Avrah C. Baren (she/they) is a fantasy writer based in the DMV [D.C., Maryland, Virginia area], where she lives with a neurotic tuxedo cat. She is an alum of the Pitch Wars Class of 2021 and a graduate of the Futurescapes 2023 Writers’ Workshop. They spend their days researching mangroves and landcover change, which is probably why she mostly writes worlds with huge forests. They love writing fantastical tales with Jewish-coded and explicitly Jewish characters that explore our connections with nature and each other. When she isn’t writing, she is climbing rocks, working at the Renaissance Festival, and trying to become a wood witch.
Website: abigailiswriting.com
Threads: @avrahwrites
Instagram: @avrahwrites
Substack: @avrahwrites
TikTok: @avrahwrites
First Comes Death Amazon: https://tr.ee/WCYmU7IP9q
Of Stardust Amazon: https://tr.ee/IfaosyB7Xb
Of Stardust B&N: https://tr.ee/TRaBuDBTdO
Buy from an Indie Store: https://tr.ee/3zCAGC5fDG
Do you find SFF lends itself particularly well to the themes and character dynamics and development arcs that you like to write, and why?
What I love about SFF is that you can be as tied to reality as you like. Or not at all. It means you get to add layers of complexity to the themes you’re exploring or the arcs your characters experience. In particular, I love writing about characters coming into their own strength, whether it’s mastering a superpower or making peace with a curse in a way that has them coming out stronger. When you write stories in the speculative arena, there are so many ways to play with this dynamic. For example, Ivy and Dina, the main characters in FCD both get vastly different powers and vastly different abilities to use those powers. Ivy has control of her powers right away. For Dina, it’s much harder. Both of them learn so much over the course of the novel that makes them stronger, but because there’s a speculative element to their strength, there’s a layer of complexity I really enjoy. While there are ways to explore growth and strength in the contemporary world, the ability to play with fantastical elements allows you to ask so many different questions.
In your novel, First Comes Death, you explore the idea of people gaining certain abilities/powers after resurrection – what made you want to explore ‘superpowers’ for want of a better word, through this darker lens?
Like so many people, I have always been fascinated by the idea of having superpowers. I grew up watching Xmen and have always imagined what it would be like to live in a world like that. Xmen plays with the idea of superpowers presenting after an especially stressful life event. I wondered what would happen if you took it a step further. If you were “reborn” into your powers. How would you live your life differently with the combination of receiving a second change AND superpowers. And what if that second chance came with strings? I often go to dark places in my own head, even when playing with the idea of superpowers. Tying those dark elements into the story was a way for me to face them in a way.
Does the queerness of your novel interact and speak to the themes of transformation and change, and do you think there is something unique about queer stories over cishet ones – as in, some layers that queer stories are uniquely placed to explore and develop, e.g.?
While the queerness in First Comes Death is somewhat normalized (most of the cast is queer), characters still struggle with how they interact with the world at large. I particularly think of Dina when I think about this question. She is on the verge of coming out when she dies and resurrects with uncontrollable powers. While other characters are fairly comfortable in their queerness, she starts the novel still in the closet. Many queer folks are not safe to or don’t get the chance to come out.
What I love about Dina’s arc is how she transforms and changes despite missing out on this moment and that she comes to accept herself fully even without officially “coming out”. Not only does she change by coming back with superpowers, but she also experiences this internal change of becoming comfortable in her own skin.
Queer stories about change and transformation are absolutely unique compared to cishet stories. I came out late compared to many people I know, and over the years it’s come with so much more self-doubt than I ever expected. And yet, I have also transformed more than I ever could have imagined, both in my aesthetic and how I view the world.
I think that queer people growing up in a heteronormative society must inherently experience this transformation. From imagining the world the way society tells us it is to seeing it for all its infinite possibilities, we have to do so much introspection that cishet people never have to do in order to understand our own queerness and rewire our brains and unlearn what society has told us about who we can be. And for those of us who have managed to do that, we are absolutely transformed. And I for one feel so much freer from having gone through that transformation.
Can you tell us more about your short story in the Of Stardust anthology – what is it about, and do you explore similar themes to your novel, or something different?
My short story, Unbury Yourself, is one of my favorite pieces. It’s about a creature from Jewish folklore called a Yeduah. A Yeduah is essentially a sentient plant being that is connected to the earth via a vine-like umbilical chord. In this story, a stranger arrives in the Yeduah’s forest and opens it to a world of possibility. It is still queer, but explores very different themes than First Comes Death.
I love digging into Jewish folklore because it helps me connect with my own heritage, as well as a piece of Judaism that was almost buried by centuries of forced assimilation. Not only does this story feature a small part of that folklore, but it also examines the impact of false promises and how seeing one small part of our big, beautiful world can leave you aching for more.
What are your favourite tropes and character dynamics to explore in your work, and why?
I am an absolute sucker for “I’ll find you anywhere” and WOW do I put that to the test with these globetrotting characters! I’m an emo kid at heart so yearning is something I absolutely love to have in my writing. And what could induce more yearning than two characters separated by strange powers trying to find each other all over the world?
What is your favourite reader response to your work so far, and why?
I put a few quotes from beta readers on the cover of First Comes Death, and one of those quotes is “SO SATISFYING AND GAY! AMAZING!” which is an absolute gem.
In general, I’ve also received some wonderful responses to Topher, one of they side characters. They’re just such a loveable nerd who will make sure they ask for your pronouns even in life-or-death situations. I’m so thrilled readers love them as much as I do!
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