Susan Shackelford, journalist, sportswriter, editor, author, writing coach and consultant, who has operated her own business in Charlotte, North Carolina since 1982, discusses her life, her work, and her political activism. She relates her formative years in Mebane and Raleigh, North Carolina, her emerging passion for playing sports, and her association with her high school newspaper at Millbrook High School, which helped to prepare her for a significant role as a sports editor on the UNC Chapel Hill Daily Tar Heel. Ms. Shackelford reflects on how her unique position on the college paper allowed her to ensure equal coverage of male and female sports, a new practice for the paper at the time. However, she also discusses gender disparity in sports and sports writing, which she characterizes as culturally driven and cyclical in nature. Ms. Shackelford describes her move to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where she worked as a sportswriter for the Miami Herald, and her decision to return to North Carolina for a position at the Charlotte Observer in 1978. Having been consumed by work, it was not until the mid 1980s after leaving journalism that Ms. Shackelford felt able to focus on her interest in politics and the disjuncture she felt in her personal life. She discusses how coming to an understanding of her sexual orientation allowed her to live more authentically and embrace Charlotte's LGBTQ community. She notes a significant cultural change in Charlotte during the 1980s, which she attributes to a growing and more cosmopolitan population, and a city culture based on meritocracy. Yet it was not until the 1990s that she was able to overcome fears of economic and social reprisal and live openly as a lesbian. Ms. Shackelford concludes the interview with a description of her extensive work with the Charlotte Women's Political Caucus (CWPC), a local chapter of the National Women's Political Caucus. In particular she recalls the significant impact of a Blue Ribbon Task Force on Domestic Violence, which the CWPC instigated and which helped to shift local law enforcement understanding of this issue.