As part of the 2025 Mission Creek Music and Literature Festival, renowned author Torrey Peters captivated a packed crowd at Prairie Lights Bookstore in downtown Iowa City with a reading from her latest work, Stag Dance. The event, held on Saturday afternoon, drew a diverse audience eager to hear from the New York Times bestselling author, whose previous novel, Detransition, Baby, garnered critical acclaim and numerous accolades, including the 2021 PEN/Hemingway Award for debut fiction.
Peters, a graduate of the University of Iowa’s MFA program, has become a leading voice in contemporary literature, particularly for her nuanced exploration of transgender lives. Detransition, Baby delves into the complex relationships between transgender women—one of whom has detransitioned—and a cisgender woman, touching on themes of identity, motherhood, and the gray areas of gender. The novel’s success has positioned Peters as a prominent figure in queer literature.
At the reading, attendees were treated to an intimate glimpse into Peters’ creative process. The second floor of Prairie Lights was packed with people, many standing along the bookshelves and sitting on the floor, eager to hear Peters’ words. Among the audience was Adiah Siler, who shared her appreciation for the novel’s exploration of non-binary experiences. “It’s important to show that it’s not black and white,” Siler said. “That gray area is a space that queer folks aren’t often afforded.”
Before her literary breakthrough, Peters was a self-published author, a path she highly encourages for aspiring writers. In a conversation about her early writing experiences, Peters spoke about the lessons learned through self-publishing, noting that it allowed her to understand the intricacies of promoting and selling her work, skills that are often overlooked in traditional publishing routes.
Her new release, Stag Dance, is a departure from her debut novel, offering a collection of short stories and a novella, all marked by humor and wit. During the reading, Peters shared excerpts from The Chaser, a short story about the romance between two roommates at a Quaker boarding school—an experience she drew from her own time at a similar institution near the University of Iowa. She also read from the novella, which centers on a group of lumberjacks planning a dance during the winter months, where some of the men will attend dressed as women.
Following the readings, Peters engaged in a Q&A session with Jenny Singer, a graduate student at the University of Iowa, as well as with audience members. The discussion touched on the significance of queer narratives in literature and the power of storytelling to alleviate feelings of isolation. Peters reflected on the role of shame in her writing, describing it as a transformative force that can lead to liberation.
One audience member, Danny Willis, noted the personal resonance of Peters’ works, particularly in how they address the trans-feminine experience. “I felt like Detransition, Baby and Stag Dance are much more attuned to the trans-fem experience,” Willis said, highlighting the relatability of the stories.
Peters emphasized the importance of transcending the boundaries of gender-specific storytelling. While her works focus on transgender characters, she noted that her goal is not to segregate the transgender experience but to integrate it into broader human narratives. She expressed a desire to break free from traditional tropes, showing that stories about transgender individuals can be universal and engaging across diverse audiences.
Reflecting on her evolution as a writer, Peters shared a personal anecdote about her first reading before a transgender audience. She recalled reading a piece written for a cisgender audience about her own struggles with shame as a transgender woman. The experience shifted her perspective on her work, encouraging her to write more authentically for herself and for the people who understand her, rather than attempting to cater to an external audience.
For Peters, the process of writing for her community has not only been more fulfilling but has also allowed her to explore her identity in deeper and more meaningful ways. Through her fiction, she continues to challenge the conventions of storytelling and offer new, inclusive narratives for a diverse readership.
Peters’ appearance at the Mission Creek Festival was a testament to her growing influence in the literary world, and her new work, Stag Dance, promises to further solidify her place among contemporary literary voices.
