Today, we’re traveling back in time to the Roaring Twenties with Olesya Lyuzna’s Glitter in the Dark, a queer historical mystery so sumptuous it feels decadent to read. If you like glitzy showgirls, kidnapped singers, and speakeasies with secret codes, you’ll love this one.
Olesya and I bonded over our love for the 1920s (I even shared a terrible photo from 2013 when I sewed my own flapper-inspired dress to see The Great Gatsby in theaters) and it was an absolute joy to read her interview.
Connect with Olesya on Instagram, TikTok, and her website. Grab a copy of Glitter in the Dark here.
Welcome, Olesya! Glitter in the Dark follows aspiring reporter Ginny Dugan in Roaring Twenties New York City. After witnessing a kidnapping, Ginny teams up with a brooding private eye to solve the case. What do you love about Ginny’s character, specifically when it comes to detecting? (And, perhaps, how she plays off her partner, Jack?)
Ginny Dugan is the kind of girl who parties ‘til sunrise—and remembers everything you hoped she’d forget.
She’s inspired by the ambitious, rebellious women of the 1920s—and also by the modern party girls I’ve known and adored. You know those magical 3 a.m. encounters in a club bathroom, when some girl you’ve never met is calling you a goddess—and somehow, she’s right, and also your soulmate? This book is for those women. It’s about the beauty and chaos of nocturnal life, and the razor-thin line women walk when they move through the city at night, that fragile balance between freedom and danger.
Ginny knows every backdoor, every bouncer, every bootlegger worth their salt. That makes her the perfect person to investigate the disappearance of a Harlem torch singer—no one sees her as a threat, and she knows how to disappear into the night. She might have a questionable reputation, but she’s also got sharp journalistic instincts—and a point to prove.
Jack couldn’t be more different. He’s a jaded private eye who thinks Ginny’s just one bad decision away from disaster. But when circumstances force them to team up, something clicks. Jack brings the discipline, Ginny brings the spark. He’s methodical; she’s impulsive. He plays by the book (mostly); she sets the whole damn thing on fire. And soon enough, that initial friction starts to look a lot like chemistry . . .
I was blown away by the way you captured 1920s Harlem—I felt like I was right alongside Ginny in a way that felt immersive, dramatic, and believable. What kinds of research did you do to craft the setting? Is there anything—historical tidbits, surprising facts, etc.—that you were especially interested to learn?
I’ve been obsessed with the 1920s for as long as I can remember, so this book is the result of years of research and curiosity. I was especially drawn to Harlem in this era—a place full of creative promise, but also troubling contradictions. It offered artistic and economic possibility, especially for Black artists fleeing the South in search of freedom. At the same time, many of Harlem’s most iconic nightclubs were owned by white gangsters, and strict, racist rules were enforced behind the scenes—even as Black performers were the ones drawing the crowds.
Because the book is so rooted in nightlife and performance, I spent a lot of time watching surviving silent films (tragically, more than 75% are lost forever—shoutout to the Toronto Silent Film Festival for keeping the survivors in the spotlight), reading about the Harlem Renaissance, and falling in love with the work of authors like Jessie Fauset and Nella Larsen. This map of the Harlem club circuit lived on my wall as I wrote, helping me visualize the geography and rhythm of the nightlife. I also got really interested in how women were portrayed in the media during that time. The stories were wild, often ridiculous, and genuinely inspiring in their own strange way (especially for those of us who support women’s rights and wrongs!).
Beulah Annan was a prime example—she shot her lover in cold blood, then reportedly played a foxtrot record (“Hula Lou”) on repeat and drank cocktails while waiting for the police to arrive. The press couldn’t get enough of her, and her story later inspired Chicago. My personal favorite is the Bobbed Haired Bandit—the media’s nickname for Celia Cooney, a 20-year-old pregnant woman who held up a string of grocery stores wearing a sealskin coat over a beaded dress. She carried a baby automatic and pointed it straight at the shopkeeper, while her husband stood armed in the background. She even left handwritten notes taunting the police for failing to catch them: “I hear that the police have orders to shoot and kill me on sight. That’s all right—but the police will not be the only ones to shoot.” Her husband was part of every job, but in the papers, she was the star.
You participated in the (now defunct ☹️) Pitch Wars mentorship program in 2020. Can you share a bit about your experience and how it shaped your project?
Pitch Wars was the best thing that happened to me in this journey (and maybe in my entire life!). Even with all the incredible milestones that followed—an agent, a two-book deal—nothing compares to the moment someone saw potential in my messy little draft and said yes.
Working with Layne Fargo and Halley Sutton was a dream come true. I already admired their work, but the connection we formed during those three months of revision went beyond anything I expected. They just got the story I was trying to tell. They pushed me to go deeper, darker, sexier—to trust my instincts and stop sanding down the edges of my voice. That mentorship didn’t just shape the book. It changed how I think of myself as a writer.
It’s heartbreaking that Pitch Wars is no longer around, but I’m determined to keep its spirit alive—so if you’re a writer who sees something of yourself in my work, my inbox is always open for questions. I’m also thinking of taking on a mentee in the near future. Stay tuned!
As a debut author, was there anything that surprised you about the writing and/or publishing process? What advice would you give yourself five years ago?
Honestly, everything surprised me! Five years ago, I’d just started writing Glitter in the Dark and had no idea how unpredictable this journey would be. Some things moved fast—I signed with an agent less than a year after starting the draft. But the book didn’t sell for another three years, which felt like an eternity after that whirlwind start.
If I could give my past self one piece of advice, it would be: focus on the work. It’s easy to get swept up in the industry noise—book deals, film options, timelines, comparisons. And when things aren’t going your way, it can drain all the joy out of the creative process.
The antidote is always the same: return to the page. Read. Write. Swap stories with other writers. Lose yourself in the world you’re building. That’s the part that belongs to you—and it’s the only thing that keeps the rest of it meaningful.
Lastly, what are you currently working on? Can we expect more of Ginny, and/or is there anything else you’re excited to share?
Yes! More Ginny is on the way. I’m currently working on the next book in the series, which follows Ginny and Jack on a brand-new case—this time involving a self-help cult and the mystery of Ginny’s missing ex. It’s a story about obsession and longing, the lies we tell ourselves to survive, and who gets to control the narrative. Think all the heat of Glitter, but with a darker pulse—and a heart that’s maybe just beginning to break.
Thanks so much to Olesya for the interview. Sleuths, I hope you enjoyed it! If you aren’t already subscribed, please be sure to sign up for the Cluesletter and get author features like this alongside other mystery goodies, delivered to your inbox every other Tuesday.