Latest / Book Flood Podcast / Ernesto Cisneros on "Queso, Just in Time" (E54)
Transcript
- Tom Nixon: Welcome to the Book Flood Podcast! I am your host, Tom Nixon. My guest this week is Ernesto Cisneros. Ernesto is the author of Efren Divided and the forthcoming Queso Just in Time. He is also an elementary school teacher. Welcome Ernesto. Ernesto Cisneros: Thank you for having me, Tom. It's nice to chat with you once again. Tom Nixon: Absolutely. don't we talk a little bit about how you got to this place? I believe you are on book number three. ⁓ Ernesto Cisneros: Yes, yes. Tom Nixon: Let's talk a little bit about how you got there. Ernesto Cisneros: So it's kind of an interesting story. I like to say that my career was kind of an accidental career. So it goes back to about 15, no, 20 years ago. My students really liked my stories. And back in the day, I thought I wanted to be a writer, but I just didn't know how. to be honest, I didn't feel like it's not something I could do. I didn't see anybody else who was being Latino who was. you know, becoming a successful author and I never had, you know, any models to follow. And so my thought was when my students kept telling me, you know, you should publish your stories. Your stories are really funny. ⁓ love your stories. You should try and publish a book. I just thought I'm going to look into this and I joined SCBWI, the nonprofit organization. And from there I was able to grow and I came back. Everything I learned from there, I would take back to the classroom. And to be honest, I just thought that one day one of my students would be published that ⁓ 15 minutes of fame would be opening the acknowledgement page ⁓ and would see, ⁓ to Mr. Cisneros for teaching me and encouraging me to become an author. And that was really the plan. And then when Efren Divided came by, the whole world was ⁓ just this horrible place, horrible things were being said about Latinos and I wanted to write a book. I just kind of wrote a book from my heart and I was thinking it's not going to get published, so I'm going to include my community. I'm going to use Spanglish. I'm going to talk right about my school and add some of my students and the teachers. And I just thought this book isn't going to be published ever, so I'm free to just be myself and to write my own authentic voice. And once that happened, my students, I do like to share my work with my students when we do creative writing. And I want like them to see my mistakes and just to see that, to dismissify the process for them. And love book. And they told me, no, Mr. C, you have to try and you have to send this to you and try and get it published. So I said to my agent, I remember apologizing to her and saying, I'm so sorry. You asked me to write something that we could sell because for 15 years I wasn't able to sell anything. ⁓ I essentially run out of people to submit to and. Tom Nixon: Hmm. Ernesto Cisneros: And she submitted it and two weeks later, we heard from Harper Collins and the biggest publisher at the time. yeah, they had an offer to for publication. I could not believe that. yeah, and then yes, yes. And the winning the Pura Belpre did not hurt either. Yeah, ⁓ after I remember day after the Pura Belpre, my email just flooded and I'm really blessed that Tom Nixon: overnight success only took you 15 years. Mm. Ernesto Cisneros: they haven't stopped coming in. And so that really just changed my life. And now I'm an author and a teacher and a parent. And before I to keep everything kind of separate. And now it's just all kind of meshed together. So ⁓ yeah, it's a wonderful experience, very rewarding. Tom Nixon: So you have a book coming out, is it tomorrow? Yeah. Ernesto Cisneros: Yes, yes, guess what? Queso Just in Time it comes out ⁓ Thank you. Thank you. Tom Nixon: Happy book birthday. Where did you get the idea for Queso Just in Time? Ernesto Cisneros: So it's kind of an interesting story. There's kind of a long story to it, but in a nutshell, I'm going to tell you a little bit about my dad, and then I will tie it together. So it's kind of like a long-winded version of this, but I'll try to keep it short. So my dad, when he was a kid, he used to run away when he was about 12. He'd go to Mexico City. His dream was to wear a suit and a tie. Tom Nixon: No worries. Ernesto Cisneros: So if you want, he wanted to either work in a bank or in business or something like that. He just wanted to be a white collar worker. And because he was in a tiny little wrench in Michoacan, Mexico, he didn't want to be, you know, having to raise the pigs and the chickens. That wasn't what he wanted for his life. And so he'd run away and he had all these adventures and these are all adventures that I never knew about. And so I remember asking my grandfather for some stories and he just responded, Ay, mijo, yo de esas cosas yo no se. Basically all of sudden, those things I don't know much about. And the thing that kind of hit me was that he just didn't value his stories. And they're so valuable. And now that he's passed, they're gone. And so I didn't want that happen with my dad. So when I go every Sunday to go visit my parents, I would start asking my mom for stories. So mom, tell me about my dad and how did you guys meet and what were some of the things that he would do? And I really enjoyed the process. So the thought came. Tom Nixon: Hmm. Ernesto Cisneros: It just occurred to me, wow, wouldn't it be cool if I could go back in time and meet that version of