Looking Ahead: Meg Medina and The Girl Who Could Silence the Wind

Looking Ahead is a feature in which new upcoming books and their authors are featured! Take a minute to read the interview, get to know them, read about their book(s), and find them on the internet!

Today I have Meg Medina with her book The Girl Who Could Silence the Wind!

TCR: Can you describe your book in ten words or less?

MM: Girl overcomes a mountain of myths, suffers, loves, saves herself.

TCR: What has surprised you the most about the publishing process?

MM: I have loved this process, but you’re right, it’s full of surprises.

The good: The world of children’s books and YA is filled with talented, generous people, who love books and want to help.

The bad: You do not become a millionaire...or even financially able to leave your day job for a long while.

The ugly: Once you start publishing, you have to keep up a pace of writing new manuscripts that can be grueling. That magic time of the first novel is over.Also, you will spend a lot of time supporting your own books through events, social media, promotional materials, etc. Often you will ask, "but when do I write?"

Still, I wouldn't trade this life for anthing.

TCR: What was your reaction when you first saw your cover?

MM: I never like my covers when I first see them. It’s like seeing myself in film or something. Yikes. I’ve learned that this is a knee jerk reaction. In time, I truly love my covers.

TCR: Where can we stay up to date on you and your book?

MM: www.megmedina.com. I’m also on twitter http://twitter.com/#!/meg_medina
and on Facebook. I keep an author page on Amazon, too.

This one is available March 13th, 2012! Scroll down to read the official summary!

"Sixteen-year-old Sonia Ocampa was born on the night of the worst storm Tres Montes had ever seen. And when the winds mercifully stopped, an unshakable belief in the girl's protective powers began. All her life, Sonia has been asked to pray for sick mothers or missing sons, as worried parents and friends press silver milagros in her hands. Sonia knows she has no special powers, but how can she disappoint those who look to her for solace? Still, her conscience is heavy, so when she gets a chance to travel to the city and work in the home of a wealthy woman, she seizes it. At first, Sonia feels freedom in being treated like all the other girls. But when news arrives that her beloved brother has disappeared while looking for work, she learns to her sorrow that she can never truly leave past or family behind. With deeply realized characters, a keen sense of place, a hint of magical realism, and a flush of young romance, Meg Medina tells the tale of a strong-willed, warmhearted girl who dares to face life's harsh truths as she finds her real power."