Torrey Peters has never written with her detractors in mind, and she doesn’t plan to start just because her debut novel, Detransition, Baby, is now a bestseller. “I think it’s very important to not write defensively,” she says, reflecting on how the book was at risk of being weaponized as a transphobic talking point. “I’m conscious about who I choose as my audience, but I’m not conscious about thinking of all the ways that bigots could twist my words.” In the novel, hot trans girl protagonist Reese has grown weary of the chaotic social life she leads and starts to consider entering a co-parenting setup with her ex, Ames, who has detransitioned after living as a trans woman and is now having a baby with a cis woman—also his boss—named Katrina. Peters’ emotionally intelligent comedy of manners has won near-universal praise since its January release, landing a spot on the Women’s Prize for Fiction longlist as well as This story is from Kinfolk Issue Forty-Two Buy Now Related Stories Arts & Culture Issue 49 Jenny Odell The acclaimed author in search of lost time. Arts & Culture Issue 47 Julia Bainbridge On the life-enhancing potential of not drinking alcohol. Arts & Culture Issue 45 Lisa Taddeo On writing the secret lives of women. Arts & Culture Issue 39 Nic Stone How can a young adult fiction author tackle racism, inequality and incarceration—but not rob teen readers of their optimism? Arts & Culture Issue 37 Anne Tyler The author of sprawling family dramas on her own epic half-century of writing. Arts & Culture Issue 35 Mieko Kawakami Meet the rising author who already longs for obsolescence.
Arts & Culture Issue 39 Nic Stone How can a young adult fiction author tackle racism, inequality and incarceration—but not rob teen readers of their optimism?
Arts & Culture Issue 37 Anne Tyler The author of sprawling family dramas on her own epic half-century of writing.
