“The human spirit didn’t drown. It was swept up and carried along; it flows still, the stream coursing its way through everyone’s lives. I just have to find a way to beat the dread, that’s all.”
Today we had the pleasure to have a chat with London Shah about her upcoming YA sci-fi debut, The Light at the Bottom of the World. Read on as we discussed the inspiration behind this epic dystopian story, London’s take on her #OwnVoice debut, and what to expect in the sequel!
Hi, London! Thank you for chatting with us today! First of all, congratulations on your upcoming debut release, The Light at the Bottom of the World! Can you introduce yourself, and explain what the story is about?
Hi, I’m thrilled to be here, and thank you. I live in London, but was born and brought up in the north of England. I love Autumn and rain and dark alleys and night-time and eating sweets and watching films and almost anything of the SFF genres. The Light at the Bottom of the World is as you say, my debut novel. It’s a young adult sci-fi about sixteen-year-old Leyla McQueen, a British Muslim submersible racer, and her quest to reunite with her father who’s been wrongfully arrested and imprisoned. The story is set in a submerged world of the future where humanity resides a thousand feet below the ocean’s surface.
The Light at the Bottom of the World is such an epic science-fiction story built in a daunting submerged post-apocalyptic universe! We can’t lie that we were gasping every time we flipped through the pages and discovered more and more magnificent details of Leyla’s world. What inspired you to start writing this story in the first place? Where did the ideas originally emerge from? Is it from the bold characters, the adventurous questing plot, or the cinematic universe itself?
Aw, thank you so much—it always thrills me to hear a reader was swept away by the world. And yes, it was absolutely the setting that inspired the story. For as long as I can remember I have fantasized about our world existing deep underwater. I have always imagined a submerged world almost exactly as our own, except we’re all living below the ocean’s surface. I would often look out of a window, or up once I was outside, and see us surrounded by water, submersibles, and sea creatures. I still sometimes see that world instead of this one, though admittedly much less since I finally got it out of my head and brought it to life on the page.
As a debut author, is The Light at the Bottom of the World the book that you always wanted to be your first published novel?
It’s the first story I’ve ever written. When I began writing it I never imagined I would ever write anything else, or that it would make me a “writer” now. Despite absolutely loving writing assignments at school, writing this novel seemed a case of only needing to tell this particular story because it was that pressing and absolutely begging to be brought to life. I needed to finally give in and try and conjure up this water-world I’d dreamt of for so long. I never thought publishing was an industry for me, and had always imagined writing was for other people—better-educated, white people. It never once occurred to me before then that I could try my hand at novel writing, and I began writing the story without thought for whether I would self-publish or try the traditional route once it was done. It was only around 1–2 years after joining Twitter that I even came across the traditional industry online. And I immediately realized I knew absolutely nothing about any of it.
Let’s talk more about this beautiful yet spine-chilling submerged world! You deliver a frightening (yet possible) concept of our future in this book. There were various advanced technological systems, but the one that really caught our attention was the transportation system, the submersibles and submarines. Can you share with us the research journey that you had to go through in order to write this particular aspect of your story?
Ah, I practically lived on oceanic sites and forums. And there are several prestigious companies already manufacturing and providing submersibles! I scoured their sites, and got in touch with them. I was incredibly lucky when I discovered Adam Wright, who at that time held the position of CEO at DeepFlight. Adam was wonderful and considerate in answering all submersible-related questions. He went above and beyond when he also generously gave me a mini tutorial via Skype, covering the basics of driving a submersible!
And we’re even more excited because this is not just a debut, but also an #OwnVoices book! How did your own background influence you in the making of these characters? Do you see a glimpse of yourself in Leyla? Are any other characters inspired by people that you know in person?
Oh yes, Leyla very definitely reflects my quieter side. I think my own background influenced her and therefore the story, in how subtly Leyla’s identity is presented. She just is, and it isn’t a problem. Identity-wise, she just gets to be, and that was something incredibly important to me. And no, to my knowledge, none of the other characters are based on anyone I know.
And lastly, that cliffhanger was extremely shocking, but we understand that it’s necessary to be done! However, what can we expect in the sequel to The Light at the Bottom of the World?
Hmm…you can expect even more action, more thrills, a few reveals, fabulous technologies, increased characters and character interactions, even more mystery, several twists…And plenty of humour—especially from dear Oscar Wilde who let’s just say has grown quite confident! Gah, I can’t wait to be able to talk more about LIGHT 2. I’m in love with its title alone, never mind the story!
Yes. I can’t wait to read London’s book. I love the idea of a submerged world.