socialdistancebookfest

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Author Interview: Cynthia Salaysay

There is no shortage of wonderful, powerful debuts coming out in 2020. This year, we’re seeing the #MeToo movement at the center of various novels, including YA literature. Teens have #MeToo stories to tell, and Cynthia Salaysay’s novel Private Lessons is one such story, and it ensures that teens are not left out of the conversation happening in corporate boardrooms and Hollywood institutions. We had the pleasure of speaking with Cynthia about Private Lessons, which comes out in May! You can preorder it here.

What is Private Lessons about, and can you pitch it using pop culture references? 

Private Lessons is a coming-of-age story about a Filipino-American teen who wants to become a competitive pianist to get into college. As she explores the elite world of classical music with her new, charismatic piano teacher, she struggles to win his approval and love. Ultimately she finds herself needing to find her own strength and her own voice in the face of a powerful, manipulative teacher. It has a pinch of Lolita in it, a glug of Black Swan, and a good spoonful of The Perks of Being a Wallflower.

What was the writing process like for the novel? Are you a plotter or a pantser? 

The idea behind Private Lessons came from a friend who suggested I write a story about a teacher who leads their student astray. I’d never written a novel and it was a lovely feeling to realize I had a novel inside me. I had so much to learn – I made a lot of deep rewrites to the book as I went because I would develop more as a writer, and then go back to earlier chapters and tell myself, “none of this is good anymore!”

Private Lessons is described as “a standout debut for the #MeToo era.” Did the #MeToo movement inspire this book? 

I started the book eleven years ago, long before the #MeToo movement began. I actually wanted to write a coming-of-age novel because I love the bittersweetness in those stories. Growth always comes at a price, even the best kinds of growth. The sexual abuse came from looking hard at my characters and deciding to take them to that level of darkness. By the time I finished the book, I felt passionately about sharing this story with young people. So much sexual abuse occurs in teenage years, and I wanted to be honest and direct with teens, and for those who have experienced it, I wanted them to feel they weren’t alone.

Private Lessons deals with class, racism, and cultural differences. How much of your own personal experiences went into crafting that narrative?

So, so much. In some ways this was the hardest for me to examine because when I was younger, I didn’t want to feel different or be treated unequally due to where I came from, or the color of my skin – I still don’t! I grew up in a California suburb with a large minority population, so I didn’t experience a lot of racism – or at least I didn’t understand that it had always affected my life, in subtle and unsubtle ways, all the time -- until I went into the larger world. 

If your readers were to walk away with one thing from this book, what do you want that one thing to be?

My main character Claire grows so much and becomes such a strong person, and it would be lovely for some of those feelings of strength and self-love to be imparted to readers too. 

You’ve published your first YA novel! What’s next for you in the world of YA? 

I would love to write a novel set in the Philippines. I have some ideas, they just need to get cooking.

Visit Cynthia at https://cynthiasalaysay.com/ and on Twitter @cyntaur!

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Author Interview: Jenny Torres Sanchez

Jenny Torres Sanchez was born in Brooklyn, New York. A former English teacher, she is now a full-time writer currently living in Orlando, Florida with her husband and children. Jenny’s newest release We Are Not From Here deals with with the topic of migration. We follow Pulga, Chico, and Pequeña on their journey as they travel from Guatamela through Mexico. They need one another through this experience, and they have to follow the route of La Bestia which is the train system that delivers them to a better life if they survive. 

1. How important was it for you to write this story?

Incredibly important. I really felt like it refused to go away. It was rejected a few years ago by a different editor, so I ended up writing another book. But this story kept coming back to me in bits and pieces, in all these different voices. It kept reminding me it was there and needed to be told. So I pitched it to my current editor who immediately accepted it. As I wrote, I worried a lot if I could do it justice. But that worry was necessary, you know what I mean? It made me pay close attention to every single scene, every single sentence. It made me very aware that this story needed to be told with care and love, in a way that allows the truth of the situation to be understood while also honoring the characters. 

2. What do you hope your readers will gain from this story?

A deeper understanding of who migrants are and why they leave their home countries. I wanted to show that it’s a difficult decision, one many migrants don’t want to make and usually only make when their lives are at risk. There’s not enough appreciation for how difficult it is to leave. How heartbreaking it is to extract yourself from your home and all you love. I wanted that to come through. I want the reader to understand the whole journey, where it really starts and why.

