We chat with Stephanie Kuehnert about Pieces of a Girl, which is a raw and bold YA memoir about abuse and addiction, and the power of expression and community that helped Stephanie survive and thrive.
Hi, Stephanie! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
Hi! I’m Stephanie Kuehnert, author of the brand-new YA memoir, Pieces of a Girl. I also wrote two YA novels, I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone and Ballads of Suburbia, and was a contributing writer for the late, great Rookie magazine for the entirety of its run. I am a 90s kid and my working title for my memoir was “Geek, Grunge, Goth, Grrrl” because I am all of those things. I love Star Trek, Nirvana, The Cure, and Bikini Kill. I grew up as a weirdo who lived and breathed books and music and always felt like an outsider. Currently, I live in Seattle, Washington, and in addition to writing, I work toward social justice, empowering youth, and community-based change through my day job and volunteer roles.
When did you first discover your love for writing and stories?
It’s been with me as long as I can remember. I started reading early and never stopped. I grew up in a house where I was encouraged to read whatever I wanted, so I did—I read adult books before I was a teenager, I read all genres from fantasy to poetry, horror to cozy mysteries, and everything in between. I won my library’s book challenge every summer (and I still do, shout out to Seattle Public Library’s Book Bingo!). I’ve been a writer since I got my first diary for my seventh birthday. I’ve been an avid journaler since then while also dabbling in fiction and poetry since elementary school and junior high respectively.
Quick lightning round! Tell us:
- The first book you ever remember reading: Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder
- The one that made you want to become an author: Same as the above, which is explained in the intro to my memoir!
- The one that you can’t stop thinking about: Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler
Your latest novel, Pieces of a Girl, is out now! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Zine-style; Survivor; Punk; Healing; Voice
What can readers expect?
A book that feels like a collection of zines and is pretty different from other memoirs in that way. It includes pictures, zine and diary pages, mix tape inserts, and illustrations by the incredible Suzy Exposito. It is the story of my youth—my search for belonging and creative outlets while navigating depression, abuse, and addiction. It’s not an easy story by any means, but it’s about how I became the person and the writer that I am, and how critically important it is for youth, especially femme and gender expansive folks, to find their community and know that their voice matters.
What inspired you to put your story to the page?
When I got that diary at age seven, I wrote it in that one day I wanted to write a story about me and my life. I set that idea aside for many years, honestly feeling embarrassed by it at some points, because what did I have to say? Why did my story matter? Then in 2011, Rookie magazine launched and I started writing for them. I started writing with a community of writers, artists, and illustrators who cared deeply about the thoughts, feelings, and worlds of teenage girls. My stories and my voice did matter in that community and I was pushed to express myself in new ways—not only because the editors were thoughtful and rigorous but because it was such a multimedia publication. It was like making zines again on the Internet. And that made me want to do it in book form, which again is why I am so glad that Suzy Exposito, who I met through Rookie, came along for the ride with me to do illustrations.
What were some of the challenges you faced whilst putting this memoir together?
It’s a very different sort of book. The editors that I worked with at Dutton and I spent a very long time working to get it right. Ultimately it took ten years from sale to publication. There were lots of reasons for that on both the publisher’s side and mine (I had a baby during that time and there was a global pandemic), but everyone was so committed to doing my idea justice. I wanted a zine-style memoir and we had to figure out what that looked like, what that meant. In addition to Suzy’s art, Anna Booth, designer at Dutton, played a critical role in laying out the book in a way that honestly exceeded my wildest dreams. The other piece is that this is a very vulnerable book. As a survivor, I’ve had my voice and my story invalidated a lot. Early on, I had moments of pure fear around publishing my story, which Julie at Dutton so kindly talked me through. In the end, I am glad it look as long as it did because writing it was a healing process. I was making peace with and working through things as I wrote and revised. I am emotionally ready for it to be in the world in addition to being really proud of how the book turned out visually.
What do you hope readers take away from reading Pieces of a Girl?
That abuse, addiction, and depression all thrive in silence and talking about them is key. That survivors’ voices matter. And finally that healing is messy, it’s not linear, and no one should feel ashamed of that. Creative expression, particularly writing and storytelling, along with finding community were my key tools and my greatest wish for anyone who is struggling is to find something similar. You are not alone.
What’s next for you?
Right now, I am just basking in the release of this book! I am also currently revising a dark YA novel and playing with a proposal for Pieces of a Grown-up, which would cover the next part of my life!
Lastly, are there any book releases that you’re looking forward to picking up this year?
Yes! So many good books coming out! I can’t wait for Pretty Furious by E.K. Johnston which comes out in April. Then The Girl in Question by Tess Sharpe in May and Children of Anguish and Anarchy by Tomi Adeyemi in June. Can. Not. Wait!
