Our Episodes
The moment of the novella with JY Yang
I have been thoroughly enjoying JY Yang’s Tensorate series of novellas so wanted to chat to them about blending science fiction and fantasy, non-binary representation in SFF, and using different structures and forms across a series! Fair warning – there is a lot...
Disney Princes
Previously on Breaking the Glass Slipper we have covered Disney princesses. This time we thought we would turn our attention to the men. But we’re a podcast about women! So why spend an entire episode focusing on princes and other male protagonists in Disney films? ...
Alternate histories with Mary Robinette Kowal
Alternate history narratives – regardless of whether they have overt fantasy or sci-fi elements – are ultimately ‘what if’ narratives. This is the same basic principle underlying all speculative fiction, so it is no wonder they made such good bedfellows. Have you ever...
Islands in speculative fiction: Live from WorldCon
Much of W. B. Yeats’ poetry is inspired by the rich mythological fabric of Ireland. This is the land of the Sidhe, the banshee, the merrow. But the island itself has a character, an identity, in the geographical, historical and metaphysical sense. So, in homage to our...
Trinities with Jen Williams
From ancient mythology and religious texts to Star Trek and Harry Potter, trinities – or trios – have always been a common motif. Why is the power of three so potent and what tropes do we tend to see? To help us delve into this subject, we have enlisted the help of...
Alien at 40: The making of a feminist icon
In 1979, one of the most seminal sci-fi films ever made was shown for the first time on the big screen. Ridley Scott’s Alien is a dark, disturbing and downright terrifying addition to the Hollywood Hall of Fame. 2019 marks 40 years since Alien was born (or possibly...
The importance of diversity in children’s books
Today's episode was inspired by an article that appeared on The Guardian with the headline 'Picture book bias worsens as female characters stay silent.' The piece was based on research into books published in the last year, showing that most picture books 'present a...
Women write Science Fiction – with Lisa Yaszek
I don't want the future to be female. I want it to be for everyone.Lisa Yaszek In a fascinating episode that covers everything from telepathic matriarchies to lesbian vampire fiction, academic Lisa Yaszek chats to us about the history of women writers in science...
The problem with the chosen one
In our last episode, we had author Aliette de Bodard on to discuss the absence of mothers in speculative fiction. One explanation put forward was the focus of chosen one narratives – these stories rely on the protagonist achieving something great, against all odds,...