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EW caught up with the best-selling author to discuss her new novel.
Youve said this is a more personal story for you.
HarperCollins Publishers
What inspired it?My second book,Dumplin, is about me in very obvious ways.
People can look at me and make assumptions about how I might relate to that book.
Ive always been bisexual or pansexual or queer or whatever label you want to put on it.
Christy Archibald
There are so many coming out stories, but this is a sexuality is more fluid story.Right.
Well, Im from theChasing Amygeneration, so I always loved that movie.
But I knew that there were things that were wrong with that movie.
This is so hot.
Ramona isnt just questioning her sexuality, but shes also dealing with what her future might entail.
All of those things interact with each other.
Its like this part of the country was ignored post-Katrina.
I was really interested in what punch in of person that punch in of environment would create.
What would a teenage girl look like today if she had survived Hurricane Katrina at a very young age?
How would this still have a footprint on her life?
For so long, there was no major source of economic revenue, and it was just so devastating.
Those people stayed there because they cant afford to go elsewhere.
For some people, they were able to move on to other places like Texas or Florida.
There is nowhere to go.
It comes down to simple things like if you get a flat tire, you could lose your house.
Im really fond of this part of the country now.
I just feel really connected to it.
Theyre rebuilding, but its a really slow process.
I wanted it to be realistic.
Any wins Ramona has are of her own doing.
I definitely did that on purpose.
Ruth and Saul are both queer.
Was it super important for you to have that kind of representation in Ramonas immediate friend group?Yeah.
Do we still have anything in common?
Does our friendship hold up?
Is it just our sexuality that we have in common?
But is there more to that?
It was important to me for Ramona to not be the only queer representation in the book.
So many characters in the book are dealing with going or not going to college.
Its just not realistic.
Its definitely not realistic for people who have the same socioeconomic status as Ramona.
Ramona Blueis currently available for purchase.Order it here.
