As part of The Pixel Project’s Read For Pixels campaign, we interview authors and poets from genres as diverse as Science Fiction and Fantasy to Romance to Horror about why they support the movement to end violence against women and girls.
For Domestic Violence Awareness Month 2025, we present an interview with Read For Pixels poet Frances Lu Pai Ippolito who contributed her original poem These Tiny Women to our 1st charity poetry collection, UNDER HER EYE. Frances (she/her) is a Chinese American judge, mom, writer, and publisher in Portland, Oregon. Her writing has appeared in several venues including Nightmare Magazine, Flame Tree’s Asian Ghost Stories, Chromophobia, Mother: Tales of Terror and Love, and Unquiet Spirits. She is the founder of game and book publisher Demagogue Press and the award-winning nonprofit, Qilin Press, which focuses on community stories. She is also the co-editor of three cozy horror anthologies through Underland Press. IG: @demagogue_press & @qilin_press.
Inspired to support The Pixel Project’s anti-violence against women work? Make a donation to us today OR buy our 1st poetry collection, UNDER HER EYE, that is published in partnership with Black Spot Books. All donations and net proceeds from book sales go towards supporting our campaigns, programmes, and initiatives.
1. Why is ending violence against women important to you and why did you decide to support The Pixel Project by contributing your poem These Tiny Women to UNDER HER EYE which is The Pixel Project’s first charity poetry collection published in partnership with Black Spot Books?
Many years ago, before law school, I volunteered with the Victim Witness Office in a DA’s office. Through that experience, I met many families and victims of domestic violence, assault, and violent crimes. There were times that there simply wasn’t enough evidence to bring cases or continue cases. In those times, when the system couldn’t do much more, I thought about how we all need a village to support us beyond institutions. These Tiny Women is itself a small poem that explores how we can save ourselves and each other by doing it together.
2. What do you think poets can do to help with the cultural change needed to stop violence against women and girls?
Art is therapy as well as a window into the lives of those with different lived experiences. As poets and creatives, I would task us with exploring these difficult, and at times very painful, topics to create awareness and understanding.
From there, awareness and understanding create empathy, and through empathy, I believe we can all work together toward positive change.
3. Any final thoughts about why everyone should support stopping violence against women?
Consider the women in your life — mothers, friends, sisters, daughters, etc. Regardless of where they are or who they are, I believe we should support basic respect for human life and well-being. Stopping violence against women is just one facet of that goal.
Listen to Frances read These Tiny Women here: