She Wrote Too

51:18

The Lottery by Shirley Jackson

She Wrote Too ·

2026/10/04

After the publication of Shirley Jackson's story The Lottery in The New Yorker in June 1948, hundreds of people wrote in asking whether the account of shocking events in a New England village was based on reality. The ordinariness of human cruelty appalled some – and prompted others to ask where they could go and watch.In this episode, we discuss Jackson’s life and work – including her complex relationships and vibrant unconventionality – and look in detail at her most famous short story. What can

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66:28

Maria, or, the Wrongs of Woman by Mary Wollstonecraft

She Wrote Too ·

2026/09/01

The opening of Mary Wollstonecraft’s unfinished novel Maria, or, The Wrongs of Woman, sets up a Gothic stereotype of spooky castles and supernatural entities. But these imaginary terrors are nothing to the reality experienced by her main character, Maria, who has been incarcerated in a lunatic asylum at the behest of her abusive husband.Horror, Wollstonecraft reveals, is right here in the real world.In this episode, we look at Wollstonecraft’s life and her use of fiction to reveal the injustice

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47:54

The Mortal Immortal and Transformation by Mary Shelley

She Wrote Too ·

2026/08/01

Last time on She Wrote Too, we talked about Mary Shelley’s masterpiece, Frankenstein – but there is much more to her writing than the novel that made her famous. In the second of our two episodes about Mary Shelley, we look at a couple of her shorter Gothic works: The Mortal Immortal and Transformation.Both stories take us into strange and supernatural territory, but behind the Gothic themes, Mary Shelley explores some thoughtful questions about what it means to be human.You can find both titles in

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50:23

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

She Wrote Too ·

2026/07/08

Why has Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein fascinated generations of readers (and theatre-goers, film-goers, comic book fans, Hallowe’en mask makers and more) for over 200 years? In this first episode of our Gothic season – and the first of a two-parter about Mary Shelley – Nicola and Caroline discuss just a few of the myriad questions posed by this work of genius. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit

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28:29

Inspired to speak out

She Wrote Too ·

2026/06/15

Nicola Todd-Morgan and Caroline Rance talk about Nicola's appearance on Good Morning Britain and her call for changes to the legislation surrounding sexual offences. They also discuss how the inspiring stories of women from history gave Nicola the courage to speak out. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shewrotetoo.substack.com

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44:52

What goes on Behind Closed Doors

She Wrote Too ·

2026/06/01

Join us as we visit 18th Century Dublin via the memoirs of Peg Plunkett: courtesan, survivor, businesswoman and someone who knew what cards she had to play. In 18th-century Dublin, Peg Plunkett scandalised society, outwitted powerful men, survived poverty and violence, and then did something extraordinary, she wrote her own story.This is a remarkable memoir of a clever woman who, given very limited options, managed to create a life of excitement, glamour, culture and adventure. She was the woman who

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58:06

What Shall we have for Dinner?

She Wrote Too ·

2026/05/02

Advisory: there is mild swearing in this episode and brief discussion of sexual matters.Catherine Dickens was married to the novelist, Charles Dickens. We do not, as a rule, remember the woman who wrote What Shall We Have for Dinner? (published in 1851). In this episode we discuss her book. It was not published it under her own name, but under her pseudonym Lady Maria Clutterbuck.It’s a really interesting text. It isn’t just a collection of recipes; it’s organised into monthly menus, illustrating

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47:16

This should be a Sunday night costume drama

She Wrote Too ·

2026/04/01

Born in 1884, Naomi Jacob, ‘writer, performer, trouser-wearer, truth-teller’ wrote this novel as part of her epic Gollantz family saga. This novel is the founding story: the prequel to an extraordinary tale spanning seven books, starting in the 18th Century and following through to the Second World War. It is full of love, deception, disappointment, drama and hope - following a group of determined yet troubled characters as they take on the world in pursuit of their love of beauty and honour.In this

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36:00

Mary Astell, the first feminist?

She Wrote Too ·

2026/03/01

In this episode of She Wrote Too, we discuss a book that doesn’t shout, doesn’t rant, and doesn’t ask politely either.In 1694, Mary Astell published a slim, elegant, and quietly radical text called A Serious Proposal to the Ladies. She proposes that women should be allowed to think. Not to charm.Not merely to endure. Not to be good company or good wives. Her suggestion was that they use their minds well - to be educated, reflective, intellectually alive, and taken seriously as rational beings.When

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34:54

Loitering with Intent

She Wrote Too ·

2026/01/23

There are some writers who feel permanently modern - they just recognise unchanging aspects of the human psyche. I wonder if Muriel Spark is one of those.In this episode of She Wrote Too, Caroline Rance and I were delighted to be joined by writer Jenn Gale to talk about Spark’s deliciously subversive novel Loitering with Intent - a tale about writing, ambition, faith, power, and the dangerous thrill of telling your own story before anyone else can get hold of it.Loitering with Intent follows

