeder. We talk feminist cliches, teen angst, and the power of representation in movies. Netty is an expert on gender, race, and horror and you do not want to miss this episode!

    Links:

    Follow Eneri “Netty” Rodriguez https://www.instagram.com/nettythebakingbetty

     

    Knives and Skin, (2019), director, Jennifer Reeder 

    Gender Institute for Teaching and Advocacy at Metropolitan State University of Denver

    GITA Hold Of Yourself Podcast

    2 Fat 2 Furious Podcast

    Trailers and Mentions:

    Candyman, 1992

    Netflix’s Hannibal

    Bela Lugosi’s Dracula

    Free version of Bram Stoker's Dracula

    Bessie Griffin’s version of “Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child”

    A fan tribute to David Lynch’s films if you want to get a feel for his style

    Teeth, 2007

    Netflix’s The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina

    Nightmare on Elm Street 2 (Freddy’s Revenge), (1985)

    Sleep Away Camp, 1983

    Rise of Skywalker, 2019

    Color Out of Space, 2020

    Black Christmas, (2019)

    Jeremy Renner

    Gillian Anderson 

    Jordan Peele

    More info about this podcast and Sydney's sensitivity reading services:

    Website: www.sensitivityreader.com

    Email: sensitivityreader@gmail.com

    Social Media: Facebook and Twitter

    Music arrangement and podcast editing by Cara Tucker https://caratucker.com/

    Logo design by Leonard Pollard, commissions open: leonard.pollard@colorado.edu Seriously, he’s amazing. You should see what he can do with embroidery floss.

    Shout out to Nikita Burks-Hale, M.Ed. at Journeygurlmagic.com for all of her support in getting this podcast off the ground. Nikita is a journey coach and podcast editor.

    Episode 7 Part 2 of 2 Own Voices with Maha Kamal

    Episode 7 Part 2 of 2 Own Voices with Maha Kamal

    Description:

    Part 2 of 2: South Asian writer and attorney, Maha Kamal and I talk about self-advocacy  and creating and participating in alternative publishing platforms. Then we cover the importance of a strong writing community for marginalized people. Maha uses her background in diversity, equity, and inclusion work to suggest ways that the publishing industry can improve representation and accessibility for #ownvoices writers.

    Check out some of Maha Kamal’s writing and visual art here: www.mahakamal.com

    Links:

    Latinx criticism of American Dirt by Jeanine Cummings

    Denver Women’s Press Club

    The Word: A story telling sanctuary

    1. Good news! the [margins.] conference is on! It will take place remotely, August 1-2, 2020 because their kickstarter was more than fully funded
    2. Note: Since my conversation with Maha, Tattered Cover released a statement in response to the Black Lives Matter protests. That letter and a community response from writers of color and community leaders can be found here.
      1. Book Bar is a Denver independent book store to support instead of Tattered Cover

    Bobby LeFebre is Colorado's 8th poet laureate and the first person of color to be named poet laureate in the century that the state honor has existed. 

    More info about this podcast & sensitivity reading services:

    Website: www.sensitivityreader.com

    Email: sensitivityreader@gmail.com

    Social Media: Facebook and Twitter

    Music arrangement and podcast editing by Cara Tucker https://caratucker.com/

    Logo design by Leonard Pollard, commissions open: leonard.pollard@colorado.edu Seriously, he’s amazing. You should see what he can do with embroidery floss.

    Shout out to Nikita Burks-Hale, M.Ed. at Journeygurlmagic.com for all of her support in getting this podcast off the ground. Nikita is a journey coach and podcast editor.

    Episode 7 Part 1 of 2 Own Voices with Maha Kamal

    Episode 7 Part 1 of 2 Own Voices with Maha Kamal

    Description:

    Part 1 of 2: South Asian writer and attorney, Maha Kamal talks about the short story collection she is working on. Including, what led her to write speculative fiction and the themes and characters in her stories. Other topics in this episode are: autofiction, historical figures in India and Pakistan, what it is like to be a south Asian writer submitting to contests. We wrap up Part 1 with the necessity of researching when writing about identities other than your own. Remember to check out Part 2 for the rest of my conversation with Maha.

