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Young adult, magical realism, and every book in between infused with fairy dust...

Interview with Latinx Contemporary Author: Janelle Milanes

September 7, 2019

Analee, in Real Life by Janelle Milanes
Featured in Frolic Media
1) What was your inspiration behind Analee, in Real Life and Victoria in my Head?

The Victoria in my Head was something that I had been thinking about for a long time. I would take the subway to work (usually about an hour and a half each way) and zone out during the commute by listening to music. Somehow, this idea began to take form. I imagined a girl coming alive on stage in a way that no one who knew her would expect. I think high school me was living vicariously through this idea because I would have loved to sing in a band. Like Victoria, I was incredibly shy (ultimately, I sang in the chorus which is decidedly less cool but was still a fantastic outlet.) I started thinking about what it would look like for an introverted girl with stage fright to completely let everything go and live out her rock star fantasies.

Analee began as a writing exercise for a class I was taking. We had to write from the perspective of a high school stereotype, and I wrote as a wallflower. Years prior, I had also gone through an intense but short-lived World of Warcraft phase. The thought of trying on a whole other persona online was so intriguing to me. I thought it would be an interesting outlet for someone like Analee who felt so stifled in reality and could only live her truth in a virtual world.

2) Which character do you relate the most to Analee or Victoria?

Both characters have pieces of me in them. Victoria is a lot like my teenage self–sheltered, imaginative, yearning for something more than the mundane day-to-day routine. Her parents are very similar to my own as well. Analee possesses a heightened version of my insecurities. She is my anxiety times one thousand and has gone through much more in life than I have.

3) I really loved and related to the part of Victoria’s love of making very specific playlists. Do you find yourself making your own playlists in your writing process and what kind of music do you gravitate to when your writing?

Music is something that really inspires my writing. I do find myself coming up with story ideas after listening to certain songs. When I’m actually hunkering down to write, though, I have to be careful that what I listen to won’t distract me from the writing process! I will make playlists of songs that I can imagine fitting certain scenes in my story. The music tends to be all over the place but there is a fair amount of indie pop/rock in there. While I’m writing, I like the music to be very mellow.

4) Victoria was caught in a love triangle of sorts in The Victoria in my Head. If you had to pick Strand the carefree bad boy or Levi the nerdy hipster who would you pick?

Strand! Strand, Strand, Strand. I’m a sucker for a “bad boy” with a heart of gold when it comes to fiction.

5) How have your experiences of growing up as a Cuban-American influenced your characters Analee and Victoria?

It’s so hard to view objectively how my Cuban-American heritage has influenced my writing, because it’s all I’ve ever known. I’m not even sure I’m conscious of how it seeps into my characters. It’s in the way they speak, think, in their relationships with family and friends. It’s something that’s very difficult to define because it’s so much a part of me!

6) What diverse Latinx authors do you recommend us to read for the year of 2019?

Don’t Date Rosa Santos is an adorable read by Nina Moreno, about a Cuban-American girl who dreams of visiting Cuba but is cursed by the sea. Lilliam Rivera has a new book out as well that I’m excited to check out. It’s called Dealing in Dreams, and it’s a futuristic, dystopian Latinx novel.

7) One of my favorite things about Analee, in Real Life and Victoria in my Head, is that you describe characters that are not your caricature Cuban characters. They identify with their culture but they don’t fit in with their Cuban-American heritage and the stereotypical behaviors they are expected to have. Have you ever identified with these feelings of not fitting in growing up in a Cuban-American family?

I think there is a wealth of diversity within the Cuban-American culture. There is no universal experience, and I try to reflect that in my characters. For me, when growing up and even now, I struggle with feeling as though I’m not “Latina” enough. I have to remind myself that there is no right or wrong way to be a Cuban-American. I am a proud Latina who speaks terrible Spanish, who has never been to the island from which my family originates, and who married an Irish-Italian guy from New York. I am who I am. My family still gives me flack about certain things, especially my Spanish, but they accept me regardless. It’s still a process of learning to accept myself and letting go of the feeling that I have something to prove.

