Lauren Parker is a writer, zinemaker, and visual artist in Oakland, California. She’s a graduate of Hiram College’s Creative Writing program and has written for the Toast, Strange Horizons, The Racket, Xtra Magazine, Catapult, and Autostraddle. She’s the winner of the Vachel Lindsay poetry prize, is the author of the poetry collection We Are Now the Thing in the Woods with Bottlecap Press, and a forthcoming deck of spells with Simon & Schuster.
For bookings: laurenelizabethparker33(at)gmail.com
Lauren Parker 
Dear Lauren,
Thank you for that amazing feminist list of books to read. I had a follow-up question. I’m also looking for books on internalized cheuvanism. Would you have any recommendations on that? I know the lists likely cross but I’m not sure by how much.
That’s and I’ll be starting on that list now 🙂
Hi Karen,
I think a great one that I just read was Sex Object by Jessica Valenti. I mostly know pop culture books rather than like papers and studies on the subject. I remember reading Female Chauvinist Pigs but I haven’t read it in YEARS so it could be garbage feminism for all I know. What sort of things are you looking for?
PS. Thanks so much for reading!
Hi Lauren,
I loved reading your list of feminist books, and I’m definitely going to check out some of those. I’m an English teacher of high school boys, and some of your list are on their reading list (HANDMAID’S TALE, PERSEPOLIS). I also have them read parts of Virgina Woolf’s A ROOM OF ONE’S OWN. In addition, I recently found a cool book of prose poetry that I think you’d love: it’s called WHY GOD IS A WOMAN, by Nin Andrews. So cool! It’s a slim volume, so you can read it all in one sitting.
Anyway, I liked your writing and your list! I do try to explain to my students that we live in a patriarchy–most of them get it, but some….hmmmm…it takes a lot of work.
Best,
Jan
Bless you, Jan, for taking that on. I recommend sci fi and fantasy simply because it’s misdirection. It tricks them into caring about female characters and writers. Because I’m pretty intersectional I like to include a lot of women (and non binary people) of color. Most boys I know are super into manga which might be a good place to drag them in. “See this character you like is a WOMAN and she’s ASIAN and THOSE THINGS ARE IMPORTANT.” Thanks so much for reading my work and good luck out there!
Hahaha, thanks, Lauren! Manga, I will have to investigate that. Thanks for the tip. –Jan
Hello Lauren! I just finished reading your article on Medium titled ‘Experiencing Misogyny as a Dominatrix’ and I’m so glad you wrote it.
Luckily, I haven’t experienced some of the really annoying and harrassing aspects of being a domme, but you put into words what I feel anytime I go to a party or mixed event (sometimes, even femdom events) which is this lack of seriousness of the role I identify with. It has made going to events stressful and boring, for many reasons that I could go into but your article covered well :).
I enjoy reading your articles on bdsm for they give some validity to what I feel in the scene.