Worldbuilding and atmosphere are fundamental aspects of fantasy and science fiction writing. What’s your process for brainstorming and developing your ideas, especially when you’re just getting started on a new world?
Designing an entire world is a staggering amount of work, and it often halts even the bravest, most motivated writers. I’m here to remind you: you don’t need to know everything right away! And you don’t need to show it all off, all at once. That’s terribly overwhelming for everyone involved. So, here’s what I say: Imagine your world as a dark and vast garden before you, lit only by a candle in your hands. While you can sense the immensity of the garden, what becomes imperative to your journey is the small circle of illumination right in front of you. Describe those things first, and then explore further.
I also find that the more I learn about reality, the deeper I can dream. World building isn’t just magic. It’s food and fashion, art and music, materials and architecture and B-list celebrities. Digging deep into the details of our world will help you figure out how to make your imagined worlds feel real.
In your debut novel Reverie, you explore the concept of dreams as a vehicle for change in reality. This is a fascinating concept! It leads us to ask: what do you find most enthralling about the imaginative opportunities allowed by fantasy and science fiction? And is it ever daunting to then turn those daydreams into a story that has to make sense?
People dismiss fantastical writing as simply escapist, but they forget to ask: what’s everyone escaping from? And why? Our dreams often arise from an instinct that reality is wrong, that we can imagine something better. So why not apply that kind of imagining to a world badly in need of dreams inspired by justice? Fantasy and science fiction aren’t just escapes; they are genres that allow us to create dreams big enough to take on the nightmares that mire our own world.
I love the limitless options of magic and dreams, but of course a story must be grounded in a sense of real stakes. How do you give a character incredible power, but still make their story distinctly human and relatable? That’s my favorite part of the puzzle, actually.
Your embrace of unabashed queerness and exploration of queer identities in your novels has led them to be banned in some school libraries. How does this backlash — as well as positive support from the creative community — inform your thoughts on the role of a fiction writer when it comes to reflecting on wider issues in reality and society?
It’s kind of funny. The support of my books always comes from a place of deep appreciation and critical understanding, whereas the backlash is almost always too incoherent to respond to. It’s clear to me that the people who are the most scared of my books are also the people who have never opened them up. And when they do, they find their minds changed. It makes me even more motivated to dedicate my writing towards the creation of a new, queer mythology that ascribes power and depth to a diversity of experiences. People love us when they understand us, and I see it as my job as a fiction writer to forge that understanding, even if it means outshining a shrinking, sniveling minority of illiterate homophobes.
Your novel The Honeys is currently being adapted into a film. First of all, congratulations! How do you feel about your story being transformed from written text to a primarily visual medium? As both the author of the novel and executive producer of the film, what does the creative process of adaptation mean to you?
Thank you! I’m excited and scared about the adaptation. It’s always been a dream of mine to see one of my stories turned real via the silver screen, but the reality is that I watch most horror movies through my fingers. I’m a squeamish hack! I can’t handle my own ideas! At the same time, as an Executive Producer, I want to try my hardest to get every little thing right. That doesn’t mean we’ll be replicating the book word-for-word, though. I see this as a chance at evolution, and I know the diehard Honeys fans will love what we create.
What are you looking for in a winning entry? Any other advice for the writers, especially those who are new to writing sci-fi/fantasy?
I am looking for ingenuity and confidence. I love when writers take big swings and push their imagination to come up with something truly strange or delightful; at the same time, I’m looking for clarity in the execution. It can be easy to get lost when there are no rules, so how are you going to make me believe this is real?