JASP 2025: Catching up with Georgie Castilla

This year’s four-day symposium, JASP 2025: Sensibility and Domesticity, will take place June 19-22, 2025, in historic New Bern, North Carolina. We will be focusing on Austen’s first published novel, Sense and Sensibility, and considering the birth of her career as a published author and taking a transatlantic look at the world into which she was born. Program topics include medicine, birth, and domestic arts in Regency England and colonial North Carolina. We’ll be covering the aforementioned topics and celebrating Austen’s 250th birthday through a wide range of activities including workshops, small-group discussions, and workshops. Our Regency Ball is also not an event to be missed! We can’t wait to celebrate Austen’s 250th birthday with you! 

In anticipation of JASP 2025 we caught up with Georgie Castilla, the founder of Duniath Comics and a freelance author and comic artist. We spoke with him about his past experiences as a JASP speaker and attendee. Georgie was a speaker at JASP 2022, leading an adapations creative writing workshop with playwright Sarah Rose Kearns. For JASP 2023 he performed in Adam McCune’s theatrical production of Austen’s Evelyn. He also illustrated the coloring pages for 2023's coloring contest.

Which JASP activity has been your favorite?

I loved being a "speaker", would do it again! And I love the overall vibe and the ball.

What was your presentation about?

Write Your Own Austen Adaptation — I joined Sarah Rose Kearns in sharing our experiences adapting Austen to different media, and we conducted a table session in which we wrote Austen-inspired adaptations to share out loud.

What did you most enjoy about being a speaker?

The opportunity to share my own journey through Austen.

Why do you think Austen's Sense and Sensibility is important not only to her body of work but the entire literary canon? Why do you believe people should read it?

On a personal level, S&S literally saved my life. I was heavily bullied in school and I was dealing with a lot. I was very broken when my mother gave me a copy of the book and I had the chance to meet Marianne Dashwood, who wears her heart on her sleeve and is very unapologetic to feel out loud, like me. I think it’s a great introduction to Austen because the characters are so relatable. We have all been there.

Film stills from Sense and Sensibility (1995)

What do you enjoy most about Sense and Sensibility?

Marianne is one of my favorite Austen heroines, because I relate to her on a personal level. This novel also has my favorite villain, for I love to hate Fanny Dashwood so much!

Film stills from Sense and Sensibility (1995)

What do you love about Jane Austen and her works? 

Let’s just say that Austen knew how to read a room, and understood the complexity of the human heart in a way not many authors accomplished to do. She makes it feel relatable and real, despite the time period the works belong to.

Why is Jane Austen important?

Because her works are universal, relatable, and healing.

Why should people attend JASP 2025? 

As someone who walked away from Austen organizations due to racism and homophobia, I found in JASP a safe space in which I have been able to enjoy Austen without being told I’m not the intended reader. At JASP I truly felt that Jane Austen is for everyone. JASP is such an inclusive space. Everyone was so kind and welcoming. There were people from the LGBQT+ community in the audience, at discussion groups, etc. The whole environment was diverse and inclusive.

Do you have any upcoming projects?

My graphic novel adaptation of EMMA comes out on December 23rd of this year, in celebration of the 210th anniversary of its publication. This cute take on our favorite mis-matchmaker aims to portray a more diverse cast of characters than usually seen in Austen adaptations (a first in comic format) and create a friendly port of entry for new and young Austen readers, while delighting seasoned Janeites as well.

We can't wait to catch up with Georgie again in December! There are still a few places left for JASP 2025. Register here! JASP 2025 is partially supported by a grant from North Carolina Humanities. We hope to see you in New Bern, NC!