Debut Author Interview: Mia Araujo and Afia In the Land of Wonders Giveaway

Happy Monday Everyone! Today I’m excited to have Mia Araujo here to share about her middle grade fantasy Afia In the Land of Wonders. It sounds like a fantastic story inspired by West African kingdoms and has gorgeous illustrations. I’m looking forward to reading it. 

Here’s a blurb from Goodreads: 

In her stunning literary debut, Mia Araujo presents a gorgeous reimagining of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, spinning a new story that is accompanied by arresting, ethereal illustrations about twin sisters and how one must venture outside the safety of their home, into the wilderness, in order to find herself and true happiness.

Afia has always felt like half of a whole. Her twin sister, Aya, is perfectly happy with fulfilling their family's expectations of them. But Afia dreams of exploring the world beyond her secluded cliffside home of Dafra. She dreams of adventure.

When she meets a charming shape-shifter named Bakame, who dazzles her with promises of a magical land called Ijabu, Afia decides to take her destiny into her own hands. Although it will mean leaving everything she has ever known behind, including her beloved sister, Afia follows Bakame into the forbidden forests surrounding Dafra, from which no one has ever returned.

Filled with magical sights, a charismatic Queen and her intriguing court, Ijabu is everything that Afia has ever dreamed of. But she soon discovers that nothing is as it seems, and this fantasy world demands a terrible price. With the help of a mysterious trickster, Afia must evade the Queen's hunters and the lost dreamers of Ijabu, who wish to pull her deeper into their web.

Now, Afia must find the courage to survive while standing on her own--or risking losing herself completely to the wonders of Ijabu.

Debut author-illustrator Mia Araujo weaves an extraordinarily luminous and beautiful story, inspired by Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, about what it takes to find your true self, even if it means facing your deepest fears.

"Nothing short of an amazing adventure into a fantastic world, Mia Araujo has crafted a beautiful narrative, made all the more incredible by stunning visuals that overflow with heart and soul." -- David F. Walker, Eisner-award winning author of Bitter Root and The Second Chance of Darius Logan 

Follower News

 Before I get to Mia’s interview, I have Follower News to share.

Sandra Cox has a new release, Reuben Hayes. Here’s a blurb: The crusty middle-aged rancher had only ever loved one woman. And now her daughter stood on his doorstep. And here’s a buy link: https://www.amazon.com/Reuben-Hayes-S-Cox-ebook/dp/B0DWQBGT88

 

Jennifer Lane also has a new short story release, Behind the Catcher’s Mask. Here’s a blurb: Fast-pitch softball is Andie Wilson’s life. She’s a fierce pitcher hoping to score a college scholarship, and she hates the annoying distraction of cocky baseball players crashing her high-school charity game. But she doesn’t anticipate the impact of one baseball player: Colt Turner. As Colt stares at her through his catcher’s mask, his steadfast gaze may be just what she needs to guide her through a crisis. And Colt may need Andie, too—to cope with the secret hiding behind his mask. And here’s a buy link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DZL7M23F

 

 Interview With Mia Araujo

Hi Mia! Thanks so much for joining us. 

1. Tell us about yourself and how you became a writer. 

I’m an Argentine American artist and first-time author born and raised in southern California. Since 2007, I’ve exhibited my artwork in galleries, museums, and conventions and have done professional illustration for newspapers and books, including Silvia Moreno Garcia’s Mexican Gothic and Gabe Cole Novoa’s The Wicked Bargain. I also co-host Painted in Color, a BIPOC art podcast on YouTube with my friends, Lauren Brown and Eric Wilkerson. 

I’ve been obsessed with drawing ever since I was a little kid. When I was 8 years old, I remember telling the class on my first career day that I wanted to be an artist and an author when I grew up. 

I majored in Illustration and minored in Creative Writing at Otis College of Art and Design in 2007, but I stopped writing for years after graduating because I was suddenly afraid that I wasn’t any good at writing and that I had to figure myself out before I could write. So for years, I focused all of my creative energy on my paintings and drawings. I finally came back to writing again in 2012, when I started the project that would become this book.  

2. Where did you get the idea for Afia In the Land of Wonders? 

Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is one of my favorite books from my childhood and I’ve wanted to reimagine my own version for years. 

My twin sister, Barbra, and I grew up inseparable, so when I moved out and left home for the first time, it was really hard living apart from her. I felt lost without her and like I had to figure out who I was on my own, so I decided to write her this story as a way to reconnect with her. 

Your Writing Process 

3. Your story is based on West African kingdoms. What research did you do to create your fantasy world and how did it affect your world building process? 

Most of the fantasy books I grew up with were set in European worlds or fantasy versions of them and I

never questioned that. But after taking an African Art History class in art school and learning about the great West African kingdoms of the 10th-16th centuries, I desperately wanted to see more fantasy stories inspired by them. My way of paying homage to these kingdoms was to create the fantasy world in this book. It’s a reflection of my admiration for the people who lived there and who made the art that inspired me so much. 

