We welcome L.A. Hyland, author of the poem “Why Would I Be a Woman” in The Future Fire #76, for the last in this microinterview season.
TFF: What does “Why Would I Be a Woman” mean to you?
Art © 2026 Barbara Candiotti
L.A. Hyland: I’ll answer that with a question: if magic was real and could change you into anything, what would you choose to be? The possibility of magical transformation makes you interrogate the existential impact of a physical form, with all its associated abilities and expected behaviours. By suggesting ferocious and mythically powerful alternatives, I hope my poem prompts a reader to contemplate why some women might consider monsterhood a favourable option.
TFF: Tell us about a piece of art that came to life for you.
LAH: I was overwhelmed when I first stood in front of the colossal statue of Ramesses II in the British Museum: the “Younger Memnon.” There's such a gentle curve to his cheeks and a hesitation in his mouth that makes you feel as though he’s about to speak. Incredibly beautiful but it, of course, should be returned to Egypt.
TFF: Who is your favourite kick-ass woman from history?
LAH: There are too many! Let’s go with Alice of Antioch, for today. She chose to betray her god, her king, and her family. Ambitious and intelligent, she saw a chance in all the crusader chaos to claim Antioch for herself and almost succeeded. More than once.
TFF: What can you be found doing when you're not creating/writing?
LAH: Browsing the internet, most likely. Having grown up without the web, being able to look up anything makes me feel like I’ve been handed Mephistopheles’ book. It’s 3 a.m. and I need to know more about the mosaics of Zeugma, when the NHS began, or whether the planet Venus has any rings? I can just search and lose myself in the largest library the world has ever built. Is some information unreliable? Sure, but the old encyclopedias my parents owned had “factual’ entries about aether and ectoplasm…
TFF: What are you working on next?
LAH: I’m currently working on a speculative poetry collection, rooted in British myth and superstition. It features old gods and new ghosts, fairies and witches—it’s a giddy brew of idiosyncratic beliefs and ominous atheism.
Extract
when I could be a dragon?
when I could be a gorgon,
petrifying all who dare
disturb my thoughts?
Reminder: You can comment on any of the writing or art in this issue at http://press.futurefire.net/2026/05/new-issue-202676.html.
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