Diva UK – September 2019

When Scottish-born Sophie Cameron

was a teenager, there was a lack of

good and positive LGBTQI represen-

tation in young adult (YA) books. In

response, she wrote Out Of The Blue,

a YA fantasy novel where sexuality is

neither a plot device nor a source of

narrative anguish, and her teen pro-

tagonists are confident and comfort-

able in their skin.

“I’ve heard that the first book you

write is the one you needed at one

point in your life, and I think that’s

true for me with Out Of The Blue,”

Sophie explains. “Jaya is a lesbian

and very secure in her sexuality, and

while it is an important part of who

she is as a character, it doesn’t detract

from what’s essentially an adventure

story about a girl finding and healing

a fallen angel.”

Sophie still values stories about

issues of sexuality and coming out:

with LGBTQI people facing bullying

and discrimination every day, these

experiences undeniably merit inclu-

sion in literature. However, for Sophie

it is also important to tell stories of

“incidentally queer” characters whose

sexual identities aren’t the sole or

main narrative focus.

“There’s an assumption that

heterosexual is the neutral point from

which everything else is diverse, and

therefore ‘niche’ or less relatable, but

that’s not true,” she adds. “There’s

more to LGBTQI people than their

gender/sexuality, and I think most

other readers will be able to relate to

them, regardless, if given the chance.”

As people continue to become

more aware, accepting and inclusive

of the broad and varied spectrum of

sexualities and gender identities, so

too does the YA market – both in the

UK and across the pond. And it is

thanks to pioneering LGBTQI authors

like Sophie that literature can help

voice the stories of those who have

previously been unheard.

Why we love...

Sophie

Cameron

FLORIANNE HUMPHREY CELEBRATES THE

YOUNG ADULT FICTION AUTHOR AND HER

INCIDENTALLY QUEER TEEN PROTAGONISTS

There’s more to

LGBTQI people than their

gender/sexuality”

FLORIANNE HUMPHREY

is a Durham-based

writer, journalist

and creative writing

workshop facilitator.

@flohumphrey 3

14 SEPTEMBER 2019

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