It’s time for the next entry in my Fanzine/Fancast Spotlight project. For more about the Fanzine/Fancast Spotlight project, go here. You can also check out the other great fanzines and fancasts featured by clicking here.
I have decided to expand the scope of the project to also cover fancasts, because the fancast category could also use a boost. And besides, the borders between fanzine and fancast are porous anyway.
So today, I’m pleased to feature Women at Warp, a great podcast examining Star Trek from a feminist and intersectional perspective.
Therefore, I’m happy to welcome the team of Women at Warp to my blog today:
Tell us about your podcast or YouTube channel.
Women at Warp is a groundbreaking bi-weekly podcast committed to examining Star Trek from a feminist perspective, exploring Intersectional Diversity in Infinite Combinations with a rotating crew of seven hosts. Tune in for everything from episode and character analysis to history of women behind the scenes and in fan culture to discussion of larger themes and messages throughout the franchise.
Who are the people behind your podcast or channel?
In alphabetical order, with Twitter handles:
- Aliza Pearl (@AlizaPearl)
- Andi (@FirstTimeTrek)
- Grace (@bonecrusherjenk)
- Jarrah (@jarrahpenguin)
- Kennedy (@thatmikeychick)
- Sarah (@sarahmiyoko)
- Sue (@spaltor)
Why did you decide to start your podcast or channel?
Way back in 2014, Andi was live-tweeting her first time through Star Trek, Grace was podcasting on All Things Trek, Jarrah was blogging at Trekkie Feminist, and Sue was podcasting and blogging at Anomaly Podcast. At different points in time, Andi, Jarrah, and Sue had all been guests with Grace on All Things Trek on TrekRadio – sometimes with each other, sometimes individually. Having been connected through podcasting, and with that show coming to a close, Andi proposed that we start our own. After much planning, Women at Warp launched as an independent podcast in 2015.
It was during STLV50 that the crew began working with Roddenberry Entertainment and in April 2017, the Roddenberry Podcast Network was formally announced, with Mission Log, Priority One, and Women at Warp as founding shows. Now known as Roddenberry Podcasts, the network has added Mission Log Live, The Trek Files, Daily Star Trek News, and Shabam! to the lineup. We expect that the network will continue to grow and expand its reach beyond Star Trek fandom.
In August 2020, Aliza, Kennedy, and Sarah joined the crew. All three women had been previous guests on the podcast and co-panelists at conventions. The addition of more hosts with varied backgrounds and experiences serves to make our content stronger and more inclusive. It was during this crew expansion that we also more clearly defined our mission: To explore Intersectional Diversity in Infinite Combinations. We’re still waiting for the day that all seven hosts will be in the same room.
To the best of our knowledge, when we began the show back in 2015, Women at Warp was the only Star Trek-specific fan podcast with an all-woman team, and the only one that made it a mission to explore feminist themes in the franchise. Since then, so many more women and non-binary folx have joined the Trek podcasting space, and we couldn’t be happier to see this community grow. Since the 1960s, women have been the driving force of Star Trek fandom, and that tradition will continue long into the future.
The four fan categories of the Hugos (best fanzine, fan writer, fan artist and fancast) tend to get less attention than the fiction and dramatic presentation categories. Are there any awesome fanzines, fancasts, fan writers and fan artists you’d like to recommend?
We recently published a non-comprehensive list of diverse Star Trek podcasts on our blog. The full post is available at https://www.womenatwarp.com/infinite-podcasts-in-infinite-combinations/, but here is the list itself for convenience:
BIPOC Trek podcasts:
- The 7th Rule – Two men (one Black, one white)
- All the Asians on Star Trek – One Asian man
- Black Tribbles – Eight Black hosts (five men, three women)
- I Quit Star Trek – Two Black hosts (one woman, one man)
- SyFy Sistas – Five Black women
- Your Away Team – Two Black hosts (one woman, one man)
LGBT+ Trek Podcasts:
- Deep Space Gay – Two queer white women
- Deep Space Pride – Two gay men (one Asian, one white)
Diverse Trek-and-Other-SF Podcasts:
- Métis in Space – Two Indigenous Canadian women
- Out of Orbit Podcast – Small horde of young LGBT+ hosts
Honorable Mention to DisVisibility, which is not specifically Trek or sci-fi, but which discusses politics, culture, and media from a disability perspective.
Where can people find you?
Our website is at https://www.womenatwarp.com/, and we’re @womenatwarp on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
Our Teepublic store is located at https://www.teepublic.com/stores/womenatwarp. We also have a Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/womenatwarp that includes perks such as bonus content, watchalongs, and Patreon-exclusive merchandise.
Thank you, Aliza Pearl, Andi, Grace, Jarrah, Kennedy, Sarah and Sue, for stopping by and answering my questions.
Do check out Women at Warp, cause it’s a great fancast.
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Do you have a Hugo eligible fanzine/-site or fancast and want it featured? Contact me or leave a comment.