my dad? ⁓ Because I never, the version I got to know was the version that came home after leaving, going to work at 3.30 in the morning, coming back, you know, like full of just, you know, after a long day of working, cutting grass and hard labor. So he'd come back, but he'd be exhausted. And so I never, you know, he'd come back late as well. So. Tom Nixon: Yes. Ernesto Cisneros: I never got to see that happy go lucky version of himself. ⁓ and that's what I wanted to get to know. I thought that would be a really wonderful story. If I could, if, if a child could go back in time and meet their parents. And the twist here is that they get to be the same age, which is exactly the premise of the book. So in the book, Queso he's 12 years old ⁓ his dad passes away. He misses him. He was his best friend. Tom Nixon: Hmm. Ernesto Cisneros: And he finds his little horchata, a little rabbit. And one day he's really missing his dad. So he goes to the backyard and he goes to the tree house that his grandpa and his dad had built. And he likes going there because it reminds him of his dad. And he makes a wish that he wishes he could see his dad one more time. And because of his little bunny, he wakes up the next day. It's 1985 and he gets to meet his dad, but he's a big time travieso, very mischievous, gets in all sorts of trouble. And so he spends kind of the first part of the book just trying to teach his father all the lessons that his father taught him when he was little. And then I can't tell you the whole story, whole rest of the plot, but something happens and he changes the future. And so now you're kind of left wondering if there's something he might be able to do to save his dad's life. And that's about as much as I can say about the plot of the story. Tom Nixon: Mm. Now, it changes the future. Now, there's a lot of books out there that have theories about changing the future and why you should or shouldn't do that. Did you take a look at those books and that theory? Ernesto Cisneros: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. ⁓ yes, I'm a big book reader and especially with the Flash and the whole changing the timeline continuum and all that kind of stuff. So my character was very knowledgeable about all of those things. And so he knew not to do it. However, ⁓ something happens accidentally and you think nothing bad comes out of it, he kind of leans, okay, maybe I can get away with it in real And so, yes. But the interesting thing about that is when you're writing about time travel, just like if you change the past, it changes the future. Same thing happened with the book. So this book was actually really tricky to write because if I did change something in the beginning, it would change the whole plot line of the story. So I had to rewrite this book so many different times because I kept changing and altering the timeline, the storyline of it. Tom Nixon: Mm. Well, and if there are any flash fans out there, changing time doesn't work out well. No. Right. So is there a story behind the story? Ernesto Cisneros: No, yes, yes, exactly, Um, I think it's, yeah. So this book is actually dedicated to my dad, Francisco Pancho, and it's my way of acknowledging the sacrifices that he made. So part of his adventures was that at age 15, he ran away when I didn't run away. I'm sorry. Well, he kind of did run away. He met my mom and they decided to come to the U.S. at, I mean, at age 15, which I, yes, not speaking the language, not having any money. Um, And he did that essentially because he wanted a better life, especially for, if he, if he was going to have a family. And so he spent, Oh my goodness, probably close to 50 years cutting grass and he never got to have that office job that he wanted. Um, and so whenever I go to conferences, people ask me sometimes, why do you always wear a tie? I'm not wearing one right now, but when I do go to conferences, I always wear a suit and a tie. And, uh, my answer is because I can. my dad made it possible. And so it's my way of just to honor him when I go to the events. Tom Nixon: lovely. So your students were early readers or early listeners to the book. What did they think of Queso? Ernesto Cisneros: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. So they're my beta readers and you know, a lot of people think that students would not give their teachers like, you know, a fair criticism and they wouldn't be honest, but ⁓ my goodness, my students are the most honest readers that there are. And they will flat out tell me like, I'm kind of bored. tell ⁓ ⁓ my gosh, this is so funny. And they are, they're my editors. They're my first, the first round of edits is always credited to my students because they read them. They tell me what's funny, what works, what doesn't work. And they're incredibly honest. If you ever want honest feedback, a middle school student and I promise you they will tell you exactly what they think. And they it's cool because I also, have, I have a sign in my classroom that says, be careful what you say or do or you could end up in one of my books. Tom Nixon: Yeah, is it? Ernesto Cisneros: And sometimes if a student gives me really good feedback out of courtesy, I'm like, you know what? I'm going to name a character after them. And so ⁓ do. They like being part of the process. And they just think it's really cool that they might end up in a book or I was there when he was writing this. ⁓ just kind of like, like I remember at the mall when Arnold Schwarzenegger was