by Kat Georges

Publishing the work of the brilliant author Julia Watts is an extraordinary experience. Three Rooms Press has been honored to publish three of her most recent books, including the YA novels QUIVER and NEEDLEWORK, and the stunning October 2023 release, the adult historical novel LOVESICK BLOSSOMS. All three, like the majority of her nearly twenty novels to date, feature LGBTQ+ characters in Appalachia. I was thrilled to speak with Julia about this latest work, and how she consistently creates compelling, must-read fiction over the years.

Kat Georges: Your new novel, LOVESICK BLOSSOMS, is a bit of a departure from your two previous novels, QUIVER and NEEDLEWORK. The last two novels were Young Adult set in contemporary times; LOVESICK BLOSSOMS is adult historical fiction, set in 1953 Kentucky. What made you delve into the past, and also aim the novel toward adult readers?

Julia Watts: I’ve always gone back and forth between writing for young adults and adults. I’m almost an entirely character-driven author. I wait for a character to start talking to me, and then I listen. If the character is a teen, I write a young adult novel. If the character is older, I write an adult novel. In terms of the historical setting, I started dreaming up LOVESICK BLOSSOMS in the fateful year of 2016 when the election made me all too aware of how many people in this country are nostalgic for a more conformist and homogeneous time, a “back then” when things were somehow better. Which, of course, they weren’t except possibly for some financially comfortable white cisgender heterosexual men. I found myself wanting to write about mid-twentieth century America to show it isn’t something that should be idealized.

KG: In LOVESICK BLOSSOMS, every character is so compelling. What techniques do you use to write such full characters? Do you develop the characters before the novel-writing process begins, or do they talk to you while writing?

JW: First of all, thanks. In terms of technique, I do a lot of writing about the main characters before I start drafting the novel. I especially like to write journal or diary entries from their points of view. I start off the draft knowing the characters way better than the reader needs to…I know lots of minute details, like how they take their coffee. Once I have a good understanding of those main characters, I start drafting and let them do the talking.

“I do a lot of writing about the main characters before I start drafting the novel. I especially like to write journal or diary entries from their points of view. I start off the draft knowing the characters way better than the reader needs to…”

KG: How would you describe the two main characters, Samuel and Frances?

JW: Samuel and Frances are different in some obvious ways. Samuel is butch and has known she’s gay for a long time; she just hides the fact by living in a lavender marriage with her equally gay husband. Frances is much more obviously feminine and up until she meets Samuel lives a very heteronormative life with her husband and children. But beneath these surface differences, they have a lot in common. They are both writers living in a time when most women artists weren’t taken seriously. They are both ruled by their passions and are not good at following society’s rules. They are both rebellious in head and heart.

KG: Without giving too much away, the discretion that is required by queer characters in 1953 Kentucky is overwhelming. As someone who lives in a red state in Appalachia, do you feel this situation could return? Why or why not?

JW: I feel like, to an extent, it already has. I live in Tennessee, and for some time, we’ve been in the news for all the wrong reasons: drag bans and book bans and bans of gender-affirming care for trans youth. I do think, though, that it’s important for people in blue states to know that this kind of bone-headed bigotry doesn’t reflect the views of everyone in Tennessee, where there are lots of wonderful, welcoming people. We’ve got Dolly Parton, for crying out loud. However, there are some really loud voices in the state government who want to get across the point that openly LGBTQ+ people aren’t welcome here. And of course, these restrictive policies push queer Tennesseans into the closet or out of the state.

KG: Are you worried about the ongoing efforts of red states to ban children’s and young adult books that feature queer characters, like so many of your own books? What kinds of things do you think can be done to open up dialog that encourages parents to stand up for diverse books?

JW: Yes, it’s very worrying. I have cried real tears over these bans on multiple occasions. And while books with queer characters have been targeted, so have books featuring characters of color, especially books that might suggest the “shocking” idea that racism has ever been a problem in this country. I think it’s incredibly important for people who believe in diverse books and in a diverse America to show up at school board meetings and libraries where books are being banned or challenged…and speak up, calmly but assertively, for kids’—and everyone’s–freedom to read. I don’t know that any of the real pro-censorship folks will ever have their minds changed, but people who are undecided about the issue might. Standing up for freedom to read also shows support for librarians, teachers, and authors, and we need it!

“I think it’s incredibly important for people who believe in diverse books and in a diverse America to show up at school board meetings and libraries where books are being banned or challenged…and speak up, calmly but assertively, for kids’—and everyone’s–freedom to read. I don’t know that any of the real pro-censorship folks will ever have their minds changed, but people who are undecided about the issue might.”

KG: What things are better now than they were in the time in which this novel is set? What changes are the most susceptible to disappearing?

JW: Well, we have gay marriage, which I never thought I’d see in my lifetime. And many workplaces have anti-LGBTQ+ discrimination policies. Also, I think that just the visibility and representation of LGBTQ+ people is so, so much better than when the novel is set. Gay and lesbian fiction in the 1950’s was hard to find, the titles and covers were lurid, and they tended to end with the queer characters getting either killed or “cured.” In terms of changes that are most susceptible to disappearing, I think trans rights are the most endangered because so many right-wing politicians have their knee-jerk, anti-trans talking points. And I already mentioned the disappearance of gender-affirming care for youth here in Tennessee. Trans youth are probably the most vulnerable, though in this climate, none of us is truly safe.

KG: You recently completed your PhD—congratulations on that! Tell us a bit about your new degree.

JW: Thanks! Working on a PhD at The University of Tennessee was officially my Mid-Life Crisis, though I couldn’t have asked for a better one. It’s a PhD in education with a concentration in children’s and young adult literature. My dissertation is called Fatalism and Flamboyance: Representing Rural Appalachian LGBTQ+ Youth in Young Adult Literature. I’m sure people who have read my novels are saying, “Of course it is!”

KG: What drives you to continue writing such fine books?

JW: I don’t know! I live in my head a lot, and I’ve always had a strong creative drive. I started writing stories when I was eight years old, and I’ve never stopped. I’m at my happiest when I’m inside a story…and the longer the story, the better!

”There is so much to love here, but sometimes the political situation is so depressing, I think, “My family and I are going to flee to a blue state.” But the iced tea in blue states is terrible, so instead of letting the bigots run us off, I guess we’ll stay and fight!”

KG: You were born and raised in Appalachia, and you still live there. What is it that your find compelling about the region?

JW: The mountains, the people and their stories and language, literature and music. And the food! I don’t think I could live a week without cornbread. There is so much to love here, but sometimes the political situation is so depressing, I think, “My family and I are going to flee to a blue state.” But the iced tea in blue states is terrible, so instead of letting the bigots run us off, I guess we’ll stay and fight!