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49:14

She Spoke Too: How Hibo Wardere Is Changing the Story

She Wrote Too ·

2025/12/09

Some conversations stay with you long after they end and speaking with Hibo Wardere is one of them.Hibo is one of the UK’s most courageous and compelling campaigners against female genital mutilation (FGM). She is a teacher, author, and advocate whose voice has reshaped how schools, safeguarding teams, and medical professionals understand this form of violence. But to talk with her is to understand something more fundamental: Hibo has always questioned the stories she was given.Growing up as a

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48:20

On Sledge and Horseback

She Wrote Too ·

2025/11/25

In this episode of She Wrote Too, we dive into one of the most extraordinary and strangely forgotten works of women’s travel writing: On Sledge and Horseback to Outcast Siberian Lepers by Kate Marsden. It’s a pretty special title for the true story of an incredible adventure!Caroline had read this book and told me about it - I had not read it but having done some cursory googling (also known as ‘research’) I was very interested to know more about this extraordinary story. Listen how I,

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47:20

Still Glides the Stream

She Wrote Too ·

2025/10/30

In this episode, Caroline Rance and I discuss this book - Still Glides the Stream by Flora Thompson - that both of us could barely believe that we had never read nor heard of before we stumbled across it in a second hand book stall. It really is a special piece of writing, a hybrid of fiction, memoir and ethnography documenting the tales of women and their role in the countryside community in the late Victorian Era until the post-war era with humanity, pragmatism and humour. We both strongly

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12:10

The News...

She Wrote Too ·

2025/09/29

Our book is now available on Amazon and we will be launching it at the FiLiA Conference on 10 October 2025 in Brighton. In this episode, we share the Foreword written by Victoria Smith, author of Hags and Unkind. We also share some excerpts from the book about some of our favourite writers. Imagine a young reader discovering a world of female pioneers, storytellers, and changemakers and seeing themselves reflected in these women’s courage, creativity, and strength. That’s the heart of She Wrote

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38:37

The Jane Austen they didn't teach you

She Wrote Too ·

2025/07/18

Lots of people first meet Jane Austen through Pride and Prejudice often at school, and often as their only encounter with her work. It's certainly her most dramatised novel. In this episode, Caroline and Nicola delve into something a little different: one of Austen’s earliest stories, Love and Freindship (spelled just as she wrote it!), penned when she was just fourteen, and Sanditon the novel she sadly never finished before her untimely death.Caroline, whose expertise lies in the history of

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33:40

Wide Sargasso Sea with Victoria Smith

She Wrote Too ·

2025/06/24

In this episode, we discuss Wide Sargasso Sea with writer Victoria Smith. Commonly referred to as the prequel to Jane Eyre, it does tell the story of Antoinette (Bertha in Jane Eyre) but works beautifully as a stand-alone read in its own right.Victoria Smith is the author of brilliant books Hags and Unkind and is one of the significant feminist voices of our time, so we were delighted to hear her thoughts on this highly acclaimed work.This is what some of the critics have said about the book: Angela

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43:02

Lois the Witch

She Wrote Too ·

2025/05/26

In this episode, we consider Lois the Witch, a haunting novella by Elizabeth Gaskell set against the backdrop of the 1692 Salem Witch Trials. With her characteristic emotional depth and historical sensitivity, Gaskell explores themes of fear, isolation, and the dangers of moral panic and in doing so offers a powerful critique of society’s treatment of women, both in 17th-century Massachusetts and Victorian England.Like many women writers of her time, Gaskell’s work has often been overlooked or

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33:20

Trailblazer: Barbara Leigh Smith Bodichon

She Wrote Too ·

2025/05/07

Barbara Leigh Smith Bodichon (1827-1891) is one of 19th-century Britain’s most influential feminist campaigners, involved in women’s suffrage, female higher education, the abolition of slavery and passing of the Married Women’s Property Acts.In this episode of She Wrote Too, historian Jane Robinson tells Caroline about her biography of this impressive - yet now little-known - woman, Trailblazer: Barbara Leigh Smith Bodichon, the First Feminist to Change our World. This is a public episode. If you

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37:21

The Invention of Charlotte Brontë

She Wrote Too ·

2025/04/15

Charlotte Brontë’s life was complex and dramatic. A survivor of unimaginable loss, she turned her back on the past to become not only an acclaimed writer but a figure of public fascination. There has not been a biography of Charlotte in over 10 years and in this interview, Graham Watson makes his very convincing argument as to why another one was needed.In her effort to make sense of it all, Brontë’s friend, the novelist Elizabeth Gaskell, produced a tell-all biography that revealed secrets of love,

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29:57

Wuthering Heights: A Gothic Masterpiece of Love,...

She Wrote Too ·

2025/03/31

In this episode of She Wrote Too, I talk with comedian and writer Andy Gleeks, who also brings his background as an English teacher to our conversation. This is our second episode on Emily Brontë’s extraordinary novel, if you haven’t already, do listen to our first discussion with best-selling gothic novelist Essie Fox, where we reviewed other fascinating aspects of the book.Few novels inspire such strong and conflicting reactions as Wuthering Heights. It is a story of obsession, revenge, and

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