Lesbian Historic Motif Podcast - Episode 157 (previously 46b) - Interview with Janet Todd
(Originally aired 2020/05/09 - listen here)
A transcript for this show is pending.
Show Notes
A series of interviews with authors of historically-based fiction featuring queer women.
In this episode we talk about:
- Why I jumped at the chance to interview Janet Todd
- Dynamics of mothers and daughters in mid-20th century England
- Post-WWII social and political changes in England all the way up to Brexit
- Themes of ignorance, claustrophobia, and class aspirations
- The subtle underlayer of queer sexuality in the book
- Mid-century experiences of same-sex identification
- Joan’s narrative voice and the life experience it represents
- Writing an unlikeable character, not for sympathy, but for understanding
- The “social refusenik” and national character
- Why does a historian write a relatively modern novel?
- How Janet’s own post-war childhood informed the setting
- Changes in childrearing philosophy and how they shaped generations
- Books mentioned
- Don’t You Know There’s a War On? by Janet Todd
- Lady Susan Plays the Game by Janet Todd (an expansion of Jane Austen’s Lady Susan)
- A Man of Genius by Janet Todd (a Gothic novel set in 19th century Venice, no queer content)
- Radiation Diaries: Cancer, Memory and Fragments of a Life in Words by Janet Todd (memoir of her cancer treatment)
Links to the Lesbian Historic Motif Project Online
- Website: http://alpennia.com/lhmp
- Blog: http://alpennia.com/blog
- RSS: http://alpennia.com/blog/feed/
- Twitter: @LesbianMotif
- Discord: Contact Heather for an invitation to the Alpennia/LHMP Discord server
- The Lesbian Historic Motif Project Patreon
Links to Heather Online
- Website: http://alpennia.com
- Email: Heather Rose Jones
- Twitter: @heatherosejones
- Facebook: Heather Rose Jones (author page)
Links to Janet Todd Online
- Website: Janet Todd
- Books: Janet Todd’s Amazon page
- Twitter: @Jan_Todd
- Facebook: Janet Todd
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