filming a movie. And then after we watched the movie, everybody would go over to the mall and just look at the scene locations like, my gosh, he was here. That's the store that he ran out of it. This is a stairway. And it's kind of like that for the students too, that they can read the books later and tell people that they were part of that. And I think that's pretty cool. Tom Nixon: Mm. Nice. Who else gets to be an early reader? Ernesto Cisneros: about anybody who will read. I do so many drafts that ⁓ I readers all the time and sometimes it's just for like little scenes. But I will find former students. will find, I mean, if I see the mailman over there and I, you know, ⁓ I might the mailman. ⁓ Nobody, yeah, off limits. If somebody's a reader, that's pretty much the requirement that I have. It's got to be somebody who enjoys reading books. And sometimes it is real people who don't enjoy reading books. And those are the best ones because if I can win them over, then I know I can win anybody over. Tom Nixon: Mm. ⁓ I remember years ago reading a book by ⁓ science fiction author John Scalzi he typically wrote from a male perspective, but had one book that was from a, the star, if you will, was a teenage girl. And so he had his daughter read it and he his wife read it because it's just, it's a very different outlook. Ernesto Cisneros: Yes. ⁓ Yes, yes. And that's a really strange aspect of writing. I mean, I enjoy writing for this age group, but part of me is a little confused by the whole process because... I'm a 52 year old adult male writing in the point of view of a 12 year old protagonist. And in reality, I just feel like shouldn't the students be the ones publishing kid books? So 12 year olds should be writing books about 12 year olds, not 52 year olds. so I do the best to kind of be, first of all, I try to be like a sponge and absorb their language and the way that they speak and their their interests. So my students keep me young and that's like one of my secret superpowers that I have. That thing separates me from other people. Sometimes I'll read my books and I'm kind of watching if they see a they're reading Falling Short for example and I see them chuckle I will walk over to them and I'm like so you know what made you laugh and I get this insight that most authors aren't privy to. So it's a wonderful gift to be to be able to share that with the kids. Tom Nixon: How does this book compare to your other books? Ernesto Cisneros: So every single book has been a unique experience. Like people ask me, what's your process and things like that. And it's been different for every single book, where the, I guess where my head space is, what I'm feeling, what's going on in the world. So my books always reflect whatever is going on in my life. And this one was my parents getting older. It was really very more, it was more emotional. Like, Efren Divided right now is really emotional for me reading it. But I think the process of writing it, this one was the closest home to me because it's about 1985. in I was 12 years old. Like, I really was. And so a lot of the scenes and all of the research is actually me going back to the neighborhood and reconnecting with a lot of my memories. And so ⁓ that really unique. Tom Nixon: Mm. Ernesto Cisneros: but it also made everything very real for me. And so there are some sad moments in the book and early readers are saying that this is my best book. They're saying it's my funniest book, but they're also saying it's my saddest book. ⁓ it goes back to ⁓ waiting up for my mom when I was a kid. She switched her schedule around so she could be, you know, see us a little bit more. So sometimes she would arrive at two in the morning and we did not live in the best neighborhood. So. regardless of what my mom said or threatened me with I always wait waited up for her and She'd get very upset. She like you have school the next day You cannot stay up to two in the morning waiting for me but I refuse to to just go to sleep because I was worried for her and so I would watch mash and I don't know if you remember the show mash how You're laughing one minute the next second you're crying and then you're and you feel guilty because you don't know if you should be laughing or crying Tom Nixon: Mm-hmm. Ernesto Cisneros: And I think watching so many episodes of MASH really had a lasting impact on my style as a writer. And I love mixing the two. And I feel like it kind of throws off your emotions and allows you to feel a little bit more. Tom Nixon: Mm. has been their response from reviewers? Ernesto Cisneros: It's been amazing, honestly. Like with my students, I would share little excerpts of the story. And I've never had kids be this excited. I think the storyline is because of the time travel. It's perhaps my most commercial book so far. I feel like Falling Short and Effort and Divide It are wonderful books. But I feel they're the kind of books that you read in the classroom that kids wouldn't necessarily select on their own at the bookstores. And I think that Guess All Just in Time is probably the first book I have where I think kiddos would see that on the shelf and they would just pick it for fun. I think that's what separates this book from the other ones. But again, it's because it was written, it's almost like a memoir partially of my ⁓ in 1985. extremely personal. So I'm just kind of really nervous to share a part of my own life and my own experience and memories. Tom Nixon: Mm. Ernesto Cisneros: I don't