Susie Bright

Explore the life and work of Susie Bright (born March 25, 1958), pioneering American feminist writer, journalist, sex-positive activist, editor, and cultural critic on sexuality, eroticism, and politics.

Introduction

Susannah “Susie” Bright is a name closely associated with the “sex-positive feminist” movement in the United States. Over a career spanning decades, she has authored books, edited anthologies, produced podcasts and audio works, written film criticism, and helped shape conversations around sexuality, censorship, feminism, and erotic culture.

Bright’s distinctive position — both inside and at times at odds with mainstream feminism — makes her life a rich case study in activism, culture, and the evolving public dialogue on sexual norms.

Early Life and Education

• Susie Bright was born on March 25, 1958 in Arlington, Virginia to two linguist parents, William and Elizabeth Bright.

• She spent most of her childhood in Los Angeles (California), though she also lived in Canada with her mother for some years before returning for high school.

• From a young age, Bright displayed a strong interest in politics, social justice, and self-expression. At age eight she created pamphlets criticizing Ronald Reagan’s campaign; by age ten she had abandoned religion.

• She dropped out of high school, later studying theater and women’s studies at California State University, Long Beach, and ultimately earning a degree in community studies at the University of California, Santa Cruz.

Her early exposure to feminist and radical politics — including underground student publications and activism — laid the foundation for her later work.

Political & Activist Roots

Even as a teenager, Bright engaged in activism:

• She was a contributor to an underground high school newspaper called The Red Tide, which tackled issues including birth control access and censorship.

• She sued the Los Angeles school district over students’ rights to distribute their own publications without prior administrative censorship—and ultimately won a favorable judgment.

• In the 1970s, she was active in left-wing political groups, including the International Socialists, and worked as a labor and community organizer in multiple U.S. cities.

• She also co-founded Teamsters for a Democratic Union, and wrote under the pseudonym “Sue Daniels” in leftist publications.

These experiences sharpened her skills as communicator, organizer, and provocateur, and established her orientation toward social justice, sexuality, and free expression.

Literary & orial Career

On Our Backs & Early Sex Work

One of Bright’s earliest and most influential ventures was On Our Backs, a magazine started in the 1980s as the first erotic magazine produced by women, for women. She initially handled advertising responsibilities, and later became editor.
She also began writing a sex advice column under the pen name “Susie Sexpert.”

Through On Our Backs and other early editorial work, Bright attempted to shift cultural norms around erotic representation, lesbian sexuality, and censorship.

Books, Anthologies & Criticism

Bright’s writing spans memoir, essays, sex education, criticism, and curation. Some of her notable works include:

• Susie Sexpert’s Lesbian Sex World (1990) — drawing from her columns in On Our Backs

• Full Exposure: Opening Up to Sexual Creativity & Erotic Expression — blending theory, memoir, and sexual politics

• The Sexual State of the Union — her socio-political reflections on sexuality in American life

• Big Sex, Little Death: A Memoir — a deeply personal work recounting her childhood, family struggles, and evolution as a feminist and sexual thinker

• She also co-edited Nothing but the Girl, an anthology of lesbian erotic photography with interviews, which won recognition in alternative literary circles.

Bright also served as editor of the Best American Erotica anthology series for many years.

Beyond writing, she has reviewed erotic and mainstream film, and served as consultant or contributor to cultural works like The Celluloid Closet and Bound.

Podcasting, Audio & Media Work

In more recent years, Bright has expanded into audio and digital media:

• She hosts “In Bed with Susie Bright,” a weekly show via Audible, where she engages in sexual politics, listener Q&A, and cultural commentary.

• She also holds the role of editor-at-large / executive producer for Audible’s “Bright List” imprint, which curates and produces audio editions of works on politics, literature, and culture.

• In 2013, she donated her archives (papers, recordings, materials related to On Our Backs, etc.) to the Cornell University Library’s Human Sexuality Collection.

Major Themes & Philosophy

Sex-Positive Feminism

Bright is widely considered one of the early public figures of sex-positive feminism — a feminist framework that emphasizes sexual freedom, consent, expression, and the dismantling of sexual shame.
Her work often bridges erotic aesthetics, feminist theory, and cultural critique: she argues that sexuality is deeply political, and that taboos, censorship, and social norms are battlegrounds for power.

Intersection of Sexuality & Politics

Bright treats erotic life not as a private domain but as a site where identity, power, class, gender, cultural norms, and dissent intersect.
Her writing often critiques hypocrisy, moralism, censorship, and the suppression of sexual minorities, while celebrating pleasure, diversity, and erotic imagination.

Personal Story & Healing

In her memoir and interviews, Bright addresses her upbringing, relationships, mental health, and struggles with family dynamics. Big Sex, Little Death not only charts her public persona but also reveals deeper emotional currents.

She also explores themes of motherhood, desire, shame, identity, and creative expression, demonstrating how sexual subjectivity evolves across a life.

Achievements, Honors & Legacy

• Bright was awarded the Humanist Feminist Award in 2017.

• She has received multiple Audie Awards / nominations for her work in audio production.

• She holds a prominent place in feminist and queer cultural history as one of the few widely visible voices critiquing pornography, erotic art, and sexual freedom from a feminist perspective.

• Her archives, now at Cornell, will facilitate scholarly work in sexuality, feminist history, and queer studies.

Her influence continues through her ongoing writing, podcasts, and the mentorship and amplification of younger writers in the fields of sexuality, feminist discourse, and erotica.

Selected Quotes

Here are a few quotations attributed to Susie Bright:

“I want to change consciousness … that’s why I became a political activist, that’s why I started writing.”

“Since I was in high school … I have been quite frank about sexuality. I was appalled when I found out that masturbation was not some secret hold that the devil had over me.”

“I’m a Mommy’s Girl — the strongest influence in my young life was my mom.”

These lines reflect her commitment to openness, introspection, and reclaiming public space for erotic expression.

Lessons from Susie Bright’s Life

1. Fearless voice matters
   Challenging taboos and speaking unapologetically can reshape discourse—even when opposed or marginalized.

2. Bridging personal and political
   Bright’s work demonstrates how one’s personal sexual journey can inform broader critiques of culture, feminism, and power.

3. Persistence in multiple media
   She didn’t limit herself to one format — moving from zines to print to audio — which helped her reach varied audiences across generations.

4. Archival foresight is activism
   By preserving her work and donating her archives, Bright ensures future scholars can trace the evolution of sexual politics.

5. Eros as a lens
   Viewing life through erotic sensibility (with awareness, agency, respect) yields novel insights into gender, equality, censorship, and creativity.