Hi Everyone!
Inked in Gray is welcoming Nicole Zelniker and her queer YA contemporary novella, All I Know So Far, a queer coming of age story about love, hope, and resilience. It follows the journey of Avery Marsh, who is skeptical about her move across the country to with her older absentee half-brother and his secret boyfriend. Once settled, though, Avery realizes the tiny town has a lot to offer: an incredible queer community, support to do the things she loves, and a way to reconnect with her brother in ways she never dared believe. This story, told in journal-entry from, warmed my queer little heart.
We like to sit down with every one of our new authors and share a little bit about them. We got to talk to Nicole about their writing, endless TBR list, and some sneak peeks of All I Know So Far!
What inspired you to write All I Know So Far?
All I Know So Far started with Avery and her family unit – her older brother Lucas and Lucas’ boyfriend Ezra – and spiraled from there. The characters evolved somewhat organically, but it was especially important for me to highlight the importance of a queer community, especially in the south, which is often overlooked when we talk about queerness in the U.S. For example, my friends from New York were shocked when I moved back down to North Carolina, but I currently live in a gayborhood with Pride flags in every other store window. There’s a thriving queer community down here and I thought it was time someone wrote about it!
Can you tell us a little about your writing process? What do you do when you confront that mischievous minion “writer’s block?”
I make extensive timelines before I even begin the writing process and after that, I write whatever scenes I feel called to write before going back and filling out the rest. I’m a rather chaotic plotter! Re: writer’s block, I often find going back and reading what I’ve already written helps me get back in the frame of mind to write.
Without any spoilers, is there a character who holds a special place in your heart?
I love Avery and all her friends, but 1,000% Lucas and Ezra. It was so fun to write their relationship and really healing for me to write Ezra as someone with chronic pain similar to what I experience.
If your book had a soundtrack or theme song, what would it be?
I’m so glad you asked so I have an excuse to share my All I Know So Far Spotify playlist. You can check it out on Spotify.
What is your favorite trope?
This should come as no surprise to anyone who’s read my writing, but it’s found family all the way. Pretty much every novel I write has found family in it in one way or another. Other favorites are enemies-to-lovers and grump/sunshine.
What other works have you published? Where can we find you?
I’ve published a few things! My most recent novel is a dystopian thriller and Forward Indie Award finalist in LGBTQ+ adult fiction called Until We Fall. You can check out all my books on my website!
So what are you reading now? What’s on your TBR List?
I just finished The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris, which absolutely wrecked my sleep schedule (in a good way). I’m also about to start the sequel to The Memory Index by Julian R. Vaca. Perks of blurbing books is that you get to read them early! Other recent five-star reads are the first two books in The Coseema Saga by Bridgette Dutta Portman and Bloodmarked, the sequel to Tracy Deonn’s Legendborn. In case you can’t tell, my literary tastes are a little all over the place.
About Nicole Zelniker
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