Welcome to the next in the Podcast Showcase series, where we share podcasts with you in the words of the podcasters themselves. This time, we talk to Gender Stories.
Sum up your podcast in three sentences
This podcast is for listeners who are interested in having nuanced conversations about gender. The podcast includes both solo episodes and interviews with authors, activists, and educators. If you’re interested in exploring all aspects of gender in your personal and professional life, this podcast is for you.
Who is your ideal listener? Who loves your show?
I know this sounds so broad but anyone who has an open mind and an interest in gender is my ideal listener! The conversations are so varied that there truly is something for everyone.
My listeners are cisgender, transgender, and/or nonbinary and everyone seems to love the show for slightly different reasons. Some love the show because they resonate with some of the experiences shared by me as a host, or by the interviewees. Others love it because they find it educational.
Our listeners also seem to appreciate the long, in-depth, vulnerable conversations between host and interviewees.
What made you start this podcast?
When I started this podcast there seemed to be very few podcast hosted by trans and/or nonbinary people. Interestingly Gender Reveal started around the same time, as discussed in one of the episodes where I interview their host!
The few podcasts about gender that existed at the time seemed to either focus on binary understanding of gender, or to be exclusively for trans people. I wanted to create something that invited anyone interested to explore and challenge what we are taught gender is.
What have you learned about your subject thanks to this podcast?
I already felt that gender was pervasive and had to do with every aspect of life but now I truly know that is true! Every aspect of our lives is impacted by this idea of gender and people are very impacted by it, in a variety of ways.
I believe my podcast keeps me constantly asking myself, and my listeners, to examine easy assumptions about gender and go a little deeper.
What has your experience of podcasting been? What do you love / hate about the process?
It has definitely been an adventure! I wish I had more time to dedicate to my podcast, it really is a labor of love and it can be challenging to keep going. However, the support of my listeners keeps me going.
It’s amazing to see how many people tune in and to run into people who have listened to my podcast and are enthusiastic about it. I love meeting listeners! Honestly, the only thing I hate is listening to my voice as my accent sounds so much stronger than it does in my head! Otherwise I love everything about the process. Well, maybe not transcribing. It is essential, yet time consuming. I am also very fortunate to have a partner who is my producer, Root Holden. I could not create this podcast without them!
If someone wants to start listening to your podcast, which episode would you recommend they start with? Why?
Probably not the first one! I was so nervous and I was getting a cold when I recorded it. I think I have definitely improved as a host and our sound quality has improved too!
I would invite them to listen to the most recent episode, or to pick a topic they are interested in. There is really no ‘right place’ to start from. Some episodes have a part 1 and part 2 because the interviewee and I just could not stop talking! So, if you love long and meandering conversations, check these out!
Which other podcasts do you love listening to?
I love listening to Culture Sex Relationships by Justin Hancock, which used to be the Meg-John & Justin’s podcast (full disclosure, I have been their guest a few times!). It’s such a great podcast addressing so many of the things I am passionate about. I also love the Disability Visibility Project podcast hosted by Alice Wong. It’s really a great podcast that everyone should listen to!
I also love the fabulous How to Survive the End of the World by the amazing Brown sisters and the Gender Reveal podcast created by Tuck Woodstock, and the Colored Pages Book Club, the list could go on and on!
There are also so many great fiction podcasts, like Caravan and Kalila Stormfire’s Economical Magick Services. I guess I will stop there or the recommendations will keep on coming. There really are so many wonderful podcasts out there.
If people want to find you online, where can they do so?
People can find the podcast’s homepage at https://genderstories.buzzsprout.com/ and follow @genderstories on Twitter and Instagram. They can also sign up for my patreon page, if they want to support the show at https://www.patreon.com/genderstories
All our episodes are free to everyone and will stay that way so patreon support is greatly appreciated! Thank you.
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Image credit: The Gender Spectrum Collection