Hey lovely people!
I can’t even believe I’m writing this: it’s April, and the sun is out in Maryland.
Over the last few months it has rained more than I ever imagined it was possible to rain, and I am finally starting to heal. The cat is in the windowsill. We are so back. I hope the sun is out where you are, and you’re throwing ass to the new Chappell Roan and/or Beyonce!
We’ll keep it short and sweet and get to the good stuff. Keep reading to see what’s new with us!
<3,
Gaby, Hannah, Marcelle, Coach, and Zoe
We were delighted to be joined by
over at to discuss athleisure! We begin with a history lesson from Hannah about WWII's effect on the fashion industry, particularly women's clothing and the rise of spandex. Hannah offers some insight from cultural critic Jia Tolentino and her essay, "Athleisure, barre and kale: the tyranny of the ideal woman." We then move on to some helpful framing from theorist Michelle Foucault, sociologists Daniel Nehring and Anja Röcke, and feminist scholars Julie Brice and Holly Thorpe. We talk neoliberalism, fatphobia, and, of course, our culture's obsession with optimization.Next up, Hannah and Marcelle talk about Disney and pinkwashing! What drove Hannah and Marcelle to go to Disneyland? And what is with all the rainbow Mickey ears? And where does pinkwashing end and real change begin? In this episode, Marcelle leads Hannah through a history of the term, and draws on an article by Karine Duplan called “Pinkwashing Policies or Insider Activism? Allyship in the LGBTIQ+ Governance–Activism Nexus,” to better understand what leads to making public spaces inclusive for queer and trans folks.
Together, Hannah and Marcelle think through their own pleasure in experiencing Disneyland, while dissecting the tension between corporations' bottom lines and the value of representation and inclusivity. Ultimately, Marcelle and Hannah consider: if pinkwashing is by necessity surface-level public image campaigning that masks ongoing harm, is Disney doing something different?
Be sure to listen to Part I of our bonus episode about Disney here, and listen to Part II by becoming a Patron at any tier.
A Message from Coach
It’s not that I don’t have other pleasures, but these days there really is no greater high than seeing our Patreon support grow in relation to the amount of work we’re putting into Witch, Please Productions.
We’re coming up on three years since I had the good fortune to join Hannah and Marcelle as a producer for Witch, Please (RIP to a real one). In that time we’ve brought on Gaby and Zoe, we’ve worked with two incredible sound engineers (shoutout Erik Magnus and Malika Gumpangkum!), we’ve worked with some brilliant scholars and cultural critics, we’ve created lots of unhinged merch (shoutout Zoe!), and we’ve established a production company that produces three shows: Material Girls, Gender Playground** and Making Worlds***.
Patreon support is the only way we make money and that means we are truly funded by listeners who care about the show(s). If you like what we do, consider joining! You’ll get so many perks, including access to the monthly video podcast Making Worlds!
P.S. At the $20+ tiers, you get a free mug every six months and our new ones just dropped. You have to become a supporter by end of April to get your mug!
*other than ads, but we get about a nickel for those!
**new episode out tomorrow!!!!!!!
***READ BELOW!
Okay kind of a huge update:
We promised to share Making Worlds with the public on a three month delay because while we need Patreon support to fund the show (like for real!), we don’t like keeping our work pay-walled.
That means, this month, APRIL, marks the beginning of public releases. Starting with THE PILOT about Our Flag Means Death with
of which was released on our Patreon back in January. This is your official reminder that you should a) watch the episode, b) subscribe to our Youtube, c) become a Patreon supporter at any tier to support its production and catch new episodes.Guess what else? We’re moving Gaby Recommends to our newsletter!
For those unfamiliar with team lore, I (Gaby) was an independent bookseller for many years before starting a new job in publishing (remember our episode on Goblin Mode? I work for the company that published that!). I love to recommend books, and it’s the one thing I really miss about working in indie bookselling. A few months ago, we got the idea to make Gaby Recommends a Read into a Patreon video perk and it was so fun!
However, there’s that “full time job” thing and the “editing a new show thing” and reader, I simply don’t have the bandwidth to hop in front of a camera these days and get into my little rat pose to edit. So: Gaby Recommends is coming to The Monthly Hoot! Only patrons will be able to submit their requests for a recommendation, but all our newsletter subscribers will be able to get book inspo, too (and of course, each rec will be cross-posted to Patreon).
Without further ado, here are 5 recommendations from me:
For Andrea: You said you were looking for some brain-tickling horror that evokes beauty and wonder at the same time and I simply have to recommend The Woods All Black by Lee Mandelo. It’s a small town Appalachian horror novel blended up with t4t romance that is equal parts nasty and horny. It’s easily my favorite book I’ve read so far this year, and it’s a novella so it’s short!
For Sam (we had a couple Sams, this is for the Sam who said their most recent favorite read was Down Among Sticks and Bones): I’m recommending Cold People by Tom Rob Smith, which hopefully slots in nicely with your preferred genres: sci-fi, fantasy, and novels where unprepared white men go into cold places and die. This novel follows a future world that has fallen to a mysterious, omnipotent force, and the only safe place to exist is Antarctica. It focuses on humanity and forging a new life when the worst has happened.
For Caro: I think you might enjoy Yours For the Taking by Gabrielle Korn. It’s a very queer dystopian sci-fi about what happens when the climate crisis makes what’s left of New York City unlivable, and a group of people who are accepted into an exclusive set of weather-proof structures as a way to survive. I really loved it and found it to be an excellent take-down of corporate, girlboss feminism.
For Becca: One thing I’ve got is an abundance of queer book recs, and I think you’ll love City of Laughter by Temim Fruchter, which is about four generations of Eastern European Jewish women that has a touch of magical realism and queerness. I hope you dig it!
For Jasper: You mentioned you enjoyed nonfiction that focuses on humans and our interactions with each other. Can I offer you a memoir in essays about humanity and queerness through the lens of sea creatures? How Far the Light Reaches by Sabrina Imbler is one of my favorite books ever, and I’m going to just copy and paste my Goodreads review here:
“How far does the light reach? Right into your heart. What is a life in ten sea creatures? It's sweaty bodies at a gay club, it's a swarm of queers on a beach, it's reckoning with the ugliness and the beauty of your past. It's a stranded humpback whale, it's the unrelenting pressure of the dark, it's the feeling of being "unsuspecting" in a world much bigger than you. How Far The Light Reaches is a masterclass in connection—seeking it through relationships with others, or finding it between one's human life and that of the sand striker. Sabrina Imbler balances scientific fascination with careful observation of their own experiences, and it results in something close to perfect.”
It’s an eclectic mix this month, folks! I thought about making it all Beyoncé, but I held back. Enjoy! Get your happy little frog on!
Get your playlist on Spotify here or Apple Music here.
Have a topic you want us to tackle? Feel free to submit to this form!
Something else you want us to know? You can always email us at ohwitchplease@gmail.com.
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