OutLook Press Book Reviews

The Passion Within
An Interview with Novelist Alex Marcoux

OutLook Press recently had the pleasure of interviewing Alex Marcoux, author of critically acclaimed novels, Façades, and her latest endeavor, Back To Salem, which was just recently released. Women who have long become accustomed to formulaic, 200-page-or-less lesbian detective novels will be in for a treat with one of Marcoux's books. These books are a veritable reader's feast! We're talking characters who are real people with real problems you can imagine having dinner with, not sex-starved nymphos looking for a sizzling conquest every 10 pages. Marcoux's characters have passion, substance and style—and more than a little mystery.

So, without further ado, we are pleased to present novelist extraordinaire, Alex Marcoux…

ALEX: Façades was my first effort. My decision to write was influenced by a number of things that happened to me over the last decade. But there are two significant events that stand out in my mind that influenced my decision to write Façades.

The first event was identifying my soul's purpose. Over the last eight years, I've been on a spiritual journey to understand my "mission in life." I have come to believe that each one of us has a task to accomplish while we're here. And without getting into details, I believe that one of my soul's purposes is to help people understand and respect individual differences. Differences of all diversity, though (racial, religious, sex, sexual orientations and so on.)

The second event that motivated me to write Façades was living through the entire Amendment 2 ordeal. As you probably recall, Amendment 2 was an anti-gay and lesbian initiative that was proposed to modify the Colorado State Constitution. The Amendment won in the 1992 election and Colorado went on a roller coaster ride through the years of litigation (Denver District Court, Colorado Supreme Court and finally U.S. Supreme Court). During this ordeal, Colorado for Family Values put on a "Time to Stand" campaign in support of Amendment 2. This Christian Fundamentalist group paraded across Colorado asserting that gays and lesbians have no family values.

I felt pretty helpless. I wanted to contribute but I didn't quite know how. So, I had this brainstorm—I would write a book that would help diffuse some of the untruths and distorted information that I heard during this period. A book that showed that gays and lesbians do have family values, and at the same time demonstrate struggles unique to being gay (such as case custody, fear of losing job) as well as emotions and struggles that are universal to all (love and domestic violence).

OUTLOOK: Unlike many writers of lesbian fiction who migrate towards Naiad or other lesbian presses, you've been published by Haworth, a mainstream publisher known more for their professional, academic, and general titles. Was this a decision you consciously made or did it just happen that way?

ALEX: I didn't discount submitting to lesbian presses. Actually I did submit Façades to one and received a note from the publisher stating that they were a "lesbian press" and I should step aside for one of the "girls." And I never submitted to Naiad, because, at the time they only evaluated manuscripts less than 50,000 words and Façades was about 90,000 words.

What led me toward Haworth is a story in itself, but to be honest, I don't see my publisher as "mainstream." I am published under a brand-new imprint called Alice Street Editions, Harrington Park Press. And this new imprint publishes exclusively lesbian work, both creative non-fiction and fiction. This is actually one of Haworth's first attempts at marketing fiction.

OUTLOOK: Because of the decision to be published mainstream, has it affected you or your book sales?

ALEX: I'm not sure how to answer to this. It's exciting to be part of a new imprint launch, yet at

the same time, Alice Street is going through a learning curve on how to market fiction. This is a totally new arena for them, and this is my first novel, so I have no basis to compare it too.

The Alice Street team is excellent and Haworth has made a substantial investment in the new imprint. I believe they will make the right decisions and become a serious contender of lesbian fiction.

OUTLOOK: Lesbian novels don't exactly rank in the "big leagues" of book sales, thus many publishers aren't interested unless the storyline involves sensationalism of some sort. Did you find it difficult breaking into the business as a writer focusing on lesbian fiction?

ALEX: No, I was quite lucky. I was in the right place at the right time. After I had finished Façades I focused on looking for an agent. I pretty much spun my wheels for seven months. But things turned around after I went to my first writer's conference. I pitched Façades to a movie producer, and he loved it. Within one day, I had two agents and a movie producer ask me for a manuscript.