3. What was your writing process like for We Are Not From Here?

It was a lot of writing and rewriting and cutting scenes that ultimately didn’t make it into the book. There are characters I had to let go of, voices I wanted to include but couldn’t because it was just too much. There are so many stories on a journey like this and it’s hard to let go of some of them, to not feel the pressure of telling all the stories. For that reason, and many more, writing this book was very emotional for me. I could not have done it without the care and guidance that my editor took with this story also. She’s amazing. Ultimately, all that writing made me more aware of what this book needed to be and how it needed to be told, but my editor really helped me shape it. 

4.  What character do you relate to the most?

I definitely relate to Pequeña in how she dips into the magical to deal with reality. I guess that’s what I do when I write. Dip into the unreal to tell the real. But I’m also like Pulga in how I can be stubborn and try to harden my heart (unsuccessfully). And how I can get disillusioned by the world, but ultimately recognize the hope in it.

5. What motivated you to write such a powerful story?

Hearing the stories of children making this dangerous trip by themselves, seeing their faces, hearing their voices. I couldn’t get their faces and voices out of my mind, or my heart. They are why I wrote this story.

Visit Jenny at https://jennytorressanchez.com/

We Are Not From Here is available for purchase here on bookshop.org!

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Don’t miss out on all our amazing panels. Click here to learn more about each of them. More authors and schedules coming!

#socdistbookfest #bookfestival #onlinebookfestival #litevents #onlineevents #bookish #booktumblr #authorpanels #booktube

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Sixth Panel Announcement!

Tackling Consent, Gender, and Toxic Masculinity in Romance.

When: April 25, 2020 Time: 10:00am PST/ 1:00pm EST

Host: @AmandaVenture The Naughty Librarian

Featuring: @wurdsmyth @julie_cohen @ZoeyCastile @PrisOliveras @jdevansbooks

Mark your calendars!

#socdistbookfest #consent #gender #toxic masculinity #romancenovels #contemporaryromance #romanceauthor #modernromance #authors #thenaughtylibrarian

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Fifth Panel Announcement!

From Sherlock Holmes to Veronica Mars: Variations in the Mystery/Thriller Genre.

When: April 25, 2020 Time: 8:00am PST/ 11:00am EST

Host: @bookslikewhoa

Featuring: @grady_hendrix , Megan Campisi, @lissiethomas @anndcardinal @callytaylor

Don’t miss out!

#bookslikewhoa #sherlockholmes #veronicamars #mysterybooks #thrillerbooks #mysterythriller #diversereads #litevents #bookishevents #onlineevents #onlinebookfestival #socialdistancebookfest

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Fourth Panel Announcement!

Family, Friendship, and Determination in Middle-Grade Fiction.

When: April 25, 2020 Time: 6:00pm PST/ 9:00pm EST

Host: @joceraptor Yogi With A Book

Featuring: @ReinaLuzAlegre @jesskimwrites @Claribel_Ortega @Author_Cisneros @LorielRyon

Join us then!

#middldegradefiction #kidsfiction #yogiwithabook #socialdistancebookfest #socdistbookfest #bookishevents

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Exciting News!

We are so excited to bring you a form of virtual signings that will support authors as well as indie bookstores, and those suffering in the pandemic.

We have partnered with bookshop.org to offer virtual signings.

Bookshop.org is an online bookstore with a mission to financially support independent bookstores. If you purchase the book of an author participating in the virtual signing element, you can submit proof of purchase via email and receive a signed bookplate and possibly some other goodies as well! We have authors offering stickers, bookmarks, and even art prints in addition to signed bookplates!

Through this platform, the Social Distance Book Festival will make a 10% commission; we will be donating 100% of those funds to the Center for Disaster Philanthropy’s COVID-19 Fund.

More information about this fund can be found here.

Check out our list of participating authors HERE.

#socdistbookfest #socialdistancebookfest #litevents #bookishevents #april25th #bookshoporg #bookshop.org #covid19 #covid19fund

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Third Panel Announcement!

Love, Loss and Firsts: New Voices in YA Contemporary Fiction.

When: April 25, 2020 Time: 3:00pm PST/ 6:00pm EST

Host: @IOgbolumani Feminist Bookworm

Featuring: @rocky_writes @LzLwsn @jennyleewrites @camloond @Laynie_Bee #socdistbookfest

Don’t miss out!

#YAreads #contemporaryYA #contemporaryfiction #loveandloss #socdistbookfest

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Category Five

Spotlight on a Participating Author, Ann Davila Cardinal!

Category Five has an expected publication date of June 2, 2020 by Tor Teen.

