Aurora: What was your inspiration behind your most recent novel?
Ryan La Sala: My actual life! A few years ago, I was with my then-boyfriend at con, dressed up as Hawkman from the DC Universe. Both of us were dressed up as Hawkman, actually. I was a stressed out, exhausted mess because I did most of the work on the costumes and hadn’t slept for like, two weeks. The resulting experience was strange, fun, oddly romantic and it totally tested my relationship in a way I wasn’t expecting. After, I called my agents and told her I wanted to set a rom-com at a comic book convention, focusing on cosplay, starring two ex-boyfriends with vastly different work styles that have to work side by side in a cosplay competition. And then me and my actual boyfriend broke up! The result is: Be Dazzled.
What character in this novel do you most relate to and why?
Raffy, the main character, is a young, prodigious artist who can make anything he can imagine. He’s way more talented than I’ll ever be, but we share a need to always be creating something, to be working on the next project, to show off our hard work and earn admiration. In other words: we love attention. He unfortunately also inherited my somewhat tumultuous relationship with stress and anxiety around creative projects, and much like my own relationships, Raffy’s bonds to the people around him suffer for it. Sorry, kiddo!
Why do you feel novels with powerful and unique characters are so popular and have such a voice right now?
There’s so much work to do in the realm of diversifying media and storytellers, but what I can say is this: these voices have always been here, but only recently have many of us been invited onto the big stage. Sometimes we’re not invited, but we show up anyway and make it a real party, like Maleficent. The positive reaction to powerful and unique voices is, I feel, indicative of the fatiguing sameness that’s inevitable when publishers keep putting money behind the same super white, super straight stories. Frankly, I think many of us are desperate to read anything else.
Please describe the content of your latest book and what can readers expect from it.
Be Dazzled is about Raffy, an ingenious costume designer deadset at taking home the top prize at his region’s biggest cosplay competition. His chances at art school depend on it, but what he’s really after is a reason to shut up his mother, a famous artist herself who doesn’t believe Raffy’s costumes are real art worth recognition. Then, at the competition, Raffy’s ex-boyfriend shows up to compete against him. Raffy’s whole plan is in jeopardy if he can’t figure out how to fix his broken heart, focus, and win. And that’s chapter one!
This book is funny, dramatic, emotional, and of course full of crafts, costumes, and con-talk. From Be Dazzled, you can expect a whirlwind adventure through the world of comic book conventions, fandoms, and of course competitive arts and crafts. And yes, this is a book about art, but it’s also about first love, first heartbreak, second chances, and forgiveness. Beneath all the glitz, it’s a really personal story that a lot of young, ambitious artists will resonate with.
What’s next foryou in the bookish world?
To be perfectly honest, I’m looking to do a few craft projects myself! I’ll get back to books soon, I promise, but for now I’m having a blast co-hosting Celebrity Book Club, a podcast where we read celebrity-penned fiction and discuss them very seriously. Right now, we’re reading Modelland, a fantasy novel written by and then forgotten by Tyra Banks. If you’re a writer, a reader, or just curious, you should check it out!
Who is your current favorite writer? Why?
I fear he will take a restraining order out on me if I don’t stop talking about him, but I cannot recommend Julian Winters’ work enough. Running With Lions was integral to me realizing how impactful a story focused on queer joy could be.
Any writing advice for aspiring writers?
Everywhere you will find excuses to put down your ambitions and back away from your dreams. People will tell you it’s okay to stop, to move on, to take breaks that never end. That’s true, but I want aspiring writers to know that it’s also perfectly okay to know exactly what you want to accomplish, and to pursue it with unrelenting resolve. I learned about resolve while writing Raffy in Be Dazzled, and I think we often conceptualize naked ambition as bad, but sometimes as an artist it’s the only thing you’ve got. So yes, be gentle with yourself, but know that your dreams are worth the dignity of your best effort, and chase them.
Up next, Madeleine Henry!