It was exciting. This momentum stayed with me because three weeks later I learned that The Haworth Press, which was traditionally a scholarly press, would introduce fiction under a new imprint, Alice Street Editions. I followed the lead, learned who the acquisitions editor would be, and her address. Five days after I mailed the manuscript to her, I received an email from Judith Stelboum, the acquisition's editor.

OUTLOOK: Do you feel it is your duty as a lesbian to write lesbian fiction, portraying positive role models? Or would you abandon the genre for more ambiguous work if it meant greater dollars and exposure?

ALEX: You mean there's actually money to be earned by writing?! I think the only duty I have is to myself. I listen to my heart and write what feels right. So far, my motivation for writing hasn't been for money.

Would I abandon the genre? Well, I'm not quite sure what genre I write in anyway. Façades is actually categorized as General and Lesbian Fiction. But what I hear from my readers is that it's romance and even mystery. My second (Back to Salem) is Mystery, Lesbian Fiction and New Age.

If you mean, would I stop writing about lesbians? Hmm, I guess the best way to answer that is by looking at Back to Salem. I believe Back to Salem is an entertaining and unique story. I also know that I could have changed the sex on one of the leading characters and it would appeal to a much wider audience but I chose not to.

OUTLOOK: The reason I asked the question is many people feel certain writers known for their celebrity as lesbians have "sold out" so to speak once they hit the big time with the big publishing house contract. It could be said within the rank-and-file lesbian, there is a feeling of "selling out" for the almighty dollar. The question, as posed to you would be, if approached by a big name publisher to have a much wider audience, but tone down the lesbianism, would you do so?

ALEX: Again, I listen to my heart and write what feels right, not what a publisher tells me to write. My desire is to write good stories about lesbian characters that would first appeal to a lesbian audience, and then a crossover audience.

OUTLOOK: Let's talk about your books. Façades was your initial release, and a stellar effort at that! The character of Sidney Marcum is incredibly complex: strong, yet vulnerable; brave, yet fearful; approachable, yet aloof. You're not sure if you want to love her or dislike her in the beginning. What was your idea behind Sidney and Façades?

ALEX: To me, Façades is a mystery of the heart. Sidney is indeed a complex individual, and for me to truly answer this question would give away one of the little mysteries. And I don't want that to happen. But I can say, that my idea was to characterize the protagonist as being "strong, yet vulnerable; brave, yet fearful; approachable, yet aloof."

OUTLOOK: Although Façades is a lesbian romance, there was a definite heterosexual flavor to parts of the book. Lesbian sex was alluded to, but never depicted. Do you feel you are cheating your lesbian readers with the omission, while placating a potential heterosexual audience?

ALEX: This goes back to the first question. Façades was intended as a crossover book. If I can't communicate to a heterosexual reader I wouldn't be serving my soul's purpose. And since my purpose would be to help people understand and respect our differences, I don't see how describing two women having sex would support this purpose. But if I show how two women's love for each other lead to transcendence over heartbreak, injustice and prejudice, that would support it, and that's Façades.

Do I think I'm cheating my readers? I hope not. I believe that there is sufficient intimacy in my stories to please most romantics. I think most lesbians want good stories and plots about our lifestyles. But I do recognize that Façades will not please the reader who reads solely for the sex scenes.

Personally, I believe that there are some things that are better left to the imagination. To me, it's romantic depicting the little things like holding someone's hand or lips meeting for the first time and hearts beating so hard because they're scared to death to understand their feelings. Or simply, their eyes meeting and they're connected.

So for me, it's romantic in Gone with the Wind when Clark Gable sweeps Vivien Leigh off her feet and carries her up the stairs. We don't need to see what happens when they shut the door. Our imagination is so much stronger than any writer putting words on paper to describe what happened.

I would also like to point out that there is a very successful lesbian mystery novelist that does not depict sex in her stories (the ones that I'm familiar with, anyway). That is Ellen Hart, and she has been nominated and won numerous Lammy awards within her Jane Lawless series.

OUTLOOK: Granted, Ellen Hart is an award-winning novelist, but she is known for her mysteries, not the romantic content of her books. Heavy romance would seem a bit inappropriate in her books, in my opinion, since she doesn't really lean that way in the writing. Your books, however, lean heavily towards great romance, thus the expectation of more sexual intimacy between the characters.

