Festive Fun with... Lauren Emily Whalen

It's the penultimate day and it's my pleasure to welcome Lauren Emily Whalen back to the blog for today's Festive Fun with... feature.

Tell us a little bit about yourself.
My name is Lauren Emily Whalen, and I write a little bit of everything! Right now I’m concentration on queer YA reimaginings of Shakespeare plays. My third book TWO WINTERS (inspired by The Winter’s Tale) was released on September 14 by Bold Strokes Books and is now available in print and digital wherever you buy books! I also have a female-driven Julius Caesar reimagining, TAKE HER DOWN, out on March 15, 2022 (the Ides of March!) and it’s available for preorder now.

What are you most looking forward to this Christmas?
I really love hanging out with my family, but this particular Christmas I’m looking forward to seeing live Christmas shows again! I live in Chicago, and there are amazing professional productions of A Christmas Carol and The Nutcracker each year. I’m so happy they are back this year!

Author Interview: Lauren Emily Whalen

Today it's my pleasure to welcome author, journalist and performer Lauren Emily Whalen to the blog to talk about her latest book Two Winters. 

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and how your writing journey started?
Sure! I am a writer, performer and Shakespeare enthusiast who lives in Chicago, Illinois, USA with my black cat Rosaline (named after a character I played in the Bard’s Love’s Labour’s Lost!). I didn’t start writing fiction until my late twenties, as I have degrees in theater and law and a professional background in nonprofit fundraising and corporate administration. However, I’ve always loved to read, and once I started writing, I found I couldn’t stop!

My short stories have appeared in three different anthologies, and I have written four books for young adults: one nonfiction and three novels. My latest novel, Two Winters, is now available in print and digital everywhere you buy books.

If you had to give an elevator pitch for your latest book Two Winters, what would it be?
Two Winters is a queer young adult reimagining of Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale, about birth, death, Catholic school, improv comedy and the healing nature of time.  

The winter of 1997 is a tragedy waiting to happen. Small-town life isn't easy for seventeen-year-old bisexual and closeted Paulina, especially when her best friend Mia becomes pregnant and doesn’t want to tell the baby's father, Paulina's other best friend, Tesla. Meanwhile, Paulina's secret relationship with volleyball star Ani is about to go public. One fateful night, everything changes forever.

In the winter of 2014, Perdita, bi and proud in Chicago, is weeks away from turning seventeen. She loves her two moms, but why won’t they talk about her adoption? When Perdita meets improv performer Fenton, she discovers both a kindred soul and a willing accomplice in her search for the truth. Will Perdita find what she's looking for?