In the spirit of the author’s massively popular Twitter thread, Tucker Shaw’s When You Call My Name is a heartrending novel about two gay teens coming of age in New York City in 1990 at the height of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, perfect for fans of Adam Silvera and Mary H. K. Choi.
We chat with author Tucker Shaw about all things When You Call My Name, along with writing, book recommendations, and more!
Hi, Tucker! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
Hello! Thank you for having me. I’m Tucker. I’m a longtime editor and writer, I love food and cooking, I’m a huge fan of Chaka Khan, and my most prized possession is my collection of mixtapes from the 1980s and 1990s. I currently live in Boston, though my heart is, and will always be, in New York City.
How has the start of 2022 been for you?
Complicated, just as for everyone I think. The last handful of years have been doozies, but today, when I sit still, I can feel a new optimism seeping in. Despite it all.
When did you first discover your love for writing?
As soon as I figured out how to hold a pencil. I’ve always loved words, sentences, and stories. I think I love sentences most of all. There’s nothing in the world that energizes and inspires me like a great sentence. To read one is pure joy. But to create one that you’re proud of? It’s a rare occurrence, but the feeling is unmatched. I’ve been chasing that feeling for as long as I can remember. It doesn’t come often.
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!
Frog and Toad are Friends, by Arnold Lobel. An absolute classic with what felt like so much hidden meaning to a kid growing up in the 1970s who knew he was different.
Your latest novel, When You Call My Name, is out now! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Friendship, family, resilience, commitment, love.
What can readers expect?
The story is set in 1990 in New York City. It centers on two gay teenagers, Ben and Adam, as they navigate their way into a gay community wrestling with massive challenges, including the devastating AIDS crisis and a sharp increase in anti-queer violence. But it was also an incredibly exciting time to be in New York, a city buzzing with extraordinary creative energy – fashion, music, art, everything. During these thrilling but difficult times, Ben and Adam face tremendous difficulties while seeking hope, self-awareness, and each other.
Where did the inspiration for When You Call My Name come from?
I was a teenager and early twenty-something in the 1980s and I remember those years so vividly, for the heartbreak that saturated the gay world that I was entering, but also for the exuberance of finding kindred spirits to connect with. I’ve saved countless photographs, magazine clippings and mixtapes from those days, and love letters too. The friendships I forged then remain the most important friendships I’ve ever had. There’s something about challenging times that binds people together, I think.
Can you tell us a bit about the challenges you faced while writing and how you were able to overcome them?
Writing When You Call My Name was a deeply emotional experience for me, as it required me to walk back through some of the most difficult years of my life. I finished many nights of writing feeling truly depleted. But for every tough memory, I always found another memory of kindness, beauty, optimism, humor, hope, love. I made sure to feel the happy memories too, to keep my balance.
Were there any favourite moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
While none of the characters in the book is explicitly based on anyone real, they all reflect characteristics of people I know or knew. As I wrote, I fell into deep and complex relationships with my two main characters, Ben and Adam, and was so sorry to say goodbye to them when I finished. But if I had to choose a single character that I’d love to hang out with, it’s Rebecca. She’s an ambitious fashion photographer and devoted mentor to Ben, and her perspective on life – to understand and trust yourself first – is one I’d love to hear her talk more about.
What do you hope readers take away from When You Call My Name?
We don’t teach a lot about the history of HIV/AIDS crisis in schools, and while we do see some creative representations of that time, there’s so much room for so much more. I think many people, young people especially, are curious about those days – not just the facts and figures, but the feelings. They were terrible times, of course, but they were also transformative times, proving beyond any doubt that LGBTQIA+ people can meet any imaginable challenge, if we stick together and work together. We’ll need that energy in the days and years to come. I hope that people who read When You Call My Name will get a sense not just of what we’ve accomplished in the past, but what we’re capable of accomplishing in the future.
What’s next for you?
Not sure! We will see.
Lastly, do you have any book recommendations for our readers?
So many. For fiction set in a similar context, I recommend The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai, Christodora by Tim Murphy, and Like a Love Story by Abdi Nazemian. For nonfiction, I highly recommend Sarah Schulman’s Let The Record Show, an extraordinary oral history of AIDS activism from the late 1980s and early 1990s.
One other title that I loved recently, albeit in a completely different vein, is Dean Atta’s The Black Flamingo. It’s a gorgeous and riveting story about finding and falling in love with your true self. It’s told in beautiful verse, and it is so inspiring.
Loved reading this interview! I just recently read the book and it instant became one of my favorites of the year!