writings
What follows is a fairly comprehensive list of all of my writings, including books I have written, individual articles and essays I have penned (most accessible online), anthologies I have been included in, my academic papers, translations of my work, and my chapbooks (i.e., small, self-published books). For each category, writings appear in reverse chronological order, with more recent works at the top of the list.
This page does not include many of my older (mostly trans-themed) writings — these can be found on either my trans activism webpage and/or my blog. I also have a separate Trans Psychology page that collects all my writings related to transgender healthcare, prevalence, development, diagnoses, theories, sexualities, and so forth.
If you appreciate my writings (many of which I make freely available here), then please consider supporting me on Patreon — if you do, you'll get behind-the-scenes updates, access to many of my in-progress & unpublished writings, plus other goodies!
books
Whipping Girl: A Transsexual Woman on Sexism and the Scapegoating of Femininity (Seal Press, 2007, 2016, 2024) is a collection of personal essays that debunk many of the myths and misconceptions that people have about trans women, femininity, and the subjects of gender and sexism more generally. The Third Edition comes out in March 2024 with a new Afterword about trans youth and the current anti-trans moral panic — you can learn more about it here. Translations of Whipping Girl are also available in Spanish, Japanese, and French.
Sexed Up: How Society Sexualizes Us, and How We Can Fight Back (Seal Press, release date May 17th, 2022) examines the mindsets that shape how we perceive and interpret sex, gender, and sexuality. A central focus is on sexualization: when we nonconsensually reduce people to their real or imagined sexual attributes (their bodies, behaviors, desires) to the exclusion of other characteristics. I detail how sexualization plagues not just women, but all marginalized groups, and stems largely from the stigma we associate with sex itself. I also share strategies to overcome this sex-related stigma — strategies designed to foster sexual equity without sacrificing sexual diversity in the process.
Excluded: Making Feminist and Queer Movements More Inclusive (Seal Press, 2013; finalist for the Publishing Triangle’s Judy Grahn Award for Lesbian Nonfiction) offers vital new insights into how prejudice works and how to improve activism, addressing topics such as intersectionality, call-out culture, Nature-versus-Nurture debates, how to be an ethically gendered and sexual being, embracing heterogeneity and ambivalence, and more! Click the link for more details, reviews, interviews, and excerpts from the book, plus where to purchase it. Excluded was recently included on several best books of the 2010s lists.
Outspoken: A Decade of Transgender Activism and Trans Feminism (Switch Hitter Press, 2016; finalist for the Lambda Literary Award for Transgender Nonfiction) compiles forty-eight of my previously unpublished and difficult to find trans-themed writings, including my early slam poems and spoken word, essays and manifestos written contemporaneously with Whipping Girl and Excluded, plus my more recent work addressing differences within trans communities and activism. Click the link for more details, reviews, and excerpts from the book, plus where to purchase it. Also, be sure to explore the free online trans/gender/sexuality/activism glossary (with almost 200 entries!) that accompanies the book!
articles and essays
Here is a list of articles, essays, and other pieces that I have written. All links are no-paywall. Popular or notable articles are highlighted in bold:
At Odds (a trans-themed personal essay I wrote immediately after writing Whipping Girl) was made available for my Patreon supporters on February 12, 2019.
The speech that I gave at the San Francisco Women’s March, entitled Empathy Politics, was posted on Medium on January 22, 2017. You can also listen to a live recording of me giving the speech via my Patreon site.
In August 2006, I wrote a web-post entitled Frustration that has since evolved into a collection of new thoughts and rants regarding the issue of trans woman-inclusion in lesbian and women-only spaces.
My personal essay "Mirror Image" appears in Cherry Bomb issue #4, 2004 (San Francisco, CA).
An excerpt from the poem "Cocky" and an interview with Julia can be found in Michelle Tea's article Transmissions from Camp Trans in The Believer, Nov 2003 issue (San Francisco, CA).
The poem "Sleeping Sickness" appears in Clamor Magazine #23 - November/December 2003 (Toledo, OH). or read it here!
My poem "Super Hero" appears in Son of Words, 2003. or read it here!
My poem "Mix and Match" appears in Holy Titclamps #19, Summer, 2003 (San Francisco, CA). or read it here!
My essay “Legally Married Lesbians” appears in Kitchen Sink, issue #3, 2003 (Oakland, CA).
My poem "Barrette Manifesto" appears in the Cubby Missalette - “The Girly Mag” issue, 2002 (Oakland, CA). or read it here!
anthologies
The following are anthology contributions and/or forewords I have written for other people’s books. Most of the links will take you to the Amazon.com site for the book, so that you can find out more about it - but I encourage you to buy it from an independent bookstore if you can!
Current Issues and Enduring Questions (12th edition), written & edited by Sylvan Barnet, Hugo Bedau, John O’Hara; published by Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2019. Includes my contribution “Free Speech and the Paradox of Tolerance.”
Applied Ethics: A Multicultural Approach, edited by Larry May & Jill B. Delston (Routledge, 2015). Includes my essay “Intrinsic Inclinations: Explaining Gender and Sexual Diversity.”
Girl Sex 101, edited & illustrated by Allison Moon & kd diamond (Lunatic Ink, 2015). Includes some of my thoughts about identity set to illustration.
Feminist Theory: A Reader, edited by Wendy Kolmar and Frances Bartkowski (McGraw-Hill, 2013). Includes my essay “Trans Woman Manifesto.”
The Transgender Studies Reader 2, edited by Susan Stryker and Aren Z. Aizura (Routledge, 2013). Includes my essay “Skirt chasers: why the media depicts the trans revolution in lipstick and heels.”
Desire: Women Write About Wanting, edited by Lisa Solod Warren; published by Seal Press, 2007. Includes my contribution “At Odds” in which I describe the way I experienced my desire to be female when I was younger.
academic papers
The following are articles that I have written for academic journals, organized into the categories of “gender and sexuality” or “biology.” Most links will take you to the journal webpage for the article, which may require a subscription for full access. Bolded links will take you to a PDF of the article hosted on this website. Some of these articles may also be found on my ResearchGate, Academia.edu, and Google Scholar pages.
Serano, J. M. (2021). Transmisogyny. In A. Goldberg, & G. Beemyn (Eds.), The SAGE Encyclopedia of Trans Studies (Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications), Vol. 2, pp. 868-868. [DOI: 10.4135/9781544393858.n296]
Serano, J. M. (2010). The Case Against Autogynephilia. International Journal of Transgenderism, Volume 12, Issue 3, pp. 176-187. [DOI: 10.1080/15532739.2010.514223]
Cohen, R. S. and Serano, T. L. (1995). mRNA localization and function of the Drosophila fs(1)K10 gene. In Localized RNAs (ed. H. D. Lipshitz), pp. 99-112. Austin: R. G. Landes.
On the Outside Looking In is a 36 page, 4 essay chapbook providing a trans woman's perspective on feminism and the exclusion of trans women from lesbian and women-only spaces, Published by Hot Tranny Action (Oakland, CA), copyright 2005.
Draw Blood is a 56 page chapbook containing 16 of Julia's spoken word pieces. Published by Hot Tranny Action (Oakland, CA), copyright 2004.
"Baby Chapbook" is a two poem chapbook plus baby pictures released
in July, 2003! Published by Switch Hitter 2003.
Either/Or is a 33 page chapbook that comes with a complementary 13 track CD! It features eleven spoken word pieces and two Bitesize songs. Published by Switch Hitter Press (Oakland, CA), copyright 2002.
translations
