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About Kaela Rivera

Kaela Rivera is the award-winning author of the Cece Rios series. She grew up reading the folktales of her Mexican-American and British parents in the forests of Tennessee, but now she writes about them from the soaring mountains of Utah. When she’s not crafting stories, she’s working as a managing editor for a marketing company—or secretly doodling her characters in the margins of her notebook. One of her greatest hopes is to explore the beauty of cultural differences—and how they can bring us all closer. Visit her at kaelarivera.com.

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About the Cece Rios Series

Living in the remote town of Tierra del Sol is dangerous—especially in the criatura months, when powerful spirits break free from their home in Devil’s Alley to threaten humankind. But Cecelia Rios has always believed there was more to the criaturas who roamed the desert, much to her family’s disapproval. After all, it’s common knowledge that only brujas—humans who capture and control criaturas—consort with the spirits, and brujeria is a terrible crime.

When her older sister, Juana, is kidnapped by El Sombrerón, a powerful dark criatura, everyone in town believes she’s lost forever. But Cece is determined to bring Juana back. To get into Devil’s Alley, though, she’ll have to become a bruja herself—while hiding her quest from her parents, her town, and the other brujas. Thankfully, the legendary criatura Coyote has a soft spot for humans, and agrees to help her on her journey. With him at her side, Cece sets out to reunite her family—and maybe even change what it means to be a bruja along the way. 

Book 2 Cece Rios and the King of Fears will come out on September 27, 2022!

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Interview with Kaela Rivera

Olivia Fisher: Kaela, what made you want to write for kids?

Kaela Rivera: I think I’ve always sort of been a kid, even as I got older and more mature, and I’ve always written for myself first. I revise to be understood by other people, but the writing process itself has always been to entertain, heal, and explore with my inner child. 

Of course, I adore children, so that’s made me all the more excited and motivated to share stories with them. I used to tell stories to my friends, little sister, and younger kids as I was growing up—I have more than four nephews, so you can probably see how that came into play. And I find myself still writing for that little-me, those little nephews (before they had the audacity to grow up), because in childhood I’ve found we have such a greater willingness to learn, to experience, to understand, and to hope. We start losing that as we get older, but children are ready for adventure. They’re ready to grow. And that’s what I want to explore most in my writing.

OF: How did you develop your writing craft? 

KR: I started by writing a lot, reading a lot, and doing both frequently. Where some kids watched TV, I always ended up sitting down to write because I wanted to be on the next leg of whatever adventure I was currently weaving. That gave me the pretty stable foundation I needed as a writer—instincts for pacing, dialogue, structure, character,  and even grammar. 

I reached a pretty solid intermediate writing level once I’d finished about three/four novels, and that’s when I felt I needed a better level. I was in college at this point, and I could write well by that point, but my voice wasn’t distinct. I’d practiced emulating authors I loved in order to get a feel for their skills. I’d read a lot. I studied books on writing, practiced over and over. But I knew it was time to develop the way I wanted to write. 

Markus Zusak, the author of The Book Thief and I Am the Messenger, ended up being key for me in that way. There was an interview he gave where he talked about wanting to write so much like himself that no one could ever doubt it was him. That’s when I went to work. And I should say, that led to some really rough experimenting. I pushed my language, my descriptions, my internal exploration pretty far. Not far from me—I was digging down into myself and pulling up all kinds of stuff from the mines of my mind. Sometimes, when I ran that writing by people, they were totally confused by my descriptions, the blocking, the idea. That was the next step: learning how to polish up the rocks I was digging up from inside myself, so other people could recognize, connect, and understand what I was saying.

Toward the end of my college years, I grew more and more confident in my writing. I submitted novels to agents and editors, and I learned from that that my worldbuilding and plots were still weak points. So, for the first time in my writing practice—I tried to revise. And I should point out that learning to revise is a huge, important part of the writing process that I had completely neglected in favor of moving on to the next project. I don’t recommend this route, but it did mean I avoided over-editing and not finishing projects, at least. Different writers encounter different difficulties, though, so mine became figuring out how to revise—how to get a sense for when something needed to change, when something could be better, what exactly needed to change, and how to make all those changes a cohesive part of your image for the story. And, well, how to change your image of the story to be truer to your actual intentions. 

