Robyn Ryle is a writer and author of five books of fiction and nonfiction. Her novel-in-stories, SEX OF THE MIDWEST, was a 2025 NPR Books We Love as well as one of Electric Literature’s best short story collections of 2025. It appeared in People Magazine and The Washington Post, as well as receiving a Kirkus starred review You can read her NPR Weekend Edition interview about SEX OF THE MIDWEST, here. A perfect read for fans of Olive Kitteridge or The Secret Lives of Church Ladies, SEX OF THE MIDWEST is a love letter to small towns.
Her young adult novel, FAIR GAME, is about a girls’ basketball team that challenges the boys to a high-stakes game, putting their seasons, their futures and three cherished friendships on the line.
She has stories and essays in CNN, Newsweek, CALYX Journal, Paper Darts, Gawker, Midwestern Gothic, Big Truths, Bartleby Snopes, and Whiskeypaper, among others (check out her full list of publications here). She’s also written a sociology of gender textbook, QUESTIONING GENDER: A SOCIOLOGICAL EXPLORATION, currently in its fifth edition.
Robyn is also a professor of sociology and gender studies and has been teaching sociology of gender and other courses for 20 years. She went to Millsaps College in Jackson, Mississippi, for her undergraduate degrees in sociology and English with a concentration in women’s studies. She received her PhD in sociology from Indiana University-Bloomington and is originally from northern Kentucky.
Robyn enjoys sitting in her garden, painting watercolor chickens (and other things), and generally enjoying small town life. She currently lives in a 170-year-old house in scenic Madison, Indiana, with her husband, daughter, and two rather peculiar cats. You can keep up with her latest classes and projects and read her musings on a variety of subjects at her Substack, You Think Too Much, or find her on Instagram (@robynrryle) or Threads (@robynrryle).
