We had the pleasure of chatting with author Lily Chu about her latest release The Stand-In, along with writing, book recommendations, and more!
Hi, Lily! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
Hello Nerd Daily readers! I’m Lily and I write rom-coms featuring Asian characters, some glitz, and realistic issues that regular people often have to deal with, such as identity and mental health. You can find me on Twitter or (more often) Instagram at @lilychuauthor and see what I’m reading on Bookbub.
How has the start of 2022 been for you?
Well, starting 2022 in calendar year three of a global pandemic definitely put a damper on whatever good vibes I hoped would magically manifest. Other than that, I think it’s been as good as it could be. Impulse control issues come in handy when trying to keep life interesting, so I got a few new ear piercings, went on book leave from my day job (actually this started in November but I only started to hit my stride in the winter), and have been saying yes to every invitation that comes my way. I also began writing a book that’s due in July.
When did you first discover your love for writing?
I don’t love writing that much, to be honest. It’s hard work for something you do sitting at a laptop combined with guilt for thinking it’s hard when there are far more trying jobs out there. But I love storytelling and always wanted to hear (and tell) stories about people, who are eternally fascinating to me.
Quick lightning round! Tell us the first book you ever remember reading, the one that made you want to become an author, and one that you can’t stop thinking about!
First book I remember reading: From Anna, by Jean Little. It’s about a young girl with terrible sight who feels left out of her family due to her perfect siblings. She’s in a class with similar kids and the teacher helps them weave baskets as Christmas gifts. I won’t ruin the ending but I think about that book and the illustration of Anna and her basket a lot even now.
The book that made me want to write: Neuromancer, by William Gibson. I love this book. I would marry this book and have Gibson’s Burning Chrome short story collection be my maid of honour. His were the first books that I thought, wow, I didn’t even know stories could be like that.
The book I can’t stop thinking about: I tend to dwell on scenes or lines rather than books. Sometimes it’s the feeling I was left with, like the total emotional drain after reading Love Story (my go-to catharsis book) or the hilarious phrasing in Talia Hibbert’s Brown sisters books.
Your debut novel, The Stand-In, is out now! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
- Escapist
- Entertaining
- Heartwarming
- Super-hot-hero (technically one word with the hyphens?)
- To-do lists
What can readers expect?
The Stand-In is about Gracie Reed, a biracial Chinese-Canadian who loses her job and agrees, albeit reluctantly, to impersonate her doppelganger, Chinese movie star Wei Fangli, at events. She needs the money to move her mother to a better and more culturally sensitive long-term care home. Gracie also finds to her dismay that being partnered by Fangli’s co-star and usual escort, actor and Sexist Man in the World (officially) Sam Yao is part of the deal. However, as Sam and Gracie grow closer, she begins to question the life she wants for herself, and whether Sam sees her for who she is, or only as Fangli’s stand-in.
Where did the inspiration for The Stand-In come from?
I usually get a plot idea based on a what-if scenario, and it evolves from there. In this case, I wondered: What if a woman was approached to be a celebrity double? What would she do? What kind of woman would say yes, and what would motivate her to agree?
I also wanted to write a book featuring a biracial main character who has similar experiences as I have, and to address issues that I think are important, namely questions of identity, love and friendship, and mental health. On the lighter side, I wanted to create a fun, amusing story, like an emotional spa day for readers.
Can you tell us a bit about the challenges you faced while writing and how you were able to overcome them?
I wrote The Stand-In in the first months of the pandemic, from January to May 2020. I wrote every day except for a break to binge-watch Kingdom, a Korean period zombie show which in retrospect may not have been the best viewing choice given the province was under a state of emergency to deal with an infectious disease. I was also working full-time for my communications job, which was very busy given the move to remote work, and the rest of my family was in the house as well. It was a difficult and heavy time to write in, especially when that book is a rom-com. I often wonder what the book would have been like had I written it a year earlier.
I’m not sure how I overcame the challenges. I think like everyone, I simply dealt with it day by day and saved the feelings to feel later.
Were there any favourite moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
I loved working through Sam and Gracie’s relationship. They begin with so many wrong assumptions about each other, so it was fun to pull back each layer and let them find out who the other really was.
What was the road to becoming a published author like for you?
I’d love to be very positive here, but for me it was hard and lonely. Even when you have a good group of people to talk to about writing, in the end it’s just you and that blank screen. I won’t even talk about the gloom that comes with a rejection, which can happen for a variety of factors that have nothing to do with the strength of your writing.
For me, the most valuable event was getting an agent. It was incredibly validating to have another person say, hey, I think you have something worth looking at here. But even after that, there’s no guarantee you’ll sell. The book she took me on for was a cyberpunk romance and it’s still languishing on my laptop.
What’s next for you?
My second book, The Comeback, will be out from Audible in July and is currently available for pre-order. It’s about an ambitious lawyer who falls in love with a K-pop idol. I’m also working on another book set in luxury fashion. I’d give more details but I keep making changes even though my current document version is aspirationally named THIS IS THE FINAL F&%$ING ONE.docx.
Lastly, do you have any book recommendations for our readers?
Absolutely. Two other rom-coms set in Toronto that I loved are Kamila Knows Best, by Farah Heron and Donut Fall in Love by Jackie Lau. Don’t read either of them when you’re hungry. If you’re into non-fiction, Burnout: The secret to unlocking the stress cycle by Emily and Amelia Nagoski has me rethinking a lot of my life.
