Porter Square Books: Boston Edition and GrubStreet are delighted to present the latest installment of the Grubbie Debut event series, featuring Katie Simon! Join us for a celebration of their debut nonfiction book, Tell Me What You Like: An Honest Discussion of Sex and Intimacy After Sexual Assault.  Sarah Chaves will join Simon in conversation, and the author talk will be followed by a signing line.

This event is co-presented by GrubStreet and Porter Square Books

Hopeful, groundbreaking, and anchored in true stories, this much-needed book from sexuality journalist and fellow sexual assault survivor Katie Simon delves into the challenges of moving from trauma to healing. Tell Me What You Like will guide sexual assault survivors toward the sex and relationships they want, and speaks to the shift in sexual culture we all need.

Over a decade ago, Katie Simon began seeking out stories of people who faced sexual challenges after sexual trauma—just as she did. Simon interviewed dozens of survivors, and her investigation yielded diverse responses from people of all backgrounds, ultimately confirming that there is no single path toward healing.     

Simon’s research led her to life-changing findings that sexual assault survivors most want to know about, including coping with trauma triggers and traumatic stress symptoms such as anxiety, depression, physical pain, and flashbacks. From embodied consent to self-pleasure, sexual regret, breakups, and beyond, you’ll find answers to all your questions about how sexual trauma affects sex and relationships within these pages, in stories told by survivors who’ve actually been there. 

Millions of survivors across the United States are treated as irreparably broken. Simon offers a positive approach to healing based on empathy and community—and the understanding and tools to navigate trauma and cultivate the sex lives we desire and deserve. The narratives Simon has gathered break down the potential obstacles to rebuilding post-assault, and offer multiple paths forward with optimistic, new approaches to sex after sexual assault. Packed with insights, stories, and advice, this invaluable guide reimagines what sex can look like—not only for survivors, but for all of us.

“Tell me What You Like addresses the complexities of sex and pleasure after sexual assault. The book is blunt and fearless and will be helpful to survivors who have searched for information on this topic and their intimate partners. Katie Simon has filled a gap by writing this book, using the voices of survivors with a variety of perspectives and an honesty that will be felt by readers.” —Michelle Bowdler, author of Is Rape a Crime?, longlisted for the National Book Award

“With vulnerability, curiosity and compassion, Katie Simon addresses a crucially important, oft-neglected, topic in the study of trauma. Her bravery is to our immense benefit.” —Ian Kerner, couples and sex therapist and New York Times bestselling author of She Comes First

Katie Simon (she/they) has been published in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Vogue, BuzzFeed, Tin House, Health, BUST, Women's Health, and elsewhere, including the anthology Anatomy of Silence. Katie studied creative writing at New York University and University of East Anglia, narrative medicine at Columbia University, human sexuality at the Kinsey Institute, and completed the Memoir Incubator at Grub Street in Boston, MA. She lives in Texas with her dog, Babka.

Sarah Chaves is a Portuguese-American writer, editor, and educator based in Boston, MA. She has received support from PEN America, Bread Loaf, Fulbright, Key West Literary, Disquiet, and more. Her work has been featured in The Atlantic, The New York Times, and The Washington Post among others.

Celebrating over 25 years as the nation's leading and largest independent center for creative writing, GrubStreet is the place where writers develop their craft – and themselves – through the power of writing and sharing their work. GrubStreet offers hundreds of creative writing programs and events for writers from all backgrounds and ages at its Center for Creative Writing in the Seaport, in many Boston neighborhoods, and online. Scholarships are available for all offerings, and many programs are free. At its center, GrubStreet also hosts a community lounge, a podcast studio, Porter Square Books: Boston Edition, and a Writers’ Stage. Learn more at www.grubstreet.org.

Grubbie Debut: Katie Simon, author of Tell Me What You Like, in conversation with Sarah Chaves