The much-anticipated Supergirl has been blowing up on CBS since its debut a month ago, rea although it sorely lacks lesbian characters, the woman behind it all is lesbian creator Ali Adler. Adler is a heavyweight in the world of narrative television production but she’s far from the only lesbian or bisexual woman running shit. In fact, there are tons of us out there.

Do lesbian or bisexual producers, directors and writers inspire better queer represenation on the shows they help create? That remains to be seen — in most cases, the answer is a definitive “no,” but it’s hard to ignore the fact that many of our highest-profile lesbian and bisexual characters have appeared on shows with some kind of LGBTQ representation in the writers’ room: Glee, Orange is the New Black, The L Word, Pretty Little Liars, Empire, True Blood, South of Nowhere and Transparent.

According to The Center for the Study Of Women In Television and Film, women currently account for only 27% of creators, directors, writers, producers, executive producers, editors, and directors of photography working on broadcast programs and 25% of those working in these key roles on broadcast, cable, and Netflix programs. Fusion’s analysis of a wide swath of representation data found that “when women are hired to create, work on, or write shows, the visibility of women increases noticeably.” People of color are 37% of the population but account for 13.7% of TV staff employment during the 2013-2014 season, according to the Writer’s Guild of America. This is a really good article by Aisha Harris about diversity in the television writers room.

The majority of the list below is white, too — it’s just 30% women of color. I hope there are more out there — it wasn’t easy to find information about the personal lives of most of the writers I looked into. This list is by no means exhaustive in many regards, and doesn’t include a lot of writers who have dabbled in TV but specialize elsewhere, like A.M Homes and Ali Liebegott, or queer women who have worked in film or webseries production but never in scripted broadcast, cable or streaming television. Still, it’s a starter look at who out there is on our team!

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1. Ali Adler

Adler’s at the helm of the much-anticipated Supergirl TVs series, set to debut later this fall, starring Melissa Benoit… who you might remember from Glee, which Adler also wrote for. After Glee, she wrote for Ryan Murphy’s short-lived The New Normal. Her first big TV job was in 1991, on Beverly Hills 90210, and she later worked on shows including Family Guy, Just Shoot Me, Commander-in-Chief and Emily’s Reasons Why Not. Spending so much time as the only woman in rooms full of men gave her the insight she needed to write her book, released this year, How to F*ck a Woman: An Insider’s Guide to Love & Relationships.

She’s currently engaged to fellow TV writer Liz Brixius and was previously married to Sara Gilbert, with whom she had two children. After thee split with Gilbert, Adler dated comic Nicol Paone. I also feel like I heard a rumor that the character of Kate Arden in The L Word was based on her.

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2. Alex Martinez Kondracke

The partner of the legendary Angela Robinson, Kondracke’s resume includes Hung and The L Word. According to AfterEllen, Robinson and Kondracke are collaborating on a pilot about Old Hollywood.

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3. Amanda Bearse

In addition to her success as an actress, Bearse has worked as a director for shows including The Big Gay Sketch Show, Jessie, MADtv, Reba, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Dharma & Greg, The Jamie Foxx Show and Rude Awakening.

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4. Andrea Sperling

This writer/producer has recently worked on two major TV shows about transgender people; This is Me and Transparent. She’s also served as producer for a ton of your favorite movies, including Addicted to Fresno, But I’m a Cheerleader, D.E.B.S., Itty Bitty Titty Committe, The Doom Generation and Breaking the Girls.

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5. Angela Robinson

Robinson’s short film, D.E.B.S., became her first feature-length film, D.E.B.S., in 2004, the same year she started working as a director, writer and producer for The L Word, writing many of the series’ most beloved episodes. She then took the helm of Girltrash! a webseries on L Word spinoff website OurChart.com, which eventually became a movie that she did not approve. She worked on Hung from 2009-2011, wrote for True Blood from 2012-2014, and is now writing for How to Get Away With Murder. This makes Robinson one of the few black queer women working in television who’ve had a chance to write black queer female characters —Tara Thornton, Bette Porter, Tasha Williams and, now, Annalise Keating.

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6. Ann Donahue

It all started with 21 Jump Street. And then: Beverly Hills 90210, Picket Fences, Murder One and High Incident. But her greatest acheivement on this earth is Executive Producer of every CSI franchise: CSI: Miami, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, CSI: NY and CSI: Cyber.

