Interview with Tilly Bridges

Monika: Tilly Bridges is an American writer of teleplays, comics, screenplays, and a pioneer of audio dramas. Along with her wife and creative partner, Susan Bridges, they are a married trans woman/cis woman writing team in Hollywood and their works include head writing for the 2021 Hugo Awards, 2023 Nebula Awards, writing for the new Monster High animated series, more than half a dozen comic anthologies, their unscripted podcast Tilly’s Trans Tuesdays and the Star Trek Adventures and Fallout role-playing games. She is the author of “Begin Transmission: The Trans Allegories of the Matrix” (2023). Hello Tilly! Thank you for accepting my invitation.

Tilly: Thank you so much for asking! I’m delighted to be chatting with you.

Monika: Before we talk about the trans allegories of Matrix, I want to ask you about your teenage years and the start of your professional career. Did you always know that writing would be your vocation?

Tilly: No, not at all. In the time and place where I grew up, being a screenwriter wasn’t something anybody had ever heard of or knew how to do. I would write a few stories on my own, and would love getting to write fiction for assignments in English class in school, but that was the extent of it. I wanted to know so badly how to write for movies and television, but that wasn’t an avenue that was open to me. I initially went to college studying for a dual major in chemistry and physics, but I grew disillusioned with it pretty quickly. That’s when the writing bug really bit me and there was no turning back.

Interview with Alysha Scarlett

Monika: Today I have invited Alysha Scarlett. Alysha has won 13 writing awards, is an American business owner, wrote a book, and was a screenwriter for a theatrical film. She is the first transgender or non-binary person to get their name and gender legally affirmed in a rural Utah county. Hello Alysha!

Alysha: Hi Monika! Thank you for having me on The Heroines of My Life!

Monika: Could you say a few words about yourself?

Alysha: I am 33 years old and from Utah. Accepting myself closes the book on a years-long journey to realize my identity. My accepting myself had a direct connection with me not letting residue from the Latter-day Saint (formerly Mormon) church influence me any longer. I am on hormone replacement therapy. I also look forward to doing all medical transition surgeries this year.

Monika: I have visited the website of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I have been shocked by their attitude toward transgender people. In short, they do not allow medical, surgical, or social transition among their believers, and they specify that “taking these actions will be cause for Church membership restrictions.”

Alysha: This is one of many, many ways that the church doesn’t deserve to have “Jesus Christ” in its name.

Interview with Renee Norlander

Renee Norlander is a woman who has lived her life on both sides of the gender spectrum and found the courage to put her journey into words. A writer, blogger, and storyteller at heart, she is best known as the author of Life from Both Sides: Deciphering the Transgendered Mind (2015), a biographical exploration that gives readers an honest and heartfelt glimpse into the challenges, discoveries, and triumphs of being transgender. Beyond her literary work, Renee is also a screenwriter and co-owner of Risa Tortuga Productions, balancing creativity with resilience as she continues to build her career in the arts. Her story, however, is not only about words on paper. Having spent years wrestling with feelings of being “wrong” for her identity, Renee finally embraced the woman she had always known herself to be, embarking on her transition in 2015. Alongside her personal transformation, she has navigated divorce, motherhood, and the pursuit of self-acceptance, all while maintaining her signature grace and dignity. Renee’s honesty about these experiences, whether about the pain of broken family relationships or the joy of rediscovering love with a childhood friend, makes her voice relatable to many who are searching for themselves.

Interview with Josephine Emery

Josephine Emery is an acclaimed Australian writer, screenwriter, and former media strategist whose storied career spans literature, film, and advocacy. Born on a coconut plantation in New Guinea and raised on a sheep farm in South Australia, she brings a rich, grounded perspective to her work, both artistic and personal. She has served in prominent roles such as Director of Literature at the Australia Council for the Arts and Head of Screenwriting at the Australian Film, TV, and Radio School. Her film credits include Freedom (1982), Fever (1988), and The Coming (1981), and she has contributed extensively as a features journalist and script editor. Josephine is the author of The Real Possibility of Joy: A Personal Journey from Man to Woman (2009), a deeply personal memoir that was shortlisted for the 2010 Nita Kibble Award. In this groundbreaking work, she sought to normalize the transgender experience and offer readers insight into the inner world of gender transition.

 

Now living a quiet life in a rural village of 1,200 people, Josephine grows her own vegetables, plays blues guitar, and crafts bespoke furniture from reclaimed timber. Though no longer active in the publishing or film industries, she continues to create, write, and reflect, finding joy and peace in her surroundings. A late-in-life transitioner, Josephine began her gender journey in her late 50s, facing immense challenges but ultimately embracing authenticity. With wit, resilience, and wisdom, she remains a powerful voice on identity, creativity, and the soulful art of becoming oneself.