by Em Mattisons
Popularized by the hit Netflix TV Series of the same name, Heartstopper began its life as a passion project. A web-comic with over 52 million views which was crowd-funded (in less than 2 hours) into its published existence in 2019, it has now turned into a graphic novel series that has sold over one million print copies worldwide. Whether you are an adult, teen, or tween, whether you are part of the LGBTQIA+ community or an ally, Oseman finds a way to connect with you. If you don’t see yourself in Heartstopper, chances are you’ll find yourself in one of Oseman’s other novels.
Heartstopper is an ongoing British series that follows the lives of teens Nick Nelson, Charlie Spring, their friends, and their classmates, as they navigate the trials and tribulations of life while discovering their own identities and falling in love. Nick originally appeared to fill the role of the “popular jock” while Charlie was more the “gangly nerd” which made for a, stereotypically, unlikely pairing. However, it became quickly apparent that Nick, like many male identifying people given similar labels, was soft, sweet, and emotional when you got to see past his domineering physical appearance and that Charlie was tougher, and more athletic, than anyone would expect. The pair go through the “does he doesn’t he/do I don’t I” questioning period as they get to know each other under the guises of other people’s opinions. Matters become somewhat complicated by the fact that Charlie was recently outed as gay and Nick is thought to be straight. In short, Heartstopper is the uncontrived queer representation that every generation deserves, and needs, especially in their youth.
My experience of consuming queer stories in today’s media conditioned me to expect the worst, to expect more harassment, bullying, heartbreak, and detrimental plot twists but, at every turn, I was pleasantly surprised. Yes, there are still elements of all of this, and it is alluded that there was more of it in the timeline that precedes the first novel, so it is certainly not an idealistic story. It is, however, a wholesome, hopeful coming-of-age story that reveals some of the internal agony of realizing you aren’t who you thought you were or who you thought you were meant to be. It pairs this with showing how important a supportive, accepting, community is. From the band of friends around Nick and Charlie, to Nick’s mum, to school faculty like Mr. Ajayi (the art teacher) and Coach Singh (the rugby coach), Heartstopper speaks to the power of the few, of the individual. It also attests to the strength that comes from existing in a space where being different is normal and not-accepting that is the absurdity.
Heartstopper is not just a tale of queer romance and discovery. It also highlights one of the most stigmatized mental disorders through its portrayal of Charlie’s lived experience of an eating disorder. Heartstopper was not the first time Oseman shared stories of Nick and Charlie. Her first novel, Solitaire, features them in a story that is told predominantly through the eyes of Charlie’s sister, Tori. It is in Solitaire that readers gain their first insight into Charlie’s experience of an eating disorder and the impacts it has on his family. Eating disorders, particularly anorexia nervosa, have gone through phases of glamorization in the media and much of Western society as a whole still clings to the concept of a thin ideal. The conversation of how this impacts young girls and women has been getting louder over the last decade, but we rarely see males represented in these conversations which makes Oseman’s depiction of Charlie’s battle, and how people around him experience it and try to help, even more important.
Oseman has been vocal about how important including diverse representations in her writing is to her, and she has also shared her personal identity as an aromantic asexual who uses she/her and they/them pronouns. While divulging such personal details is not necessary in order to produce queer content (no one should ever be pressured into sharing before they are ready and hopefully one day we won’t have to “come out” at all), it does offer a unique connection between author and audience that can only exist through shared experience. After all, if one writes about what they know, tell their story, not that of others, their voice will be stronger and their words more meaningful.
Not only has Oseman developed a captivating story, she accompanies it with refined and emotive graphics that capture even the minute and invisible feelings on the page. Whether it be a heart flutter, the feelings of butterflies, or that of panic, Oseman knows how to etch the feeling across the page. Her whimsical style is perfect for capturing the essence of blooming romance and the soundtrack of excitement, nerves, joy, and despair that coincide with it. Undoubtedly, her illustration laid the foundation for, and inspired, the live-action TV series. Both the graphic novels and the TV series, have won numerous awards such as: Waterstone Book of the Year, British Book Awards Children’s Illustrated Book of the Year, multiple Goodreads Choice Best Graphic Novel and Comic Awards, multiple Children and Family Emmy Awards, a Dorian Award, a TV Choice Award, two Kidscreen Awards, and a Queerty Award. With the highly anticipated penultimate installment in the graphic novel series coming out on the 9th of November this year, with the sixth and final volume’s release date yet to be announced, and the second season of the TV series due to air in August, the awards are bound to continue to roll in.
Oseman’s work is so praised and popular not just because of the words and visuals used to tell the stories but because of how relatable and welcoming the content is. Oseman skillfully shares diverse experiences naturally, in a way where they don’t feel forced, they don’t feel like tokens, and that is how every story should be told. Different sexualities, genders, illnesses, and cultures should be in stories because they are in every real human story. Trans people exist., gay people exist. People of color exist. There is no denying that (however much some may try); we are all different in one way or another and all of our stories deserve to be told; we all deserve to be seen and valued just as we are. In a world full of loud people, and laws, that could very well stop hearts, works like Oseman’s can start them.
Em Matisons is a queer Australian freelance reviewer, and amateur poet, who loves to experience the arts, whether they’re in written form, on screen, or on stage. She was crowned the winner of the National Campus Writing Competition in 2019 for her poem “The School of Lost and Found.” Em holds a Bachelors of Psychology from Edith Cowan University and spent time as a collegiate athlete in the United States. If she’s not in her flow-state out in a sporting arena, she can be found grounding herself in the great outdoors.
