Happy Wednesday Scribblers, can you believe that we are only a little over two weeks from leaving 2020 behind us. I can’t say I’m going to miss this year. Also, I want to wish you all a very merry Christmas. I hope you enjoy the holiday season however you celebrate. This week I would like to welcome Ava Kelly to my Scribbles page for a chat about their newest novel.
Welcome Ava, thank you for taking the time to drop by and chatting with us. We have your bio below, by way of introduction, why don’t you share with us something that isn’t in your bio.
Hello, everyone. Thank you for having me. One thing not on my website is that I’m Romanian. Around the world, this word means different things. As a people, we are seen through a sort of translucent glass scratched over by the sway of mass-media projections. Growing up Romanian, though, I’ve had a unique cultural perspective. This is a nation that endures. Not without costs, not without sacrifice, but always with a drive to keep going. Prevalent throughout our folklore, our customs and literature, is this very spirit that you can find in my writing. Everyday paganism, the deconstruction—or better said reconstruction—of the Romanian myth… and garlic.
You are one of the more interesting creative types I’ve had on my blog. Firstly, you’re an engineer. Then, you’re an artist specializing in conceptual photography. But wait there’s more, you’re also working on artificial intelligence and robots. And on top of that you’re a writer, with five books, ten anthologies, and other short stories all out in the world. Where do you find the energy? Of all your endeavors which is your favorite?
Where does all that energy come from—starting with the hard questions! I’ve been asked that before. “Do you ever sleep,” someone once said, incredulous. While this is a tremendous opportunity to claim cryptid status, truth is that I do sleep. Once a century! No. There is no magic, however. We do things at our own pace. In my life I’ve been driven by three forces—curiosity: the knowing of new things, exploring the limits of my knowledge, pushing past the boundaries of what is familiar; an overflowing desire to reach out into the ether with stories of kindness, to make voices like my own heard, loud and clear; and the petty determination to not let the world of malice tell me I’m unworthy. I will continue to stand.
My favorite and so far most satisfying endeavor has been writing fiction. It allows for a multidimensional one-on-one channel to be open between me and the reader. A book, a story in words, creates an intimate dialogue. As I write, I whisper parts of myself in between letters, carried upon alliterations and metaphors. It is not a finite yelling into the void, but something that grows with each new story. It is the sort of connection that can only come from sharing experience and thoughts. Not being explicit shelters it from consumption, instead turning it into a precious singularity to be cherished away from prying eyes. Somewhere, out there, is at least one person who read my words and understood me and felt what I did when writing. And that is marvelous.
Okay, I have to ask about the AI and robots. Are you working on Skynet? Are you going to be one of the engineers that causes our AI overlords to come to be? What is it like tinkering around with such things? Do you worry we might take the technology too far?
It’s interesting. Engineering, I keep saying, is an artform—based on creation, on imagination, on using existing tools to build something new. But the thing about technology is that, in itself, tech is neither good, nor evil. It doesn’t have an intent or a purpose derived within itself. Tech is only as dangerous as the people wielding it.
We are nowhere near enough to the artificial intelligence seen in fiction. The systems around us have functionalities that make them appear smart, some of them even learn from us and surprise us with their knowledge. A lot are vulnerable, and it isn’t a good idea to trust the tech, not yet. But let’s ask ourselves, why are they vulnerable? Because it is humans that attempt to exploit other humans. Quite a few intelligent algorithms were proven to be biased and racist. But why? Because the data generated by humans was such. These systems are like pets that learn from us, so it is our fellow humans we should be wary of.
Things aren’t as gloomy. Ever since the gross violations of privacy by certain big-name systems, the AI community at large has risen to these challenges and a new paradigm has issued a call to arms. Explainable AI, where we can account for every decision such a system makes, so that exploitation, manipulation, and bias are removed. It’s a baby field, and I, as many others, am working toward this goal.
If we fail it is because we—humanity—have done it to ourselves (arguably, we’d deserve it). Maybe our second evolution will do better.
