Nostalgia, Spice, and Growing up in the Early Aughts with Tash Doherty in These Perfectly Careless Things

My worms, 

Ali here. Recently, I had the absolute pleasure of catching up with Tash Doherty. Her debut novel These Perfectly Careless Things is a coming-of-age drama set against the nostalgic backdrop of 2010 London. And, y’all, it’s a novel you don’t want to miss. 

Grab a cup of tea, sit back, and enjoy my conversation with Tash, the brain behind the book. 

My questions are in bold, and Tash’s responses are directly below each question.

Why do you write?

I write because I genuinely love it. It's the state of flow I enter when I'm writing—it's liberating and deeply fulfilling. Writing allows me to articulate and express my thoughts and experiences in a way nothing else can. As I’ve said, writing was my first love. It's why I've oriented my entire life towards it, which even led me to move to Mexico. Simply put, writing makes me happy, and that's reason enough for me.

Tell us a bit about These Perfectly Careless Things. 

It's a coming-of-age, spicy teen romance set in 2010 London, the city where I grew up. Back then, we were all about Facebook and Blackberries, not Instagram and iPhones. This book is about capturing what it felt like to be a teenager at that time, and all the crazy, reckless things we got up to in the city. I started this project when I was 14 and now I'm almost 30, so it's been a long journey but a heartfelt one. This book is essentially a tribute to my youth in London and what it was like to experience everything for the first time.

Self-publishing is becoming a popular route for debut authors. What motivated you to self-publish?  

I spent a long time querying agents with no success. Ultimately, I chose the self-publishing route to gain full creative control and better royalties. I had already spent 15 years writing this novel, so I felt I had to finish it before I could move on to other projects. At first, I felt disappointed not to get a big fancy book deal with a major publishing house. But now I love having complete creative control over my work, from creating the cover to editing and everything in between. It’s a huge investment, but I’m hopeful it will pay off in the future. 

How did you decide on the title of your book? Can you tell us about the process of designing or selecting the cover?

The title These Perfectly Careless Things emerged from an Instagram poll I conducted last year. Initially, the book was going to be called Peach Tulips, but my sister didn’t like the title and I realized it wasn’t catchy enough. My dad actually came up with the final title, which people on Instagram liked because it gets to the heart of the story—those perfectly careless moments of youth.  The conflict and carelessness of being a teenager is central to the novel's theme.

As for the cover, I used Midjourney, an AI tool, to help design it. This process was quite personal because I wanted the cover to reflect specific elements of the story, including a significant scene involving a dress similar to the one on the cover (no spoilers!). Designing the cover was a meticulous process—I spent an entire day perfecting the male character’s jawline because AI thinks that all men have chiseled faces, whereas my character didn’t. I might run some A/B tests to see if readers like other versions of the cover better.

What singular piece of advice would you offer aspiring writers?

I have two, actually: 

1. Keep going and never stop—that's crucial. 

2. Set a firm deadline for yourself. It's easy to get lost without one. No one else will push you forward the way you can push yourself. Setting a deadline gives you a clear goal to work toward.

Reflecting on your writing career, what pivotal moment shaped your path as an author?

A traumatic event three years ago changed everything for me. It forced me to reevaluate my life's priorities and accelerated my writing career. I used to work in tech and kept making excuses for not writing, telling myself I would write when I retired. But this major turning point made me realize that I should pursue my passion for writing immediately because we’re not promised tomorrow! 

Let's talk about rejection and criticism. It’s hard. How do you handle it, and what advice would you offer to others?

Rejection is something you have to get used to. I've faced numerous rejections, but it's crucial not to take them to heart. For me, a single positive email from a reader who liked my writing can outweigh ten rejections from literary agents. The key is to keep putting yourself out there and accept that not everything you write is going to be awesome.

Interested in learning more about Tash? Reach out here. 

See what she’s reading here on Bookworm (and add These Perfectly Careless Things to your TBR.) 

If you don’t win the giveaway, don’t worry, you can buy her book here. 

Also, Tash has a newsletter called Misseducated, where she’s using sex writing to save the world. Y’all, it’s hot, hot, hot. Subscribe, for real. 

Stay inspired, keep turning the pages, and perhaps find a new favorite in These Perfectly Careless Things.

Talk to you soon (I hope!), and until then, be well and be happy.

Yours in dirt,

Ali