Author Conversation: Lucy Bledsoe in conversation with Carol Anshaw

Join us for a conversation between acclaimed lesbian fiction authors Lucy Jane Bledsoe and Carol Anshaw. At the height of the Cold War, Lucybelle Bledsoe worked as an editor for the government, making scientific papers accessible to a general readership. Her colleagues touted her diligence and persistence and were devastated when, at the age of 43, she died in a house fire. Her niece Lucy Jane Bledsoe, then 9, had many questions about her beloved aunt; but all she was told was that she was intelligent-and unmarried. As Lucy Jane came of age, she uncovered references to her aunt's "companion" named Vera. Still, Lucy Jane wanted more. The resultant novel merges fact and fiction to create a historically accurate picture of the struggles faced by LGBT people in the 1950s and '60s and the closeting that was required for professional advancement. A Thin Bright Line is a love story set amid Cold War intrigue, the origins of climate research, and the nascent civil rights movement. 

Lucy Jane Bledsoe is an award- winning science writer and novelist for adults and children. Her many books include The Big Bang Symphony: A Novel of Antarctica, Biting the Apple, and Working Parts, among others. A native of Portland, Oregon, she currently lives in Berkeley, California.

Carol Anshaw is the author of the novels Carry the One,Lucky in the Corner, Seven Moves, and Aquamarine. She has won the Carl Sandburg, Society of Midland Authors, and Ferro-Grumley awards for fiction. Her short fiction has been anthologized and published in various periodicals, including VLS, Tin House, and Best American Short Stories. Anshaw is a past fellow of the Illinois Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts. She teaches in the MFA in Writing program at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Also a painter, Carol lives in Chicago and Amsterdam with her partner, the filmmaker Jessie Ewing.  .