In Her Words: 20th Century Lesbian Fiction

"In Her Words offers a visual and historical introduction to some of the most significant lesbian authors of the 20th​ ​Century, a swift immersion that will reawaken those who have forgotten how recently such women risked all to be truthful about loving women. The film should be required for both history and gender studies courses, which tend to gloss over the lesbian experience in articulating a political LGBTQ time​line. For millions of clos​eted women, as well as their activist sisters, finding a lesbian book was the first step toward self-recognition and the ancient whisper, I am not alone. But the film does not shy from the race and class distinctions that authors also brought to their writing, making the film simultaneously intersectional, accessible, and entertaining." -- BONNIE J. MORRIS, Ph.D., University of California at Berkeley

In Her Words provides a comprehensive overview of the development of lesbian literature in the 20th Century, and the lengths that queer women went to in order to write, publish, distribute, and read that literature. It features icons in sapphic literature such as Dorothy Allison, Ann Bannon, Leslie Feinburg, and Rita Mae Brown, who speak frankly about their experiences in the early days of the queer movement in America.  It does not minimize the racism, homophobia, and violence these trailblazers endured from mainstream society and women inside their own organizations to get their literature into the hands of the queer women yearning to see themselves represented positively in literature.  The film is entertaining and informative, an effective teaching tool and must-see for any student of queer history or gender studies.  In Her Words is now more relevant than ever in a time when book bans and censorship movements are trying to silence queer histories and voices once more. -- Dr. Susan Spangler, The State University of New York at Fredonia

In Her Words embodies the very qualities that make lesbian literature so distinctive and important. Lesbian writers crowdsourced the funding, tracked down the authors and literary historians, located a filmmaker from the community, and produced a remarkable documentary. In Her Words defines lesbian literature in its full diversity, across race and gender identity and genre.  It invites its viewers to explore lesbian literature in all its intersectionality glory. -- Jaime Harker , Professor of English and the director of the Sarah Isom Center for Women and Gender Studies at the University of Mississippi

 "This topic is implicit in the way In Her Words presents history but is more explicitly considered in the conversations shaping Ahead of the Curve. The documentaries dovetail so well that it would be illuminating to pair them in classes on LGBTQ literature or history, lesbian representation, or the Women in Print Movement. Further, the concepts of cultural visibility and representation emphasized by both documentaries would make either a compelling investigation in communications, media studies, and publishing studies courses. Each film would also be aided in classroom use by the digital archives and supplementary information on their respective websites." - Films for the Feminist Classroom

Lisa Marie Evans co-directed, edited and animated In Her Words: 20th Century Lesbian Fiction. Since April of 2022, the film has reached audiences across Italy, Perú, Ireland, Spain, Germany, Norway, Switzerland, Poland, England, Argentina, Mexico, Australia, the Philippines and United States. In Her Words is the first film to win the Publishing Triangle’s Michele Karlsberg Leadership Award. Evans is a 2021 recipient of the Arkansas Arts Council’s Fellowship Award in Cinematic Arts and was keynote speaker at VIII Gendercom: the International Conference on Gender & Communication in Viterbo, Italy.

Marianne K. Martin is the award-winning author of thirteen novels of lesbian fiction, including five Lambda Literary Award finalists. Among the accolades she has received are Independent Publisher (IPPY) Awards, Global Ebook Awards, eLit Award, International Book Award, USA Book News Best Book of the Year Award, Golden Crown Literary Society (GCLS) Goldie Award, the 2012 GCLS Trailblazer Award, and the Alice B. Foundation Award for outstanding body of work. In 2013, she was inducted into the Saints & Sinners Literary Hall of Fame, and in the same year she was selected as one of GO Magazine’s 100 Women We Love.

Marianne is a founding partner and co-owner of Bywater Books and Amble Press. She is a member of the GCLS Sandra Moran Writing Academy Scholarship Committee. Alongside co-creator Sandra Moran, Marianne developed the framework and vision for In Her Words: 20th Century Lesbian Fiction. Marianne is a first-time filmmaker and co-director for In Her Words.