Tell me a little bit about ‘When Everything Was Fresh and Green'.
When Everything Was Fresh & Green is an urban fantasy with climate fiction themes and a no-spice Sapphic romance subplot. The main character is a middle-aged foster mom, Tessa, who is still grieving her foster kid who went back to their neglectful bio mom. But everything changes when Astrid is placed in her care. Astrid, who does not believe her parents are dead and who is a witch.
Tessa, who is nothing if not a devoted guardian, agrees to become Astrid’s Familiar and help her find her parents. When Astrid’s aunt, Cece, shows up at Tessa’s house to take Astrid away, Tessa insists on coming along. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that Cece is gorgeous and Tessa is instantly smitten.
This book is the first of The House Coven Chronicles and it’s full of magic, found family, chaotic kids, and cozy moments. But the stakes are high, too. Tessa, Astrid, Cece, and even Theo are all pawns in a much larger scheme, one that started with the best of intentions, but has, over a span of decades, turned sinister.
What first made you want to tell this story?
My oldest is a voracious reader. He was only six when I started writing this book, but he was already devouring a lot of middle-grade fantasy novels. I wanted to write a story that my kids could grow up to read and enjoy. I also wanted to tell a story about a mom who was a heroine, someone who was a bit like me, a bit of a hot mess.
I wrote this book because a part of me still wants someone to show up at my door and tell me magic is real.
Was there a particular moment or character that came to you first?
Astrid was the first character that I created. In the first chapter, a photo of her is described and this was one of the first things I wrote.
What do you hope readers take away after finishing the book?
Even in the darkest moments, there can be beauty, especially if you’re with people you love.
Did anything surprise you while writing it?
I didn’t start out thinking it would be a series, but it became clear about half-way through that the story was much bigger than one book could contain.
How important was it for you to include a queer-normative world in ‘When Everything Was Fresh & Green’?
So many stories about LGBTQIA+ folks focus on coming out or unrequited love or oppression, realities of queer existence that need to be seen and talked about. But they aren’t the only stories to be told.
I bristle against the notion that “being gay is not a choice,” as if all autonomy in my life has been taken from me because I’m queer. I chose the life I have, with my wife and kids, and I love it. I want stories that embrace the choices in life. Queerness gives us so many wonderful choices, so many ways of being, so many options.
When Everything Was Fresh & Green revels in ways of being, from magical beings to queer identities. The novel takes place in our world, but among a magical subculture within it that is much more inclusive.
Which queer book has stayed with you the longest?
The first queer book I ever read: Hood by Emma Donoghue. Probably because it was the first, but also Emma Donoghue is a great written and it’s a devastating book.
What book has made you feel most seen?
I really loved the two mom characters in This Poison Heart by Kalynn Bayron: Thandie & Angie Greene. Real mom characters are under-represented in fiction and queer moms? We barely exist. I loved seeing their real, authentic relationship and their family dynamics.
Which author has influenced your writing the most?
Toss-up between Louise Erdrich and Toni Morrison. I love writing fantasy, but I spent years engrossed in magical realism. I still believe books should be rooted in character development with a plot pulling them along. And I think there should always be those sentences that catch us up along the way, those little detours of beauty.
Which three books would you take to a desert island?
Which queer creators should we all be following?
Arlo Z. Grave & Molly Haniszewski
What's next for you?
I’m working on Book 2 of The House Coven Chronicles – stay tuned!
Where can readers find your work?
The best way to get a copy of When Everything Was Fresh & Green is through the publisher, Quills & Cosmos Press.
Quills & Cosmos also recently published a benefit anthology, Hope is Not Passive, to raise money for Kids in Need of Defense (KIND) and I have a story in that.
What would you recommend to someone just starting to explore queer books, art or community?
I’d probably suggest starting with something like The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid or The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab. Ease in with books that are very popular in general, where queerness is not the entire storyline, but an integral part of the characters, kind of like real life!
If you could tell your younger self one thing about queer community, books or belonging, what would it be?
Wait for it.
Huge thanks to Bethany for taking the time to chat with Between the Margins. Be sure to follow her on social media to stay up to date on future releases!
