Behind Celestial Monsters: What Keeps Aiden Thomas Giggling

Katie Watson (she/her)

     Ever wonder what a queer, Mexican Percy Jackson might look like? What new shenanigans this kid could get himself into, especially in a world where the children of gods – called semidioses – compete in a Hunger Games-style arena to become the sun god’s champion? Look no further than author Aiden Thomas’s The Sunbearer Trials and the newly released sequel, Celestial Monsters. In this duology, Thomas takes readers on a heartwarming and amusing journey of underdogs, love, rebellion, and community-building. On Saturday, September 8th, the Ann Arbor District Library brought the author behind this colorful world to their local readers for a conversation with fellow author and friend Miriam Metoui. ​

     In their conversation, Thomas opened up about their experiences writing as a trans and demisexual author: particularly how these identities played into their narratives, characters, and  their writing styles. They then touched on their experiences with autism and ADHD, being vulnerable about these topics while remaining joyful and humble. These identities and experiences were discussed in tandem with their inspirations, writing processes, and obstacles in a very genuine way that invited the audience into the conversation. Overall, Thomas came across as an honest, open, and humble person, prone to giggling about himself and his ideas, and able to engage and draw in the audience with ease. 
     The conversation started out on the topic of the sequel itself, which was released just five days previously. Metoui questioned Thomas on their transition to writing sequels and dual POVs, which Thomas admitted to facing with some difficulty. Celestial Monsters began as the final few chapters in The Sunbearer Trials, but Thomas’s editor saw a need for this roadtrip story to be showcased in its own full-length novel. Thomas did so by not only fleshing out a fuller romance, but also building out the final “evil monologue” into its own POV interspersed throughout the book. Thomas said they struggled at first with finding a voice for the new POV’s character and switching between them, but was eventually able to fall into a rhythm with familiar character dialogue and strong character foundations established in book 1. 
     Thomas continued to speak to the writing craft throughout their responses. They recommended resources for how to make a book out of a concept, how they work with their editor as a partner in the process, and how to continue finding joy and dedication through writer’s block. The key to this last one, Thomas shared, was like “dangling a carrot” at the end of each chapter they write. It might be difficult to write this emotionally vulnerable moment or find the right words for this action scene, but they get themselves through it by looking forward to writing a witty comment by a favorite character or getting a glimpse of those semidioses we haven’t seen in a while. Keeping things to be excited about throughout the process, whether that’s joy in the story or being able to tell a friend about a new character, keeps them going and invested in the characters and worlds they have brought to life.
     It seemed to me that Thomas saw a lot of themselves in their audience that day, be it through a shared love of nerdy shows and studies or through queer identities and experiences. This was especially evident when Metoui jumped into a quick response interrogation of Thomas: Are you a nighttime or daytime writer? Nighttime. What’s your midnight writing sweet treat? A Red Bull with a Red Vines straw. E-book, audiobook, or physical copy? All three (although here Thomas admitted to listening to the Hunger Games audiobook at least 15 times). They also spoke about their childhood aversion to reading, which several audience members sympathized with. Some major gateways to the literary world were shared between author and readers, but Thomas also mentioned a few TV shows as inspirations for their books. In addition to Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson series and Suzanne Collins’ Hunger Games, was Nickelodeon's TV show Guts – not to mention their own experiences and ideas. In fact, Thomas originally thought about trying to be a part of Riordan’s imprint, which includes books like Percy Jackson featuring all sorts of global mythologies. While this didn’t work out, it’s safe to say that Thomas made  their own huge impact without that network of support. 
     When the event moved into audience Q&A, it was clear that everyone was excited to engage with Thomas. Questioning ranged from their inspirations for characters, how they started out with their take on the consequences of a Peter Pan story, and even their awareness of Sunbearer Trials fanfiction pairings (it was a surprise, to say the least). The audience was able to connect more personally with Thomas and learn the workings behind the mind of their  favorite author. Thomas responded with enthusiasm and grace, clearly excited to have facetime with fans. This attitude continued when the event ended and fans lined up to have brand new copies of Celestial Monsters signed and get a quick conversation with Thomas or Metoui. They even brought their own copy to be signed by us, the readers, throughout their promotional tour, to remember us by. Thomas’s personal engagement throughout the event and especially during the signing portion was really special, and made everyone in attendance feel seen and heard. 
     ​If you’re looking for a new favorite author or just a new queer fantasy read, check out Aiden Thomas. They find a way to tell important queer stories while also giving the gays a great fantasy book to dive into. Beyond The Sunbearer Trials and its sequel, Thomas has two other books out: Cemetery Boys (which comes highly recommended from this author, and has its own sequel underway!) and Lost in the Never Woods. Thomas also revealed plans for several new works, including a gay space heist novel and a trans college coming-of-age rom com based on personal experience that promises to have you giggling and kicking your feet just like Thomas was at the AADL. ​