Welcome to “Seven Minutes in Heaven,” GO Magazine’s brand new interview series that profiles a different queer lady each day, by asking her seven unique (and sometimes random) questions. Get to know the thoughts, feelings, and opinions of the groundbreaking, fierce forces-of-nature in the queer community.
One day, I was in the depths of the internet when I came across the cutest comic strip—made by none other than creative Julia Kaye. I fell into a rabbit hole of reading her comics. They’re honest, heartwarming and oh-so-queer.
Kaye decided to start publishing comics online about her transition about a year ago. Her comics cover everything from the joys and struggles of dating, coming out to her friends and family, the first time she bought a dress and dealing with the healthcare system as a trans woman. Her content provides a safe space for trans women on the internet to feel seen, validated and like they aren’t alone in the struggles they face.
We were so happy to learn more about Kaye’s creative process in today’s rendition of Seven Minutes in Heaven!
GO Magazine: Who are you and what do you do?
Julia Kaye: My name’s Julia Kaye, I’m an independent comic artist and storyboard revisionist at Disney TV Animation based out of LA. The current project I’ve been posting on social media is an autobiographical journal comic about the early months of my gender transition. It’s an honest look into my day-to-day-life as I began navigating the complex emotions and experiences that come with living with gender dysphoria.
GO: Have you always been drawn to comics as your form of creative outlet?
JK: I’ve always been drawn to the comic medium, but it wasn’t until I left college that I really embraced it as my creative outlet. Comics have always been large part of my life starting with newspaper comics in childhood and online comics in my teens and onward. I love the accessibility and freedom in storytelling—there are so many stories being told you can’t find in any other medium. I’ve been trying out varying narrative styles for the past 8 or 9 years now and there’s still so much to explore!
GO: Where do you go for inspiration when you’re feeling discouraged or depleted?
JK: My current work is inspired by actual events in my life, which makes things pretty simple. I find if I just live my life and stay in the moment, jotting down inspiration in my notebook as things occur to me, I very rarely run out things to draw when I sit down to make a comic. If I do happen to run out of concepts, I just go do something else with my time instead of trying to force something onto the page. Forcing a concept rarely ends well and sometimes it’s just as important to step away from creating to let myself recharge.
GO: Who are your queer role models?
JK: My friends are the biggest role models I have. Letting so many queer people into my life in the past couple years has been incredible.
GO: How would you describe your artwork in 5 words?
JK: Honest, playful, cute, reflective, simple.
GO: What are you listening to right now?
JK: I’ve had Fiona Apple’s last album on repeat lately.
GO: Where can people find you?
JK: My Instagram: www.instagram.com/upandoutcomic
My Twitter: www.twitter.com/upandoutcomic
My Tumblr: http://upandoutcomic.tumblr.com
