Author Kris Bryant on Sapphic Romance and Coming to Reykjavík.
It took Kris Bryant twenty years to find her first sapphic romance novel. Now she has written a dozen of her own, winner of two Goldie Awards, read by women who grew up starving for the same thing she once was: a story where the queer girl gets to live, and to love, and to stay.
Ahead of her reading at Reykjavík City Library, the American author spoke about how the genre has changed since her 2014 debut, why she keeps her rainbow flag off her front porch back home, and what it means to write happy endings while the ground under her community keeps shifting.
When you published your first novel, what did the landscape of lesbian and sapphic fiction look like compared with today? What has genuinely changed, and what still hasn’t?
“I published my first book, Jolt, in 2014. When I started writing, I didn’t know much about the rules of writing a sapphic romance novel. I understood there was a formula in romance that had to be followed and my publishing company, Bold Strokes Books, was very strict about it. There had to be a reason the main characters broke up (and I had to break them up in the beginning of my career) and there always had to be a happily ever after.
There’s a surge of lesbians and sapphic movies and books.
Sapphic romance has evolved greatly since then. Today, characters can be flawed and messy. Endings don’t have to be forever – they can be a happy-for-now. Sapphic fiction is more inclusive now. There are more nonbinary and trans characters in books where they are the main characters and not secondary ones. There doesn’t have to be a major break-up scene because in life that doesn’t always happen. The conflict can be external (ex: characters trying to make a relationship work even though they live in different parts of the world) and not miscommunication (which is a big one that I loathe). I believe the genre has evolved for the better. Readers still want the happy ending, and they get it, but it might not be a fairy tale ending that romance novels pushed a decade ago.”
For a very long time, watching lesbian in mainstream media came with a certain risk: someone dies, something terrible happens, or somehow she ends up going back to the man. As someone who writes sapphic romance, did you ever feel like you wanted to give queer women the stories and the love stories we weren’t getting elsewhere?
“This is 100% why I wanted to write romance. I want readers to see themselves in our books. I want them to connect with the characters and see that they deserve love and can find it. Love is out there. It took me twenty years of my adult life to find my first sapphic romance book. I was so excited that our genre existed and I made a promise that if I ever was published, I would only write books with love and respect and happy endings. Safe spaces are hard and books are a great escape.
Side note: I co-host a podcast, Queerly Recommended, where we recommend all queer media for our community. I focus on television and movies because growing up, queer representation was terrible. We never got the happy ending. Queer characters died for trying to live their authentic lives. I now comb through queer movies and shows and tell listeners safe ones to watch that aren’t triggering or if they are, I give them a warning. I never want another generation to feel like they can’t be authentic or have to hide because they fear for their lives.”
I live in a red state. That means most people don’t approve of me living my authentic self. They don’t approve of me and my girlfriend. They don’t like same-sex marriage and hate crimes exist. I don’t advertise. I don’t have stickers on my car or a flag that hangs outside my house identifying me. That would make me a target.
Gay men have become increasingly visible in popular culture, while sapphic women often seem considerably less visible. Do you think there is still a representation gap, and if so, why do you think that gap exists?
“There has always been a representation gap between men and women, regardless if a person identifies as queer or straight. Taylor Swift softly sings “fuck the patriarchy,” in her song All Too Well. It’s the one line I scream when I hear that song because it’s true. I’m over the men getting everything and the women having to work ten times as hard to get half the recognition.
Thankfully, I sense a rise in women – queer and straight. We’re just done. And honestly, we’ve had some past leaders who allowed us to be our authentic selves and so many women now identify as queer in some form (good luck putting us back in our boxes!). Within my community of sapphic writers, we’ve grown exponentially. And it’s a beautiful growth. There are so many new writers with amazing debuts. Publishing houses are accepting and publishing more sapphic books. A lot of sapphic writers are self-publishing. There is more money behind queer films and we’re seeing more queer characters, men and women, on TV shows and streaming services.