Writing is exploratory, I believe. And revising is about cohesiveness and focus. You need both to create a good book, in my opinion—both exploration and focus. Magic and clarity.

I finally worked out my plot issues with my next project, which became Cece Rios and the Desert of Souls. That was about my tenth book I think, and that was the book that got me my agent. Working with her and my editor really helped me nail down my understanding of revision—but of course, like all writers, I’m still working on it!

OF: Tell us a little about your first book! What was the publishing process like for you?

KR: Cece Rios and the Desert of Souls is my first published book—and it turns out to be the first book in the Cece Rios series! The second book comes out September 27, 2022! So close!

Cece’s publishing journey was an interesting one. I actually had an R&R on a previous book out with my current agent, who was then not yet my agent, while I was finishing Cece. I submitted Cece’s first draft to PitchWars (R.I.P.), and when all the feedback came back as “I can’t help you make this better; it’s already complete besides adjusting this one scene”—a response I’d never gotten before—I had a feeling it would be the one to get published.

It turned out I was right! Just a month or so later, I submitted Cece (with that one scene adjusted) to the PitchAmerica contest (also R.I.P.). I was pretty good at contests, since I have a decent knack for pitching and marketing, so I thought I’d try it out. I got into the agent showcase, and my not-yet agent, Serene Hakim, saw Cece’s pitch and opening chapters. She already had my R&R as I mentioned, and she loved what she saw in Cece. She made an offer, along with two other agents, and I went with Serene because her editing resonated with me, and she felt both approachable and capable.

After Serene and I signed our contracts and officially started working together, we went through revisions and then went out on submission. After that, my editor at HarperChildren’s reached back out to us, and we were off on our publishing adventure!

OF: Did that process change after you published your first book?

KR: Publishing feels very different since Cece Rios and the Desert of Souls launched. For one, I’ve learned that what people say about publishing timelines is true: there are two speeds, 1) forever waiting and 2) go, go, go everything’s happening now! I’ve had to learn how to revise faster and better, how to clean up my process, and how to make my writing a bit more consistent—all while balancing online presence, in-person appearances, and behind-the-scenes writing and deals for future books.

So, publishing after my first book has been stressful, but it’s also been exciting and fun. I really enjoy the variety and constant set of new opportunities and new learnings that come with publishing, even if challenges come alongside them.  

OF: What’s the hardest thing about writing a book?

KR: Revision still feels like the hardest part of writing for me. It’s the beautiful, painful, wonderful, terrible process of slowly and precisely going through your book from high to low levels and bringing it together. It’s what turns a good book into a great book, and a nice experience into a fully moving, satisfying one. I should know, as I’m a managing editor in my day job. I have over eight years’ experience editing other peoples’ work (think copywriting, though—not the creative side). And yet, revision is also the part where I doubt myself, question everything, and balance the needs of what I want the story to be and how the story can be accessed by others. 

Revision is absolutely worth it and oh-so important. But it’s difficult for me. Of course, that’s just another example of how some of the hardest things in life are the most worthwhile.

OF: What’s the best thing about writing a book?

KR: I adore the free, dauntless exploration of the rough draft. If you asked my writers group, they’d tell you I write quickly, and I write a lot. Every book I write requires cutting at least twenty thousand words. But I think that’s because I need to spent time in the world. I need to sit in the quiet moments with my characters, the breath between plot points, and explore the full impact of my character’s internal experiences and thoughts. I need to explore all the many interesting things the plot could conduct, and I need to sit in the world and breathe in its smells and touch its leaves and watch its sunsets. Some people may consider that a lot of wasted words, but that travel experience gives me the backbone, the anchor, the foundation of the story, so I can always go back to those feelings as touchpoints when revision. That’s how I don’t lose the essence of the story (or at least, how I hope I don’t). 

In that rough draft period, I work out all of what I want in a book. I teach myself what the characters need, and I explore and ask questions, and I experience the things I need. That’s why that first write-through is so important to me. It’s freeing and exciting and confusing and interesting. Revision, as it comes later, turns all of that into something cohesive. It’s the distilled version of my experience, the one I want to share with others, so that hopefully, the good I got out of it, and what I learned, and the healing I received, might get passed on to anyone who knows or needs it. 

OF: What do you hope readers will take away from your books? Or what experience have you had interacting with your young readers?

