Family secrets, a swoon-worthy romance, and a slow-burn mystery collide in We Deserve Monuments, a YA debut from Jas Hammonds that explores how racial violence can ripple down through generations.
Hi, Jas! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
Hi! I’m Jas Hammonds (they/she) and I wrote We Deserve Monuments, a queer coming-of-age YA novel. As a military kid, I grew up moving around constantly and I never broke the habit—I’m a flight attendant now! When I’m not flying or writing, I enjoying reading, working on jigsaw puzzles, and making my surroundings as cozy as possible.
When did you first discover your love for writing?
I’ve always loved reading and refer to myself as a reader first and a writer second. My mom always tells me how I used to crush those “read X amount of minutes a month” challenges in elementary school. English and Language Arts remained my favorite subject all the way through college.
Quick lightning round! Tell us the first book you ever remember reading, the one that made you want to become an author, and one that you can’t stop thinking about!
First book: There’s a Wocket in My Pocket by Dr. Suess
Book that made me want to be a writer: Alice in Rapture, Sort of by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
Book I can’t stop thinking about: Daughters of Jubilation by Kara Lee Corthron
Your debut novel, We Deserve Monuments, is out November 29th! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Black Queer Multigenerational Bittersweet Heartbreaker
What can readers expect?
Readers can expect a multigenerational family drama, a tender love story, and a slow-burn mystery. If you like reading books with a box of tissues nearby, We Deserve Monuments might be up your alley!
Where did the inspiration for We Deserve Monuments come from?
I started writing the book in November 2016. It was such a volatile, unsettling time in US politics and I needed something to do with my anger and anxiety. I had an image of a very angry woman who had so much grief wrapped up in her life that she felt like a ghost of herself. That woman became Mama Letty, my main character’s grandmother. It took many drafts to get the balance between light coming-of-age and intense family drama; it was important for me to showcase how both trauma and joy can move up and down between family generations.
Can you tell us a bit about the challenges you faced while writing and how you were able to overcome them?
Drafting is always the toughest part of writing for me. I constantly doubt myself when I’m faced with a blank page. The biggest challenge was simply finishing the first draft when I was convinced no one else besides me cared. I didn’t have an agent or editor waiting for it, there were no deadlines. I didn’t even have a writing circle or critique partners during that period. There was just me and the story and the constant internal battle of convincing myself it was worthwhile to finish. I overcame this by setting my sights of different writing mentorship programs. I wanted to apply to Lambda Literary’s Writer’s Retreat for Emerging LGBTQ Voices so the book had to be finished before the application deadline. To my delight, I got accepted! That retreat turned out to be a major turning point in my writing journey.
Were there any favourite moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
I loved writing Avery and Simone’s romance. Their tender moments often provide a lightness during times when the plot is getting heavy. There is nothing like that swoon-y first love all-the-butterflies feelings! As far as characters, Mama Letty was my favorite to write. I often made myself laugh thinking up her snarky one-liners.
What was the road to becoming a published author like for you?
It’s been a roller coaster! I had an unconventional path to getting an agent because I was in a program called Pitch Wars. Basically, a mentor and I edited the book for four months before showcasing a short pitch and the first 300 words of the book online. Agents read the pitches and could request to see more, and my agent was one of the initial people who requested the full manuscript. It was a whirlwind! However, my submission process was the opposite. We spent close to a year on sub, getting nothing but rejections. We had one close call with an editor who liked the story idea but felt it still needed work. I ended up rewriting about 85% of the book based on her feedback. Ultimately, she still decided to pass, but it was that version that eventually sold to a different editor!
What’s next for you?
I have another YA contemporary novel slated for spring/summer 2024. It’s about messy girls and toxic relationships and desperation and addictions, all told over the course of a hot Virginia summer.
Lastly, what have been some of your favourite 2022 reads? Any 2023 releases our readers should look out for?
I loved Britney S. Lewis’s The Undead Truth of Us and Maya Prasad’s Drizzle, Dreams, and Lovestruck Things. They are both fantastic YA debuts that really pulled at my heartstrings and made me feel 16 again. As far as 2023, be on the lookout for Gabi Burton’s Sing Me To Sleep and Jen St. Jude’s If Tomorrow Doesn’t Come!
