“What’s romance with out a 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 identification, digital intimacy, and goth aesthetics right into a love story that’s as haunting as it’s heartfelt. In true Rosen vogue, it’s a narrative that balances worry 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 exhilarating 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 components 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 possibility 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 totally 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 identification, 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 concept of what that will be till I made that joke, after which a complete idea poured into my mind.
Have been there explicit movies, tales, or cultural influences that formed this novel? How did you reimagine them to create one thing related for as we speak’s YA readers?
Properly, clearly, You’ve Received Mail was an enormous affect—as had been all its predecessors, going again to the unique Hungarian play Parfumerie, and diversifications 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 common vibe and making it fashionable and queer.
That truthfully wasn’t that arduous; individuals as we speak speak on social media on a regular basis, and on the apps it’s usually nameless—or no less than, everyone knows somebody might be catfishing us at any time. Individuals fall in love anyway. I really like that about individuals—how even once they’re tremendous skeptical, they will nonetheless fall in love. That’s timeless, however the web a part of it’s nonetheless fairly new.
Talking of contemporary 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 feel, an enormous gamble. However I wanted to indicate this very particular form of relationship—and even when plenty of us are conversant in the way it would possibly really feel, it nonetheless wanted plenty 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 actually makes it clear that is texting, separate from actual life. A digital honeymoon part.
As for why I needed to discover it—effectively, the thought, as I mentioned, got here first. However all of us speak this fashion now. We textual content, and, like I mentioned, 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 elements 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 sort, Randy is an annoying theater child, and Emmett is a condescending prep. However Grey is the stereotype I really form of was—the indignant goth (although I used to be additionally deeply condescending). It’s at all times enjoyable and laborious to take these much less sympathetic archetypes and make them really feel worthy of affection, however Grey was a battle as a result of he’s so defensive, indignant, and form of misplaced.
It additionally felt true to what I do know teenagers as we speak have to be coping with—the pandemic, local weather change [and] struggle. I really feel fairly misplaced and indignant myself. However as a teen? Making an attempt to think about their future as we speak? That’s going to make you indignant. So plenty 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 suddenly. How did you steadiness 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—presumably 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 usher in this sense of darkish humor that actually 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 stored aiming for: the wonder.
Your work usually 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 trustworthy and accessible to YA readers?
It comes right down to remembering that your characters are actual individuals, giving them plenty of depth and contradictions. I consider Walt Whitman quite a bit—this concept that every of us is a universe. We’ve all this stuff in us—humor, coronary heart, darkness—and as a teen, they’re even nearer to the floor. Simply keep in mind that, and every little thing else falls into place.
Have been there explicit scenes or characters in “You’ve Goth My Coronary heart” that you just particularly loved writing—or moments that challenged you creatively? How did you navigate these challenges?
I had a lot enjoyable arising with the Halloween homes and the entire Halloween Graveyard Truthful. I’ve been to occasions like that, however having the ability to create my very own—with none price range limitations—was plenty of enjoyable. As for challenges, I feel it was laborious to put in writing the closeted ex plotline. That was tough, and I hope very trustworthy. However once more, to get by means of it, I simply tried to maintain my characters’ humanity in thoughts and allow them to be indignant at one another, or give one another grace, at completely different moments.
Genuine queer illustration has at all times been a cornerstone of your storytelling. Throughout your profession, how has your method to YA advanced, notably in as we speak’s increasing however nonetheless scrutinized publishing panorama?
Properly, like I mentioned, I’ve been attempting to tackle these varied stereotypes in my comedies. Then I’ve my YA adventures, just like the Tennessee Russo collection, that are additionally very queer. I feel I’ve simply approached every guide as its personal factor, not in relation to the guide world. Doing that, I feel, simply results in disappointment and missed marks. I concentrate on 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 diversified worlds whereas maintaining every story distinct? And once you step away from writing, how do you unwind and recharge?
Properly, it’s vital to notice that the enterprise of publishing strikes slowly. Books, even when completed, are nonetheless no less than a yr out from publication, and generally they’re delayed by outdoors forces, as occurred with one in every of 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 laborious, they weren’t written that means.
With all my books, I get into writing them by absorbing outdoors media: watching films 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 completed that.
Excited about the larger image, which traits or themes in YA fiction excite you most proper now? The place do you hope queer literature will evolve subsequent, and are there explicit tales you want extra writers would deal with?
I’d like to see extra historic queer YA. I’m seeing some, and it’s all glorious, however actually well-researched, non-speculative queer YA looks like one thing plenty of publishers aren’t taking a threat on. I additionally really feel like queer YA has to have interaction with queerness itself a little bit 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 now have 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 not categorical how a lot I hate ‘occur to’ in that context.
Particularly as we speak, the concept partaking together with your queerness—or the best way the world views your queerness—is one way or the other unhealthy, or makes you somebody whose “being homosexual is their entire character,” is one thing I come throughout and assume is insanely fallacious. The act of falling in love as a queer individual 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 admire 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 assume publishers see queerness, particularly in YA, as that consolation story and are afraid of truly partaking with queerness. That bothers me. And I nonetheless gained’t learn something the place the advertising 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 might ship one final textual content to his thriller stranger—one thing that captures what he’s realized about love and worry—what would possibly it say?
“Hope is goth.”
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