“What’s romance with no little threat?” L.C. Rosen teases in his signature witty means—a query that feels as a lot a problem to his readers because it does a mission assertion for his newest YA novel, You’ve Goth My Coronary heart (out since September 9). Recognized for his celebrated works like Camp and Emmett, Rosen returns this spooky season with a darkly humorous, eerily romantic story that blends mistaken id, digital intimacy, and goth aesthetics right into a love story that’s as haunting as it’s heartfelt. In true Rosen style, it’s a narrative that balances concern and pleasure, proving that falling in love—particularly as a queer teen—is each exhilarating and terrifying.
Set towards the small-town chaos of Sleepy Hole’s Halloween celebrations, You’ve Goth My Coronary heart introduces readers to Grey, a self-aware and anxious teen whose summer season takes an exciting flip after a wrong-number textual content opens the door to romance, thriller, and hazard. With a closeted ex within the background, a brand new goth rival for consideration, and whispers of a serial killer stalking native homosexual teenagers, Grey’s journey is equal elements suspense and swoon-worthy romance. By means of laughs, chills, and heartfelt moments, L.C. Rosen delivers a narrative that captures the queer teen expertise with humor, nuance, and authenticity.
At CelebMix, I had the prospect to take a seat down with Lev Rosen and dive into the inspirations behind You’ve Goth My Coronary heart—from the accidental-connection romance at its core, to the playful but haunting Halloween backdrop, and the trendy anxieties and thrills of digital intimacy. We additionally explored his method to breaking stereotypes in queer literature, navigating the publishing world, and giving teen readers characters who really feel actual, messy, and completely lovable.
Learn on as Rosen opens up about storytelling, love, and the dangers that make each unforgettable.
“You’ve Goth My Coronary heart” blends goth tradition, mistaken id, and queer romance with each humor and suspense. I’m curious—what was the preliminary spark for the story? Was it the title, the tone, or a personality you simply couldn’t shake?
Hello! It began as a joke, truthfully. The unique title was You’ve Goth Mail. I had recognized I needed to do a pagan guide—and possibly a goth guide—for ages, however I didn’t have an thought of what that may be till I made that joke, after which a complete idea poured into my mind.
Had been there specific movies, tales, or cultural influences that formed this novel? How did you reimagine them to create one thing related for at this time’s YA readers?
Properly, clearly, You’ve Obtained Mail was an enormous affect—as had been all its predecessors, going again to the unique Hungarian play Parfumerie, and variations like The Store Across the Nook. My favourite, although, is the musical She Loves Me, which I used as a mannequin for this one—taking the facet characters and normal vibe and making it fashionable and queer.
That truthfully wasn’t that arduous; individuals at this time speak on social media on a regular basis, and on the apps it’s typically nameless—or at the least, everyone knows somebody could possibly be catfishing us at any time. Individuals fall in love anyway. I like that about individuals—how even after they’re tremendous skeptical, they’ll nonetheless fall in love. That’s timeless, however the web a part of it’s nonetheless fairly new.
Talking of recent twists, Grey’s story begins with a wrong-number textual content, capturing fashionable intimacy. What drew you to discover that premise, and the way did you make sure the on-screen romance felt emotionally grounded and plausible?
I knew that for the story to work, we needed to open with them falling in love, so the opening part is solely their texts over the summer season. That was, I believe, an enormous gamble. However I wanted to indicate this very particular type of relationship—and even when a number of us are accustomed to the way it would possibly really feel, it nonetheless wanted a number of grounding to make the remainder of the guide work. I used to be additionally actually fortunate that my writer was open to the thought of a visible form of framing for the texts—artwork on the web page that basically makes it clear that is texting, separate from actual life. A digital honeymoon section.
As for why I needed to discover it—effectively, the thought, as I stated, got here first. However all of us speak this fashion now. We textual content, and, like I stated, we fall in love with strangers. Isn’t that enjoyable? Isn’t it additionally insanely harmful?
And that brings us to Grey himself—he’s self-aware, anxious, humorous, and quietly courageous. How did you discover his voice, and had been there points of his insecurities or quirks that resonated with you personally?
In my rom-coms (and one anti-rom, still-com), I attempt to play with the queer male stereotypes that had been form of thrust at me in youth. Jack is a slutty femme punk kind, Randy is an annoying theater child, and Emmett is a condescending prep. However Grey is the stereotype I really form of was—the offended goth (although I used to be additionally deeply condescending). It’s all the time enjoyable and arduous to take these much less sympathetic archetypes and make them really feel worthy of affection, however Grey was a wrestle as a result of he’s so defensive, offended, and type of misplaced.
It additionally felt true to what I do know teenagers at this time have to be coping with—the pandemic, local weather change [and] struggle. I really feel fairly misplaced and offended myself. However as a teen? Attempting to think about their future at this time? That’s going to make you offended. So a number of it got here from that.
