Julia Durzyńska was born in Poznań, Poland, in 1976, and from an early age, she was torn between the worlds of science and the humanities. She graduated from Ad Sanctam Mariam Magdalenam High School in 1995 with a “philological” diploma, meaning she skillfully dodged math and science at her final exams (SAT) in favor of Polish, English, and French. Naturally, she then decided to… become a molecular biologist.
She earned her master’s degree in molecular biology from Adam Mickiewicz University (AMU) in 2000, followed by a PhD at the University of Nantes in France, defended in 2004. Since 2005, she has been shaping young scientific minds at AMU’s Faculty of Biology, first as an assistant professor and for nearly six years now, as a university professor. Her academic adventures have also taken her to Philadelphia and Florida for postdoctoral and visiting scholar research, where she spent a total of three years.
Despite her career in natural sciences, Julia also feels like a humanist. This inner contradiction finally found an outlet in her literary debut, “Gdy słońce wypieka sny” (2024), which could be loosely translated as “When the Sun Bakes Dreams”, proving that even a molecular biologist can dream in prose and occasionally in poetry. Her novel follows Noemi, a transgender woman searching for a place to call home. Having spent her adult life between France, the U.S., and Poland, she struggles to decide where she truly belongs. Frustrated by Polish conservatism yet unable to sever her ties with her homeland, she embarks on a soul-searching vacation in Brittany with her old university friend Stéphane. But peace is elusive, and an affair with her high school love, Nicolas, unexpectedly reopens old wounds. As past and present intertwine, Noemi must confront her desires, identity, and the ghosts of her past. The novel is a dreamy, fairy-tale-like story infused with sensuality, humor, and self-irony. Like her protagonist, Julia is also a transgender woman who has navigated different worlds: academic, multicultural, and personal. In our conversation, she shares insights into her journey through literature and personal story, offering a glimpse into the delicate balance of self-discovery and reinvention.
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| Available via empik.com. |
Monika: Hello, Julia! Thank you so much for accepting my invitation!
Julia: Hello, Monika! I am delighted and truly honored! Thank you for inviting me to do this interview.
Monika: Since I have the pleasure of speaking with a molecular biologist, I can’t resist starting our conversation with a look at COVID-19. The pandemic drastically reshaped our lives when it first hit, but what fascinates me even more are the long-term effects. Many people changed their habits, reevaluated their priorities, and slowed down to reflect on things they previously had no time for. Do you think these shifts in perspective will stay with us, or will they gradually fade as life returns to "normal"?
Julia: That is true; the COVID-19 pandemic was a shock for all of us. For me, however, it was also a time of deepened reflection and a chance to write again, apart from online research work and teaching. Everything suddenly became so quiet, the brouhaha of the world stopped – it was so liberating for inner creativity.
I think nothing is going to be the same as it was before the pandemic. It is impossible, as time is flying by and the world is constantly changing, and yes, most aspects of our lives have returned to normal; maybe we still work a bit from home, but less and less, I would say. I feel like the pandemic is already a distant memory, but what is left of it is our heightened dependence on technology and the internet to an extent that worries me. Maybe it would have happened anyway, regardless of the numerous lockdowns.
Sometimes, my impression is that as a species, we are racing toward a precipice. Perhaps, as some thinkers claim, economic degrowth could be a remedy to the world’s problems. I do not know why we have to produce more and more — it is harmful to our health, both physical and mental, and to the planet, and yet we are still growing as a civilization, consuming everything around us like drug addicts depend on narcotics.
Monika: If there’s one unexpected thing we can thank COVID for, it’s… your book! You originally wrote the most emotionally intense part, teenage Noemi’s story, over 20 years ago as a form of self-therapy, then tucked it away for nearly two decades. It wasn’t until the pandemic that you revisited it, adding the perspective of an adult protagonist who, like you, has transitioned and is now thriving. Do you think this book would have come to life eventually, or was the pandemic the push you needed to finally complete it?
