Sarah Gailey’s latest novel The Echo Wife will be hitting shelves on February 16th, setting the bar high for SFF readers in 2021. The premise? Evelyn Caldwell is at the peak of her professional career, renowned for her innovative work in genetic cloning. Her personal life, however, is a completely different story. Years into their marriage, Evelyn and her husband Nathan begin to drift apart, until one day she learns Nathan is having an affair with a woman named Martine. Correction: a clone named Martine. A replica of Evelyn herself, sans the flaws which led to the downfall of their relationship.
Is your interest piqued? It should be! Read on to see what inspired Gailey to write a book about genetic cloning, their take on the science behind it, their amusing first “job” at a tender young age on the playground, and much more!
Hi Sarah, and thanks for answering a few questions for The Nerd Daily! To start, tell our readers a little bit about yourself.
Thank you so much for having me! I’m an author, currently living and working in Southern California with my family. I cook and I garden, but I spend most of my time writing too much.
How would you describe your latest novel, The Echo Wife (out February 16th 2021), in three sentences or less?
The Echo Wife is the story of a brilliant scientist, the husband who betrayed her, and the clone between them. It’s a deeply personal, very emotional exploration of identity, duality, and origins.
What inspired this idea to take on the intriguing, yet complex and controversial subject matter of genetic cloning in this book?
The Echo Wife is in many ways a book about how we become the people we are. Our personalities and identities are shaped by so many factors — I wanted to examine the paths we choose and the paths we avoid, the way we define ourselves and the way we allow others to define us. Cloning felt like a natural fit. It leaves so many doors open for a conversation about self-definition and how much of that we actually get to do.
As you were researching and writing The Echo Wife, what did you learn about the science behind cloning that stuck with you the most? How have your thoughts and opinions about the potential future of genetic cloning been shaped and influenced throughout this process?
I so love this question! The science in The Echo Wife is very intentionally divergent from existing cloning technology — I’d prefer to be inventive than to try to write about scientific processes that are evolving quicker than I can keep up with — but I did get to learn quite a lot about advances in the development of artificial womb environments. I find it so beautiful that humans dedicate their lives and livelihoods to helping others, even when the problems that need solving seem impossible. My thoughts on the future of genetic cloning remain mixed. As with any field of scientific exploration, the potential for great harm and the potential for great benefit are both limitless. I will say that my understanding of the potential for harm broadened significantly over the course of the writing process, but I suspect that reflects more on the kind of narrative I’m interested in than the direction the science will take.
Throughout the novel your protagonist, Evelyn, is trying to come to terms with the fact that her husband Nathan left her for another woman. She feels particularly betrayed because the woman (Martine) is a replica of her, Nathan’s attempt to create his “perfect” woman by tweaking Evelyn’s “flaws.” Despite this, Evelyn never hesitates to assist Martine when she comes seeking help. Could you talk a bit about these dissonant feelings you created in Evelyn and why this is an important part of her character?
In many ways this conflict is the core of the book. Evelyn considers herself superior to most people — she respects her own opinions and choices and trusts that her judgment is, in most things, correct. And yet, when she meets Martine, she sees a reflection of every way in which her husband — arguably the person who has known her best — found her lacking. Evelyn feels responsible for Martine, who was created largely as a response to Evelyn’s own shortcomings, and who wouldn’t exist without the technology which Evelyn pioneered. She sees, in this woman, everything she disdains, but she also sees all her insecurities. This, I think, is the nature of confronting the self that might have been: it’s almost impossible not to wonder if one chose the right path.
I really enjoyed your use of flashbacks to both Evelyn’s childhood and the earlier days of her relationship with Nathan throughout the novel. Without giving any spoilers, could you talk a bit about the use of this device to help flesh out the story?
I wanted to find a way to make it clear why Evelyn is the way she is. She tells herself constantly that she’s choosing to be the woman she has become, that she’s different from Martine because she has defined herself. By giving a window into her past, I wanted to give the reader the opportunity to question the narrative Evelyn has about her own life. It’s my hope that readers will come away with a deeper understanding of how complicated the process of becoming a Self can be.
What does your overall writing process look like? Do you have a certain schedule or routine you stick to? Any tips for burgeoning writers out there?
I write every weekday and on many weekends as a way to survive deadlines. I light a candle, get a mug of hot tea, put a warm blanket on my lap and instrumental music in my headphones, and dive in. I usually write until I hit a plot milestone that feels satisfying — usually at least a thousand words in a day.
This routine is absolutely not for everyone, though. “Write every day” is terrible advice that I wish people would stop giving out. I would tell burgeoning writers this: it shouldn’t feel lousy. Sometimes writing is hard because you’re challenging yourself, or digging into emotions, but sometimes it’s hard because you’re tired or hungry or sad. If writing feels like a punishment, don’t do it! It’s okay to walk away from projects, to take breaks and to move on to new things. Between the beautiful creature you are the beautiful book you want to write, you are the one who deserves the most care and consideration.
2020 has been a particularly strange year! How have you been making it through this difficult time? Have you been reading anything that you would recommend to others?
It has been an absolutely awful, disorienting, destabilizing year in so many ways. Fortunately, I was well-equipped for it: I have a loving household that is founded on mutual support and trust, I have the ability to work from home, I’m materially safe and comfortable. I’m also mentally ill in a way that means I’ve spent years learning to cope with destabilization and disorientation. My strongest recommendation to folks who are trying to deal with the continuing trauma of 2020 and beyond would be: try to give yourself as much credit as you’d give a friend who was struggling. Humans naturally acclimate to our circumstances quickly, and it’s easy to forget that things are still hard, and that you don’t need to have adjusted functionally to the circumstances your brain has grown accustomed to.
I just finished reading the incredible Victories Greater Than Death by Charlie Jane Anders, coming out from Tor Books in April 2021. It’s beautiful and just the book I needed. For readers who don’t want to wait until April: I’ve just started rereading K.A. Applegate’s iconic Animorphs books, and wow, do they ever hold up.
Are you currently working on any new projects that you can share with our readers?
Right now I’m focusing on editing my third novel for adults, which should come out from Tor Books in 2022. I can’t say too much about it right now beyond this: if you liked The Shape of Water, and if you’re scared to look under your bed at night, you’re going to love it.
Let’s Get Nerdy: Behind the Writer with 9 Quick Questions
- First book that made you fall in love with reading: Bunnicula by James and Deborah Howe.
- 3 books you would take on a desert island: Why Fish Don’t Exist by Lulu Miller, Jade City by Fonda Lee, and How To Survive On A Desert Island by Tim O’Shea (I am nothing if not pragmatic).
- Movie that you know by heart: The Fifth Element
- Song that makes you want to get up and dance: The Feeling by Sammy Rae.
- Place that everyone should see in their lifetime: Tam. Standing up on top of a mountain and looking out over the sea is a life-changing experience.
- Introvert or extrovert: A healthy mix of both, but I do love my alone-time.
- Coffee, tea, or neither: Tea all the way.
- First job: Shilling buttons I found on the playground to classmates. I accepted cold hard cash or fruit snacks. Profits were through the roof until I ran out of buttons.
- Person you admire most and why: Dolly Parton. I admire her for all the obvious reasons, but most of all, because she’s the very embodiment of one of her most famous quotes: “Figure out who you are and do it on purpose”.
