Every Tuesday, get to know a bit about the stories behind the books you love, and discover your next favourite novel.

Zilla: From the written word to the sketched image, stories have the power to move us. Artemy’s queer WW1 webcomic is a story you won’t want to miss, so we’ve brought them here to tell us about Gentle Hands.

Artemy: Gentle Hands is a queer-centric story about the home front and the medical system during World War One. After suffering a severe injury that has left him paralyzed and unable to talk, Dmitri finds himself in an institution in France. Jadyn, a retired military surgeon, is assigned to be his nurse, but after some investigation he gathers some alarming details. Is his placement with Dmitri an elaborate hazing? And can he prove himself as a capable doctor despite that? 

Zilla: What inspired you to write this book?

Artemy: When I was 17 I discovered I would be disabled for life. For this reason I really enjoyed stories about disabled characters and could never get enough of them. So when I discovered webcomics I knew I had to make my own. 

Zilla: The webcomic is clearly written from the heart—I can see how personal it is. Who is your favourite character in your story?

Artemy: My biases lie with the main love interest, Dmitri. I’ve always wanted to write a nonverbal character, and Dmitri was my way of experimenting with that. His thoughts and feelings are so complex, yet his way of expressing them is limited. This has led me to come up with creative ways to communicate those ideas. Character-wise he has a lot of contrast, and that seems to be my readers’ favourite thing about him. 

Zilla: How much research did you need to do for your story? (I ask this as though I didn’t meet you on a server about writing historical fiction!)

Artemy: Initially, I started this story as a relaxed side-project. I told myself I wouldn’t fuss over the fine details or research. It only took two days to throw that out the window. I have since been chest deep in articles and archives. 

Zilla: Who did you imagine as your readers?

Artemy: I imagined a lot of disabled trans men with uniform fetishes reading my book. That is precisely what I got and I couldn’t be happier with the result.

Zilla: Thanks for sharing your story and your process. We’re looking forward to reading! Where can the Night Beats community find you and Gentle Hands?

Artemy: My series can be found online for free on both Webtoons and Tapas with weekly updates. You can also find me on tumblr at @leonardoeatscarrots.