ESSAYS
"Out There: The Lesbian in Literature"
essay in the anthology
Mapping Queer Space(s) of Praxis and Pedagogy
Palgrave/ Macmillan 2018
"I learned what a lesbian was through my father's porn. In his closet, tucked between the folds of his cardigan sweaters was a battered copy of Letters to Penthouse."
"Navigating Porn Shoots and Therapy: A Week in the Life of Writer Amy Gall"
Lambda Literary
2016
"Today, I get to watch beautiful people fuck, all day long. It is ten thousand Christmases. I’m writing an article about the only Mormon-themed porn sites in the world and it has taken me to a giant mansion outside of Portland, Oregon with wall to wall white carpet."
Poolside © 2010 Amy Gall
"Books I Wish I'd Read As An LGBTQ Teenager"
Literary Hub
2016
"When I was young, the only literature I could find about lesbians was either deeply tragic or short on character and long on formulaic, anatomically incorrect sex scenes (I’m looking at you, Xena Warrior Princess fanfiction). It wasn’t until I graduated college that I found a book which actually spoke to my experience. "
"5 Things to Know Before Having Sex With Another Woman"
Women's Health Magazine
2015
"Having sex with women is just the best. If I’m not thinking about my next meal or which stress-reducing coloring book to buy next, chances are, I’m daydreaming about a merry-go-round of vulvas circling my face. But if you’ve never had sex with a woman, one vulva—much less a carnival ride full of them—may be a bit intimidating."
Crudites © 2012 Amy Gall
"I'm a Lesbian, So Why Do Straight Men Keep Showing Up on My Tinder?"
Glamour Magazine
2015
"I kept swiping right, racking up more matches and self-esteem points. Shawna, Daisy, Marissa, Samantha. And then suddenly, there was Mark. Mark? Mark had a shaved chest, a backward hat, and a real affinity for grabbing his balls. I swiped left. And then Dan popped up, sitting on the edge a sailboat and pointing at the crotch of his khaki pants. Apparently, men are really concerned we will forget they have penises."
Spread © 2010 Amy Gall
"What It Is and What It Is Called"
Joyland
2015
"'Are you attracted to your sister?' The Professor looks at me, her hands loosely clasped on the desk in front of her. She is calm, almost cheerful. It is as if she has just asked me what my favorite color is."
Bamboo Family © 2010 Amy Gall
"Let's Talk About Sex"
Lambda Literary Review
2012
"Between the ages of 12 and 15, I spent at least four hours a day reading stories about sex between women. My time was divided between my father’s Letters to Penthouse collection, and Xena: Warrior Princess and Star Trek: Voyager fan fiction websites. It wasn’t just that these stories turned me on."
Taking Back Sausage © 2010 Amy Gall
"On Beginnings, Extended"
Writer's Bloq
2012
"I began to understand the ways in which generations of white people violently attempted to erase Japanese-Americans not just after Pearl Harbor, not just when Japanese-Americans were forced from their homes and into internments camps, but every step of the way, every time one of these women was refused a haircut by white barbers, or had their farmland burned down by white farmers."
Westport © 2014 Amy Gall
"My Sister Taught Me How to Masturbate"
The Frisky
2011
"I did not laugh this time. I stared, open mouthed, at the tiny sphere as if it was the last of some beautiful, endangered species: my clitoris, an elusive snow leopard that had finally wandered out of its cave."
Retro-jaculate © 2010 Amy Gall
"Biking the Big Easy: How I was Freed by the Very Thing That Scared Me"
A Women's Thing
2017
"Growing up, I was afraid of my body. My mother, who I have never seen break a sweat in my life, taught me that I was fragile and sickly, that the more I used my body, the weaker I would become and that the only safe place to live was inside my brain."
