Leah Bobet Interview

Leah Bobet

Leah Bobet, Author of ABOVE

This is the first in what I hope will be a series of interviews with authors who have written about intersex characters in their novels. Today I’m interviewing Leah Bobet about her book, ABOVE.

Thank you so much for being here, Leah.

Thanks for having me!

How long have you been writing?

I’ve been writing for publication for ten years — since I was 19.  There’s a whole trail of short fiction out there, in both print and online magazines going back to 2002, that’s pretty much the story of me figuring out what I wanted to say and how I could best say it.

What do you like the most and least about writing?

The most?  The way it feels when you’re about half an hour into writing a scene when it’s working, really working, and your body almost ceases to exist.  There’s nothing in the world but you and the words, and this little tingle in your fingers to connect them.

The least?  This may sound precious, but…not writing.  My process is fairly finicky and I will get months-long dead spots, where I just don’t have anything to say and can’t put pen to paper (or hands to keyboard, as the case may be).  The only real solution’s to wait.  I, as a general rule, hate waiting.

What genre do you write?

Several, actually — and then some things that live at the intersections of a few genres.  ABOVE’s been described as an urban fantasy, a dystopian, a paranormal; my own description’s usually that it’s a literary novel if you squint one way and a fantasy novel if you squint the other way. I’ve also recently published short fiction that was the-bastard-child-of-CanLit-and-Stephen-King-horror-with-bonus!-political-commentary, and serious-relationship-fiction-but-oh-hey-there’s-witches, and ridiculous-gonzo-religious-humour-with-puns.

So to give a perfectly complicated answer to a perfectly simple question: genre’s one of the places I tend to play. There’s usually elements of two or more of them in anything I write.

Tell me about ABOVE. What’s your hook? Where can I find a copy?

ABOVE is about Matthew, who’s loved Ariel from the moment he found her in the tunnels, her bee’s wings falling away. They live in Safe, an underground refuge for those fleeing the city Above—like Whisper, who speaks to ghosts, and Jack Flash, who can shoot lightning from his fingers. 

But one terrifying night, an old enemy invades Safe with an army of shadows, and only Matthew, Ariel, and a few friends escape Above. As Matthew unravels the mystery of Safe’s history and the shadows’ attack, he realizes he must find a way to remake his home—not just for himself, but for Ariel, who needs him more than ever before.

The book comes out March 1st in Canada, April 1st in the US, and it’ll be available pretty much everywhere you find your books: online, in chain bookstores, and in independents.

One of the main characters in ABOVE is intersex. Would you tell us a bit about the character, the condition, and the research you did?

It’s about half of a major plot point, so I’d rather not reveal too much about the character hirself.

A lot of the foundational research came from discussions with a friend who’s a paediatrician, who deals with gender assignment choices for intersex children in a very real, hands-on, everyday way.  Talking to her about it was what first highlighted the topic for me, and general online reading covered most of what I needed for what is essentially a character background, filtered through the perspective of a narrator who doesn’t know much about the condition himself.

Does the character’s condition play a pivotal role in their character arc?

It’s both entirely central to why events play out as they do, and entirely peripheral: the character in question’s motives and emotional reflexes were entirely made by how people — first at home, and then in the world, and then in Safe where sie found hirself — reacted to hir being intersex.  It’s the entire reason sie reacts in certain ways to other people’s choices, and those reactions drive the plot.

But in another sense, it’s a character background like any other; the kinds of fears and hopes that spring out of it could spring out of other places (and do, in some of the other characters in Safe!), and the ultimate choices sie makes, as well as the consequences for them, have to do with a whole other condition that character has, and a whole other relationship dynamic.

What will the reader conclude learn about intersex from your character?

While that’s up to the reader entirely, I doubt they’ll learn much in depth specifically about intersex.  What I’m hoping they’ll learn, though?  That it’s just a thing, like many other things, and that treating people according to their parts or conditions or diagnoses in general is less good than treating them as people.  Which sounds like it should be a simple thing to learn, but we do tend to have trouble with it.

What are you working on?

An odd little book about a sixteen-year-old girl on a post-apocalyptic farm, whose brother-in-law hasn’t come back from the war, the mysterious veteran they hire on to help run the land through the winter, and all the trouble that brings down on their heads.