Shifting a bit to the guide’s tone, “You’ve Goth My Coronary heart” manages to be spooky, humorous, suspenseful, and romantic unexpectedly. How did you stability these tonal shifts whereas preserving the emotional core? What guided your method to creating such a vivid, goth-meets-small-town Halloween world?
I’ve my editor to thank for lots of that tonal equilibrium. There have been variations that had been a lot darker—probably too darkish for a guide that ostensibly is a romance with a cheerful ending. The serial killer plotline has been modified quite a bit. However I attempted to herald this sense of darkish humor that basically linked issues collectively, and this perception that, whereas the world may be horrible at occasions, that doesn’t imply you don’t discover magnificence in it. That was what I saved aiming for: the sweetness.
Your work typically mixes humor, coronary heart, and darker themes whereas centering queer adolescence. How do you method portraying these emotional stakes in a means that feels each sincere and accessible to YA readers?
It comes all the way down to remembering that your characters are actual individuals, giving them a number of depth and contradictions. I consider Walt Whitman quite a bit—this concept that every of us is a universe. Now we have all these items in us—humor, coronary heart, darkness—and as a teen, they’re even nearer to the floor. Simply do not forget that, and every thing else falls into place.
Had been there specific scenes or characters in “You’ve Goth My Coronary heart” that you simply particularly loved writing—or moments that challenged you creatively? How did you navigate these challenges?
I had a lot enjoyable developing with the Halloween homes and the entire Halloween Graveyard Honest. I’ve been to occasions like that, however having the ability to create my very own—with none finances limitations—was a number of enjoyable. As for challenges, I believe it was arduous to put in writing the closeted ex plotline. That was tough, and I hope very sincere. However once more, to get via it, I simply tried to maintain my characters’ humanity in thoughts and allow them to be offended at one another, or give one another grace, at completely different moments.
Genuine queer illustration has all the time been a cornerstone of your storytelling. Throughout your profession, how has your method to YA advanced, significantly in at this time’s increasing however nonetheless scrutinized publishing panorama?
Properly, like I stated, I’ve been attempting to tackle these numerous stereotypes in my comedies. Then I’ve my YA adventures, just like the Tennessee Russo sequence, that are additionally very queer. I believe I’ve simply approached every guide as its personal factor, not in relation to the guide world. Doing that, I believe, simply results in disappointment and missed marks. I deal with my characters and what I need the guide to be. Individuals are going to scrutinize as a lot as they need, it doesn’t matter what. Write the guide for you—or for youthful you, as I do with these.
your work tempo, 2025 alone noticed three very completely different releases. How do you juggle such diverse worlds whereas protecting every story distinct? And once you step away from writing, how do you unwind and recharge?
Properly, it’s necessary to notice that the enterprise of publishing strikes slowly. Books, even when completed, are nonetheless at the least a yr out from publication, and typically they’re delayed by exterior forces, as occurred with one in all these. So it’s not like I wrote all of those in a single yr, or that I wrote none of them this yr—whereas they’re popping out quick and arduous, they weren’t written that means.
With all my books, I get into writing them by absorbing exterior media: watching motion pictures which have the vibe I need, listening to playlists, going to artwork exhibitions or galleries, and consulting analysis books, fiction, or artwork books that encourage me and get me into the headspace for the story I need to inform.
As for unwinding and recharging—I’ll let you recognize as soon as I’ve achieved that.
Fascinated about the larger image, which developments or themes in YA fiction excite you most proper now? The place do you hope queer literature will evolve subsequent, and are there specific tales you would like extra writers would deal with?
I’d like to see extra historic queer YA. I’m seeing some, and it’s all wonderful, however actually well-researched, non-speculative queer YA seems like one thing a number of publishers aren’t taking a threat on. I additionally really feel like queer YA has to interact with queerness itself a bit of extra. We used to have all these coming-out tales—it felt like the one story we had been allowed for some time—and now we’ve all these romances. And there are lots of people on the market saying issues like, “It’s a rom-com the place the characters occur to be homosexual.” I can’t categorical how a lot I hate ‘occur to’ in that context.
Particularly at this time, the concept partaking together with your queerness—or the way in which the world views your queerness—is one way or the other dangerous, or makes you somebody whose “being homosexual is their complete persona,” is one thing I come throughout and suppose is insanely flawed. The act of falling in love as a queer particular person in a world the place individuals actively don’t want you to is an inherently political act, and shying away from that won’t make it much less political or defend you from these individuals.
On the flip facet, I additionally respect that possibly we want aspirational worlds the place it actually doesn’t matter—consolation tales to maintain us going—and I don’t begrudge anybody that. I simply suppose publishers see queerness, particularly in YA, as that consolation story and are afraid of really partaking with queerness. That bothers me. And I nonetheless gained’t learn something the place the advertising and marketing supplies say somebody “occurs to be homosexual.” However that’s my private factor; I do know. I’ve seen that phrase an excessive amount of as an insult to different tales—I can’t unsee that.
Lastly, if Grey may ship one final textual content to his thriller stranger—one thing that captures what he’s discovered about love and concern—what would possibly it say?
“Hope is goth.”
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