The Only Woman in the Room
A spotlight on how women in history grappled with living in a man’s world -
and why that matters for us today
Hello! And welcome!
Women have made many strides, but we haven’t quite arrived yet. And in some ways, we seem to be stepping backward. So where do we go next?
It’s true that women in power – queens, prime ministers, CEOs – have often found themselves, quite literally, the only women in rooms filled with men.
But to me, “The Only Woman in the Room” is most meaningful as a metaphor: it captures the isolation and invisibility that so many women, of every background, race, and religion, have felt in a world where men have been assigned more value and visibility, and given more permanence – where men get to leave a larger footprint than women.
If you’re interested in what women from history can teach us about gender, power, and patriarchy today, I hope you’ll join me.
All subscribers receive once-a-month posts directly to their inbox, including select commentaries and essays on topics such as:
how women navigated power and the powerful in history – and what it means for us today.
Mini-biographies of women you should know about, but probably don’t.
Recommendations – the books about women that I just couldn’t put down, the podcasts I couldn’t turn off, the films that drew me in.
Personal updates, work-in-progress, and building a writing life while parenting teens and a pooch (see “About Me” below).
Don’t forget to leave comments and share your own thoughts and stories. I’d love to hear from you!
Why This Newsletter?
I’m a historian, so naturally, when I wonder about the future, I frequently look to the past.
I spend a lot of time digging into the lives of women who lived long ago. And I am often amazed to find that that many of the challenges women face today are ones that women confronted in the past, whether it was fifty years ago or five hundred.
These women walked many of the same paths that we do today. They learned how to navigate a male world. They built networks with each other. They survived, often thrived. Sometimes they even prevailed.
They have so much to teach us.
Think of “The Only Woman in the Room” as history therapy, a way to connect the dots between women, past and present. I’ll explore how women have historically negotiated their world, and how power systems shaped, and continue to shape, women’s bodies, minds, and lives. Through mini-essays and petite biographies, book reviews and micro-histories, I’ll think about where women are, where we’ve been, and where we might go next.
About Me
I’m a writer, historian, and biographer. I’ve published several books about historical women, most recently, Young Queens: Three Renaissance Women and the Price of Power. (Or, in the paperback, Young Queens: The Intertwined Lives of Catherine de’ Medici, Elisabeth de Valois, and Mary, Queen of Scots). Young Queens was a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize (biography), long-listed for the inaugural Women’s Prize in Non-Fiction, and is a contender for the American Library in Paris Book Award.
Writing full-time is a second career for me. In an earlier life I was an Associate Professor of French Literature at the George Washington University in Washington DC. I lived for a time with my family in London, and still try to spend as much time there as possible. Aside from the human members of my family, my favorite creature on this earth is a sweet yet woefully anxious mini labradoodle named Bonnie Elizabeth Glockenspiel. Bonnie is usually curled up at my feet as I write these posts.
You can also follow me on Instagram @leahredmondchang, or through my website leahredmondchang.com. And I love speaking with readers – you can find me now on Skolay: skolay.com/writers/leahredmond-chang