Let’s move over to your photography, what about photography do you love? Is it the balance of colors, light, subject matter, etc. what is it?
Photography was one of my earliest mediums of self-expression. I wanted to tell stories and the challenge of capturing an entire narrative into one or a handful of frames was enticing. Most of all, I wanted to see if I can tell stories with inanimate objects instead of characters with implicit sentience. Here, a work titled Kiss of Life. What does it tell you? Is it the story of a futuristic doctor hunting down an alien lifeform to cure their ill child? Is it a necromancer preparing potions? Or is it the last drop of blood of someone fallen in battle, preserved for eternity, so that one day their ancestor could fight a curse? You decide.
Now that we’ve gotten to know more about you, let’s talk about your writing and your latest book Catch a Falling Snowflake, tell us about it. Why did you feel this story needed to be told?
Catch a Falling Snowflake is a story of—I like to call it—not being ready. Queerness, especially in this allocishet world, means reinventing family. The bonds we build with other people are not necessarily driven by a biological connection, but by belonging. It is why the found family trope is so popular among queer people—and I must admit a mighty weakness for it. In less open societies, though, the pressure to become an adult, to “matter” in a palpably perceived way, is often reduced to procreation. Relatives, friends, and even complete strangers demand that one produces progeny. I’ve been telling people for over two decades that I don’t want children, and the condescending answer is that I’ll change my mind one day. If a child were to drop in my life suddenly, would I be able to care for it? I don’t know.
Some people are ready for kids, others are not. And that’s okay. We should have a right to choose without stigma or being shunned, and definitely without having to explain ourselves. In Catch a Falling Snowflake a couple struggles with this when one of them wants a child while the other realizes he doesn’t. He’s not ready. Society might demand we grit our teeth for the sake of our young, but… we must also recognize when we are unable to parent. A life is a precious responsibility.
You mention representation matters (which I agree 100% with) so tell me what does representation look like to you. Why does it matter so much? How would you like to see representation grow in the coming years?
Humans are not one-dimensional. They have facets and layers and depth. It is not all about skin color or orientation, but also about culture and background and mental diversity. This is the sort of representation we need. A wide array of variety, on more than one front. An infinitely-sided coin. I want to see characters who are not reduced to one characteristic, but groups in which intersecting dimensions converge to build a reflection of the world. Or at least how the world should be, because I want to see this diversity—of identity and the self we choose to share—be met with immediate and unconditional acceptance. With respect.
Representation matters because knowledge matters. Whether we recognize it or not, what we know shapes our beliefs and values. We draw conclusions from what we learn, we apply them to ourselves and our behavior. Seeing examples of diversity in media (movies, shows, books, music, art at large) allows us to better understand ourselves. To explain inner tumult, to accept and cherish what we are. The alternative is happening all around us: internalized phobias, self-hatred, fear that leads to anger and more, even violent, hatred.
Humans, for all the ways in which they are the same, are different. In complex systems theory, diversity is one of the driving forces behind emergence, adaptation, and ultimately evolution. Recombination from the same gene pool only leads to degradation. This is valid for cultural advance as well. When similarity is enforced, unyielding rejection brews systemic oppression, long-term denial of human rights, violence. Yet, these are not the markers of civilization.
Understanding the ways in which others vary can only mitigate fear. Fostering respect for diversity can only improve the exchange of cultural genes so that, as a whole, we reach forward instead of sliding back into the mud.
What can you tell us about the characters of your book? What can you tell us about Nick and Leon?
Catch a Falling Snowflake is the fourth story in its series. There are three couples and two children at the front, but Nick and Leon are the focus. Leon is black trans man with a positive outlook on life. Nick has a long history of struggling with trauma and mental illness. Neither is perfect, they have their flaws, but they thrive on communication. Their relationship is built on a sort of understanding of each other that allows them to recognize when that communication falters. They enjoy trying things for each other, but ultimately their want to see the other happy can lead them to forgetting about themselves, which is just as important in a relationship. So, the question we ask is, can they meet in the middle? If so, what does this middle look like
What do you want people to get from your stories? Is there a message that you want readers to walk away with?