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7. Brittani Nichols

In addition to being the writer, creator and producer of the webseries Words With Girls, Brittani Nichols has worked as a writer for Billy on the Street, The Collective and BET’s The Xperiment as well as the MTV pilot Yo, Is This Racist? Her first feature film, Suicide Kale, will debut on the 2016 festival circuit and you can also catch her in Season Two of Transparent. 

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8. Carly Usdin

Carly has worked as a producer for YouTube Nation and Logo’s NewNowNext on-air music series, as well as editing for shows like Hogan Knows Best, RuPaul’s Drag Race and the E! Documentary Britney Spears: Piece of Me. Her web-work includes directing sketches for Funny or Die and producing the webseries “Man About Modernism.” She’s the director of the aforementioned Suicide Kale movie project written by Brittani Nichols.

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9. Carrie Brownstein

Carrie Brownstein is a musician and actress who also writes and produces Portlandia, a show you probably like!

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10. Carol Leifer

Leifer is an actress, writer and producer who has worked in a production or writing capacity on a number of successful comedies: Seinfeld, The Larry Sanders Show, Almost Perfect, It’s Like, You Know, I’m With Her and Rules of Engagement. She was also the executive producer for the short-lived and underrated Ellen sitcom reboot, The Ellen Show, and currently works for Devious Maids. She’s also written for many Academy and Emmy Award ceremonies and Saturday Night Live.

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11. Cherien Dabis

Before getting her first major television writing gig on The L Word in 2006, Dabis had penned an L Word parody, “The D Word,” starring Julie Goldman and Marga Gomez, and is now writing for Quantico. The Palestinian American filmmaker is the writer/director of the critically acclaimed Amreeka, which told the story of a Palestinian Christian immigrant single mother raising her son in small town Indiana. (Dabis herself was born in Nebraska and grew up in Ohio, spending summers in Jordan and the West Bank) She wrote and starred in May in the Summer in 2013, which co-starred Alia Shawkat playing a lesbian character. Through her work Dabis seeks to elevate women and portrayals of Arab-Americans. At some point Dabis was romantically linked to Rose Troche, who she worked with on The L Word.

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12. Dearbhla Walsh

This Irish director has worked on EastEnders, Shameless, Funland, Borgia, The Tudors and Penny Dreadful.

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13. Dee Johnson

Johnson is the one who fought for Dr. Kerry Weaver on E.R to come out as a lesbian. Prior to working on E.R., Johnson got her start writing for Melrose Place in 1993. She has worked as a producer for Nashville, Boss, Rizzoli & Isles, The Good Wife, Southland, Army Wives, Commander in Chief, ER, Profiler and Melrose Place.

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14. Dee Rees

Although she is best known for her film work — specifically Pariah — Rees has also directed an episode of Empire and wrote the TV movie Bessie.

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15. Donna Deitch

Another woman best known for her film work (specifically Desert Hearts), Deitch has worked on tons of television shows, too: NYPD Blue, Crossing Jordan, Private Practice, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, ER and the excellent TV Movie The Women Of Brewster Place.

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16. Ellen DeGeneres

Maybe you’ve heard of her? She’s done a few shows. For example, she was the producer of a pretty popular sitcom called Ellen, and she wrote the very memorable “Puppy Episode” of said sitcom. Furthermore, she currently writes and producers a show called The Ellen DeGeneres Show. Producer credits include Repeat After Me, One Big Happy and Ellen.

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17. Faith Soloway

Jill Soloway’s lesbian sister is working with Jill as a writer on her Amazon series Transparent.

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18. I Marlene King

King wrote a lesbian character into Now and Then, and the studio let her keep the character, but they didn’t let her keep the character’s lesbianism. So now King is at the helm of Pretty Little Liars, which has a lesbian lead character and about six tertiary queers, too (and one very transphobic portrayal of a trans woman!). Before Liars, she wrote Just my Luck and If These Walls Could Talk (the first one, not the gay one).

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19. Ilene Chaiken

My eternal foil Ilene Chaiken, writer of the 1996 Razzie Award Winning Pamela Anderson vehicle Barb Wire, is all up in our lives again for the first time since The Real L Word as a writer and Executive Producer for Empire. As you may have heard, Chaiken was the creator, writer and producer of Showtime’s hit series, The L Word, a groundbreaking series about lesbians in Los Angeles that played a major role in the launch of this website right here, even though it was really bad sometimes, too. Have you noticed the increased numbers of lesbians in this season of Empire? You can thank Ilene Chaiken for that, apparently. She got her start working in casting for Aaron Spelling and Quincy Jones Entertainment, moving on to working as a coordinating producer for The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.

