WNDMG Reads
November’s typically filled with so much to do! Some households just finished celebrating Dia de Los Muertos, while others are saluting the veterans in their lives. Others are already planning Thanksgiving, Friendsgiving, or any other -Givings Day dinners!
Yet those in the bookish community simply wait for all the incredible new releases that embrace the family spirit. And what better way to celebrate family this month than with a double dose of WNDMG book releases!
We recognize that publishing is an incredibly difficult pursuit and that journey can be even harder for international authors. Yet, despite all odds, I have had the pleasure of sharing the virtual stage with not one, but two amazing MG authors who both have US/CANADA releases this month!
Without further ado, I present Raidah Shah Idil and Yxavel Magna Diño! Welcome ot the Mixed Up Files – We Need Diverse MG feature!
How to Free a Jinn by Raidah Shah Idil
Raidah Shah Idil is the author of HOW TO FREE A JINN which released in the US and Canada on November 4! Here’s a summary of her Malaysian fantasy novel!
Insyirah’s calm, orderly world falls into chaos when her proud nenek (grandmother) has a bad fall, and Insyirah and her mother must move back to Malaysia to take care of her.
Her new home holds wild and dangerous mysteries, and while finding her feet, Insyirah discovers a shocking secret: the women in her family can control jinn—powerful, ancient jungle spirits—and, one day, she will inherit one of her own. What’s more, her new school is haunted by an evil spirit determined to force her out of Malaysia.
As Insyirah discovers the fascinating ways of the seen and unseen worlds, she finds danger around every corner. And when her family situation grows perilous, she must gather all her resilience to overcome unexpected obstacles and make a life-changing decision.
The Firefly Crown by Yxavel Magna Dino
Yxavel Magna Diño is the author of two amazing Filipino fantasy novels THE SERPENT RIDER (2024) and THE FIREFLY CROWN released in the states yesterday, November 11! Focusing on her sophomore novel for this interview, here’s the blurb for THE FIREFLY CROWN:
An unlucky sorcerer must learn to wield her insect magic in this charming middle grade fantasy that’s perfect for fans of Impossible Creatures and Witchlings.
In the empire, magic determines your fate. But Yumi is tired of being a failed Cricket. Their magic is lousy and boring. She dreams instead of the sparkling magic of Fireflies, whose powers rival the sun. If only she could harness her talents like other magicians . . . For now, Yumi is ignored by even the crickets who are supposed to follow her spells.
Then, Yumi gets a chance to prove herself sooner than expected when all sorcerers are summoned for the princess’s coronation. But everything falls apart when the Firefly Crown is stolen, leaving the empire defenseless against the Ghost Swarm, a horde of undead bugs. Worse, Yumi is blamed. Suddenly this lowly Cricket is the empire’s most wanted. To clear her name and protect her loved ones, Yumi must find the real thief. But can a Cricket really save the day?
Now enough with the pleasantries, let’s jump into this interview!
CHILDHOOD DREAMS
My first question for both of you: did you always want to become an author?
RAIDAH: Yes! I was always that kid who found socialization far too tricky, so I sought refuge in reading and writing books. I’ve lost track of the number of stories I’ve written, and all my unfinished manuscripts. I wrote fanfiction for years, too, which really helped me improve my writing craft.
YXAVEL: Yes! Ever since I was really young, “author” was always my answer whenever people asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I was the kid who would rather read books in the library at lunchtime rather than hang out with the other students (thank you to everyone who still talked to me even though I was super shy and quiet, haha!) I once told someone that if I could only publish one book, and have even just one person read and love it, I would be a very happy writer. So, I feel extremely blessed and lucky to be able to live out my dream of being a published author right now, and very grateful to all the family, friends, and industry professionals who made it possible.
So determined! This of course has me asking you to tell us a bit about your publication journey.
YXAVEL: Since fantasy novels were the books that first sparked my obsession with reading and writing, I knew I wanted to be a fantasy author first and foremost. However, when I started writing my own ideas, I struggled with discipline and sticking to a single idea. Back then it was super difficult for me to write a thousand words, let alone the tens of thousands that were needed for a full-length novel.
After high school, I decided to write a story that was truer to my identity than any of the Western fantasy-inspired novels I’d ever tried writing before: a story inspired by my Filipino heritage, its myths, and its folklore. In my first year of university, I started writing what would become my debut middle-grade fantasy novel, THE SERPENT RIDER. I finished the manuscript and started querying by the start of the following year and got an offer of representation, and my wonderful agent sold the book the year after that. After several rounds of edits, THE SERPENT RIDER released in September 2024 and my sophomore novel, THE FIREFLY CROWN, just landed this month!
