“Every good revolution must start, and end, with a revolution of the self,” writes Revolutionaries founder and CEO, Wallea Eaglehawk.
Wallea’s passion for her work is evident in the way her face lights up when talking about it. Her love of the written word and the power it has to bring change inspired her to create Revolutionaries. The micro-publisher’s aim is to publish transformative and empowering cross-genre works that do not fit into the current commercial publishing landscape and is currently open for submissions.
The philosophy of self-revolution is woven throughout Wallea’s creative and professional work. The 30-year-old professional sees herself as an artist, an eternal student, as well as a dreamer and revolutionary. “I see them [dreamer and revolutionary] as going hand in hand, like someone who wants to dream big and make change,” Wallea says.
The Australian-American social theorist has not been afraid to walk the walk as well as talk the talk. After leaving school in Year 11, she completed an Advanced Diploma of Screen and New Media and started an events company, and in 2011 curated her first gallery show. The following year she began studying creative writing before transitioning to a degree in sociology at the University of the Sunshine Coast. “And that’s when I really fell in love with sociology and social theory,” she says.
Wallea’s studies in human society and social change helped her understand herself, and writing was a way to channel that understanding. “Understanding society and culture through patterns helps me understand myself in the world.” Never one to fit in, Wallea was bullied at school which she says prompted her to hone her weirdness and continue to stand up for what she believed was right in the world.
In 2019, Wallea attended a writer’s residency which tasked her with writing a monologue for her younger self. The residency inspired her to combine her fiction writing with her love of sociology and social theory. It was then that her book, Idol Limerence: The Art of Loving BTS as Phenomena was first conceptualised.
With over 40 million fans world-wide (some sources claim that figure to be more like 90 million), BTS is one of the most popular bands in the world. BTS, also known as Bangtan Sonyeondan (방탄소년단) or Bulletproof Boy Scouts, is a multi-Grammy nominated, seven-member Korean pop group, which is often referred to as a boyband, but which is not like any boyband the West is familiar with.
After shopping around for a publisher, Wallea realised that the traditional publishing landscape wasn’t a great fit for her book. She started Revolutionaries, to not only publish her own work but to help other authors achieve their publishing dreams.
The publishing company has several imprints. Revolutionaries is the main publishing arm and produces contemporary cross-genre works, Bulletproof is for BTS-specific non-fiction, and Moonrise produces literary works. The Bulletproof imprint was created to give BTS fans a place to share their stories. Inspired by music and musicians, Wallea sees BTS as a great example of revolutionaries.
“To me, a revolutionary is someone who inspires or creates change. Positive change,” Wallea says. BTS’s ‘love yourself, speak yourself’ message is a great example of this and something she thinks has contributed to a revolution of speech. “I want to empower people to understand that they are revolutionaries,” she says. “By creating change within ourselves we can change our communities and we can change the world.”
Wallea is currently working on a prequel to Idol Limerence and, in keeping with her curious nature, she is also researching the concept of ‘iconicism’. “What I’m really interested in is how people become iconic. How do we define iconic people? What is the process of becoming iconic, and what are all the different levels and stages. And of course, BTS is a great example of what they’ve had to do in order to become part of the cultural zeitgeist.”
Revolutionaries imprint Bulletproof is currently calling for submissions for the BTS’s Map of the Soul by ARMY book project. Details can be found on the submissions page of the Revolutionaries website.
To find out more about Wallea Eaglehawk or connect with her on social media, she can be found on Instagram @walleaeaglehawk or @thebtstheorist or via her website walleaeaglehawk.xyz