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20. Jamie Babbit

Although the project with which Babbit is most commonly associated, But I’m A Cheerleader, is a movie, she has extensive television directing experience including many episodes of The Gilmore Girls, Undressed, Popular, United States of Tara, Drop Dead Diva and Married, as well as 1-3 episodes of shows including The Bernie Mac Show, Malcom in the Middle, Nip/Tuck,  Ugly Betty, Alias, Gossip Girl, The L Word, Eli Stone, Dirty Sexy Money, Castle, 90210, Pretty Little Liars, The Middle, Gigantic, Smash, Revenge, Bunheads, Emily Owens M.D., Go On, Rizzoli & Isles, Super Fun Night, Girls, Looking and Brooklyn Nine-Nine.

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21. Jan Oxenberg

Oxenberg wrote for Relativity, which featured the first kiss between two lesbian/bisexual characters on American televison in 1997, and Once and Again, which also had a pioneering queer storyline, and (AND!) also has worked as a producer and writer of Pretty Little Liars. Other credits include Cold Case, Kidnapped, In Plain Sight and Chicago Hope. 

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22. Jen Braeden

It was Jen who fought to make Sophia on Undermployed a lesbian character, so bless you, Jen Braeden. She also told AfterEllen a really cute story about how she became Jill Soloway’s intern, and worked on Super Fun Night, Awkward and Finding Carter.

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23. Joanna Johnson

The actress best known for her appearances spanning almost 20 years on The Bold and the Beautiful came out in 2012. She started writing for television in 2013 with Hope & Faith, moving on to Make It Or Break It, Fairly Legal, Emily Owens M.D. and now, of course, The Fosters.

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24. Joni Lefkowitz

After writing the very cute lesbianish movie Life Partners, Joni Lefkowitz started work on Chasing Life, which featured a bisexual female lead character.

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25. Karey Dornetto

Dornetto is a very funny human being who has written for a lot of really funny television programs. For example: South Park, Arrested Development, Community, Kroll Show, The New Normal, Portlandia, and the new series Red Oaks.

26. Lauren Morelli

Lauren Morelli hit the ground running with her first gig in television — Orange is The New Black, where she also met her girlfriend Samira Wiley.

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27. Laverne Cox

Best known as an actress, Cox was the producer of Transform Me and Laverne Cox Presents: The T Word as well as an episode of Style Exposed.

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28. Lena Waithe

You probably recently fell in love with Lena Waithe for her portrayal of Denise in Aziz Ansari’s new show Master of None, but she’s also a TV writer who has worked on Bones, Hello Cupid and How to Rock AND created the kick-ass pilot Twenties.

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29. Linda Wallem

Linda Wallem has been at the head of Nurse Jackie and has previously worked on That 70’s Show, That ’80’s Show, Whitney and Cybil. She’s also married to Melissa Etheridge!

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30. Lisa Cholodenko

We saw a lot of Lisa at the Emmy’s this year for directing the HBO miniseries Olive Kitteridge. She’s also been the director for episodes of shows like Six Feet Under, The L Word, Homicide: Life on the Street and Hung. You’ve probably seen her movies, too — High Art, Laurel Canyon and The Kids Are All Right.

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31. Liz Feldman

Lots of queer women met Liz Feldman via her AfterEllen video blog, This Just Out With Liz Feldman. Liz got her start writing for All That and Blue Collar TV, later working on Ellen: The Ellen DeGeneres Show from 2005-2007. After three years at 2 Broke Girls, she collaborated with Ellen again, this time for the short-lived sitcom, One Big Happy.

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32. Liz Friedman

Friedman is at the helm of the new TV series Jessica Jones, which everybody is pretty pumped about right now, and previously was best known for another thing the queer ladies got pretty pumped about: Xena: Warrior Princess. Previously: Elementary, Orange is the New Black, House M.D., Young Hercules.

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33. Liz Sarnoff

This writer and producer has worked on shows including Deadwood, Lost, Alcatraz, Salem, Crossbones, Crossing Jordan, NYPD Blue and The Leftovers.

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34. Lynn Shelton

Shelton has been writing for Fresh Off The Boat since the pilot. Previously, she’s written for The Mindy Project, New Girl and Mad Men.

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35. Margaret Cho

The comedian prefers to stay in front of the camera, but that means doing a lot of writing and producing too, like on The Cho Sho, Two Sisters and UnCabaret.

