Riot Boyyy

Mason James is in love with the coolest girl in high school.

But Kelly Sommers is a punk feminist RIOT GRRRL.

To win her heart, Mason must embrace feminism, take on THE PATRIARCHY with a self-published zine, and get into more trouble than he can possibly imagine.



Riot Boyyy is a fun and fast-moving illustrated novel set in the early 1990s, which transports the reader to Tacoma in Northwestern USA. Tacoma is located between two cities with thriving music scenes: in Seattle, to the North, the muscular sound of grunge is just hitting the mainstream; meanwhile in Olympia, to the Southwest, a subversive punk noise called Riot Grrrl is commanding attention. As he tries to navigate high school and achieve his dream of becoming a music journalist, Mason will find himself torn between these two very different worlds, between following the rules and breaking them, and between his best friend and the girl he loves.

Riot Boyyy has been a passion project of mine for more years than I care to remember (although my MS Word filestamps tell me I started in 2016). It’s with great pleasure that I bring the novel to readers at last! The book is being published in sections during 2023 and 2024, with each part covering a month in Mason’s life.

Part one - which is available now - takes place during October 1991 and introduces us to Mason’s illustrated journal and the world of Herbert High School. As he admires Kelly Sommers from afar, Mason discovers feminism and other concepts he’s never considered, culminating in a life-changing experience at a gig by Riot Grrrl band Bikini Kill.

You can get a signed copy of RIOT BOYYY Part One from my Etsy Shop. Why not buy two?