KR: The biggest thing I want to leave with people is probably hope. Hope in the difficult times, light at the end of the tunnel, healing in and through and after pain and hardship. To me, hope is the only true realism. Pessimism and cynicism I find naïve, since both usually come from disappointed optimism, where, when you were looking for only joy in order to be happy, you found hardship, and decided that joy no longer was. But hope bespeaks light even when darkness surrounds. Hope knows exactly how hard life is and can be, and reaches for the joy and the contentment and recovery and healing that can still be as well. I want to offer that to readers, so they can go on adventures that heal and reaffirm their lives.

OF: What’s next on your author journey?

KR: The third book in the Cece Rios series is next up on the list! I’ll be starting revisions for it within the next month or so. I’m also working on a horror MG book duology—and a secret project I can’t talk about yet. So many exciting things to come!

Thank you for this wonderful interview Kaela! If you want to follow along with Kaela’s writing journey and read her books, visit her at kaelarivera.com.

Tell us in the comments: What were your big takeaways from my interview with Kaela Rivera?

Olivia Fisher is a children’s lit writer and freelance editor with an English degree from BYU-Idaho. When she isn’t dreaming about living in a treehouse or chasing down her two young boys, she enjoys curling up with a book, watching Star Wars, writing her next adventure, and trying to live in the state of child-like wonder that we all secretly, or not so secretly, miss. Follow her adventures on Twitter or Instagram, or hire her for your next editing escapade on Fiverr.

The post Kid Lit Craft: Interview with Kaela Rivera appeared first on DIY MFA.

About Ritu Anand

Ritu Anand started writing when she could hold a pencil, but life kept getting in the way. For the past four years, she has chosen Writing as her career. She draws her inspiration from nature around her and her scripture—Sri Guru Granth Sahibjee.

When she sat down to write Kara’s Dreams, her pen flowed its ink onto paper, as a river floods its banks. The beautiful verse within the scripture that guided her story provides—Pavan Guru, Paani Pita, Mata Dharadh Mahat, Divas Raat Duii Dayee Daya, Khaileh Sagal Jagat. It means the Wind is the Guru. Water is the Father. Earth is the Mother. Day and Night are caretakers. All the elements—Wind, Water, Earth, Night and Day work in concert to enable creatures to play and enjoy this playground called Earth.

Ritu Anand lives in Sarasota, Florida with her loving husband. Her interests include reading, writing, singing Indian classical music, dancing to Bollywood music, traveling and playing golf.

About Kara’s Dreams

Little Kara had big dreams. But she had seen others around her defeated by the obstacles thrown at them, and she was fearful she might endure the same fate and never attain her dreams.

Was she good enough?

Was she strong enough?

Would she be able to overcome hardships?

Kara, a young tree in the forest, decides to ask a wise, mature tree for advice. The mentoring helps Kara realize that she has everything within her to reach her dreams; she just needs to adjust to her surroundings and believe in herself.

This wonderful children’s story represents the debut book by Ritu Anand of Sarasota, Florida. The tale is augmented by Veen Redwood’s rich, beautiful illustrations.

Kara’s Dreams is a tale of faith, growth, and resilience. Any child will love the story and pictures.

Interview with Ritu Anand

Olivia Fisher: What made you want to write for kids?

Ritu Anand: From the day I was born I was writing, whether on office walls or newspapers. My mom had a hard time handling me, haha. In the space of my mind, I think of myself as a child and imagine that I never grew up. I like doing activities that are spontaneous and propelled by my innermost desires. I also love, love, love working with kids because when I look into the eyes of a child, I see a whole new world. I see magic. I see possibilities, and suddenly, my creativity starts to flow. That’s how I know I belong in the kid lit world, and I’m here to stay. Childhood is such a brief and beautiful time, and honestly, for both children and adults, I would prefer it to be eternal. That’s my wish for every child and adult.

OF: That’s such a lovely way of expressing your desire to write for kids! 

Tell us a little bit about your first book Kara’s Dreams!

RA: My inspiration for my book Kara’s Dreams comes from my holy book, and the scripture Kara’s Dreams is based on is very beautiful. It’s universal, and on my author page in the book, I describe the actual verse. It explains how this entire Earth is a playground in which all the creatures play and how that’s the beauty and definition of life. We’re here to play responsibly and should rejoice. This life is a beautiful gift. 