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36. Michelle Paradise

Her lesbian sitcom Exes and Ohs didn’t last long on Logo, but Paradise has recently been enjoying a new gig as executive story editor for The Originals.

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37. Nahnatchka Khan

The showrunner for Fresh Off The Boat is allegedly best known for her work on American Dad!, but she also created Don’t Trust the B—- in Apartment 23 and has also written for shows including Unfabulous, Malcom in the Middle and Undergrads. In fact, Kahn was responsible for last year’s Very Special Lesbian Episode.

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38. Nancylee Myatt

Myatt had been working in television for fifteen years before she had the chance to write one of television’s first shows with lesbian and bisexual lead characters, South of Nowhere. She also co-produced a few lesbian webseries, including 3Way, Cowgirl Up and Nikki & Nora. Prior to SON, she worked for shows including Living Single and Night Court.

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39. Nisha Ginatra

This Canadian-born director / producer / writer’s credits include Transparent, Red Oaks, Married, Mr. Robot and The Mindy Project.

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40. Noelle Carbone

Carbone has worked in writing, production and story editing roles for Rookie Blue and Saving Hope.

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41. Patricia Rozema

This Canadian filmmaker is renowned for movies like Mansfield Park and When Night is Falling, but she’s done television work as well, including writing the teleplay for the HBO narrative edition of Grey Gardens. Television shows she’s worked on include The Hunger, Tell Me You Love Me, In Treatment and Michael: Tuesdays & Thursdays.

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42. Rose Troche

She is best known for her fim work, but she’s also directed episodes of Law & Order, Six Feet Under, Touching Evil, South of Nowhere, Ugly Betty and Finding Carter, and worked as a writer for The L Word, Rochelle and Hunting Season.

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43. Sarah Gertrude Shapiro

Shapiro works with Buffy scribe Marti Noxon to write, create and produce the Lifetime series UnREAL, which was recently renewed for a second season. Previously, she’d worked as a field producer on The Bachelor, been in a band with JD Samson, and interned for legendary lesbian filmmaker Christine Vachon’s production company, Killer Films.

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44. Sara Hess

Hess spent several years working as a writer and producer of House before joining the Orange is the New Black team.

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45. Savannah Dooley

Dooley, the daughter of My So-Called Life creator Winnie Holzman, created the TV series Huge.

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46. Shadi Petosky

Petosky, a trans woman, is the creator of the new animated Amazon series Danger & Eggs, and has worked as an animator and producer for shows like Mad, Yo Gabba Gabba! and The Aquabats! Super Show!

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47. Susan Miller

In addition to being a renowned playwright, Miller is the writer and co-creator of the webseries Anyone But Me and a writer/producer for Bestsellers. Previously, she has written for The L Word, Thirtysomething, The Paper Chase and Dynasty.

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48. Tamika Miller

Miller has had her hand in basically every type of visual media possible, including commercials, music videos, film and television. Her films Gift for the Living and Sarong Song both have been picked up by showtime Cable Network, and her half-hour comedy Gris-Gris-Gris was acquired and developed by the here! Network in 2008. In 2012 and 2013, she shadowed on the HBO series The Newsroom.

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49. Tanya Saracho

Saracho was an established playwright in Chicago when she got her first TV job writing for Devious Maids, and then was quickly picked up to write for the gay HBO series Looking, and then for Girls, and then Hot To Get Away With Murder. In 2014, Saracho, who was born in Mexico and raised in Texas, told an interviewer that she was working on a project with HBO about “queer border-girl stuff.”

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50. Tig Notaro

The renowned actress and comedian’s new pilot, One Mississippi, just debuted on Amazon. Previously, Notaro has been a writer for Inside Amy Schumer.

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51. Toni Graphia

Graphia has an extensive resume including producing and writing for Battlestar Galactica, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Grey’s Anatomy, Roswell, Carnivàle, Quantum Leap and Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman.

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52. Wanda Sykes

Comedian and actress Wanda Sykes has been writing for TV since The Keenen Ivory Wayans Show in 1997. Her resume includes The Chris Rock Show, Comedy Central Presents, the Academy Awards, and The Downer Channel. She was also producer, writer and star of the sitcoms Wanda At Large and Wanda Does It.

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53. Zachary Drucker

Zachary Drucker has worked as a producer for the trans-themed docuseries This Is Me and as an associate producer and an actress on Transparent.

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