Emily VanDerWerff, now known as Emily St. James, is an American critic, journalist, author, and television writer best known for her years as the first TV editor of The A.V. Club and later as Critic-at-Large at Vox.
She has since expanded her work beyond criticism to write for the Emmy-nominated drama series Yellowjackets and publish her debut novel, Woodworking, in 2025.
Who is Emily VanDerWerff?
Emily VanDerWerff, who now goes by Emily St. James, is an American critic, author, journalist, and television writer based in Los Angeles.
She built her reputation as one of the most widely read television critics in the United States, first at The A.V. Club and then at Vox, where she covered popular culture and American identity for nearly a decade.
She co-authored Monsters of the Week: The Complete Critical Companion to The X-Files in 2018 with fellow critic Zack Handlen, a book that became a benchmark reference for X-Files fans and criticism alike.
Beyond journalism, St. James made the transition into television writing, joining the staff of Yellowjackets, and then into literary fiction.
She came out publicly as a trans woman in 2019, and later helped found the Trans Journalists Association, where she contributed to creating its style guide for journalists covering transgender people and issues.
Early Life of Emily VanDerWerff
Emily Nicole St. James was born in Armour, South Dakota, a small town in the American Midwest.
She grew up in that environment, which later served as the setting and inspiration for her debut novel Woodworking, published in 2025.
She has noted that her father and mother did not accept her transition, and that she no longer maintains a relationship with her father.
The family background in rural South Dakota shaped much of her early perspective, which she has channeled into both her criticism and her fiction writing.
From a young age, St. James gravitated toward writing as a form of expression. She wrote for her university’s student newspaper, The Collegian, while pursuing her journalism degree.
Emily VanDerWerff Age / Birthday
Emily VanDerWerff is 43 years old as of 2026, born on November 30, 1982. Her zodiac sign is Sagittarius, a sign often linked with curiosity, directness, and a love of exploration.
She has applied those qualities across more than two decades of cultural criticism and creative writing.
Emily VanDerWerff Ethnicity and Nationality
St. James holds American nationality, born and raised in South Dakota. Her ethnic background is white, as she has identified publicly.
Her upbringing in a rural Midwestern community gave her a distinct lens on American culture, one she has brought to her criticism and fiction throughout her career.
Emily VanDerWerff Education
St. James graduated from South Dakota State University in 2004 with a Bachelor of Arts in journalism.
During her time at the university, she contributed writing to The Collegian, the student publication, developing the critical voice that would define her career.
That journalism degree grounded her work in reporting discipline, even as her primary passion was always literary writing and cultural commentary.
She has spoken in interviews about backing into journalism as a profession because it gave her a paid platform for the writing she loved.
Emily VanDerWerff Career
Emily VanDerWerff built a multi-decade career that moved from television criticism through podcasting, nonfiction book authorship, television writing, and finally literary fiction.
Each step drew on the skills and reputation she built in the one before it.
Before breaking into criticism professionally, she covered popular culture from the outside, developing her critical voice through years of close attention to television and film.
The A.V. Club (2009–2014)
St. James joined The A.V. Club in 2009 as its first television editor, a role she held for five years.
The A.V. Club, published by The Onion, had established a reputation for treating popular culture seriously, and her contributions to that mission helped define the site’s approach to television coverage.
During her time there, she built a team of regular contributors who covered television with the kind of close reading more often applied to literary fiction.
That editorial and managerial work is something she has cited as a source of particular pride, alongside her own writing output from the same period.
She left the A.V. Club in 2014 to join Vox as Culture Editor.
Vox: Critic-at-Large and Senior Correspondent (2014–Present)
St. James joined Vox in June 2014, initially as Culture Editor. She later held the titles of Critic-at-Large and Senior Correspondent, covering television criticism, cultural commentary, and American identity.
Her criticism at Vox brought her a nomination as a finalist for the Online Journalism Awards for her coverage as culture editor, which included her writing on Mad Max: Fury Road.
She also hosted several podcasts for the Vox network, including I Think You’re Interesting, a weekly interview series, and Primetime, which examined the relationship between television and real life.
