Title: The Genuine Clone
Subtitle: What Happens When “I” Becomes “We”
Series: Japanesque TS
Author: Yulia Yu. Sakurazawa
I understand that some readers might be surprised to see The Genuine Clone listed among my LGBTQ+ novels, particularly given its sci-fi and thriller elements, but the journey of Kousaka Daigo, and especially the journey of his clone, Rina, has deep connections to the ideas of identity, fluidity, and transformation that are central to the queer experience. My novels are rarely straightforward, and, like the best LGBTQ+ fiction, I want to push at the boundaries of genre and comfort, and explore the messy, complex and ultimately beautiful truth of the human condition.
This story, at its heart, is about forced transformation. Rina, a clone, begins her existence as a man, but, through circumstances she does not control, comes to understand her identity through a woman’s body, and a woman’s experiences. She experiences longing, and attraction, and love, all while struggling with a fractured sense of self, and an uncertainty about her place in the world. These are experiences that many queer people recognize. The struggle to be seen for who you are, and not for what others expect you to be. The fear of the judgment, and the possibility of violence. The search for community, and acceptance. These themes, though framed within the context of speculative fiction, also form a central part of many queer lives.
The relationship between Rina and Shiho is also important. It is an experience that transcends the question of orientation or gender, and becomes about the complex and intimate connection between two individuals, the discovery of desire, the fear of rejection, and the search for acceptance. It doesn’t matter whether you see them as lesbian lovers, or friends on a desperate journey together; the depth of their connection shows that the bonds that we choose are just as real and as valid as any that nature or tradition imposes on us.
The story explores other aspects that make this an LGBTQ+ novel. It does not shy away from the complexities of gender, nor from the fluidity of attraction. Rina’s journey from male to female is not straightforward, and I wanted to explore that, and challenge the conventional notions of gender as a binary. It’s also about power, and who gets to define who we are. The control that is exerted over gender and sexuality is all too familiar to those in the queer community, and this story examines that power with unflinching honesty.
While this novel might not feature as much direct queer representation as some of my other books, the exploration of identity, forced transformation, and the freedom of choice in the definition of self, connects it deeply to the LGBTQ+ experience. It’s a story that asks the reader to re-evaluate their ideas about what it means to be “you”, and asks them to see beyond the binary of male and female, to see beyond the confines of traditional labels and categories. As I see it, it’s one of the most important stories I’ve ever written. I invite you to join me on this journey.