A Rainy Date With: Joy L. Smith, Turning

Hi friends and welcome back to the second installment of my 2022 author interview series! Today, I’m thrilled to welcome Joy L. Smith, author of the upcoming YA Contemporary book, Turning. This book is one of my most anticipated reads of 2022 and it’s a story about a young, Black ballerina forcing to reconsider her entire future after an accident. Powerful and emotional, this book sounds like the kind of book I’d adore!

Let’s get to the interview, shall we!

The Book, Turning

Turning by Joy L. Smith
Published by Denene Millner Books/Simon Schuster Books for Young Readers on March 1, 2022
Genres: young adult
Buy on Amazon, Book Depository, Bookshop, Blackwell's
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In this raw, searingly honest debut young adult novel, a former aspiring ballerina must confront her past in order to move forward from a devastating fall that leaves her without the use of her legs.
Genie used to fouetté across the stage. Now the only thing she’s turning are the wheels to her wheelchair. Genie was the star pupil at her exclusive New York dance school, with a bright future and endless possibilities before her. Now that the future she’s spent years building toward has been snatched away, she can’t stand to be reminded of it—even if it means isolating herself from her best friends and her mother. The only wish this Genie has is to be left alone.
But then she meets Kyle, who also has a “used to be.” Kyle used to tumble and flip on a gymnastics mat, but a traumatic brain injury has sent him to the same physical therapist that Genie sees. With Kyle’s support, along with her best friend’s insistence that Genie’s time at the barre isn’t over yet, Genie starts to see a new path—one where she doesn’t have to be alone and she finally has the strength to heal from the past.
But healing also means confronting. Confronting the booze her mother, a recovering alcoholic, has been hiding under the kitchen sink; the ex-boyfriend who was there the night of the fall and won’t leave her alone; and Genie’s biggest, most terrifying secret: the fact that the accident may not have been so accidental after all.

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The Interview With Joy L. Smith

What were your inspirations behind Turning? Any movies, TV shows, songs, or particular aesthetics spotted on Pinterest inspired you to write this story and make it what it is, now?

I wouldn’t say these movies and shows inspired me to write Turning, but I do have such a love for them that they were watched while I wrote it. Who doesn’t remember CenterStage and that iconic ending of the red leotard and fouettes? I remember thinking while watching Flesh and Bone that I was so glad Genie was in a supportive environment to dance! And the tons of Vaganova classes at the Bolshoi academy on YouTube were so helpful to visual the style and feel of Genie’s lessons.

On your blog, you mention that your publishing journey was over 2,5 years. Can you tell us a bit more about this journey? During that time, what made you continue believing in your story?

Honestly, my agent Saba’s constant belief in me kept me going. I’ll admit to not being the most optimistic person, and I would have feelings of maybe next time with a different book, but Saba would tell me she wasn’t done yet and I believed her. She was absolutely right. When you go on submission as an author you have completely given up control and things can go fast or slow or not at all. I would say my journey started off in the middle of fast and slow in the sense I got rejections relatively early on, and I did an R+R in that time too and lots of waiting there after.

Can you tell us a bit more about the writing process of Turning? Did you start with this particular idea of a young, Black ballerina trying to confront the past and rebuild herself after her accident, or did this full idea take shape with more time? Were you surprised by where this story and its themes took you as you revised, and why?

Definitely Turning took place over time. I really just had this vision of a ballerina at the barre, but I had the question of why couldn’t she dance anymore. Then I settled on an accident, and it trickled into the type of injury she would have. I am a pantser so I just had to keep adding to this broth of a story to make it the meaty jumbo soup it is now.

The longer I wrote and rewrote, especially after the guidance of my agent, I realized the true heart of the story is that there’s more than one way to heal, and one isn’t necessarily easier than the others. Also how you can’t go forward sometimes without taking care of what happened in the past.

Is there one random thing you do while writing a book that you can share with us? A particular room you need to be in, a snack or drink you need next to you, a music to get you going?

Does this make me boring if I say no? I’m pretty chill about writing. I don’t need anything in particular besides time to do it!

Can you tell us a bit more about other stories you hope to write (or already wrote!), next?

Well I am working on a story that has my theater loving heart all over it. All my WIPs are about Black girls who are coming of age and there’s a hint of love, romantic or not. And lots of drama. I love to keep things messy!

What are some books that deeply, emotionally impacted you in your life?

I think back to high school when I just had to have every Laurie Faria Stolarz book. Now I know I want to be that author for some teen. I remember the first time I read Pointe by Brandy Colbert and I wanted to be her! Oh and how the Vanishing Half by Britt Bennett wrecked me as a twin myself. And I saw my adult self while reading Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid.

If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?

Anywhere with a great theater scene and great train system. I guess I’m describing London.

Can you share one line of Turning with us?

I want to be the Genie that oozed confidence and drew attention when attitude turns and Italian Fouettés were just a part of my drip.

About Joy L. Smith

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Do you want to read Turning? Are you fond of stories about ballerinas? I’d love to hear from you in comments!

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