Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Rebekah Faubion. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Rebekah , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

My debut novel THE LOVERS, has a very special place in my heart. Not only is it the first book I’ll publish under my real name, as a solo author, but it is also a deeply personal story that came from my own coming out journey.

I grew up in a religious home and that made understanding and accepting my own queerness challenging. I mostly tried to ignore it—for years—making excuses for those feelings and experiences—always keeping them as secret as I could. When I started writing novels in my 20s, my whole life was in flux, and that included my relationship to my religious upbringing. A lot of what gave me the courage to fully leave religion behind and come out of the closet was writing.

Within my work, gay characters began to take the shape of best friends, secondary leads, populating the worlds of my stories with the part of myself I was still trying to understand.

Fully embracing my sexuality lead me to exploring my experience through the main characters I am now writing in all my books. Which is how I came up with THE LOVERS, a sapphic rom-com that puts queer love front and center. It was the most freeing and joyful experience to write THE LOVERS because it let me put my own feelings on the page, and hopefully create something entertaining and healing for readers.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

Of course! I am an author of both adult romance and young adult horror novels that are publishing with Penguin Random House.

I was writing for years before I broke into the industry—slow and steady being the name of my game. I got into writing during the Young Adult boom of the 2010s that changed the landscape of the industry—you remember THE HUNGER GAMES and TWILIGHT? That was my jam, and those books made me want to write my own.

I did what a lot of baby writers do: I wrote what I was reading. But I didn’t yet know my voice, have my own perspective on narrative—or really even have an idea of what I was actually doing! No surprise, none of my early YA projects got me an agent or sold to publishers. But! I learned a lot about my craft through those early stories and made industry connections that helped me further my career path. I took a lot of workshops, connected with other writers, and most importantly wasn’t afraid to make pivots when needed. I wasn’t afraid to write something in a new genre, or try a different spin on a story I had already written if a new, better perspective came along.

I think that adaptability was super important, and is what lead to me eventually breaking in.

In 2021, I was working with a writing partner, as well as continuing to write on my own. We were able to sell a Young Adult horror novel to a big five publisher, which launched our collaboration and led to multiple published books together. And as that was happening, my solo work was also starting to take off. I sold THE LOVERS, my sapphic rom-com, to Berkley in 2022 (which comes out this September!), and at the end of last year, I sold my first solo Young Adult horror novel, LOST GIRLS to Delacorte Press.

So, I guess, the long and winding road is *sometimes* the best.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

I think this has a twofold answer:

On one hand, the most rewarding part of being a writer is that you are never done learning. Every new project has the potential to unlock a new skill, or make you think differently about yourself and the world around you. I am a big fan of trying new things when I’m writing. Whether that be taking a class that will inform my understanding of some aspect of my character’s life or their experience, or going on a trip to a national forest to see what the colors of the leaves look like in spring so I can infuse that into my descriptions. I love the challenge that comes with every new story. I love that I can never know everything there is to know about writing.

But connecting with readers is truly one of the most incredible experiences. There is a special magic that happens when a reader finds themselves in one of your stories. Or when your book becomes an escape for them during a difficult time. When they find hope because of what you created—there’s nothing like it. No matter how hard the work is, or how frustrating the industry can be, this part is always special.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

In 2020, my agent left the industry and I had to find new representation. It seemed like the worst possible timing, with a global pandemic when everything felt like it was falling apart already—I had a moment there where I feared I would not be able to keep going. It can take so long to sign with an agent, and the industry is so competitive that there is always the fear that you can’t or won’t be able to stand out. But rather than dwell on all the reasons it might not happen, I took the opportunity to really get clear on what I wanted my career to look like moving forward. And what kind of partner I wanted in my agent. And when I queried it was with confidence that I had chosen people who were truly a good fit.

I think that experience of putting myself out there during a time when it felt like the world was on fire, was really good for my resilience. It helped me prove to myself that I wouldn’t give up on going for my dreams.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.rebekahfaubion.com/
• Instagram: rffaubion
• Twitter: rffaubion
• Other: tiktok: authorrffaubion

Image Credits
All photos were taken by me and the graphic for LOST GIRLS was created by me. The Lovers cover was designed by Berkley, an imprint of Penguin Random House.