Aiden Thomas will be making their mark on the YA arena in 2020 with Cemetery Boys, a story about two boys falling in love and some Día de Muertos shenanigans through a perspective we haven’t seen yet. They’re a mentor to up-and-coming writers, and also kind, thoughtful, and witty, which shines through in this interview.
How did you come up with Cemetery Boys?
Cemetery Boys is actually my option book! Lost in the Never Woods was the first book I sold to Swoon Reads/Macmillan and we got all the way through copyedits, but when I pitched them Cemetery Boys, they decided THAT one should be my debut (which I totally agree with!).
It started with me coming up with ideas for my option books that I could pitch to my editor. I contacted Jennifer March Soloway for some guidance. This was BEFORE she was even my agent! I told her my idea — a story about a boy who summons a ghost he can't get rid of — and how I was struggling to come up with a plot. At that point, I had just defaulted to a white main character and was toying with the idea of a transgender MC. While I was talking to Jennifer, she stopped me and said, "You know, you could write a story about YOUR culture, you don't have to default to white." There was a long pause, then I said, "... I can?"
That idea just... completely blew my mind. I thought there was no way I could ever sell a book with a trans MC, let alone one that was Latinx or gay, on top of it. Once she said that, the idea just exploded. Suddenly, my main character, Yadriel (one of my favorite names that I was saving for a special character) came to life. He's trans, Cuban/Mexican, and gay. This secret community of brujos/brujas (I call them "brujx" in the novel) materialized and the plot fit perfectly with Día de Muertos.
When it was finally time to pitch my ideas for an option book to my editor, Holly West, I sent five different story ideas. Cemetery Boys was the shortest pitch. It was just a paragraph that started with, "This is a very VAGUE idea with a trans main character." Most of the sentences ended in question marks because I really wasn't sure what the whole plot would be. I was genuinely shocked when this tiny blip of an idea was what Swoon wanted!
But then I needed an actual plot. I came up with the synopsis for Cemetery Boys while at my sister's house. My family was gathered together one Saturday, eating homemade tacos. I was laying on the living room floor, and it was my family that helped me formulate the plot, shouting ideas over each other as we drank tequila. I laid on the floor and jotted notes on my phone. I wrote the full synopsis and the first 3 chapters of Cemetery Boys. My editor took it to the acquisitions meeting and Macmillan bought it on that proposal, and the rest is history!
Where will your stories be set? How important is setting to the stories you’re telling?
For me, setting is SO important! I always think of the setting as its own character. It should serve your plot, which is why Cemetery Boys is set in East Los Angeles; it has a huge Latinx community where different cultures come together and blend their food, customs and language. In my book, the brujx were gifted their magic from ancient Mesoamerican gods thousands of years ago. Yadriel's community consists of immigrants from Mexico, Latin America and the Caribbean. East LA is a huge mix of those communities, so it was the perfect place to set the book. East LA is really a character in and of itself in the book, with specific sights, smells and energy. I really hope that, when folks read Cemetery Boys, they really feel like they're solidly placed in East LA and are able to see the nuance of the city. On top of that, Yadriel lives in a cemetery in the heart of East LA, so there's a really fun mix of old world vs. new world everywhere you turn in this book!
A publisher gives you free reins to collab with another Latinx author and the author is free and on board as well, who are you picking and what are you writing?
Oh man, I would LOVE to do a collaboration with Zoraida Córdova! Labyrinth Lost was the first time I read a book where I could see my people/culture in a fantasy setting and I felt so SEEN. It'd be a blast to write a fantasy book with her (and I think a Labyrinth Lost/Cemetery Boys crossover would be AMAZING!)
How does your identity affect the stories you write?
My identity literally affects everything about the stories I write. Each story and main character has a piece of me, my identity and/or experiences. Cemetery Boys is steeped in my heritage. Latinx cultures, specifically, have such rich mythos and stories! I love writing fantasy, and I want to bring those stories to life! It takes a lot of research and work — thanks to colonization wiping out so much of our history — but I really want to make them accessible to young readers, ESPECIALLY Latinx ones. In our country where people are trying to convince them they are "less than", I want them to see where they come from, that magic runs through their veins.
What do you hope readers take away from your stories?
When it comes down to it, I think my stories are about hope. I want people to finish reading my books feeling more hopeful than when they started. There are moments and people to savor and love, and they will help you get through the terrible parts of life.
Who do you write for?
Like I mentioned earlier, it wasn't until recently that I even thought stories with/about characters who share parts of my identity were even possible to see in traditional publishing. I write for young adults who don't get to see themselves in books. I want them to see characters like them who are strong, powerful, smart and worthy of great love (both platonic and romantic). I want them to be able to identify with my characters, to see them going through struggles that echo their own, and that there's a way to come out the other side, maybe a little worse for wear, but for the better.
What movie(s) would you pair your book with?
I use "Coco" as a comp title for Cemetery Boys since they both take place around Día de Muertos. "Road to el Dorado" for its humor and other spoiler-y reasons. Lastly, "The Outsiders" was a really big inspiration for this story, and especially [for] Julian and his friends!
Shoutout a Latinx writer or creator whom you admire!
TEHLOR KAY MEJIA! Her novel We Set the Dark on Fire is brilliant and super relevant to what the Latinx community is going through right now. She also has a new MG book coming out under Rick Riordan Presents, titled Paola Santiago and the River of Tears. The cover was just released and I can't WAIT for it!
Anything else you can share about your upcoming projects?
Lost in the Never Woods — my reimagining of Peter Pan featuring creepy words, haunted shadows and missing children in a small town — is being published in January 2021! I'm also drafting a new book at the moment. It's a romcom about a trans boy's first year of college post-transitioning. I'm really excited to write this one and hopefully I'll find it a home with a publisher soon!
Add Cemetery Boys and Lost in the Never Woods to your TBR on Goodreads!
Follow Aiden on Twitter and Instagram @aidenschmaiden!
Aiden Thomas
Aiden Thomas is a YA author with an MFA in Creative Writing from Mills College. Originally from Oakland, California, they now make their home in Portland, OR. As a queer, trans Latinx, Aiden advocates strongly for diverse representation in all media. Aiden’s special talents include: quoting The Office, Harry Potter trivia, Jenga, finishing sentences with “is my FAVORITE”, and killing spiders. Aiden is notorious for not being able to guess the endings of books and movies, and organizes their bookshelves by color. Aiden's debut novel, CEMETERY BOYS, is a Dia de Muertos paranormal romance about Yadriel (a gay, trans brujo) who accidentally summons the wrong ghost (Swoon Reads/Macmillan, July 2020).