Interview with Edward Underhill, author of ALWAYS THE ALMOST

 

I am really excited for today's interview. Today's interviewee is Edward Underhill and we discussed his upcoming debut novel Always the Almost. This was a great book and I look forward to its release so everyone can read it.

In this interview we talked about what his experience has been like releasing his debut novel, if there's a playlist to go along with this novel, and what drives him to write.

⚜ ⚜ ⚜ ⚜ ⚜ ⚜

When did you first start writing?

I've been writing since I was a kid, and I wrote my first "novel" when I was something like fourteen. I call it a "novel" because I had no idea what I was doing and it wasn't very good! But I discovered I liked writing long stories, so I kept at it, and eventually the stories were less bad.

Sounds like a solid start to writing! I'm glad you were able to discover the love of writing long stories.
What drives/inspires you to write?

Honestly, I think it's changed over the years! I've always just loved telling stories; it feels like getting to live so many different lives. I think a big part of what inspires me now is wanting to write stories I wish I had when I was younger-stories where trans and queer people get the spotlight, where they get to simply exist as their whole and complex selves, and where the main focus of the story isn't their identity or trauma.

That is an absolutely amazing inspiration! I definitely relate to that. It's part of why I do what I do, to bring attention to these books I wish I had when I was younger.
How did you come up with the idea for this book and title?

I was driving to work at a very early hour because I was in a period where I was literally working 60-80 hours a week, and I was feeling really burned out and frustrated, and for some reason, my mind went to all these classical music competitions I was in as a teenager, and how I kept coming in second. And what went through my head then was "See? I'm only ever almost good enough!" I realized that that anxiety kind of summed up a lot of things for me, even related to being a trans person and constantly feeling like I wasn't quite right for somebody. The idea for the story basically came to me right then, even down to the title, which almost never happens.

Oh, that's awesome! That is truly a great way to have discovered the inspiration for this story and this title. It fits so perfectly!
How long did this book take you to write?

The first draft took about a year, which was actually the fastest I'd written anything in a while.

Wow! I'm impressed!
What was your writing process for this book like?

I wrote the first draft of this book in and around my regular day job, so I was mostly writing in the evenings and on the weekends. Then I was lucky enough to win a mentorship contest, and around the same time, my day job became freelance, which meant I had a little more flexibility, and I could have an entire day here and there to write, which was amazing.

That sounds like it started off very stressfully and I'm glad you were able to find the time to write. Congrats on getting that mentorship and getting more freedom to write!
This is your debut book. What has that experience been like for you? You can talk about getting published, the support you've received, your own emotional moments, and anything like that.

It's been wild, but in a really wonderful way so far. I queried another book before Always The Almost, and while a lot of agents requested it, ultimately everybody passed. So I had no expectations for this book. I had hopes, but I tried to keep my expectations low on purpose. I've been blown away by the support the book has received, and blown away by how many people have wanted to read it. Not that long ago, there really was no space in traditional publishing for trans authors and our stories. To see that change, and to see people in traditional publishing champion my book, has been really emotional. There's still a long way to go-and the surge in book ban efforts is especially scary-but I feel incredibly lucky to have found some truly amazing folks in publishing who are fighting for marginalized voices. It gives me hope that the industry can continue to change.

This was probably the question I wanted the answer to the most. I love to hear about people's experiences when releasing their first debut. I'm glad it's been wonderfully wild. I am so very glad that we've got people fighting for marginalized voices to be represented.
This question is here solely because the main character is a pianist and it left me wondering. Is there a playlist that goes along with this book? Any music that you listened to while writing it?

I love this question! There is, actually! I listen to music a lot when I write, so I usually put playlists together. I hadn't thought of putting out it online but maybe I'll have to do that! Of course, I definitely listened to Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1, which is what Miles plays in the book. But the playlist also has some Ingrid Michaelson and Taylor Swift on it, as well as the piano piece from Yuri!!! on Ice, which fit perfectly because it's piano and it's so joyful. I wrote the book before Heartstopper came out on Netflix; if I was writing it now, I'd probably have the entire Heartstopper soundtrack on there, too.

Please put it online! I would gladly listen to it! I love the vibes that I get from the things you mentioned.
What is one of your favorite scenes of the book? I know I have a few.

I have too many favorites, all for different reasons. But I did really love writing the scene in Goodwill. Miles finding a suit was such a special moment to write-because I feel like clothes can be so important to trans people-but I also just loved writing a scene where all four of my characters get to hang out and be silly together.

Yes! I definitely get why that would be a scene that you mention.
If you could talk to your characters, what would you say to them?

I think I'd probably tell them to take care of each other. Maybe that sounds mushy! But a lot of the book is about that-learning to get out of your own head, finding your joy, but also working to be a better friend and partner to other people. I think that's important for everybody, but especially for queer folks. Community matters, and taking care of each other is so important, because we're often all we have. We're the people who can make each other feel safe and seen and understood.

That is amazing! As a message for people to take away and as something for you to tell them. It's so important!
Were there any plot points or scenes that changed a lot from the first draft to the final draft?

I had a whole scene with a random water balloon fight in the high school hallway, and my team was gently like, "This is fun but what's the point??" They were right-it served no purpose in the plot! So I took it out. Maybe I'll post it as a bonus scene sometime.

Okay! Yeah, probably wasn't necessary but would have been fun!
Do you plan on doing anything to celebrate the publication of this book?

I'm doing a launch event at The Ripped Bodice, a local bookstore, on the Saturday after my launch, and I'm super excited about it. For actual release day, I'm hoping to go to a bookstore and just see my book on the shelf. That will be kind of surreal.

Ooh, yay!!! I'm super excited about your launch event and I hope it goes wonderfully! Also, I am so excited for you to see your book on the shelf of a bookstore.
What are some of your favorite books that you've read recently?

I am so excited about how many queer and trans books are coming out these days! Some recent YA favorites of mine are The Lesbiana's Guide To Catholic School by Sonora Reyes, The Summer of Bitter and Sweet by Jen Ferguson, and Icebreaker by A.L. Graziadei.

Yes! It's absolutely amazing! Out of those three I've only read Icebreaker so far, but I definitely have the other two on my TBR pile!
Do you have any other books in the works that you can tell us about?

I do! My next YA book will come out in 2024 and is a romcom about a trans boy and a queer girl who are in two different marching bands and travel to NYC to play in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. But during a sightseeing tour with their bands the day before the parade, they both get on the wrong subway train, and spend the rest of the day on an epic adventure across the city to get back to their bands, and fall in love with each other along the way. I just turned in the final draft to my editor, and I can't wait to share more soon!

YES!!! I am so excited about the release of that book! That sounds absolutely amazing!
Thank you so much for taking part in this interview! I hope you have a great release and have an amazing time this year.

⚜ ⚜ ⚜ ⚜ ⚜ ⚜

You can find Edward Underhill on Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter.

You can buy Edward Underhill's books from The Ripped Bodice to get a signed/personalized copy. This also happens to be a local indie for Edward Underhill and should be supported if possible!

You can also likely buy the book at any other retailer that sells books including Bookshop and Book Depository.

If you can't buy his books but you still want to read them, consider requesting them to your local library or suggesting them on Overdrive!