RAIDAH: Buckle up, because it took YEARS! I had attended Hanna Alkaf’s author event, and her advice to me was to finish my first draft. I completed the first draft of HOW TO FREE A JINN while I was pregnant with my son. I knew I needed a solid draft before he was born, before I got swallowed up by the newborn haze all over again. My two daughters were both under 4 at the time, so while my oldest was in preschool and my middle daughter was with her grandmother, I’d go from restaurant to restaurant and write. It was such a fun process, especially because I’m a panster and had no idea where my story was going until I wrote THE END. I polished it as best I could, hired an editor to help me polish it even further, then started the arduous process of querying….two months after I gave birth to my son! I gave myself a deadline of a year – if I didn’t secure representation by then, I would shelve my book and write another. I had about 100 rejections by the time I secured a single agent offer. In October 2020, when my son was one year old, I signed with my agent, Alli Hellegers of Stimola Literary. After some edits with her, in 2021, she sent the then-YA version of my book to US editors, and we had a lot of complimentary rejections. I spent 2022 revising my book down from YA to MG. We finally landed my Australian book deal in late 2023, and then got published in Sept 2024!
I’m not worthy to be in the presence of two agented international PHENOMES! Now, do you both strictly write fantasy? Or do you dabble across genres? Is there one genre you would (probably) NEVER try?
RAIDAH: Not at all! I read very widely and reflect that in my own writing practice e.g. I also write non-fiction, poems, romance, mysteries, adventures….One genre I would probably never try is straight up horror. Suspense and psychological thrillers are something I’d love to experiment with, but I’m far too squeamish for gore and horror.
YXAVEL: I’m a fantasy writer at heart, but I love consuming media in all different genres including sci-fi, horror, psychological thrillers, and literary! I’d love to be a multi-genre author one day. Although I don’t think I could ever write a purely romance-oriented book, as that requires a skillset which I doubt I currently have (for now at least … but hey maybe one day!)
REPRESENTATION GOALS
As a Thai-American MG author, I personally love discovering the commonalities between different Southeast Asian cultures. What are some key cultural elements or traditions from Malaysia and the Philippines you knew you had to include in your stories?
RAIDAH: I wanted to include tasty Malaysian food and our obsession with jinn stories. I also wanted to include spiritual practices like reading Ayatul Kursi for protection. My intention was to always weave these seamlessly into my narrative, as a way to invite the reader into Insyirah’s lived experience.
YXAVEL: It’s super fascinating how Southeast Asia is so diverse yet there are so many values our cultures share! THE SERPENT RIDER features several mythical creatures from Filipino folklore, while THE FIREFLY CROWN’s magic system is inspired by the mambabarang, or traditional Filipino insect magicians. Aside from these aspects, one element of Philippine culture I knew I had to include in my stories is the concept of bayanihan: the deep bonds of family, friends, community, and the sense of “we’re all in this together” that permeates Filipino society even today. The importance of community and connection across Southeast Asian cultures is something you also explore very well in your own books, Patchree!
Thanks for kind words, Yxavel! Borrowing the sentiment from our colleague, Annie McCann, do you feel like a trailblazer for your culture when it comes to representation?
YXAVEL: In writing my novels, my goal was to spread the word about Filipino myths and hopefully encourage young readers to want to learn more about them! I’m so glad to be a fellow author alongside Annie, whose book MY HARIMAU KING does this with Indonesian legends; with Raidah Shah Idil whose novel HOW TO FREE A JINN explores Malaysian culture; and with you, who absolutely blew me away with your Thai-inspired SKYLIGHT! Since there’s an underrepresentation of Filipino-inspired books in the kidlit space, writing about our culture does make me feel like a trailblazer in that sense—although I’m definitely not the first person to do it!
An amazing writer-sister of mine, Caris Avendaño Cruz, wrote MARIKIT AND THE OCEAN OF STARS, as well as her second novel released earlier this year, THE BOY, THE MOUNTAIN, AND THE SERPENT WHO ATE THE MOON (which features the Filipino moon-eating sea serpent that also appears in my book THE SERPENT RIDER). Caris is a brilliant author who writes our myths with a poetry and charm I can only dream of. I’ll always recommend those books!