Julia: I do not know; maybe during my retirement, with plenty of time for retrospection and introspection, it could have happened in my 60s. But I am glad that lockdowns gave me the space to start correcting an old text I wrote in the early 2000s and let me work on new chapters — I did not have to wait until I was retired (laugh). I just wish all these millions of people had not died due to coronavirus infections…
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| "I think I always knew my writing would eventually happen; I just did not know how and when." |
I think I always knew my writing would eventually happen; I just did not know how and when. Every time I came to the USA for my university scholarships — in 2011 for two years and in 2016 for a year — I had this plan at the back of my head to continue writing my novel during my free time, on weekends, but I was too busy with research, making new friends, and enjoying big city life in Philly or spending time outdoors in sunny Florida in the wintertime, somehow never ready for isolation, true self-reflection, and the hard work of transforming my ideas into language, complex and meaningful sentences.
As a slightly overdue post-doctoral researcher in my mid-thirties, because I “academically lost” several years due to transition in my very late twenties and early thirties, I was still not ready to commit to writing a 400-page novel, plus creating over 30 original artworks with some help from my fellow artists and AI. I believe the pandemic coincided with my much-desired mindset, reaching a certain level of maturity and peacefulness, and becoming ready to commit to creating a large piece of literature. That time needed to pass – it was crucial.
Monika: The book at its core is a romantic novel, but it also contains some other genre elements, so it is to some extent transgenre. Are you a romantic at heart? Do you ever indulge in those moments when you just need to drown your sorrows in delicious ice cream while watching a cheesy romantic movie to lift your mood? You know, the kind where you believe in love and maybe even shed a tear or two at the happily-ever-after? Or is that a bit too clichéd for you?
Julia: Of course – I used Paris on purpose as a city of romance and instant love, even though my experience of Paris, where I lived and studied for a year as an Erasmus student, is quite different, and it makes me think of métro-boulot-dodo, meaning subway-work-sleep, because that is the reality of the French capital – busy life with a lot of responsibilities. Luckily, this time of my life spent in Paris provided me with knowledge about the city, and it was easy to set part of the book in this place.
Monika: I have to confess, I’m a massive fan of Audrey Hepburn, especially in How to Steal a Million (1966). The romance, the Parisian charm, and her chic Givenchy outfits – it’s irresistible! I could watch it endlessly, dreaming of feeling effortlessly loved and admired. I guess it taps into those romantic stereotypes we all love: Paris, beauty, empowerment, and the handsome partner. You’ve used some of these elements quite intentionally to set the stage in your writing, haven’t you?
Julia: Of course – I used Paris as a city of romance and instant love, even though my experience of Paris, where I lived and studied for a year as an Erasmus student, is quite different, and it makes me think of métro-boulot-dodo, meaning subway-work-sleep, because that is the reality of the French capital – busy life with a lot of responsibilities. Luckily, this time of my life spent in Paris provided me with knowledge about the city, and it was easy to set part of the book in this place.
In general, it is always easier to write about places our bodies and minds have experienced. Then, the writing tends to be more truthful, I think. Even though nowadays we can search for and find everything online. We can go for a virtual walk on the other side of the globe, in places we have never been to.
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| "Noemi’s true love and the place to be is Poznań, the city where she was born and always returns to." |
And speaking of Audrey Hepburn, I much prefer her performance in Roman Holiday from 1953, where she is paired with Gregory Peck. It is still such a treat for me, and I can regularly go back to watching this movie. I just love it! It is not Paris, but Rome does just fine!
Monika: I know your French is impeccable, whereas my attempts barely go beyond bonjour and merci. That’s also why we’re having this interview in English, not French! However, let me ask you a question about France. While I’ve been to France a couple of times and adore French cuisine and fashion, my perspective might be a little... well, touristy. But what truly fascinates me is how French women radiate self-confidence, independence, and an effortless sense of beauty. They seem to glide through life with an unshakable belief in their charm. What draws you most to France? The culture, the language, the pastries, or that iconic Parisian chic?
