Emily Sohn, author of the forthcoming THE NEW WILDERNESS: How Life Endures in the Most Unexpected Places (Sourcebooks), is the winner of the 2025 Sharon Begley Award for Science Reporting. Said bioGraphic editor-in-chief Steven Bedard, “I know the book will provide compelling examples of hope and resilience at a time when the public desperately needs these types of stories.” 

"After 15 years of working through my own trauma, I wrote a book, Tell Me What You Like: An Honest Discussion of Sex and Intimacy After Sexual Assault, to help others do the same. Through personal healing and research into how to better cope with trauma’s fallout, I’ve learned a lot about how to navigate trauma anniversaries."

For years after Katie Simon was raped, "good sex" meant feeling safe, not satisfied. Through candid conversations with other survivors—and plenty of trial and error—she learned how to unlock real desire on her own terms.

Ahead of her new book Tell Me What You Like, author Katie Simon talks with porn director Erika Lust about how ethical porn can help women who have been sexually assaulted regain their sexual autonomy.

"For their book, Tell Me What You Like: An Honest Discussion of Sex and Intimacy After Sexual Assault, Katie Simon wanted to understand how a person continues to heal after being assaulted. Ultimately, Katie concluded that for our sex lives to grow, we must both recognize our triggers and our turn-ons. That’s why the book covers topics that include boundaries, panic, consent, regret, kink, false beliefs, breakups, and aftercare. A nonbinary survivor themself, Katie wrote Tell Me What You Like for all survivors across the sexuality and gender spectrum."