A story of a hurricane sweeping through Puerto Rico, leaving chaos in its wake. Only this time a group of friends will return to investigate a series of murders left among the destruction.

Read the first chapter here!

Click to learn more about Ann Davila Cardinal

Twitter

Instagram

GoodReads

#torteen #ownvoices #latinxownvoices #ownvoicesbooks #supernatural #horrorbooks #diversereads #weneeddiversebooks

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A Taste of Sage

Spotlight on a Participating Author,  Yaffa S. Santos!

A Taste of Sage by Yaffa S. Santos has an expected publication date of May 19th 2020 by Harper Paperbacks.

Lumi Santana has a heart full of dreams and a chef with one special gift, being able to perceive a person’s emotions and feelings by tasting their cooking. After putting every ounce of love into opening her own restaurant, when Lumi’s fusion restaurant fails, she’s forced to take a position as a sous chef.

Julien Dax is a celebrated chef with a viper tongue and a killer smile to match. When a dispute takes place, he goes out of his way to prove Lumi wrong only causing her to vow to never taste his cooking. Things are about to heat up as the pair get closer, but she’s not the only one who can’t seem to stay away from Julien and his cooking.

Come get saucy with Yaffa S. Santos at the Social Distance Book Fest on April 25th and don’t forget to bring a snack. We have a feeling you’re going to need it!

Instagram

GoodReads

Twitter

#contemporaryromance #latinxownvoices #ownvoices #debutauthor #socialdistancebookfest #bookcommunity #booktumblr #bookstagram #socdistbookfest

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Second Panel Announcement!

Diversifying Romance.

When: April 25, 2020 Time: 11:00am PST/2:00pm EST

Host: Bree Hill 

Featuring: @TaliaHibbert @ladrianaherrera @merylwilsner @VanessaRiley @yseraphsantos

Don’t miss this!

#socdistbookfest #includedlit

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Exciting News!

We are so excited to bring you a form of virtual signings that will support authors as well as indie bookstores, and those suffering in the pandemic.

We have partnered with bookshop.org to offer virtual signings.

Bookshop.org is an online bookstore with a mission to financially support independent bookstores. If you purchase the book of an author participating in the virtual signing element, you can submit proof of purchase via email and receive a signed bookplate and possibly some other goodies as well! We have authors offering stickers, bookmarks, and even art prints in addition to signed bookplates!

Through this platform, the Social Distance Book Festival will make a 10% commission; we will be donating 100% of those funds to the Center for Disaster Philanthropy’s COVID-19 Fund.

More information about this fund can be found here.

Check out our list of participating authors HERE.

#virtualsignings #virtualbookfestival #socialdistancebookfest #socdistbookfest #covid19 #bookshoporg #bookshop.org #includedlit #weneeddiversereads #weneeddiversebooks #diversereads #philanthropy #onlineevents #litevents

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Make sure to follow us on Twitter for up-to-the-minute news on participating authors, panel times and locations, giveaways, virtual signings and more!

#socialdistancebookfest #socdistbookfest #onlinebookfest #bookstagram #bookish #booktube #diversereads #includedlit

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Make sure to follow us on INSTAGRAM for the latest details on participating authors, where to join the panels and more! 

#instagram #bookstagram #socialdistancebookfest #literaryevents #includedlit #yabooks #diversereads #indieauthors

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First Panel Announcement!

New Voices in YA SFF. When: April 25, 2020 10:00am PST/ 1:00pm EST Host: @according2jewls​ on YT: PagesandPens

Featuring: @NaminaForna @alechiawrites @aidenschmaiden @RominaRussell @ShvetaThakrar ! Mark your Calendars!

#socdistbookfest #includedlit

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GIVEAWAY ANNOUNCEMENT! 

The fabulous Canadian romance author Jessi Elliott is giving away 5 e-book copies of Twisted Fate and.... wait for it... 1 SIGNED paperback of Twisted Fate WITH SWAG during the Social Distance Book Fest. 

Make sure to join us on April 25th for this virtual book fest!

#virtualevents #stayhomeandread #socialdistancebookfest #literaryevents #bookish #canadianauthor #jessielliot #romanceauthor #romancenovels

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GIVEAWAY ANNOUNCEMENT!

How brilliant is this? Ken Lussey is generously giving away a copy of The Danger of Life AND a copy of Eyes Turned Skyward during the Social Distance Book Fest. 

Make sure you join us online on April 25th! 

#SocialDistanceBookFest #bookfestival #bookish #onlinevents #onlinebookfestival #kennlussey