ALICE IN LEATHERLAND - GAZING THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS

Have you ever wondered how we can sometimes use sex to explore who we are as people as well as the world around us? And if not, why not? Come on, speak up, and then once you’ve done that, afterwards, you can check out the following Q&A I did with the two lovely ladies who created the queer, sex, and body-positive romantic comedy, 'Alice in Leatherland'.





1) Name three words that best describe who you are.   Iolanda: I'd say proud, romantic, and stubborn.
Elisa: Whereas I would say patient, silent, and impetuous.

2) What inspired you to create, 'Alice in Leatherland'?  Iolanda and Elisa: In the first place, we just wanted to make people laugh and forget about their everyday problems for a minute (but isn't that every romcom's purpose?). Then we realized that we were putting a lot of truthfulness in 'Alice in Leatherland', a lot of our everyday reality as queer people and our attitude towards relationships and friendships.

3) In your own words, how would you describe this story?   Iolanda and Elisa: 'Alice in Leatherland' is a queer, sex and body positive romantic comedy! Sex is recounted as a way to investigate our relationship with ourselves and others, with our bodies and our place in the world (sexual pleasure as self-affirmation and growth). There is room for love, too, and bravery. Plus (we hope) for many good laughs, as that never hurts!

4) What song would you say best represents this comic and why?   Iolanda:   I would say the Rolling Stones' song, 'She's a Rainbow'! I used to listen to this song in a loop while I was writing the book, and for me, it's a 'theme song' for the overall adventure. I think this song represents Alice's 'purity', the way she feels about true love and magic, along with the fact that her way of being has not been changed or corrupted by everything she's been through!

5) If you could get a celebrity – either living or dead – to promote your wares, who would you choose, and why would you want to choose this particular person?   Elisa: I think we would choose Billy Porter! But mainly because it would be a dream to hear him announce our book title as a category in the dazzling 'Pose' Ballroom Battles!

6) What have you learned about yourself through this endeavor?   Iolanda: I learned that when you have a limited number of pages you have to try to keep your characters under control and not let them freely go where they want to in the plot, ha! But other than that, I cried and laughed so much while I was writing this story that I hope it can reach the hearts of other people too.

And on that note, I would like to thank Iolanda and Elisa for telling us about their graphic novel, 'Alice in Leatherland', before encouraging you to check out their official Website, Instagram, and Twitter pages. Or better yet, why not pick up a copy via Simon and Schuster!