Ask the Author: J. de Lavega

“Ask me a question.” J. de Lavega

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Where did you get the idea for your most recent book?

J. de Lavega Wepa is about a girl with ADHD and subtly hints at "chancla culture". I was the girl who got, “talks too much”, on her report card. The world wanted me to be soft and quiet, become invisible. As a young girl of color living in several states in the south, this was especially true. There weren’t books of girls who looked and acted like me that weren’t considered curious or excited to be alive, they were just trouble makers and stereotypes. This is my love letter to all the young girls like me, and the ones my age who still need to hear it.

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What’s your advice for aspiring writers?

J. de Lavega The way I approached my writing career was to fall willingly into failure. Failure seems to be this big scary monster that either prevents people from trying, or prevents them from moving forward. I knew that the average writer got a minimum of 100 rejections before recieving any types of acceptance, so I aimed for 100 rejections. With each rejection I broke down the agent/publisher's response. Was it a standard form? I worked on my query letter. Did they mention mistakes in my story? I worked on my manuscript. Did they say it wasn't a fit? I researched agents/publishers specifically looking for a story like mine. There were close calls, some actual wins that turned into losses, and so much more, but upon nearing the 100 mark I landed not one, but two book deals, and have gotten 10 agent request. It's possible. You just have to be willing to learn from your failures, research as much as possible, and keep moving forward.

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If you could travel to any fictional book world, where would you go and what would you do there?

J. de Lavega Lisa Frank's world. I'd want to be any animal there and just do cute animal things.

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What’s the best thing about being a writer?

J. de Lavega Turning experiences into fantastic worlds.

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How do you deal with writer’s block?

J. de Lavega I write gibberish until something comprehensive comes out, or simple descriptive sentences that elude to what I really would like to say.

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How do you get inspired to write?

J. de Lavega Inspiration comes and goes, but honestly, I think the most important aspect is just consistency. If I depended on inspiration none of my books would get done. I set aside a few hours every day and I just type. Even if it's awful it can always be edited.

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