It can be hard to chase your dreams when it feels like the one person who should have your back doesn’t. That’s what Eat Your Heart Out‘s Blanca feels when it seems like her overbearing mom doesn’t seem to think she should pursue her passion about becoming a fashion designer. Blanca wholeheartedly believes that her happy ending is waiting for her in New York City so she runs away from home in the hopes that she can make her dreams come true.
Written by Terry Blas and Matty Newton, with artist Lydia Anslow and colorist Claudia Aguirre, Eat Your Heart Out combines fashion, drag, and, unexpectedly, baking in this heartwarming tale. The graphic novel features a diverse cast of characters and emphasizes how family is people “you choose, not the family you’re born into,” as Oni Press Editor-in-Chief Sierra Hahn, puts it. Published by Oni Press, the graphic novel consists of 112 pages and has already received positive reviews.
An exclusive excerpt from Eat Your Heart Out can be read below:
Anslow describes the story as a coming-of-age tale about “finding who you are as a person, finding your people, finding food, and a little bit of fashion.”
Blas was excited for the release and said that the story included a myriad of things he loved including fashion, costume, baking, drag. He said, “I wanted everyone to see New York City the way I did. A place filled with people of color and colorful people. I’ve always been inspired by fairy tales. Cinderella, The Little Mermaid, Snow White, The Wizard of Oz. To bring a little of that magic into a modern story, for people who don’t often get to see themselves represented in those tales, was the goal.”
Newton recognized the importance of having a support circle around them. “If it weren’t for a few close friends several decades ago who showed me love and encouragement, I’m not sure where I’d be nor what I’d be doing today,” they said. “I was eager to surround Blanca with a cast of characters who would recognize greatness in each other, and use their talents to help this messed up world feel more livable.”
The synopsis of Eat Your Heart Out can be read below:
Blanca is running away. Away from her mother—the overbearing and strict Reina—and her mother’s narrow idea of what shape Blanca’s life should take. While Reina finds Blanca’s dream of pursuing fashion design a wasteful flight of fancy, Blanca sees possibility…and she knows if she doesn’t leave now, she might never. Of course, following your passion isn’t easy, and when Blanca arrives in New York City without a job or a roof over her head, she’s rescued by a kindly baker named Emile, who takes her in. With Emile comes his eclectic group of roommates, all living in the same brownstone, who welcome Blanca into their weird, wonderful world. Together, Blanca and her new-found friends come to discover that sometimes, the recipe for making your dreams come true is achievable, when you embrace chosen family as the missing ingredient.
Released on Aug. 13, the first volume of Eat Your Heart Out is now available in stores.
Source: Oni Press
