Q&A With Aaron H. Aceves, This Is Why They Hate Us

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By Michele Kirichanskaya

At the moment we’re happy to welcome Aaron H. Aceves again to the WNDB weblog to debate YA novel This Is Why They Hate Us, out August 23, 2022!

Enrique “Quique” Luna has one purpose this summer time—recover from his crush on Saleem Kanazi by pursuing his different romantic prospects. By no means thoughts that he’s solely out to his greatest pal, Fabiola. By no means thoughts that he has completely zero recreation. And positively overlook the truth that good and type and, to not point out, stunning Saleem is leaving LA for the summer time to fulfill a woman his mother and father are attempting to set him up with.

Fortunately, Quique’s prospects are every intriguing in their very own methods. There’s stoner-jock Tyler Montana, who may be simply as all in favour of Fabiola as he’s in Quique; straitlaced senior class president, Ziggy Jackson; and Manny Zuniga, who retains Quique like he’s carne asada contemporary off the grill. With all these selections, Quique is certain to overlook about Saleem very quickly.

However because the summer time heats up and his deep-seated fears and anxieties boil over, Quique quickly realizes that getting over one man by getting beneath a bunch of others could not have been the most effective laid plan and dwelling his reality can come at a excessive price.

This Is Why They Hate Us

To begin with, welcome to We Want Various Books! May you inform us a little bit about your self?

Hello, thanks! WNDB has all the time been so supportive of me and my YA debut, This Is Why They Hate Us, so I’m so blissful to be chatting with you.

My identify is Aaron, and I used to be born and raised in East L.A. I’m bisexual and Chicano, a giant cat lover, and reside in Austin, TX at the moment.

How did you end up turning into a author? What drew you to younger grownup fiction particularly?

Like most writers, I beloved studying as a child, and after I was 9 years outdated, I made a decision to try to write my very own guide. I by no means completed it, however that was most likely for the most effective. I’m certain it was horrible. Anyway, the following time I attempted writing a novel, I used to be 18 and it was fairly autobiographical, so it simply so occurred to fall into the YA class. I additionally write for adults, however I discover my penchant for utilizing quite a lot of humor and dialogue in my prose makes me a pure match for the YA area.

How would you describe your writing course of?

Chaotic. I’m a binge author, which implies I’ll go days, weeks, generally months with out writing (if I don’t have a deadline), however after I do write, it’s an all-day exercise. I skip meals, I write on public transportation, I keep up late. It will get, yeah, chaotic.

Rising up, have been there are any books or authors that touched or impressed you as a author? When do you suppose you first noticed your self mirrored in literature?

It’s humorous, up till highschool I solely learn books about animals (count on for those assigned at school.) It wasn’t till I learn Rain of Gold by Victor Villaseñor in my junior 12 months that I discovered human characters who made me suppose, This jogs my memory of the individuals in my life.

Studying Aristotle & Dante Uncover the Secrets and techniques of the Universe after school was the primary time I examine queer, Mexican characters and in addition the primary queer YA guide I learn in any respect. I can’t overstate how impactful that was.

What are you able to inform us about your upcoming guide, This Is Why They Hate Us? The place did the inspiration for this story come from?

This Is Why They Hate Us follows my protagonist and narrator, Enrique, as he spends the summer time after his junior 12 months of highschool making an attempt to recover from his crush on his greatest pal Saleem. I began and completed it after I was 24, depressing, working a job I hated. I got here dwelling sooner or later and wrote 2,000 phrases about this child alone in his room fascinated about masturbating with out truly doing it, and his voice was so clear I stored coming again every single day for a month till it was completed. The primary draft flowed out of me in 28 days. In all probability as a result of Quique and I’ve a lot in frequent.

You and the primary character of your guide each identification each as bisexual and Mexican-American. What does it imply to you seeing that illustration in books, each within the tales you write and those that others have written?