Julia: Definitely, it is all these things you mentioned. I guess it is deeply rooted in European culture that France is at the center of it all, especially the French capital, and it dates back to le siècle des Lumières, meaning the Age of Enlightenment. Even nowadays, though it has long since passed, and the country has lost some of its scientific and cultural significance in the world that it once held.
Although I dare say, France may not be at the center of it all anymore, Paris remains the European capital of culture and science. Just check the number of live theaters in Paris – it is well over 100 places, from humongous ones to tiny, super-small ones! And the number of universities is also overwhelming compared to other major European cities.
But let’s not forget one thing – Noemi’s true love and the place to be is Poznań, the city where she was born and always returns to! One could almost say it is her secret boyfriend, always calling her to come home from international travels and long stays. It makes me think of Carrie Bradshaw’s love for New York in the TV show Sex and the City (laugh).
Monika: Shifting to Noemi, the protagonist of the novel, her life is filled with relationships, yet they always seem to slip through her fingers, fleeting and fragile. She remains single, but is this a choice, a quiet declaration of her desire to live life on her terms, free from the subtle chaos of sharing space with someone? Or is there something deeper within her, an unseen force, that prevents these relationships from blossoming into something more lasting?
Julia: It is a valid question, and since Noemi is my alter ego, I will also partly uncover my intimate life by replying. I wanted to portray a psychologically strong transgender woman who, like many other women, both trans and cis, longs to engage in relationships with men, or to be more specific with one man in particular, her teenage love Nicolas, but the timeframe of her life shifted, and people her age, especially worthy and handsome middle-aged men, are taken and have kids.
She will not settle for someone who does not meet her expectations, and they are set high! She prefers to be alone, creating her own life instead of accepting what is offered but does not suit her – she knows well how to navigate life by herself; she was forced to master it, and maybe she doesn't need anyone, as being so independent has become her second nature. Or maybe she wants to be on the safe side and never really fall in love, like the character Sally played by Sandra Bullock in the movie Practical Magic.
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| "The main idea here was to show that the heroine is like any other (cis) woman, that her being transgender does not define her." |
To never fall in love and never be hurt again, Sally is summoning up a true love spell called Amas Veritas (a metaphor for these high expectations that will never be met): “He can flip pancakes in the air. He'll be marvelously kind. And his favorite shape will be a star. And he'll have one green eye and one blue.” But of course, against all odds, this impossible guy, her dream guy who was supposed to not exist, does emerge later in the movie.
A little bit like Nicolas in my book, but in Noemi’s life, things are a bit more complicated, and I would like to think of her life as a bit of a mystery, so there is no straightforward declaration, only a suggestion that this love affair might continue in later years…
Monika: For the first 100 pages, the novel feels like a classic romance, a successful, mature woman navigating love, just like countless cis ladies do. And then… bam!... In the second part, we dive into Noemi’s teenage years and suddenly discover her secret. It’s like a plot twist in a thriller, except instead of a murder, it’s gender identity! Why did you decide to keep readers in suspense for so long? Were you tempting them with a false sense of familiarity before pulling the rug out from under them?
Julia: Firstly, I do not think 100 pages is that long to read (laugh), and for a mindful reader, there are some hints from the very beginning that she might be somehow different. But seriously, the main idea here was to show that the heroine is like any other (cis) woman, that her being transgender does not define her, and it is only one trait among so many others. Therefore, such a perspective seemed to me to be fair.
A reader gets to know her as they would any other lady, and we need time to know her better, as is the case with any other human being we meet in our lives. And her trans identity, transness, is not something that is hidden on purpose; it is more like it is not the first thing readers learn about her, not her first trait they are acquainted with. It is almost like there is nothing to disclose – it is more about uncovering her personality and full identity in due time.
It is our Western culture that teaches us to see it, as you just put it earlier, as a “plot twist in a thriller, except instead of a murder, it’s gender identity!” Who knows, maybe in 50 years, this “plot twist” will be less of one…"
END OF PART 1
All photos by Grzegorz Dembiński (courtesy of Julia Durzyńska).
© 2025 - Monika Kowalska
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