What do you do for fun and relaxation when not writing?

A terrible lot of things!  I am sort of a halfway house for hobbies: I knit, watch silent movies, go on adventures with my friends, run scavenger hunts, bellydance, bake bread, and I’m ridiculously into urban agriculture, indie music, and Toronto municipal politics.  A friend’s talked me into picking my guitar back up too, so…

Which authors do you like to read?

Oh, I’m a total omnivore.  I will read nearly anything, and after working in a bookstore for four years (where reading new authors was my job!) I have a habit of aggressively hunting down first novels and authors I’ve never read before.

I will always read a new Nalo Hopkinson novel, or a new David Mitchell, or a new China Mieville.  There are a bunch of local-to-me authors I will always read: Peter Watts, Caitlin Sweet, David Nickle, Zoe Whittall, Catherine Bush, and most of what Coach House Books puts out.  But the rest is variable: I’m always more interested in the author I haven’t discovered yet.

Do you have any tips for aspiring authors?

I heard a wonderful piece of writing advice the other day, from author Charles Coleman Finlay, which seems to sum up all the other writing advice in one sentence: “Find your own way forward with joy and discipline.”

Deep down, everyone has a sense of what might work for them and what might not.  Learning to write is less a driving test than an exploration.  Explore, find your own process with diligence, and enjoy it. It’s no good if you’re not having some fun.

Is there anything else you’d like us to know about you?

Just that I hope you like the book!

Thanks!

Amy – Gonadal Dysgenesis

Some of my friends, who also happen to have intersex conditions, have agreed to short interviews. Today, we welcome Amy, who has Gonadal Dysgenesis.

Thank you so much for being here, Amy. Would you tell us a little about yourself?

Hi, my name is Amy! I am the second oldest of nine children, 6 younger sisters and 2 brothers. I have struggled with addictions over the last 20 years as I have sought to learn who I am. I was sober 9.5 years until I relapsed and now am sober this round 5 years. I am 44 years old and I don’t want to lose any more time trying to “find myself”. I am now divorced. I began dating women and have been in a two-year relationship. I work as a training coordinator for persons with developmental disabilities and mental illness. I do not discuss my condition with many people.

How and when were you told your diagnosis?

I was told for many years before my doctor visit that if I had not had a period by the time I was 17 that my mom was going to take me to see why. I waited for the magical age, the period never came, and I was swooped off to a doctor in Richmond Va. where I lived. All I remember from that day was a blur as we sat in the doctor’s office and I received my diagnosis which I didn’t understand. All I remember hearing is you won’t have children and had you been of normal height you would only have been 5’9. They gave me a diagnosis of Turners Syndrome and stated they didn’t know much about my diagnosis and while I really didn’t have all the symptoms of Turners, they gave me the diagnosis as they didn’t know what else to call it. I had one symptom of Turners, no ovaries. I had been born without ovaries. I was Catholic; my world felt crushed. My value of a woman was wrapped up in having children.

Can you explain a little about your condition?

My real diagnosis is XX Gonadal Dysgenesis. The best I understand is that a part of the arm of one of the X chromosomes broke off. This was the part that governed height and the development of Ovaries. While I would have been tall due to a father that is 6’4, I am now taller just because. At 17, I was tall as a rail. I was flat chested. I had not developed pubic hair or hair under my arms. It appeared I was stunted. I was growing taller and taller. They put me on Estrogen and Progesterone to induce a period as I do have a uterus. They threatened that I would not stop growing if I didn’t take my estrogen. HRT helped me develop breasts and hair yet I still had no hips, a flat butt and now a loaded chest. I looked in the mirror one day and didn’t recognize myself.

What do you like the most and the least about having a difference of sexual development?

I like the most that I do not have a period as many woman do. I do not have to suffer through these ill effects. The least not going through puberty as other people did. I felt left out and when I heard stories I regretted that I didn’t get to experience things other kids did. I spent time wondering what was wrong with me and in high school I felt so different that I volunteered in the snack stand at school so I didn’t have to sit with others I knew and worried about taking someone else’s chair. I couldn’t relate to any normal teenage angst.