    Check out some of Maha Kamal’s writing and visual art here: www.mahakamal.com

    Links:

    NPR, “Back When I was Older”

    More information about Muhammad Ali Jinna and his wife, Ratanbai Jinnah

    White Mughals: Love and Betrayal in Eighteenth-Century India by William ­Dalrymple

    Fun fact- "autofiction” was the term Truman Capote used to describe his novel, In Cold Blood

    The Art of Asking by Amanda Palmer

    Black Mirror

    The Friday 500 events at Lighthouse Writer’s Workshop (currently on hiatus due to Covid-19)

    You can read “The Story of Your Life” by Ted Chiang here

    NYC Midnight short story competition

    Latinx criticism of American Dirt by Jeanine Cummings

    More info about the #Ownvoices movement

    Maha Kamal’s writing and visual art here: www.mahakamal.com

    More info about this podcast and Sydney's sensitivity reading services:

    Website: www.sensitivityreader.com

    Email: sensitivityreader@gmail.com

    Social Media: Facebook and Twitter

    Music arrangement and podcast editing by Cara Tucker https://caratucker.com/

    Logo design by Leonard Pollard, commissions open: leonard.pollard@colorado.edu Seriously, he’s amazing. You should see what he can do with embroidery floss.

    Shout out to Nikita Burks-Hale, M.Ed. at Journeygurlmagic.com for all of her support in getting this podcast off the ground. Nikita is a journey coach and podcast editor.

    Episode 6: Trans Women in Stories with Cara Tucker

    Episode 6: Trans Women in Stories with Cara Tucker

    In this episode, we discuss representation and tropes of trans women in books and television.  In addition to talking about common tropes, Cara and I discuss what’s missing from trans women’s characters. We also talk about best practices for using pronouns and previous names in character flashbacks and backstory and where the line is between authenticity and tragedy porn.

    Hire Cara for audio visual services including podcast editing and videography: https://caratucker.com/

    Bonus: Listen all the way through for a sample of Cara’s chiptunes arrangement of Beethoven’s 7th Symphony.

    Links: 

    Some links include spoilers.

    Laverne Cox who plays Sophia on Netflix’s Orange is the New Black. Here is an article about the trauma / tragedy porn in the show (spoilers and triggering content about racial violence, police brutality, incarceration, and transphobia). I want to acknowledge that in my conversation with Cara, we did not include the

    Sense8 created by the Wachowski sisters, Lana and Lilly, who also directed The Matrix

    Wendy Carlos- a musician and composer who helped develop the Moog Synthesizer which was the first commercially available keyboard instrument.

    Lynn Conway- the computer scientist whose task efficiency system is still used in most computers today.

    Battleblock Theatre

    Star Wars: Clone Wars- Darth Maul’s back story (spoilers)

    An article from the New Yorker about the backlash to Star Wars Episode 8: The Last Jedi

    More info about this podcast and my sensitivity reading services:

    Website: www.sensitivityreader.com

    Email: sensitivityreader@gmail.com

    Social Media: Facebook and Twitter

    Music arrangement and podcast editing by Cara Tucker https://caratucker.com/

    Logo design by Leonard Pollard, commissions open: leonard.pollard@colorado.edu Seriously, he’s amazing. You should see what he can do with embroidery floss.

    Shout out to Nikita Burks-Hale, M.Ed. at Journeygurlmagic.com for all of her support in getting this podcast off the ground. Nikita is a journey coach and podcast editor.

    Episode 5: Mental Illness and Writing

    Episode 5: Mental Illness and Writing

    In this episode, I focus on dealing with mental illness in times of crisis as a creator and how to write more authentic mentally ill characters. I talk about my own mental health challenges and those of a character in my novel in progress. There are some mentions of suicidal ideation and medical neglect in this episode. Please take care of yourselves.

    Links:
    The Red Hand Files- Nick Cave's Newsletter (it's amazing and I encourage you to sign up!)

    Lighthouse Writer's Workshop
    Remote Youth Writing Classes -I'm teaching a ton of workshops this week and next
    The Book Project-  A competitive two year writing program at Lighthouse Writer's Workshop

    Brene Brown and the differences between shame and guilt

    Complex PTSD From Suriviving to Thriving by Pete Walker

    Midsommar, 2019  This is a horror film / thriller and the trailer contains gore

    Unlocking the Magic edited by Vivian Caethe

    More info on the Sensitivity Reader Podcast and Inqueery, LLC. sensitivity reading services:

    Website: www.sensitivityreader.com

    Email: sensitivityreader@gmail.com

    Social Media: Facebook and Twitter

    Audio editing and music arranged by Cara Tucker https://caratucker.com/

    Logo design by Leonard Pollard, commissions open: leonard.pollard@colorado.edu

    Shout out to Nikita Burks-Hale, M.Ed. at Journeygurlmagic.com for all of her support in getting this podcast off the ground. Nikita is a journeycoach and podcast launch specialist

    Episode 4: Sex and Sexuality in YA Fiction with Jesaka Long

    Episode 4: Sex and Sexuality in YA Fiction with Jesaka Long

    In this episode, I am joined by Jesaka Long for a discussion on sex and sexuality in YA fiction. How explicit is too explicit? When is it okay to "fade to black" on a sex scene? Get answers to these questions and more as well as practical tips to improve your writing craft when it comes to sex for the next generation on this week's episode!