ALEX: Why would a little romance be inappropriate in a mystery? That's exactly what I've tried to do. Granted, Façades, by definition is not a mystery. However, as I mentioned earlier, it's a mystery of the heart, and the heart is at the source of Sidney's motivations. My intent is to lean toward mystery, not romance. My thoughts were that a little romance would make my stories more interesting.

OUTLOOK: I think you miss the point of my question. It's not sex for sex sake I'm talking about, but the romantic, sweep-you-off-your-feet moment when the characters kiss for the first time, or touch for the first time, leading to that "great moment" of completion.

ALEX: Are you implying that Façades is void of intimacy? There are plenty of intimate and romantic moments in Façades. What is missing is the actual sex. Again, it goes back to imagination. In my opinion, there are some things that are better left to the imagination.

OUTLOOK: No, no, there was no implication of intimacy lacking in Facades whatsoever! There was plenty of intimacy between the characters, but, as a reader, I came away feeling like there was just a little bit missing. And again, not just for the sake of reading about sex between two characters, as that holds no interest for me and many other readers, I'm sure. More of a completion to their love's journey.

I believe the question comes down to this if your soul's purpose is to educate people about our differences, wouldn't that be one place to start? Showing two women in a loving, healthy, sexual relationship just like their heterosexual counterparts? I'm not talking about a triple-XXX love scene; much can be said for using metaphors without being graphic. It reminds me of what has been an ongoing complaint regarding NBC's "Will & Grace"—it depicts an asexual gay man, which is tolerable and acceptable to the viewing public, but not truly realistic in today's world. Must we sanitize and water down everything, even natural sexuality, just to be acceptable to the general public?

ALEX: Unfortunately the answer to this question is marketability. When I first sat down to write Façades, I wanted to attract a publisher that would market the book to both a lesbian and crossover audience. It was my belief that a mainstream publisher would not pick up a book from a first-time novelist that depicted sex between two women and market it to a mainstream as well as lesbian market.

OUTLOOK: In Façades you touched on two prominent, but rarely discussed problems in the lesbian world: child custody issues and domestic abuse between same-sex partners. Do you feel a responsibility to write about issues of special concern to lesbians?

ALEX: Yes. Again, it goes back to my purpose. In Façades, I wanted to address some issues that are universal to all lifestyles (for example, domestic violence) as well as those unique to being gay.

OUTLOOK: Let's talk about Back to Salem. I had a chance to read the manuscript before publicaton, and it's excellent, Alex! Tell us a little bit about it. What drew you to the subject of past lives and the paranormal?

ALEX: Back to Salem is a paranormal mystery. A writer psychically tunes into her future (precognition) and writes a murder mystery. Years later, echoes of her story start occurring in her life. She realizes that she will become the primary murder suspect and needs to solve the murder. The story explores connections between two soul mates in a present lifetime as well as one back during the Salem Witch Trials.

I only thought I had one story in me, Façades. While I was writing Façades, I was experiencing many connections with another person. Someone I didn't know. Rather than letting the connections become obsessive, I chose to let them stimulate my imagination. Out of that came Back to Salem.

OUTLOOK: Is this something that you truly believe exists or is it just a storyline?

OUTLOOK: Tell me about Alex Marcoux. Jessie (in Back to Salem) is a writer; Alex is a writer. Is Jessie your alter ego?

ALEX: How come you didn't ask if Sidney from Façades is my alter ego (everyone else does)?! I'm not sure how to answer this. I don't believe so, yet I recognize some similarities between Jessie and myself. But there are so many differences—Alex is a mother, a partner, a businessperson, and in my free time (of which I have so much) I pretend to be a writer.

ALEX: I'm working on my third book tentatively titled A Matter of Degrees. It's another paranormal mystery using the protagonist (Jessie) from Back to Salem. The next book is a conspiracy novel and it delves into religion, politics, the ancient Egyptian mysteries and male secret societies. Lots of fun stuff! After that, I'm not sure . . . perhaps the next story of the series, which is where the characters of Façades and Back to Salem come together.

Alex Marcoux was born and raised in Leominster, MA. She graduated from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst in 1981. She presently resides in the foothills of Colorado with her partner and son. Visit Alex's website at www.alexmarcoux.com