know, it's like putting yourself out there, you make yourself a little bit vulnerable. But by the same token, for some reason, this is something that literature allows. You could put really personal information in a book. And for some reason, it's okay. If you share it out loud speaking, people might, you know, it gets awkward. But when you put it in a book, everybody just kind of accepts it. It's almost like there's a closer connection with the reader. I don't know, it's kind of a strange thing, but it's very real. Tom Nixon: this the book that they need to turn into a movie? Ernesto Cisneros: I think I'm a little biased. I would say all three of them. But would be a good start. Yes. Yes. And I think it actually would make an excellent film. Tom Nixon: What are you working on now? Ernesto Cisneros: So as I travel, I get to travel the country now and I've been to different schools and I've seen so many kids that remind me of myself. So when I was a kid, I remember one of the teachers described my friends and myself as being feral, which is not a very nice thing to say to a group of kids. And to be honest, and I remember her saying it, but I didn't know what feral meant at the time. So I was like, okay. you know, thank you. But then as I learned that what if the meaning behind the word, I started seeing how a lot of ⁓ adults treat some of the kids and sometimes they judge them before they get to know them. And so I kind of want to highlight those kids that that aren't written about too often. So I'm writing a superhero ⁓ book. The title not to stick because my titles never stick for some reason. ⁓ I always change them. for now, it's called ⁓ We could be heroes too. And it's about just a little group of kids who you wouldn't expect to become heroes. They find a magic genie. They make one boy, doesn't know what to wish for, so he wishes that everybody in the city would get what they want. And so you've got flying babies and giant submarine sandwiches and just really, the whole city goes into chaos and they're left with very strange and unique superpowers and they're the ones that have to save the day. And so far I've had so much fun. It's almost like, honestly, it's kind of like playing. I mean, I feel like I'm reverting back to my childhood. And I remember playing, like I remember having a Luke Skywalker doll and a Robin and having a Jeep and just making up stories. And that's kind of what I do now. I don't know, it's nice. It's nice to revisit that part of my life. And I get paid to. When you're a kid, you don't get paid play. And I feel like I'm playing now. And the only difference is I have to write down those ideas, the daydreaming that I do. I jot it down, and that's really the only difference. So ⁓ just a lot of fun. Tom Nixon: Mm. How do you keep track of your ideas? Ernesto Cisneros: If any students of mine are watching this interview, disregard this portion, Mostly in my head. ⁓ I have ADD and I don't have the hyper part of ADHD, but yeah, it just kind of sticks there. And I would like to say that I'm really organized. I've tried making outlines and ⁓ storyboards and everything, but Tom Nixon: in his head. Ernesto Cisneros: For some reason, my characters just won't listen to them. And try making a storyline and being organized, but then as soon as my character becomes real, and that usually happens after like one or two chapters, and then I'm not the boss of the story anymore. The book takes the life of its own. And it's really rewarding because I get to come back to my desk, and just as ⁓ curious about what's happen next. I'm like, ⁓ my God, last time was writing, this happened. There was a fire and the boys need to figure out how to rescue her, but who's trapped in there? How is it going to happen? And for me, I have no idea. And so I get to sit there and there's a level of excitement that I received because I got to figure out these things too. It's almost like pick your own adventure book, except yeah, but I'm starting from scratch, but it's still, it's that kind of feeling that I get when I come to the desk to write. ⁓ Tom Nixon: ⁓ right. Ernesto Cisneros: And if I'm enjoying it, feel that's the secret that why I think kids enjoy my books because I enjoy writing them as well. And if I'm not enjoying the scene, I know the kids are not going to enjoy it either. Tom Nixon: Do you write every day? Ernesto Cisneros: Okay, again, students, if you guys are watching this part of the interview, no, I wish I could. And before, yeah, yes, it is. And again, I'm very blessed that I get to travel and visit schools and do different events. And so I don't get to write the way that I would like to. But before, I used to be really hard on myself and I had that mamba mentality. Okay, I know this author in this interview said he gets up at 430 So I'm gonna get up at 2 at 430 and I'm gonna I'm gonna match this this author Oh this person stays up late. I'm gonna match him So like when I finished up and invited I got pretty ill because I was working myself a little too hard and Now I've realized that when I go to the gym or I go for a hike Or I just do something for fun or I go watch a movie. That's part of my writing process Because if my mind is exhausted Tom Nixon: Mm. Ernesto Cisneros: I'm not going to write well. life just kind of brings me, or the universe, whatever you believe in, it kind of brings me what I need. so whenever I'm stuck, I try not to pressure myself anymore. And I just accept, OK, this might take a little longer. But