In Donna Freitas' new novel, The Nine Lives of Rose Napolitano, the eponymous heroine faces a dilemma. Before she got married, her husband promised her he didn't want children - but now he's changed his mind. Could happily childfree Rose will herself to become a mother in order to save her relationship, and if so, what might her life look like? Author Freitas found herself in this very scenario in her real life, and it made her question everything - her lack of a maternal instinct, her worth as a woman, what kind of future she could hope for, without children - or her husband - in it. It was so enlightening to speak to someone who's looked at the childfree choice from every possible angle, as a scholar of religion and gender studies, and the author of a Sliding Doors-style plot that dares to ask: what if...?

Learn more about Donna at donnafreitas.com and follow her on Instagram at @donnafreitas.writer. If you're childfree and would like to be interviewed by Donna for an upcoming project, contact her on donnamariefreitas@gmail.com.

You can buy The Nine Lives of Rose Napolitano in the US on bookshop.org, in the UK at Waterstones and in Italian at Mondadori (with more languages on the way!)

This episode is from the best of season 1 of We are Childfree. Sign up to the newsletter to be first to find out when season 2 launches 👉 https://wearechildfree.com/newsletter