In July 2020, she publicly spoke out against Vox co-founder Matthew Yglesias, following his signing of a controversial open letter published in Harper’s Magazine.
The letter called for an end to what its signatories described as “illiberalism.” St. James argued the letter contained language antagonizing transgender people.
After one of the letter’s signatories, Jesse Singal, tweeted about her criticism, she reported receiving death threats.
Television Writing and Fiction (2021–Present)
St. James joined the writing staff of Yellowjackets, the Showtime survival drama, adding scripted television to her career. The show received Emmy nominations during her time on its staff.
She also co-created and produced the podcast audio drama Arden (2018), a true crime parody and modern retelling of Romeo and Juliet, for which she served as writer, director, and executive producer across 25 episodes.
In 2024, she co-wrote Lost: Back to the Island: The Complete Critical Companion to the Classic TV Series with fellow critic Noel Murray, following the blueprint of her X-Files companion book.
Her debut novel, Woodworking, was published on March 4, 2025, by Crooked Media Reads and Zando.
The book centers on two transgender women in small-town South Dakota in 2016, drawing on St. James’s own upbringing in the region.
Woodworking was named a best book of 2025 by Vox, Elle, NPR, and Marie Claire, among others.
It earned a longlist mention for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize, a shortlist for the Lambda Literary Award for Transgender Fiction, and a finalist spot for the Edmund White Award for Debut Fiction in 2026.
A second novel, Beth March Returns from the Dead, was announced as forthcoming.
Emily VanDerWerff Books and Publications
St. James has built a strong record as a published author alongside her journalism work.
| Year | Title | Co-Author | Publisher |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Monsters of the Week: The Complete Critical Companion to The X-Files | Zack Handlen | Tor Books |
| 2024 | Lost: Back to the Island: The Complete Critical Companion to the Classic TV Series | Noel Murray | Not confirmed |
| 2025 | Woodworking (novel) | — | Crooked Media Reads / Zando |
Emily VanDerWerff Awards and Recognition
St. James received a finalist nomination for the Online Journalism Awards for her cultural criticism work at Vox.
Her debut novel Woodworking earned recognition across multiple prize lists in 2025 and 2026:
- Longlist, Center for Fiction First Novel Prize (2025)
- Shortlist, Lambda Literary Award for Transgender Fiction (2026)
- Finalist, Edmund White Award for Debut Fiction (2026)
She is a founding member of the Trans Journalists Association and helped draft its style guide for reporting on transgender people.
Emily VanDerWerff Husband
Emily St. James married Libby Hill in 2003. Hill is a writer and critic whose work has appeared in the Los Angeles Times, IndieWire, The A.V. Club, and Salon.
The two have collaborated professionally as well, co-hosting the podcast TV on the Internet together.
The couple has spoken publicly about how people around them felt they married too young. St. James has noted on social media that their relationship, while tested over the years, has endured.
Emily VanDerWerff Children
St. James and Libby Hill welcomed a child in 2022. The child arrived approximately a month earlier than expected, according to a post St. James shared on social media in early 2023.
Emily VanDerWerff Net Worth
Emily VanDerWerff’s estimated net worth is $1 million as of 2026.
Her income draws from her years of journalism at The A.V. Club and Vox, her work as a television writer on Yellowjackets, book advances and royalties from Monsters of the Week, the Lost companion, and her 2025 novel Woodworking, and income from the podcasts she has created and hosted.
Her transition into scripted television writing and literary fiction represents a significant diversification of her income beyond journalism.
The critical success of Woodworking across major outlet best-of lists in 2025 also added book sales to her revenue sources.
Emily VanDerWerff Social Media
St. James maintains a presence on Instagram at @emilystjams and on Bluesky at @emilystjams.bsky.social, where she writes about her work, her life, and cultural topics.
She also publishes a newsletter called Episodes, available at episodes.ghost.io.
Conclusion
Emily VanDerWerff, now Emily St. James, built one of the most substantial careers in American television criticism over fifteen years before expanding into podcast production, television writing, and literary fiction.
Her 2025 novel Woodworking, her ongoing work on Yellowjackets, and her role in founding the Trans Journalists Association mark a career that has moved well beyond where it began at The A.V. Club.