    Stay up to date with Jesaka Long: jesakalong.com

    Media mentioned:

    Jack of Hearts (and Other Parts) by: Lev A.C. Rosen

    Judy Blume

    Our Own Private Universe by: Robin Talley

    PG by: Courtney Summers 

    Cherry by: Lindsey Rosin

    This is Kind of An Epic Love Story by: Kheryn Callender and Kacen Callender

    The Snow Child by: Eowyn Ivey

    Squad by: Mariah MacCarthy

    GLSEN guide to No Promo Homo laws in some states in the U.S.

    More info on the Sensitivity Reader Podcast and Inqueery, LLC. sensitivity reading services:

    Website: www.sensitivityreader.com

    Email: sensitivityreader@gmail.com

    Social Media: Facebook and Twitter

    Audio editing by Cara Tucker https://caratucker.com/ and JourneyGurl Magic https://www.journeygurlmagic.com/

    Music arranged by Cara Tucker

    Logo design by Leonard Pollard, commissions open: leonard.pollard@colorado.edu

    Episode 3: Interview with Sensitivity Reader, Joseph Ponce

    Episode 3: Interview with Sensitivity Reader, Joseph Ponce

    In this episode, we discuss the business and subtleties of sensitivity reading with our guest and fellow sensitivity reader, Joe Ponce. We talk about everything from when and how to credit a sensitivity reader, the costs and benefits of using one, and discuss different approaches to completing a sensitivity read.

    Hire Joe on Fiverr: https://www.fiverr.com/josephmponce

    Media mentioned in this episode:

    The 0ffice,Season 02 Episode 09T

    The author who originally pulled her book due to backlash after an early release was Amelia Wen Zhao: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/31/books/amelie-wen-zhao-blood-heir-ya-author-pulls-debut-accusations-racism.html The book, Blood Heir, is now out https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/42359583-blood-heir

    The now defunct Writing in the Margins sensitivity reader database:

    https://medium.com/@justinaireland/goodbye-sensitivity-readers-database-e1cbc53044a9

    Website: www.sensitivityreader.com

    Email: sensitivityreader@gmail.com

    Social Media: www.facebook.com/sensitivityreader

    https://twitter.com/thesydneyfowler

    Audio editing by Cara Tucker https://caratucker.com/ and JourneyGurl Magic https://www.journeygurlmagic.com/

    Music arranged by Cara Tucker

    Logo design by Leonard Pollard, commissions open: leonard.pollard@colorado.edu

    Episode 2: Disability and Queer Representation with The Happy Zoologist

    Episode 2: Disability and Queer Representation with The Happy Zoologist

    In this episode, we discuss disability representation in web comics and various other forms of media with special guest, Tab, The Happy Zoologist.

    Find Tab on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehappyzoologist/

    Media mentioned in this episode:

    Out of the Blue by Ari https://tapas.io/series/OutoftheBlue

    The 12:37 podcast https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/alma-rodagil/the-1237

    Love and Luck podcast https://www.loveandluckpodcast.com/

    Hurt Go Happy by Ginny Rorby https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/196560.Hurt_Go_Happy

    The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/69136.The_Book_of_Lost_Things

    Website: Sensitivityreader.com Email: sensitivityreader@gmail.com Social Media: facebook.com/sensitivityreader  https://twitter.com/thesydneyfowler

    Audio editing by Cara Tucker and Journey Gurl Magic https://caratucker.com/

    https://www.journeygurlmagic.com/

    Music arranged by Cara Tucker

    Logo design by Leonard Pollard, commissions open: leonard.pollard@colorado.edu

     

    Episode 1: What Is Sensitivity Reading?

    Episode 1: What Is Sensitivity Reading?

    Welcome to the first episode of the Sensitivity Reader podcast. This show is dedicated to conversations about the craft, business, and necessity of diverse stories in research, literature, and other media. This episode defines sensitivity reading, gives an overview of what you can expect from future episodes, and introduces your host, Sydney Fowler.

    Links mentioned in the episode:

    A letter from Justina Ireland regarding the now closed Writing in the Margins sensitivity reader database https://medium.com/@justinaireland/goodbye-sensitivity-readers-database-e1cbc53044a9

    Website: Sensitivityreader.com Email: sensitivityreader@gmail.com Social Media: facebook.com/sensitivityreader  https://twitter.com/thesydneyfowler

    Audio editing by Cara Tucker and Journey Gurl Magic https://caratucker.com/

    https://www.journeygurlmagic.com/

    Music arranged by Cara Tucker

    Logo design by Leonard Pollard, commissions open: leonard.pollard@colorado.edu