, regardless of making an attempt my hardest to seek out one, I can’t consider a historically revealed YA novel a couple of bisexual Mexican-American boy written by a bisexual Mexican-American creator. So any time I’m modifying my manuscript I’m similar to, I can’t imagine I get to take tiny, distinctive moments from my bi little life and put them right into a guide that tens, if not dozens, of persons are going to learn.

It must be famous that you simply’ve beforehand written some articles for WNBD, together with an essay entitled “YA vs MFA: How MFA Programs Can Discourage YA Writers.” As a younger grownup author, what do you suppose is the importance of YA that different packages and writers haven’t acknowledged?

I’m going to be fully actual right here and say that as somebody who’s a part of each the Literary fiction group and the YA group, that the Literary group is so extremely condescending in relation to authors who write YA. So many Literary authors sneer at any second of earnestness in writing and imagine that novels essentially need to be miserable to be Artwork.

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You additionally shared the official annotated playlist for This Is Why They Hate Us with WNDB for its cowl reveal. Have there been any songs since its publication that you might have added to the checklist? Or any songs you take into consideration for one more potential guide?

what? I’ve made a component 2 to that playlist that I’ve been ready to disclose and I can’t consider a greater place to do it than here. As soon as once more, we’ve all queer artists besides for individuals who sing songs that Enrique’s most important love curiosity, Saleem, can’t assist however mishear the lyrics of.

Additionally, I completed writing the primary 50 pages or so of what I hope is my second YA novel in the beginning of December and “Defying Gravity” from Depraved performs a giant position in it.

Other than being a author, what are some stuff you would need others to find out about you?

I’m a queer Christian, and people two sides of my identification are under no circumstances incompatible.

In the event you may return and inform your early writer-self something, what do you suppose you’ll say?

I feel all I might say is, “Hello, I’m you from the longer term. It’s all going to work out. Not, all the pieces, your life is a complete mess proper now. However the writing stuff works out. Cease worrying. About that. Once more, your life is. A. Mess.”

What recommendation would you give to different aspiring writers?

Attempt to get pleasure from each step of your writing/publishing journey. In the event you don’t have an agent but? Cool, you possibly can write actually no matter you need. Don’t have a guide deal but? Cool, you possibly can fantasize about an public sale and a bidding struggle and never having to attend ceaselessly to announce and receives a commission. Enhancing course of taking ceaselessly post-deal? Effectively at the very least nobody’s DNF’ed your guide but. And many others.

Are there another initiatives you’re engaged on proper now and at liberty to discuss?

Ha. I discussed earlier what I hope goes to be my second YA novel. It’s about highschool journalism, which was most likely my most necessary extracurricular in highschool. It additionally explores what it’s like having an abusive dad or mum, which is far nearer to my real-life expertise than the household dynamic in This Is Why They Hate Us.

Lastly, what numerous books would you suggest to the readers of WNDB?

The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo, Extra Pleased Than Not by Adam Silvera, Felix Ever After by Kacen Callender, Pet by Akwaeke Emezi, Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Solar by Jonny Garza Villa, Be Dazzled by Ryan La Sala, Blaine for the Win by Robbie Sofa, and All That’s Left within the World by Erik J. Brown. I may preserve going, however to your sake, I received’t.

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aaron h. aceves headshot photoAaron H. Aceves is a bisexual, Mexican American author born and raised in East Los Angeles. He graduated from Harvard Faculty and acquired his MFA from Columbia College. His fiction has appeared in jmww, Epiphany, and them., amongst different locations. He at the moment lives in Texas, the place he serves as an Early Profession Provost Fellow at UT Austin. He may be discovered at AaronHAceves.com or @AaronAceves on Instagram or @AaronHAceves on Twitter and TikTok.

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Michele Kirichanskaya headshotMichele Kirichanskaya (she/her) is a contract journalist and author from Brooklyn, New York. Presently finding out on the New College, when she will not be writing, she is studying, watching an absurd quantity of cartoons to outlive actuality, and creating content material for platforms like Hey Alma, Salon, The Mary Sue, GeeksOut, ComicsVerse, The Homosexual & Lesbian Overview, and extra. Her work may be discovered right here and on Twitter @MicheleKiricha1.



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