What Horror Teaches Us About Grief and Belonging—with Ryan La Sala

What can a horror novel teach us about friendship—and why might surviving together be its most hopeful message?

Author Ryan La Sala joins Tricia Friedman to explore the queer horror of The Dead of Summer, where estranged childhood friends must decide whether they can hold onto one another when disaster strikes.

Their conversation moves beyond the scares to examine representation, found family, grief, and the surprising relationship between terror and joy. Ryan explains why he writes queer characters whose lives extend beyond coming out, how each novel challenges his creative process, and what it means to see The Honeys adapted for film.

For educators, librarians, readers, and writers, this episode opens up questions about whose stories young people encounter—and how fiction can invite deeper conversations about belonging, loss, and care.

In this conversation:

• Why horror creates room for creative experimentation and queer storytelling.

• How friendship and community shape survival in The Dead of Summer.

• How humor and joy coexist with fear.

• Exploring grief across The Honeys, Beholder, and The Dead of Summer.

• Anticipatory grief: how fear of future loss can interrupt the present.

• Ryan's collaborative role in the film adaptation of The Honeys.

Explore the books: The Dead of Summer, The Honeys, and Beholder by Ryan La Sala. Ryan also discusses Bodies of Water, the sequel to The Dead of Summer.

A question to carry forward: Which stories help young people imagine that they don't have to face difficult things alone?

Share this episode with a reader or educator who would appreciate a different perspective on horror.

Content note: Discussion of grief, sibling death, cancer, and fictional horror.