We chat with author Taylor Hobbs about Heartbreak and Other Organ Failures, which is a coming-of-age adventure set in the fast lane and a heartfelt, hilarious celebration of sisterhood.
Hi, Taylor! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
Hello! Thanks so much for having me on Nerd Daily. I am a writer who is currently based in the Pacific Northwest with my husband and two young kids, but we have lived all over, even on a 38-ft sailboat named Story Time. Thankfully, I’m able to take my love of books and writing everywhere! Heartbreak and Other Organ Failures is my first YA novel.
When did you first discover your love for writing and stories?
I don’t remember a time when I wasn’t obsessed with stories. I was one of those kids who brought a book everywhere and lived to marathon huge fantasy novels. Laying down and staring at ink on a page while hallucinating vividly has always been my favorite form of escapism. The writing part came later in life, once I was an adult who had more confidence and the space to figure out my own voice.
Quick lightning round! Tell us:
- The first book you ever remember reading: One of the first ‘big kid’ chapter books I remember reading was Matilda by Roald Dahl, being convinced I had telekinetic powers, and trying to float stuff around my room.
- The one that made you want to become an author: The Princess Diaries because Meg Cabot’s style made her characters feel like a best friend. I loved her voice and her humor, but most of all the way she could connect with readers. After finishing the book, it was the first time I thought, I wonder if I could do that one day.
- The one that you can’t stop thinking about: I’ve often wished that I could scrub my brain and read incredible books for the first time again. The first on that list would be Daphne Du Maurier’s Rebecca (I will never be over that plot twist).
Your YA debut novel, Heartbreak and Other Organ Failures, is out now! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Madcap, Heartfelt, Messy, Humorous, Authentic
What can readers expect?
There is no one in the world that Kaley loves more than her older sister Zoey, who has developmental disabilities and is medically fragile. When the sisters learn that Zoey needs a new kidney but is at the bottom of the transplant list, they set off on a madcap family road trip to find their estranged father, who might agree to donate. Nothing will stand in Kaley’s way—with Zoey’s health stable, Kaley can follow her boyfriend to an out-of-state college next fall.
Then Kaley learns that her mom has her own plans for the sisters’ futures. Kaley must reconcile the caretaker role she was born into with the desire to discover her own identity, and decide what she’s willing to do for the person she loves most.
Where did the inspiration for Heartbreak and Other Organ Failures come from?
I actually have an older sister with developmental disabilities and medical issues, so a lot of the experiences of the characters were pulled from the same ‘emotional well’ as my own upbringing.
The novel itself started with a 531-word short story that I submitted for a fellowship. I decided to expand it into a novel on the off-chance I won, because I wanted to be able to include the resume boost in my query letter to agents. The day after I finished the rough draft, I got the call that I won the fellowship. Everything aligned with this project, and I thought, okay, this is obviously a story that people want to read.
Were there any moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
I really loved writing the dynamic between Kaley and Zoey. These two are absolutely hysterical together. Sibling relationships are so fun to explore and add such depth to a story when they are written authentically. Growing up, there weren’t a lot of books that represented my own sibling dynamic, and getting to put an accurate portrayal on the page was a high-five to my younger self.
Did you face any challenges whilst writing? How did you overcome them?
I’ve found that it’s really hard to write a novel that’s close to a lived experience. At the end of the day, Heartbreak and Other Organ Failures is a story, not an autobiography. The biggest challenge was not letting myself get preoccupied with how everything would be perceived and accidentally stunting the novel. The characters needed to arc in a way that best served the narrative, regardless of the fact that some people in my life would have trouble coming to terms with it.
This is your YA debut novel! What was the road to becoming a published author like for you?
I didn’t go to school for writing. I’ve always been a reader, and I didn’t start writing until my mid-20s when I jumped right into writing novels. They were bad. But it was also freeing, because there wasn’t any pressure on me while I muddled through the learning process on my own. Was this the most efficient way? No, but I think it allowed me to keep a spark that would have been smothered out had I approached it the same way I did my undergrad education.
I wrote seven novels, two of which were published by a small romance press, before finally getting a literary agent. By that point, I had amassed around 500 rejections over ten years. I was close to deciding to take a break for a while, but I knew I would never forgive myself if I chickened out on the story concept that would mean the most to me. I’m so thankful that I didn’t give up!
What’s next for you?
I don’t have my elevator pitch down yet as I am currently neck-deep in intensive developmental edits, but my next project is another YA contemporary book. It’s about competitive gymnastics and will touch on mental health, anxiety, and OCD. The book is about a gymnast with gradually worsening eyesight and the bond with her Deaf twin brother while she navigates this identity crisis.
Lastly, what books are you looking forward to picking up? Any you’ve read so far this year that you’ve enjoyed?
This past month, I read my NYR cohorts’ books before we went on tour together. I HIGHLY recommend Peyton June’s The Monsters We Made, Alex Rittany’s Maybe Tomorrow I’ll Know, and H.D. Carver’s We Became Wild. Amazing stories by some amazing people!
I’ve also been reading a lot of books by Deaf and Hard of Hearing authors to see how they’ve chosen to represent ASL and Deaf culture on the page. I’m currently reading a cute YA called Someone to Daydream About by Sydney Langford.
