Agustina Bazterrica on Culture, Craft, and Confronting Violence Through Fiction

In the Season 2 finale of Sick Sad Lit, I sit down with Agustina Bazterrica, the internationally bestselling author of Tender Is the Flesh. This conversation didn’t just stay with me...it fundamentally changed how I read books. Together, we explore the cultural landscape of Argentina and how violence, patriarchy, and political history shape Agustina’s work. She walks me through her writing process and the structural precision behind her novels: the scaffolding, the silences, and the emotional engineering that make her fiction so unforgettable. We talk about the importance of research, the responsibility of writing violence ethically, and the role literature can play in understanding societal cruelty. Agustina also shares her thoughts on reader engagement, the challenges of being a writer in a volatile world, and why books still hold transformative power. This episode slowed me down. It taught me to look at craft with more intention. It made me a better reader. If you’re interested in literary horror, cultural critique, or the deeper mechanics of storytelling, this finale is for you. Join the Conversation If this episode resonated, share it with someone who might need it, and leave us a review to help more listeners find the show. 🖤 👯‍♀️ Join the conversation on our Sick Sad Friends Discord:   / discord   for monthly book club meetups, community chats and more. 📝 Visit the Sick Sad Lit website: https://www.sicksadlit.com/ for essays, author outtakes and more. 📲 Follow Sick Sad Lit on Instagram:   / sicksadlit