Lilly Dancyger

Instructor & Writer
Profile Photo

Lilly Dancyger is the author of Negative Space, a reported and illustrated memoir selected by Carmen Maria Machado as one of the winners of the 2019 Santa Fe Writers Project Literary Awards, and the editor of Burn it Down, a critically acclaimed anthology of essays on women's anger from Seal Press. Lilly's writing has been published by Longreads, The Rumpus, The Washington Post, Glamour, Playboy, Rolling Stone, and more. Find her on Twitter here.

Classes

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Stories

Cover Photo: A photograph of a studio microphone, on a microphone stand and with a filter in front of it, against a black background.
Narrating My Audiobook Felt Like Doing an Impression of Myself

Even the most authentic voice on the page is a translation, a refraction, an altered version of the author’s actual speaking voice.

Sep 28, 2021
Cover Photo: A black and white still from the Wizard of Oz movie—The Wicked Witch is hiding behind a tree, waiting to surprise Dorothy and the Scarecrow, walking down the yellow brick road.
‘The Wizard of Oz’ Is a Story About Grief

We’re told the Wicked Witch wants the ruby slippers because they have magic powers—but so does any material object once possessed and cherished by a deceased loved one.

Jan 07, 2020
Cover Photo: A photo of Uma Thurman as Poison Ivy in the 1997 film Batman and Robin, in a leaf green body suit, sitting in a powerful but seductive pose against a nature-themed backdrop.
What Poison Ivy Can Teach Us About Fighting Climate Change

Sure, sometimes she went a little overboard, trying to kill the executives rather than merely destroying their empires . . . but she had the right idea.

Sep 12, 2019
Cover Photo: Scene from 'Killing Eve', AMC
Dangerous Desire: On ‘Killing Eve’ and Finding Space for Queerness in a Straight-Passing Relationship

I recognize myself in Eve’s character because I don’t think Villanelle is just a woman she’s attracted to. Villanelle represents Eve’s queerness in general.

Aug 07, 2019
Cover Photo: Scene from 'The Craft'; Columbia Pictures
I’m Done With Cautionary Tales About Women and Power

Lilly Dancyger on casting spells and re-watching The Craft during an election season.

Jun 27, 2019
Cover Photo: Scene from 'Star Trek: Discovery'/CBS
On Star Trek: Discovery’s Philippa Georgiou and How We Turn Our Mothers into Villains

I blamed my mother for so many things, but I blamed her especially for being a mere mortal when what I really needed was a supreme, supernaturally benevolent being.

May 13, 2019
Cover Photo: Scene from "Batman Returns" , DC/Warner Bros.
What Catwoman Taught Me About Sexuality and Power

Wearing the catsuit and embodying Pfeiffer’s slinkiness as best I could in my awkward, skinny body, I understood for the first time that I could be a sexual being, not just a sexual object.

Apr 30, 2019
Cover Photo: Photo courtesy of bluenightmares12/flickr
How I Learned to Stop Judging and Love Insta-Witches

“The whole idea of a spell is that you send your intention outward into the universe—what if the Internet is just another way to do that?”

Jun 07, 2018