Since this is my first attempt at fantasy world-building, I wanted to educate myself as much as possible on the inspiration for the world of Djiombé—the Saharan trade routes that connected the African continent with the rest of the world at that time, the lavish kingdoms of Ghana, Mali, and Songhai, the libraries, universities, and learning centers of Djenné and Timbuktu. I looked to the writings of Ibn Battūta, who wrote some of the only first-hand accounts still available to us today of everyday life in these kingdoms. I also read West African stories to balance out the European influence of the fantasy stories of my childhood. I didn’t want to link too strongly to any real world culture, so I used a range of influences for the setting of the story. 

4. You started writing Afia In the Land of Wonders in 2012. Share about what your writing process was like and how it evolved over the time you wrote and revised your story. 

This story went through a lot of evolutions since 2012, but I didn’t truly start writing a draft until 2017. Up until then, I was mostly focused on figuring out who the characters were, what they wanted, the world-building, and how the story would look visually. I was also working service industry jobs 40-60 hours a week during those days, so I really only got to work on this story part-time. 

My writing process usually starts with scribbling notes, making word lists, using index cards, and trying to find patterns and connections between all the pieces of the story. I always turn to drawing, reading, and research when I hit a dead-end. I incubated my writing until about 2020, which is when I finally felt safe enough to start asking for feedback. It’s super important to find people who you feel safe sharing early drafts with, but who will also be honest about what you need to improve. 

The initial manuscript was finally finished in May 2022 and I revised it as much as I could until I submitted the final in January 2024. Having a few months away from my manuscript at a time while I waited for my editor’s notes actually helped me feel less precious about making changes. 

But despite all the evolutions, from the very beginning, I knew exactly how I wanted the story to end because I knew where I wanted my main character to end up. So Afia’s emotional arc has been my compass throughout the twists and turns of the writing process. 

5.  Afia In the Land of Wonders is an Alice in Wonderland retelling. How did you keep some elements of this fairytale while making your story unique? What advice do you have for writers wanting to write a retelling? 

In the beginning I was staying as close as possible to the original story because I was really nervous about doing a whole reimagining of my own. I didn’t have any faith in my ability to write a compelling story. During the pandemic, I had my first chunk of time to really sit with the story and realized that I needed to be bolder in my reimagining. And I’m so glad I did that—the characters all take inspiration from Lewis Carroll’s cast, but they are their own characters and have evolved beyond what I imagined back in 2012. I also make references to iconic scenes and details from the original story, like the mad tea party, the “eat me” cakes and “drink me” bottles, the trial, etc but I only used details that fit into this world and story. 

My advice to anyone wanting to reimagine a beloved story (if you’re anxious like me) would be to set aside your imposter syndrome or intimidation of the original work! Find that personal connection to the story—who are you writing this for and why? That emotional core is what will make your reimagining truly yours, no matter how many times it’s been retold by other writers. And of course, listen to your characters and let them take you where they need to go—that’s the most fun part of the process for me. 

Your Journey to Publication 

6. When did you start querying this book? How did you know you were ready to start querying? 

My journey was a bit different, since I started with the artwork before I ever got to the manuscript. For years while I was working my day job as a server, I exhibited the concept art for this project at comic conventions and shows like Emerald City Comic Con, WonderCon, and GenCon to see if anyone else would be interested. The people I met in person at these shows would follow me on social media, join my mailing list, or Patreon afterward, and a lot of them have been watching this project develop and have been supporting me for years—I really owe a lot to their enthusiasm and encouragement. 

When the pandemic hit, I was deep in the outline stage of my manuscript when one of my paintings went viral on social media. That’s actually how I met my agent, Regina Brooks from Serendipity Literary, who helped me go straight into the submission process.  

7. It's cool how you met Regina Brooks. How did she become your agent and what was your road to publication like? 

Regina asked me to write two sample chapters before she agreed to represent me. From that first conversation, I felt a connection with her—she understood what I was trying to do and believed 100% in making a full-color illustrated novel as a debut, even when other people were telling me that no publisher would pick it up unless it was in black and white. 

We went on submission in November 2021 with the first 7 chapters and some sample artwork. Regina worked very hard to find the right home for my book. Even though we had several rejections, Scholastic was the perfect fit. Like Regina, they were on board with a full-color illustrated novel. Regina has been there every step of the way for me, giving me feedback on the manuscript and edits, answering my emails and phone calls even after incredibly long days. She really is the best, most hard-working agent I could hope for! And shout-out to her assistant Emma Loy-Santelli and social media manager Scott Richmond, who have both been incredible too. 

8. You’re also a very talented artist and illustrated Afia in the Land of Wonders. Did you also design your gorgeous cover? How has it been working with your publisher on edits for your book and the illustrations? 

