Queerness and Quality: A Guest Post from Ryan La Sala, Author of The Honeys, Our August YA Pick

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I worry about my readers, I really do. The book I published directly previous to The Honeys, which is a horrific story taking cues from gothic and folk horror, was a romantic comedy about a gay boy who likes to watch cartoons and bedazzle costumes. Literally it’s titled Be Dazzled. There’s even a meet-cute at a craft store! Imagine reading that, loving it, and then delving into the first six pages of The Honeys, which are some of the most shocking pages I’ve ever produced. Psychic damage, for sure! 

I’ll admit, making the switch across genres is easy for me. I have always thought of stories like puzzles. Sure, they fit together like the picture on the box, but if you put the same pieces together in a strange way, any story can change form. 

I used to turn stories over in my head, retelling them to myself as a comedy, a horror, a musical, a video game. The genre of something to me has always been a suggestion, really. For instance, people like to say Rainbow Fish is for children, but I find the book to be insidious. You want my shimmering scales? From my own body?? That book is not meant for children who know how fish work (of which I was one). I still have nightmares about picking off bits of flesh so that others can steal a bit of my shine. 

Anyways! 

People say I’ve ‘shifted genres’ now that I write horror, but I’d like to point out that from the perspective of a certain close-minded group of loudmouths who are trying to erase queer characters from libraries, I’ve always written horror. My books don’t just include queer characters, they center queer characters in elaborate, engaging, and exciting adventures that are in direct dialogue with said queerness. Some of my characters dream of winning costume contests, some seek revenge, some fight to survive. No matter the goal, the gaul of these characters and their rather flamboyant author amounts to a genre-transcending status of ‘worst nightmare’ for the people who desperately do not want us to exist. 

Unfortunately, I do plan to keep existing. And writing. I’m enjoying the spooky realm right now, but I never promise consistency. Who knows, maybe it’ll be a beach read for heartbroken moms next? Or a book about dinosaurs and muscle cars. No one is safe! Whatever I write, I can promise two things: queerness and quality. In each story I challenge myself to rethink every convention and dream up something exciting and strange. I want to give my readers something personal and utterly unique. Sometimes that means a fun, new format, other times it means inventing a monster queer people have not yet had the chance to conquer. For me, being trusted to do this work is a privilege, and it’s the best feeling in the world when I can make my readers scream (with delight). 

Wherever I go next, I hope my readers follow. I’ve learned the journey is always more fun when you go together, and in my books there’s room for everyone.