RAIDAH: I think so. I’d like to think that I’m building on the foundation set by Southeast Asian authors who have been published before me, like Hanna Alkaf and Jesse Sutanto. I admire Hanna Alkaf’s books, which reflect a deep love for Malaysian families, food and culture. My experience is different because of my returnee diaspora experience. I’m Malay, but not Malaysian. I’m Australian, but I’m definitely not white. I still occupy this liminal space of being between worlds. I wanted to emphasize the healing power of coming back to my ancestral home after struggling with a lot of anti-Islam, anti-Asian sentiment growing up as a minority in the West.
Representation matters so much and ALL children need to see themselves in the stories they read. We’ve still got a long way toward balancing our libraries, but at least we’re taking up the challenge to make our cultures present and accounted for!
Designed by FreePik
Now, I’ve got a question just for Raidah! While most writers feel like we can revise forever (some begrudgingly!), what did the revision process look like for you between the original version of HOW TO FREE A JINN and the upcoming US/Canadian release?
RAIDAH: Where do I even start? The original version of HOW TO FREE A JINN was actually a YA novel! Insyirah started off as being 16. One of my American beta readers said that she sounded closer to 12, and that was the winning tweak that I suggested to my agent, who enthusiastically agreed. I had to brutally cut out many subplots and characters (including Insyirah’s dad, stepmother and stepsister haha) to get to the heart of my story. That was the version that landed my first book deal with Allen and Unwin.
Once my book got acquired by my Australian publisher, I had a little bit more polishing to do with my Australian editor, Kate Whitcher. Once I got my American book deal with Salaam Reads (an imprint of Simon & Schuster), I fleshed out my story even more with my American editor, Deeba Zargapur. I hope to get a UK book deal too, and I’m looking forward to strengthening my book with my UK editor.
Who knew the process was so complicated! Now, Yxavel, here’s a question just for you! Since all writers dream of getting every story published, how did the publishing journey of THE FIREFLY CROWN differ from THE SERPENT RIDER? Did you experience any sophomore release nerves?
YXAVEL: With THE SERPENT RIDER, I had all the time in the world to come up with the initial draft, but THE FIREFLY CROWN was the first book I’ve ever had to write on deadline and I really felt the challenge! It helped that I decided to write a main character who shares a lot of traits with me—Yumi is a quiet Cricket magician who comes from humble beginnings, but is forced to prove her innocence when the empire’s most treasured possession, the magical Firefly Crown, goes missing and the blame lands on her. My initial attempt at a manuscript was pretty messy, so I’m thankful to my editor for being very forgiving with the first draft, and for writing a brilliant edit letter that helped me improve the story so much!
A lot of people who enjoyed THE SERPENT RIDER are Filipino readers who know our myths exceptionally well, so I’m a little (read: EXTREMELY) nervous about what they will think of THE FIREFLY CROWN. Here’s hoping you all will enjoy it too!
My goodness! I am blown away but both of your journeys! Last question, what’s one key takeaway you want readers to take away from your work?
RAIDAH: I hope that Insyirah’s story, and all of my future stories, will show the complexity and humanity of Muslim families, and how we deserve to go on fun adventures too. The dehumanization and demonisation of Muslims in mainstream media has real-life harmful and often fatal consequences. Writing joyful Muslim stories is my resistance.
YXAVEL: A recurrent theme across both my novels is having the courage to forge your own path, no matter who or what may stand in your way. I sincerely hope that anyone who reads my work will feel inspired to do just that.
Here, here! I love these messages and agree with both of you wholeheartedly. Publishing takes courage and joy is resistance! Thank you both so much for sharing with us today! Be sure to support these amazing authors and grab their books today! Check out their socials and book links below!
Raidah Shah Idil
Author Bio:Raidah Shah Idil was born in Singapore; grew up in Sydney, Australia; worked in Amman, Jordan; and now lives in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia, with her husband, three children, and mother-in-law. Raidah earned her BA in English and BSc in Psychology from the University of New South Wales and her Diploma of Counselling from the Australian Institute of Professional Counsellors. Raidah loves ginger tea and noodle soup and dreams of uninterrupted sleep. HOW TO FREE A JINN is her first book.
Yxavel Magna Dino
Author Bio: Yxavel Magno Diño is the author of The Serpent Rider and The Firefly Crown. She was born in the Philippines before moving to Australia at a young age, where she soon discovered that almost nobody there knew how to say her name. To make up for it, she spent her time daydreaming about fantasy worlds filled with characters who had more unusual names than she did. Now, she writes stories about her Filipino heritage and its fantastical folklore. When she’s not writing, you can find her drinking copious amounts of black tea or getting lost in the pages of a book.
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