I feel like representation is more of a roller coaster. Sometimes I see more gay actors, gay roles for movies, gay books, but then there’s a surge of lesbians and sapphic movies and books. I think right now I’m seeing more women. When Queer As Folk came out (the US Philly version from like twenty five years ago) I ate up the lesbian relationship on that show even though it was toxic. But there we were! On the screen! With kissing and sex scenes and relationship issues. We were seen. But now, fast forward twenty-five years, and we have major shows like The L Word, Orange is the New Black, A League of Their Own and movies that star queer women include Kristen Stewart, Kate McKinnon, Sarah Paulsen, not to mention the legends along the way like Rosie O’Donnell, Jodie Foster, Jane Lynch. AND let’s talk about sports. So many women in sports are out. Tennis, WNBA, golf. And how many gay men are in professional sports? We definitely win there.
To be honest, I’m happy whenever a queer person gets recognized. Man, woman or enby – it doesn’t matter. It’s a win for my team.”
The trans community is severely under attack. Sadly, even from within our community. Because the queer community is large and difficult to target as a whole, the bullies are going after a smaller group – our trans siblings.
We’re living through a period of growing political polarisation and a visible backlash against LGBTQ+ rights in many places. As both a queer person and someone living in the United States, how are you experiencing this moment? Has it changed the way you think about your writing or your responsibility as an author?
“I’m so loud and borderline obnoxious at our current administration here in the United States because it is a joke. My girlfriend writes to our state representatives and we attend rallies to protest. The older I get, the bolder I get. But also, I’m not dumb. I have to create a safe space for my family. I live in a red state. That means most people don’t approve of me living my authentic self. They don’t approve of me and my girlfriend. They don’t like same-sex marriage and hate crimes exist. I don’t advertise. I don’t have stickers on my car or a flag that hangs outside my house identifying me. That would make me a target. I don’t want to get attacked or have my house or property vandalized. The president has allowed terrible behavior to happen and continues to allow attacks on our community to happen without repercussions. It is not an easy time to be queer.
The trans community is severely under attack. Sadly, even from within our community. Because the queer community is large and difficult to target as a whole, the bullies are going after a smaller group – our trans siblings. As an author, I have a platform and I try to use that platform when I can. Several years ago, somebody in our sapphic community tweeted specific authors who support trans writers and I happily and loudly added my name to the list. That grew into one of the best things that I could do with my platform. JJ Hale, another sapphic writer, and I created Sapphics with the T. JJ designed a trans flag with the names of everyone who wanted to be included and put the design on merchandise that anyone anywhere in the world could buy. 100% of the profits were donated to GATE – Global Action for Trans Equality. We are in the process of launching Sapphics with the T version 4.0 where new merchandise will be available starting September 1.”
Life is beautiful and we only get one shot at it. I want people to see the beauty in relationships and to feel seen. Love is love and it should be celebrated.
You’re coming to Reykjavík to read and talk about your work. What would you like someone, especially someone who has never picked up a sapphic novel before, to take away from that evening and what are you planning to read?
“I want people to be able to relate to the characters in my books. I want my words to fill their hearts with hope and happiness. Life is beautiful and we only get one shot at it. I want people to see the beauty in relationships and to feel seen. Love is love and it should be celebrated.
I plan to read from three books. I will read from my all-time best seller Temptation. It is a very spicy and fun book and full of tropes including ice queen, age gap, financial gap, single mother, and more. It’s a nanny who falls for the woman who hired her to look after her son. Temptation won a Goldie award in 2021.
I also want to read from Listen, another Goldie award winning book. Music has always touched my soul. I’m forever listening to it. I spent most of my early adult life going to concerts and meeting musicians and the thrill of it all is indescribable. Music has a way of healing people. My character, Lily, was pushed very hard at a young age to perform in front of crowds because she was a prodigy at the piano. The pressure of being so young and so in demand broke her, but eventually music and love heal her.
And I think I’m going to read from Home, but that could change depending on my mood. I’ll know more after I’ve spent a week in Iceland and get a feel for the vibe.
Thank you very much for this interview. I look forward to seeing my community in another country!”
Kris Bryant will read from her works at Reykjavík City Library, in Grófin, on Friday, August 28, 2026, 17:00–18:00.
Free admission, open to everyone!
More here: https://borgarbokasafn.is/en/events/710814