Thank you so much! Yes, I painted the wraparound cover art in acrylics and created the spine art, but the rest of the design is by my amazing book designer, Omou Barry. I feel extraordinarily lucky to have gotten such an amazing team on this book. Designing and laying out an illustrated novel like this is no small feat, and I had a very specific vision for what I wanted, but my designer Omou, creative director Elizabeth Parisi, and editor Lisa Sandell did an incredible job and went beyond what I could’ve imagined. Lisa was a fantastic editor, and was super kind and patient as this was all new for me—she understood what I wanted to do with the story and everything she suggested was in full support of that. 

The most challenging part of the whole process for me was trying to finish the manuscript and creating 30 acrylic illustrations and 20 pencil drawings in 2 years….but the publisher was kind enough to bump the release from Fall 2024 to Spring 2025 so that I wouldn’t have to rush any of it. I really couldn’t have asked for a better experience or team as a first-time author. 

Promoting Your Book 

9. How are you planning to celebrate your book’s release and promote it? 

My favorite local bookstore, Arvida Book Co. in Tustin, CA is hosting a launch event for my friends and family on my publication day. I can’t wait to celebrate with everyone who has had to hear me talk about this book for so long and who has supported me and cheered me on the entire time. It’s going to be very emotional to have them there with me on that day!

 Aside from those events, I attended the New Orleans Book Festival and TLA in Dallas to share about my book and did my first school visit last month. After the book is out, I’ll continue sharing my process on social media and Patreon—I have a lot of behind the scenes sketches, videos, and process photos of the 12 years that went into this. I’m also working with my agent and my publicist, Brooke Shearouse, to schedule other events and school visits. I’ll be sharing the details for those on my website and socials. 

10. As an artist, some of your clients are Penguin Random House, HBO, Wizards of the Coast, Imagine FX, and the Washington Post. Are any of your connections with them or others in the art world helping you spread the word about your book? Did you learn anything from working with them that is helping you as an author? 

Not those clients specifically, but I am still in touch with artists from my gallery days, coworkers from my service industry jobs, fellow illustrators and artists from the years I exhibited at conventions, and former instructors and classmates from college too. I’m lucky to have met so many incredible people throughout my career and many of them have already been helping me get the word out for my book, which I’m super grateful for. 

Each one of those stages of my life helped me tremendously—waiting tables forced me out of my shyness of talking to strangers and the people-watching there gave me lots of ideas. Working a convention booth helped me learn how to talk to people about my art and to practice pitching what my stories are about. All of these bits and pieces of my life inspired my work but also helped me improve at presenting it and myself professionally. 

11. What are you working on now? 

I have several story ideas I’m working on now—a couple of picture books, some middle grade stories, and a middle grade series that I’m especially excited about, but it’s too early to share. All illustrated, of course! As labor-intensive as this book was, I really do love using pictures and words together to tell my stories and would love to create as many stories like this as possible. For anyone who’s curious to follow the process or to get the first peek at future stories, feel free to join my mailing list or Patreon page. 

Thank you so much for having me, Natalie! 

Thanks for sharing all your advice, Mia. You can find Mia at: 

Instagram.com/mllemiaaraujo
Patreon.com/miaaraujo
@miaaraujo.bsky.social

 Giveaway Details

Mia’s publisher is generously offering a hardback of Afia In the Land of Wonders for a giveaway. To enter, all you need to do is be a follower of my blog (via the follower gadget, email, or bloglovin’ on the right sidebar) and leave a comment by April 26th. If I do not have your email (I can no longer get it from your Google Profile), you must leave it in the comments to enter the contest. Please be sure I have your email address. 

If you mention this contest on Twitter, Facebook, or other social media sites and/or follow me on Twitter or follow Alby on their social media sites, mention this in the comments, and I'll give you an extra entry for each. You must be 13 years old or older to enter. This book giveaway is U.S. 

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday is hosted by Greg Pattridge. You can find the participating blogs on his blog. 

Upcoming Interviews, Guest Posts, and Blog Hops 

Wednesday, April 16th I’m participating in the Raindrop in Roses Giveaway Hop 

Monday, April 21st I have an agent spotlight interview with Carey Blankenship-Kramer and a query critique giveaway 

Wednesday, April 23rd I have an agent spotlight interview with Rebecca Eskildsen  and a query critique giveaway 

Monday, April 28th I have an interview with debut author Alby Williams and a giveaway of their MG Where There Be Monsters 

Thursday, May 1st I’m participating in the Come What May Giveaway Hop 

Monday, May 5th I have a guest post by author Donna Galanti and a $50 Barnes & Noble Gift Card giveaway to celebrate the release of her MG Loon Cove Summer 

Wednesday, May 7th I have an interview with author Aimee Phan and a giveaway of her YA The Lost Queen and my IWSG post I hope to see you on Wednesday!