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Filed Under: YA News Tagged: analee, Cuban Rep, in real life, Janelle Milanes, Latinx Character, Latinx Rep, The Victoria in my Head

The Queen of Historical Fiction and Taylor Jenkins Reid Book Reveal

April 4, 2019

When I found out that Taylor Jenkins Reid was coming to Books & Books in Miami only seven days apart from her book release Daisy Jones & the Six, I screamed louder than my 14-year-old self in a Hanson concert! Daisy Jones & the Six was the one book that I was HIGHLY ANTICIPATING! This book was the one book of the year that I wish I could read for the first time and ever since I read Daisy Jones I literally have been thinking about this book every day since I have read it! 

Listening to Taylor Jenkins Reid discuss her book was captivating and I loved some of the tidbits she revealed about her writing process of the book. One of the questions I asked her is the amount of detail she revealed when she described the music. The way she was writing this book was as if she was a musician herself and she revealed that her husband and brother are musicians and that’s how she was able to write about the technical aspects of the music with such precision! I am absolutely baffled at the amount of skill this woman has to create the kind of book that makes you feel like you want to google Daisy Jones & the Six! She has this incredible ability to write characters that are so real, that you wish that they existed and that’s why she is my official queen of Historical Fiction! 

Daisy Jones & the Six was greatly influenced by Fleetwood Mac and other female rock stars like Linda Ronstadt! The moderator had a wealth of knowledge when it came to the seventies rock genre since she was involved in the seventies music scene as well and there was a great connection between the author and the moderator discussing their love of seventies music. 

Jenkins also revealed that she was also influenced by the indie duo band The Civil Wars who broke up in 2014. There was never a response as to why they broke up but judging from the unreal chemistry they had together when they sang there were rumors of an affair. Jenkins actually said the break up with The Civil Wars is what greatly influenced the beginnings of Daisy Jones & the Six!

Now the news that made me fangirl-squeal was when she revealed to our book audience for the first time that she is actually writing a new book that is set in the eighties in Malibu, California! Taylor Jenkins Reid is my MVP of Historical Fiction in my eyes and this is probably going to be another Taylor Jenkins Reid book that will rip me apart!

Taylor Jenkins Reid in person is an absolute love and I am so happy and thrilled to have the opportunity to meet this incredible woman! She is so sweet and personable that I was actually comfortable enough to ask her advice for the current book I am writing. Meeting Taylor Jenkins Reid was one of my best literary moments of the year! While I impatiently wait for Taylor Jenkins Reid to write another book I am just going to continue shipping Daisy and Billy while listening to my Daisy Jones & the Six Spotify playlist! 

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Filed Under: Bookish Journal, YA News Tagged: Books & Books Event, Daisy Jones & The Six, New Book Revealed, New Taylor Jenkins Reid Book, Queen of Historical Fiction, Shipping Daisy and Billy, Taylor Jenkins Reid

Waiting on Wednesday: Don’t Date Rosa Santos by Nina Moreno

April 3, 2019

Waiting on Wednesday: Don’t Date Rosa Santos by Nina Morenoon May 14, 2019
Pages: 336
Goodreads

Rosa Santos is cursed by the sea-at least, that's what they say. Dating her is bad news, especially if you're a boy with a boat.

But Rosa feels more caught than cursed. Caught between cultures and choices. Between her abuela, a beloved healer and pillar of their community, and her mother, an artist who crashes in and out of her life like a hurricane. Between Port Coral, the quirky South Florida town they call home, and Cuba, the island her abuela refuses to talk about.

As her college decision looms, Rosa collides-literally-with Alex Aquino, the mysterious boy with tattoos of the ocean whose family owns the marina. With her heart, her family, and her future on the line, can Rosa break a curse and find her place beyond the horizon?

Waiting on Wednesday was created by Breaking the Spine, and is now hosted by Wishful Endings (as Can’t Wait Wednesday). It’s a feature where they discuss one of the most anticipated upcoming book releases. The anticipated book release of the week is Nina Moreno’s first novel Don’t Date Rosa Santos!!!

