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After having read some of your Young Adult novels, I now understand why you are so respected and admired as a prolific young-adult author. Can you please share with us some of your own personal history and explain what compelled you to begin writing young-adult themes? I have a sense that you draw a great deal of inspiration from personal experience. How much of yourself and your history is manifested in your characters, settings, and plot?
It’s all about me! Just kidding—but not really. The way I connect to a character is by identifying at least one way in which I’m like them or they’re like me. That human connection will allow the reader to connect as well. Also, when writing about young people I work to remember what it was like to grow up. Although the externals have changed a lot since I was in high school, the internal experience is much the same for teens today—the angst, insecurity, and self-discovery.
I’d like to talk about your novel, Bait, which features a sixteen year old boy named Diego McMann, who survives several years of horrific abuse and, with the help of a gifted counselor, begins the process of recovery. This story touched my heart profoundly, and yet I must admit that it was not a comfortable read. Why Diego? Why a heterosexual central character, when most of your stories present gay protagonists?
My novels Getting It and So Hard to Say also feature straight protagonists. My next novel, Boyfriends with Girlfriends, features bisexual protagonists. I see no reason to limit myself to gay central characters, especially in stories whose focus is not homosexuality. The sexual orientation of the protagonist depends on what works best for the story.
Was there perhaps a “Diego” in your own experience as a probation officer and counselor who inspired you to create this amazing character?
Yep, Diego was inspired by my work with abused teens and also by my own experiences as someone who—like so many men and women, gay and straight—survived abuse as a child.
In The God Box, you tackle another contentious topic: the reconciliation of religious beliefs with sexual identity. Our faith often is as ingrained within our identity as is our sexual orientation, and when these two realities conflict it can be a harrowing experience, particularly to a teenager such as Pablo. Did this story involve a great deal of research? The scriptural proofs you present seem to be incredibly well substantiated.
I love writing about contentious topics—it makes for great drama! The God Box was inspired by the many emails I’ve received from teens struggling to reconcile their sexuality and spirituality. Their struggles resonated with my own faith journey. But I also knew that for the story to be credible I needed to research where so many religious beliefs come from.
Can you share with us the resources that you make available to youth, both via the Internet and elsewhere?
On my website, http://www.alexsanchez.com/, I have an entire page dedicated to youth resources and a full page with links to LGBT-accepting Christian, Mormon, Jewish, Muslim, and atheist groups.
What future projects do you have in store?
My eighth novel, Boyfriends with Girlfriends, explores issues around bi teens. It was inspired by loads of emails I get from teens who aren’t willing to confine themselves to being either gay or straight. The book comes out in April.
Many gay-fiction and m/m readers voice the concern that coming-out and coming-of-age stories are not as necessary today as in years past. Why do authors such as you continue to focus on these themes when we’ve nearly reached a point where coming-out is not really that big of a deal anymore?
Although change has definitely happened, in much of America coming out continues to be a huge deal for many people, both teens and adults—especially in rural, Bible-belt, and people of color communities. Even in major cities, LGBT youngsters continue to get bullied and harassed at school, condemned by churches, and rejected by family members. As California’s Prop 8 showed, homophobia is alive and well in America. Only when we truly have equal rights will we be able to say that coming out is not an issue anymore. We’re definitely not there yet, and our stories need to be truthful about that.
As I’m sure you’re aware, Young Adult literature is appealing to readers of all ages. Isn’t it a challenge to write a story which can be attractive to both a 12 year old boy and a middle-aged woman simultaneously? Do you specifically and deliberately write with your young audience in mind?
I don’t write specifically to a young audience. Instead I try to write with burning honesty about what it is like to be a young person. If I can nail that, the story will appeal to all ages, since we’re all young people at some point. The most important goal in fiction is to be truthful about emotional experience. And that’s the hardest thing, too.
How many books do you have published, and where can we purchase them?
Seven and counting! All are available at bookstores and online. For more info, visit http://www.AlexSanchez.com. Thanks!
Thanks for sharing your time and talent. It’s been an honor to feature you and your work on our website.
Alex Sanchez is the author of the cool and sometimes controversial teen novels The God Box, Getting It, and the Rainbow Boys trilogy, as well as the Lambda Award-winning middle-grade novel So Hard to Say. His newest novel, Bait, won the Florida Book Award Gold Medal for YA fiction. Alex received his master’s degree in guidance and counseling from Old Dominion University and for many years worked as a youth and family counselor. Visit him at http://www.AlexSanchez.com.
