Ep. 57 - What If Queer Just Existed? Sci-Fi, Space & Representation with A.Z. Roskillis

★WHERE YOU CAN FIND A.Z. ROSKILLIS★ BlueSky - @azroskillis Publisher - spacewizardsciencefantasy.com Audiobook - Space Station X on Tantrum Media ★WHERE YOU CAN FIND US★ Website - www.queerolina.org Facebook - Queerolina Instagram - @queerolinaorg BlueSky - queerolinaorg.bsky.social ★Summary★ In this conversation, A.Z. Roskillis — aerospace engineer and author of Space Station X and Fractal Terminus — sits down with the Queer Vision to talk about what it means to write queer characters where their sexuality simply exists without explanation or apology. A.Z. came out at 15 but spent years cycling in and out of the closet through college, grad school, and early career. That experience shaped her approach to fiction:  she wanted characters where being queer was just a fact, not a story arc to overcome. The conversation also explores growing up between two creative parents, writing a debut novel over a pandemic weekend, the intersection of STEM and creativity, and why sometimes the most radical thing you can do is let your characters just be gay while the real plot happens around them. ★Keywords★ queer sci-fi, lesbian romance, space fiction, indie author, STEM and creativity, queer representation, cosmic horror, Space Station X, Fractal Terminus, Space Wizard Science Fantasy, coming out, identity, North Carolina