Hard Place: Queer Lit night with Gab Torr & Wuthering Dykes

Everyone's healing. No-one's happy.

For years, Billy’s decisions have been made for her by long-term girlfriend Rose, leaving her free not to think for – or about – herself. But when they break up and Billy is left without anywhere to live, she’s forced to take up an unappealing but affordable SpareRoom ad. Her new flatmates, Sid and Rhoda, are the kinds of people who talk very seriously about taking accountability, adhering to the flat’s community guidelines and holding space for one another. Meals are communal by force, polyamory is assumed, and whatever the problem, capitalism’s usually to blame. Yes, Rhoda’s parents own the flat, but that doesn’t matter: they’re unapologetically political and loudly queer, and slowly Billy becomes enmeshed in their radical, vulnerable world. But as Billy’s past starts to catch up with her, and all of their boundaries begin to crumble, each of them must reckon with what they truly stand for – and what they’ll sacrifice to hold onto it.

Our Speakers:

Gab Torr is a 2021 London Writers Award winner and the debut author of Hard Place. Gab lives in Sheffield with their wife and no pets. Gab’s writing has been published with Cipher Press and longlisted for the 2023 Queen Mary Wasafiri New Writing Prize.

Wuthering Dykes book club, a book club for dykes in Edinburgh, is chairing this event!

Katie Marson is part of the team that runs Wuthering Dykes, an Edinburgh-based book club and community group of over 200 members. She is a third sector professional with a research background in queer and lesbian social history. She is an avid reader and runs multiple social media pages dedicated to books.