Lex Croucher discusses their YA Book Prize shortlisted novel, Gwen & Art Are Not in Love

What inspired the story?

Gwen & Art was my lockdown book! I wrote it while I was devouring the kind of queer YA that really didn’t exist when I was a teenager and desperate for escape. I wanted it to be absolutely over-the-top ridiculous, funny, escapist; full of things like flirty sword fights and terrible puns. It’s for people like me who get very invested in character and love to love things.

What do you want readers to take away from your book?

That the central love story is actually about the friendship between Gwen and Art. And I hope that they laugh, too, and maybe see themselves a little in some of these characters and the personal journeys they go on towards loving and accepting themselves and each other.

Which character is your favourite and why?

I love them all, but I’m very fond of Sidney, Arthur’s sidekick—who deserves his own novel because he’s so funny to me—and the cat.

What does being on this year’s YA Book Prize shortlist mean to you?

It means everything, really. I thought this book was going to be a bit niche and weird, that it would really struggle to find its readers because it’s quite hard to pitch and obviously it’s queer, which hasn’t always been the easiest kind of book to get out there. Being on the shortlist is a massive honour, especially alongside such amazing books and authors, with stories and perspectives that haven’t always had the support they deserved getting to shine.

How do you think the YA genre has changed over the past 10 years?

YA has undergone a few massive transformations during my time as a reader and now as a writer. When I was a teenager it barely existed as a genre. It’s definitely being given a lot more attention and space—it’s amazing to see the YA sections at bookshops ever-expanding and filling with diverse books that were nowhere to be seen during my teenhood, even if there’s still a long way to go.

Why do you write for young adults?

I write for my teen self, honestly. If I’d had books like the ones on the shortlist this year, it would have changed everything for me.

What was your favourite book as a teenager?

I loved Sarra Manning’s books, which were probably my introduction to proper YA fiction, and Louise Rennison’s Georgia Nicholson series.

What do you need around you when you’re writing?

A deadline looming over my head to get me to do literally anything. And candles!

What songs would be on a playlist for your book?

I always have chunky playlists for every book I write. The big songs for Gwen & Art were "I Know a Place" by MUNA and Elgar’s "Variations on an Original Theme, Op. 36 ’Enigma’, Varation 9 ’Nimrod’". I played the Elgar over and over again as I was writing one of the last scenes, because I see things very cinematically as I write and I knew exactly what would be happening on page for every beat.

Which book, film or TV show would you recommend to someone who enjoyed your book?

Probably "A Knight’s Tale" or "Our Flag Means Death".