I am a part-time writer. First, I'm parent. Then I'm a teacher. And then I'm an author. That's my ⁓ third job. And the order of how I see those responsibilities. Tom Nixon: So three books, how long did it take you to write each of them? Ernesto Cisneros: So that's the interesting thing that each book has progressively doubled in time. So, After You Divide It took me just under six months to write because, again, that was not supposed to be published. It was just like a practice book. And because I wasn't creating the characters from scratch, it was kind of based on people I knew, it was really quickly, it rolled out very quickly. Falling Short took me twice as long because there was a level of anxiety. Like writing the sophomore book is kind of difficult, especially with the success of the first. It's called Falling Short because I thought my second book might fall short of people's expectations. So that's why I incorporated a lot of the emotions I had, the anxiety, and I gave those to the characters to show kids how to handle those feelings and that those feelings are normal. And then this one took me over two years, probably two and a half, maybe. It's kind of hard to say sometimes. Tom Nixon: Mm. Ernesto Cisneros: Like when the idea hit to when I actually started writing, ⁓ I lose track of how long that was, but yes, book has almost doubled ⁓ the amount time it takes to write them. But I think that's because I ⁓ do more and more interviews, and so it's hard to ⁓ that time. Tom Nixon: not sure you can do this next book in double the time again though. Ernesto Cisneros: No, that would be a really, really long time. no. Plus this one is actually ⁓ because every time I write a book that's really emotional, my like I need to reset myself, like fill my tank again. And so I always try like Falling Short was a much more humorous book than Affron Divided. And even though this one is really funny, my next one is mostly humor. And it still has some heart, but it's a little lighter because emotionally I cannot handle, I need to recoup from from Guestful just in time. It was a very emotional book to write. again, when the protagonist is your father, know, yeah, it lends for a lot of emotion. Tom Nixon: Mm-hmm. there a book or a series of books from your childhood that resonates with you? Still. Ernesto Cisneros: I'm kind of embarrassed to answer this question, but I will because I think it's important. Sadly, I think the answer would be no. ⁓ I never really saw myself in books. The last book I read when I was in sixth grade, and that's when I kind of gave up on books for a long, long time, was The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. ⁓ And loved I read it two days. Tom Nixon: Mm. Mm. Ernesto Cisneros: And I remember taking it back to the librarian and she offered me the second book of the series. And I passed that up and I'm like, no, no, thank you. not interested in reading a story where kids are destined to become kings and the whole kingdom to himself. When I felt like those opportunities were never given to kids like me. And it kind of just, it left me in a little place where I'm like, no, I want a book that where I can see myself in it. And unfortunately those books didn't. Tom Nixon: Mm. Ernesto Cisneros: didn't really exist. And so it took me a long time until my junior year in high school when I read Elena Maria Viramontes ⁓ I it was called The Moths or Moths. And it the first time I saw a Latino character, Latino author too. And I was just wowed and floored when she came to my classroom because it was the first that it Tom Nixon: Right. Ernesto Cisneros: it dawned on me that it's possible for somebody to write, a Latino to write books. And asked me, what's your major? And without thinking or processing, I just responded, I'm going to be an English major. that's the way it worked out. I ended up being an English major at UC Irvine, and I got my master's degree ⁓ in as well, and all that from a visit. So go figure. ⁓ Tom Nixon: Mm. Right. What are you reading now? Ernesto Cisneros: So I have a book that a friend ordered from one of my friends wrote. It's called Overruled. ⁓ the funny thing about this book is that my students love ask whenever they see me with a book in my hand, they ask me about it. And so this has been like the most popular book in my classroom. Also, I want to be a baller. Those are probably the two that are circulating the most. And so I have yet to finish the book because every time I start reading more and more chapters, one of my students will take it away from me. And so now I'm not going to like, I think I'm going to keep it at home so that I could just read it on my spare time. so this is Christy Wopat. I believe this is how you pronounce your last, I apologize, Christy, if I mispronounced your last name, but yes, and it's a wonderful book. I'm really enjoying it. Tom Nixon: Hmm. the author. I want to thank you so much for being on the podcast today for our ⁓ and watchers. Please to like, subscribe and share. Also, we have a new ⁓ website Bookfloodpodcast.riverside.com. Please go take a look. This podcast will be up there shortly. And again, thank you, Ernesto. Ernesto Cisneros: ⁓ thank you for everything. I love watching your interviews. And you're a wonderful person. And I love everything that you do to bring reading and motivating everybody read, especially our kiddos. Tom Nixon: Thank you so very much. Take care. Ernesto Cisneros: Thank you, Tom. You too, Tom. Bye, everybody.