Why I’m Waiting

Don’t Date Rosa Santos feels like a book that is made for me. Being a Cuban-American I am a huge supporter of Latinx authors. The fact that the author Nina Moreno is an own voices Cuban-American author whose book is described as a Gilmore Girls meets Practical Magic is an instant read for me. Not only does this look like the perfect fluffy and quirky read, but the main character in the story is also Cuban and the book has magical realism elements in it which is my favorite genre of all! My little Latinx heart cannot contain my absolute excitement for this book because it has all the ingredients of being my favorite book of the year!

 

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Filed Under: YA News Tagged: Charming Florida Town, Cuban-American YA, Gilmore Girls Meets To All the Boys I've Loved Before, Instant Read, Latinx Author, magical realism, Nina Moreno, Own Voices Writer

Waiting on Wednesday: Fake Plastic Girl by Zara Lisbon

March 20, 2019

Waiting on Wednesday was created by Breaking the Spine, and is now hosted by Wishful Endings (as Can’t Wait Wednesday). It’s a feature where they discuss one of the most anticipated upcoming book releases. The anticipated book release is Fake Plastic Girl by Zara Lisbon released on March 26, 2019! 

Catnopsis

Celebrity-studded parties that last long into the night. Camera flashes and designer clothes. And a body found floating in the Venice Beach canals.

But let’s start at the beginning.

Justine Childs is your average teenage girl, until the day ex-child-star Eva Kate Kelly moves in across the way. Eva Kate is gorgeous, seductive, and eager to invite Justine into her glittery world. Their relationship intensifies quickly, but there is a lot they aren’t telling each other, and in the midst of the whirlwind, a girl lies dead. Who killed Eva Kate? Justine swears her innocence—and she’d like you to hear her side of the story.

Why I’m Waiting

Lately, I have been in a California kick since reading Daisy Jones & the Six! This mystery novel set in the classic setting of Venice Beach where a gruesome murder occurs sounds like the ultimate read to feed my California addiction! The book cover is insta-love and the story seems to have a haunting Great Gatsby feel with a cool California vibe. The Great Gatsby is one of my top favorite classic novels and I am always drawn to Great Gatsby style retellings! I am not your typical mystery reader but the fact that this is set in California with a Great Gatsby-like essence sounds like the perfect elements of an unputdownable book! 

What is your can’t-wait-Wednesday book release?! Chat with me about your most anticipated releases for this year!

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Filed Under: Catfairy Categories<3, YA News Tagged: Great Gatsby Retelling, Great Gatsby Vibe, Rich Kids Murder Mystery, Unputdownable book, Venice Beach Murder, YA Thriller, Zara Lisbon

Baby-Sitters Club Reboot?!

March 7, 2019

Honestly, it feels like yesterday when I would sing the theme song to the 1990 tv show version of the Baby-Sitters Club! These books and the show always gives me nostalgic feelings because they are the reasons why I fell in love with reading in the first place! I was so obsessed with the Baby-Sitters Club growing up that I remember being in the fourth grade and begging my parents to start my very own Baby-Sitters club and of course they thought I was deranged because I was only ten-year-old at the time! 

When the Baby-Sitters Club movie came out in 1995, I was fangirling majorly especially since my favorite character Dawn of the Baby-Sitters Club was played by Larisa Olenick! At the time, I was a dedicated fan of The Secret World of Alex Mack and I would watch it religiously every week! 

The announcement was just released this Tuesday, March 5th that they are going to be doing a reboot of The Baby-Sitters Club with a ten-episode series on Netflix! I am glad they are doing a tv show reboot of The Baby-Sitters Club because although I loved the series as a kid, it was a show that was very much in its own time and the acting/writing was like a tacky afterschool special. It has been stated that the episodes will tackle modern issues that teen girls face today and I am so excited that they are promoting female entrepreneurship to inspire young girl everywhere!

 

 

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Filed Under: Catfairy Categories<3, YA News Tagged: Baby-Sitter Club Reboot, Baby-Sitters Club Netflix series, Female Entrepreneurship

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