We chat with author Chatham Greenfield about Try Your Worst, which is a cosy mystery about rivals who must find out who has been framing them for crimes they didn’t commit.
Hi, Chatham! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
I’m an award winning author, a born and bred Floridian, and an enthusiast of all things Nora Ephron. I write romances that authentically represent my lived experiences as a disabled, Jewish, lesbian. My first YA romance TIME AND TIME AGAIN came out last year and my next, TRY YOUR WORST is out 9/23.
When did you first discover your love for writing and stories?
I’ve been writing obsessively since I was eight years old. I was bored in class and started making up story ideas in my head to pass the time. I kept thinking “I wish these were real books”. Then it dawned on me that I could be the one to write them. Unsurprisingly, the fairytale retellings I wrote in third grade will never see the light of day, but I still live and write by this philosophy.
Quick lightning round! Tell us:
- The first book you ever remember reading: Sitting Ducks by Michael Bedard. I had to go to a lot of doctor’s appointments as a kid, and it became a tradition for me to read it in the waiting room every time. It’s a sweet story that brought me a lot of comfort when I needed it most.
- The one that made you want to become an author: I’m going to cheat and give two. Running Out of Time by Margaret Peterson Haddix, because wow, those twists blew my mind in fifth grade. The other is Holes by Louis Sachar. I still contemplate sometimes how he wrote such a perfect book.
- The one that you can’t stop thinking about: Check, Please! by Ngozi Ukazu. The romance is so tender, the humor is laugh-out-loud funny, and the found family feels so real. It just has so much heart. I was an early fan back when it was still being updated as a web comic and I’ve reread it more times than I can count.
Your latest novel, Try Your Worst, is out September 23rd! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Cozy, gay, sappy, tender, and rompy
What can readers expect?
TRY YOUR WORST is a cozy mystery that follows two girls who put their life-long rivalry aside to figure out who’s framing them for a series of petty crimes and putting their futures at ivy league colleges at risk.
It’s a book that requires a notebook to scribble down theories and, at times, a box of tissues. I promise there’s plenty of funny moments too though! Readers can expect a lot of hijinks while the mystery is solved and plenty of hesitant fumbling through romantic feelings.
Where did the inspiration for Try Your Worst come from?
TRY YOUR WORST was inspired in part by my own experience struggling with depression as a teenager. High school is hard enough, but it’s so much harder with a chemically imbalanced brain. I wanted to touch on how that experience impacts academics, friendships, and romantic relationships. And I wanted to do so on the backdrop of one of my favorite types of stories: a silly, sweet rom com.
Were there any moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
I loved writing the setting of this book a lot. It was my first time setting a book in a real place (St. Augustine, Florida) and it was as challenging as it was fun. I’m from Florida myself and I’ve always wanted to write about what it’s like to live in a tourist town full-time. The end result was a pink, cat themed bed and breakfast and plenty of complaints about traffic.
Did you face any challenges whilst writing? How did you overcome them?
I struggled with writing dual POV for the first time. It almost felt like writing two stories at once, two character arcs, two sets of friends, two families. Figuring out the characters’ voices was the key. I had this sort of breakthrough moment with developing their distinct voices and once I had that, they felt a lot more alive and individual. It also helped to remember that their stories aren’t actually separate, and are in constant conversation with each other. One wouldn’t exist without the other.
What’s next for you?
I’m currently working on my next sapphic YA rom com, LIKE A LADY. It’s a DUMPLIN’ meets SHE’S THE MAN fake dating romance out 2027 that I think is gonna be a lot of fun!
Lastly, what books have you enjoyed reading this year? Are there any you’re looking forward to picking up?
My two favorite reads this year have been ALL THE NOISE AT ONCE by DeAndra Davis (the prose and autistic rep are amazing) and THE DIVIDING SKY by Jill Tew (a picture perfect dystopian romance). I’m looking forward to the release of MIXING MAGICS, a cozy MG fantasy by Clare Edge and BEST WOMAN by Rose Dommu, a trans sapphic romance.