OF: What an incredible theme for a book. It’s such a great message for kids and adults!

RA: Yes! As a seven-year-old, I was scared of the dark. I grew up in twin homes in New Delhi and had to cross an alley to get home. I wasn’t normally allowed to cross it in the dark. But one day, I made a promise to myself to gather the courage to cross it. So I started reciting my scripture to give myself courage. In doing that, I said to myself, “Wow, I can do this. I can cross this.” That’s the theme of Kara’s Dreams. It’s about survival. It’s about empowering ourselves in the midst of adversity and maintaining a positive attitude.

What did the publishing process look like for you and your book?

RA: I wanted to do independent publishing on purpose because I’m a control freak, haha. I wanted creative freedom. I was terrified at the thought of giving up control of my book to a traditional publisher. My husband and I are both avid hikers, and we come across some very challenging hikes and visit the forests often. Because of this, I decided I wanted to make Kara’s Dreams an anthropomorphic tale with all these trees as characters, and I worried that an illustrator wouldn’t be able to get my vision across if I wasn’t able to tell them what I was thinking. How could they accurately depict that? So that’s the main reason why I wanted to go with Indie publishing. I befriended the wonderful Veen Redwood, who is from Sri Lanka. Kara’s Dreams is her nineteenth book, and she’s done an amazing job connecting with me as a person and creating the illustrations for the book. I’ve really enjoyed the journey of indie publishing!

OF: I’ve read Kara’s Dreams, and the illustrations blew me away, so I’m glad you chose indie publishing and had such a wonderful illustrator in Veen Redwood to work with.

What was the hardest part about publishing independently?

RA: I think trusting which publisher would be the right one was one of the hardest parts of publishing independently. I really prayed about it. I prayed that I would come in contact with the right publisher. At the time, the publisher I chose was going through some difficult experiences, and there was a lack of communication for a while, but my connection with them came from a personal recommendation I trusted. I went with Pathfinder, and I really respect them. The publisher has almost twenty-five years of journalism experience behind him and comes from the writing world. That’s why I went with them. But it was such a hard decision to make, you know?

OF: Yes! I can imagine how hard it would be to choose a publisher for yourself. I’m glad you found a publisher that helped you create the book you dreamed of.

What’s next on your author journey?

OF: Okay, this has been a beautiful interview, and I’m always so sad that I only get to share a small portion of it through words on the blog, but I know readers will love getting to know you and your writing journey. Speaking of your author journey, what’s next? Do you have any books in mind or stories that you’re looking forward to telling? 

RA: Yes. I Am My Language is my next book. It’s about a little seven-year-old me. I taught myself how to read and write a new language, which is typically my first language, Punjabi. I went to an all-girls Catholic school in India where I was only taught English and not the language of my heart. I would listen to people at home talking in Punjabi and speaking it. I could understand it, but I could not speak it. I undertook this task to teach it to myself. The adults at home were super busy people, and nobody had the time to sit with me or read to me. So I grabbed hold of this translator, which belonged to my aunt who maintained a little library at home, and started teaching myself. She had some Punjabi books, and the translator enabled me to translate Punjabi letters and words to Romanized English. I could literally see each letter and how it could be pronounced. I would bug the hell out of my adults by reading aloud so that they could hear me and correct me over and over and over until I got it. I wanted to share this experience in a picture book for kids, so that’s my next project!

OF: That’s so beautiful that you are capturing this in a book for kids! So will this be a picture book?

RA: Yes!

OF: That’s great! I can’t wait to see it!

Ritu, thank you for taking the time to share your beautiful picture book with us and offering some valuable insight on indie publishing and your experience as an author! Congratulations on Kara’s Dreams! You can follow along with Ritu’s writing on her website! Be sure to check out her beautiful poems as well there!

Tell us in the comments: What were your big takeaways from this interview with Ritu Anand?

Olivia Fisher is a children’s lit writer and freelance editor with an English degree from BYU-Idaho. When she isn’t dreaming about living in a treehouse or chasing down her two young boys, she enjoys curling up with a book, watching Star Wars, writing her next adventure, and trying to live in the state of child-like wonder that we all secretly, or not so secretly, miss. Follow her adventures on Twitter or Instagram, or hire her for your next editing escapade on Fiverr.

The post Kid Lit Craft: Interview with Ritu Anand appeared first on DIY MFA.