Celebrate—normalize—healthy relationships. Address trauma. Sometimes softness is what we need from a story instead of violence, and I wish this to be recognized more and more. Happy endings are possible, we should aim for them. And stories with queer identities aren’t always about “the struggle,” aren’t meant for educating the allocishet society, but for queer people being queer while doing ordinary or heroic or villainous things.
What can we see coming out from you next?
Right now I’m working on a sequel for Havesskadi, a high fantasy novel that won the Rainbow Award in 2019. It has dragons, a quest, magic, and a lot of Dacian and Romanian folklore-inspired elements. 2021 will see another series of twelve monthly stories—the 2020 collection is free to download on my website, called Aegis Alight.
A surprise—with dragons!—is coming soon, so keep an eye out on my social media channels.
Thank you for having me today. Hope you have a relaxing end-of-the-year!
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Ava thank you so much for stopping by today and chatting with us. I’ve enjoyed getting to know you over the last few months and I’m excited about your newest books.
Want to meet some other interesting authors check out:
Meet author Randall Krzak, Randy had a rich career working for the US Government before he retired in 2011. Learn more about Randy here.
Get to know author Trin Carl, Trin writes YA and Literary fiction and enjoys contemporary dance. Meet Trin here.
Check out author JB Reynolds, JB lives in rural Northland, New Zealand, where he raises children and chickens. Learn more about JB here.
Well, Scribblers, that’s all for this week. If you have questions for Ava please drop them in the comments below. If you could please share this interview it really does help, as does clicking on the little heart below. Until next time have a great week.
About Catch a Falling Snowflake:
The previous winter, Leon followed his twin sister Sara to a new town where she could be with her partner, Amber. There, Leon’s boyfriend Nick, friends Jeff and Daniel, and their nine-year-old daughter Abby, swiftly swept him up into their lives, a newfound family.
After a year of growing their relationship, Leon is ready to take it to the next level. Nick, however, has been stalling. When Ben, Abby’s best friend, is suddenly abandoned, Leon is excited to finally care for the children he’s always wanted. Haunted by the mistakes of his past, Nick attempts to reconcile his feelings of inadequacy as a parent with Leon’s wishes.
Against the backdrop of winter holidays filled with traditions from around the world, it is up to Leon to decide if he’s willing to stand by Nick, or if he should find his happiness elsewhere.
Catch a Falling Snowflake, the fourth story in the Snow Globes holiday series, can be read as a stand-alone, but greater enjoyment will come with reading about these characters in the order written.
Find out more about Catch a Falling Snowflake at the following:
Ninestar Press here.
Amazon here.
Barnes and Noble here.
Apple Books here.
Smashwords here.
Kobo here.
About Ava Kelly:
Ava Kelly is an engineer with a deep passion for stories. Whether reading, watching, or writing them, Ava has always been surrounded by tales of all genres. Their goal is to bring more stories to life, especially those of friendship and compassion, those dedicated to trope subversion, those that give the void a voice, and those that spawn worlds of their own.
Ava’s publication history began over two decades ago. Starting with poetry and flash fiction, Ava has gradually moved toward lengthier works. Today they are partial to ownvoices stories. Representation matters!
In another life (and under the pseudonym Vel), Ava is an artist specializing in conceptual photography. Vel has had various live VJ performances, several art shows, and their words have been immortalized as song lyrics. From 2007 to 2012 Vel has been the co-editor of the N-Sphere Art Magazine and curator of the Spheres Virtual Art Gallery.
In the other another life, Ava is tinkering with artificial intelligence, robots, and all sorts of systems; this work has been made available to researcher peers in over 40 publications across the world.
Where to Find Ava:
Find Ava’s website here.
Find Ava on Patreon here.
Find Ava on Twitter here.
Find Ava on Goodreads here.
Find Ava on Instagram here.
Find Ava on Facebook here.
