Melissa Febos is the author of five books, including the national bestselling essay collection, GIRLHOOD, which has been translated into eight languages and was a LAMBDA Literary Award finalist, and winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award in Criticism. Her craft book, BODY WORK, was also a national bestseller, an LA Times Bestseller, and an Indie Next Pick. Her latest, The Dry Season: A Memoir of Pleasure in a Year Without Sex, is out now. She’s the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship, and the Jeanne Córdova Nonfiction Award from LAMBDA Literary. On today’s show, Melissa and Annmarie discuss celibacy, erasure, and how abstaining from romantic entanglements might allow us to see ourselves in radical new ways.

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Books by Melissa Febos

The Dry Season: A Memoir of Pleasure in a Year Without Sex

Body Work

Abandon Me

Whip Smart: The True Story of a Secret Life

Girlhood

Here’s our favorite Alan Rickman in Sense and Sensibility.

Follow Melissa Febos:

Instagram: @melissafebos

Facebook: @melissafebos

Substack: @melissafebos

melissafebos.com

Photo Credit: Beowulf Sheehan

**Writing Workshops and Wish Fulfillment: 

If you liked this conversation and are interested in writing abroad, consider joining Annmarie and co-leader Athena Dixon for a writing retreat in Italy in September, 2025.

You can travel to a beautiful place, meet other wise women, and write your own stories. We’d love to help you make your wishes come true. 

This will sell out. Act now and join us!

Or for women interested in an online Saturday morning writing circle, you can sign up here or message Annmarie to learn more.

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