Thread by @ForthFeminists

Now @Gillian_Philip is talking about TERFing in publiching #FVFWomensFestival

@Gillian_Philip Used to be a childrens author and now a truck driver, truck drivers much less sexist. They'll help if she struggles with a pallet, but they don't care that she's a woman. #FVFWomensFestival

@Gillian_Philip For 10 years was working for a publishing company, going on tour, making presentations, speaking in schools, writing etc. #FVFWomensFestival

@Gillian_Philip Always extremely opinionated on twitter during that time. None of it causes any problem, not during indyref, not during Corbyn but transgender issues? Started tweeting about it about 2017 #FVFWomensFestival

@Gillian_Philip Nobody said a word, was being followed by editorial staff, publishers etc. In 2020, Rachel Rooney and JK Rowling were monstered #FVFWomensFestival

Rachey Rooney wrote My Body is Me, a rhyming book for children, diverse, beautifully illustrated, and full of lovely rhyme. About your body being you. She was driven from the publishing industry #FVFWomensFestival

She was drive out by a clique of children's authors - and she was abused to such a degree that she felt she could no longer be in publishing. @Gillian_Philip tweeted #IStandWithJKRowling #FVFWomensFestival

Experienced a terrible tweet storm, logged off and then the next day woke up to calls from publishers etc. and then was summarily fired. #FVFWomensFestival

#FVFWomensFestival Publishing has a womens problem. They are terrified of mobs. They should have stood up to the first mob who came for the first author. They didn't.

By the time it came to this mob they could not stand up for authors. #FVFWomensFestival

The publishing industry take their orders from GoodReads, twitter mobs.

Not all books get reviews, publishers decided bookbloggers were a cheap way to get PR #FVFWomensFestival

Somewhere along the way this got turned on its head and book bloggers decided that it was not just to review books but to review AUTHORS. Whether or not they should be published at all. Publishers caved to them #FVFWomensFestival

Bookbloggers believe they should decide who is worthy of being published as an individual.

A the same time the industry itself has been captured. If you want to be published you must not have GC views. They're scared of teen TRAs, Furries, perverts #FVFWomensFestival

Only the mob matters, as soon as the mob comes for you, you are dust. #FVFWomensFestival

Now talking about Magi who spoke earlier and Jenny Lindsay (anatomy of a hounding).

You cannot beat the publishing industry on this - it is too monolithic. #FVFWomensFestival

This thing is on the turn, the publishing industry is the last industry that will admit it is wrong. #FVFWomensFestival

Who is celebrated? The artist formally known as Juno Dawson. Refer back to @PankhurstEM's talk earlier and the book for 12+ Juno wrote with a character who says "fucked both ends like a little piggy" "a little cum slut" "a little tranny slut" #FVFWomensFestival

Something doesn't compute...

Of all things you think you could go to for help, you think you could go to The Society of Authors #FVFWomensFestival

Rachel Rooney was told by The Society of Authors "we don't get involved in private disputes".

Well, one of their principle aims on their website is "freedom of speech..." #FVFWomensFestival

Well, @Gillian_Philip went straight to @SpeechUnion

And when Gillian pointed out what was on the website re: free speech, they blocked her on Twitter. #FVFWomensFestival

@Gillian_Philip @SpeechUnion Shirley Williams said on BBCQT that @SalmanRushdie shouldn't have offended people. I trace my misgivings about publishing back to hearing the lack of support that Rushdie received in some quarters. #FVFWomensFestival

@Gillian_Philip @SpeechUnion @SalmanRushdie It's kept on; it's become worse. If you write something stupid or nonsense, editors would tell you. Now, an army of sensitivity readers will comb your book, pulling out bits they personally find offensive and if you disagree it will be pulled #FVFWomensFestival

@Gillian_Philip @SpeechUnion @SalmanRushdie Society of authors tweeted out in response to @jk_rowling receiving death threats and Salman Rushdie's attempted assasination. "how many of you have received death threats" #FVFWomensFestival

@Gillian_Philip @SpeechUnion @SalmanRushdie @jk_rowling I am not going to stay out of important arguments. A lot of authors won't even engage with the reasons for my argument, they're creating false arguments "you hate trans people" etc. because they're frightened of engaging as they might agree #FVFWomensFestival

@Gillian_Philip @SpeechUnion @SalmanRushdie @jk_rowling We ARE walking up @marstrina's spiral staircase! WE ARE GROWING, there are so many of us. Look at us now. #FVFWomensFestival

@Gillian_Philip @SpeechUnion @SalmanRushdie @jk_rowling @marstrina People are waking up, people are angry. We are not alone and we are going to win. #FVFWomensFestival