How has it affected your relationships?

I didn’t date in high school, and I married the first man who showed an interest, especially marriage material when he said he didn’t want kids and he said I was all woman. I was with him for 10 years and I found out he was cheating on me the whole time. I wondered what was real and what was wrong with me as a woman that he would want to sleep with others. I felt very less then.

Has it affected your religious views?

I was brought up Catholic. I felt for sure I was being punished for something bad.

What’s the one thing you’d most like people to know about you?

That even though I am 6’1″, I’m harmless, cannot fight and am all mouth. I wish people wouldn’t make assumptions. Get to know me then you can voice an opinion. Stop calling me a boy all the time or saying yes sir. I have breasts that are DD and yet people continually say sir, yes sir, etc. I don’t think I look like a boy.

 

Erin – Complete Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome

Some of my friends, who also happen to have intersex conditions, have agreed to short interviews. Today, we welcome Erin, who has Complete Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome.

Thank you so much for being here, Erin. Would you tell us a little about yourself?

I am 29 years old and I am currently finishing up a degree in public health.

How and when were you told your diagnosis?

I was sixteen and had not had my period. I went to a series of doctors and was called in to meet with my pediatrician who broke the news to my parents and myself. I knew something was wrong when I walked into the room and my doctor started to cry before I even sat down. I asked her if I was going to die and she said “oh no”, then asked her if I was going to be able to have a child and she started crying again. I walked out and drove myself back to school. I was 20 before I fully understood what I had (CAIS). I was 27 before I began to accept it.

Can you explain a little about your condition?

I have CAIS. I developed externally like any other girl. I have curves and breasts and feminine features and I have female genitalia that looks like any other woman’s. However internally I had no cervix, uterus or ovaries, instead I had internal testes. Some of the benefits in my personal case are that I have very little body hair. I don’t even need to shave under my arms. My armpits are totally hairless and I don’t really have body odor and I have never had pimples or broken out. I do know that two of my maternal grandmothers sisters were unable to have children. The eldest sadly committed suicide before I was born and as for the other sister we decided it was best not to open up this can of worms to an unsuspecting eighty-year-old woman.

What do you like the most and the least about having a difference of sexual development (DSD)?

I think it has made me more compassionate to anyone who does not fit a societal mold. I obviously dislike not having the option to have a biological child. I also have a really hard time with all of the misinformation and ignorance that surrounds Disorders of Sexual Development, my eyes have been opened to what types of stereotypes I might be buying into. I have learned to always have my eyes wide open and always be mindful of people’s feelings.

How has it affected your relationships?

The short answer is I have never disclosed to anyone. The only people that know are my parents and my sister. However, I know that my sister has told her boyfriends over the years. The long answer would need to be discussed with a glass of wine and I am all out.

Has it affected your religious views?

Wow. This is a very interesting question that I feel is perhaps even more personal than talking about my physical development. I grew up going to church and I attended Catholic school and my mother is very active in the church. I am an atheist and I tend to think I would be regardless of having CAIS. I can see how some people might have issues after getting their diagnosis. I know my mom had a crisis of faith after I was diagnosed but I think in the end she feels she has become stronger in her faith.

What’s the one thing you’d most like people to know about you?

I am a woman that just faces a different set of challenges than the average person.

Thanks, Erin.

MuseItUp Publishing contract!

Two days before Christmas I found an e-mail in my stocking, offering me a contract with MuseItUp Publishing for my debut novel, Confessions of a Teenage Hermaphrodite. After I executed a perfect pirouette and did my best Happy Feet impression, the elven princess suggested I actually think rationally about whether or not to accept their offer.

My husband, being an accountant, and the most stable member of the family, suggested we talk it over, sleep on it, and most importantly, pray about it. We did. At two in the morning, on December 31st, I returned the signed contract.

The e-book release of Confessions of a Teenage Hermaphrodite is scheduled for September of this year.

I am so excited to be working with MuseItUp, their editors, and their other authors.

FaieMiss Press will be publishing the paperback.

Sample chapters may be found here.

My thanks to YoukosilvaraLook Into My Eyes, and iStockPhoto for the images from which the cover concept was built.