Meet Author Kelly Para

2006_06_07_Kelly_Parra_HeadI thought this month would be great time to try a few different things to promote Latino/a authors. A few days ago it was Alex Sanchez and today, it’s Kelly Para. I found Kelly to be extremely accessible, exciting and very energetic!


Edi: How do you incorporate culture into your writing?

Kelly:  Hi Edi, thank you so much for having me on your blog! I incorporate culture in my writing with atmosphere, foods, and personalities.  To give you a little background about myself, I grew up in an agricultural community with various cultures having big impressions on me as a small child.  My father’s family is Mexican-Filipino and my mother’s Mexican-Italian, so when we gathered I was always treated to wonderful foods and stories of the countries our families descended from.  It certainly comes natural for me to weave culture into my stories.


Edi: What are some of the books you remember reading as a child?

Kelly:  I really enjoyed Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein, I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou, and many books by V.C. Andrews.


Edi: Twitter or Facebook?

Kelly: Twitter and Facebook. I spend time on both daily!

Edi: American football or soccer?

Kelly: American Football. I come from a long line of football enthusiasts!

Edi: Mountains or oceans?

Kelly: Definitely oceans, as I grew up not far from them.

Edi: Meat or vegetables?

Kelly: Vegetables, but as a kid it was meat over veggies.


Edi: Rain or snow?

Kelly: Rain! Snow is too cold for me. 🙂

Edi: Which of your books or short stories would you like to see as a movie? Who would play the lead and what would the theme song be?

Kelly:  Since my novel Graffiti Girl has been optioned for film, I would have to choose Angel’s story. I’ve thought about who would best portray Angel, and I’m partial to Allison Iraheta from American Idol Season 8. She reminded me of Angel as soon as she was suggested to me.  And it’s so funny, but there is a song entitled Graffiti Girl, so that would have to be the theme song.

Edi: Where is the furthest away from home you’ve ever traveled?

Kelly:  In junior high, I was fortunate enough to travel to Washington D.C..  I was able to see the White House, the Washington Monument, the Vietnam Memorial, and Lincoln’s Memorial, and many more inspiring, historical monuments.

Edi: What’s the last thing that made you smile?

Kelly:  My children.  They make me smile every day!

Kelly Parra debuted into young adult fiction in 2007 with her Latina novel Graffiti Girl, garnering attention as a double nominee for the Romance Writers of America RITA award, a Latinidad YA top pick, and chosen for the California High School Reading Collection and National Book Foundation “BookUpNYC” program.

Her latest novel Invisible Touch has hailed fresh praise from bestselling author Laurie Faria Stolarz, and given the Gold Award of Excellence from TeensReadToo. She is a member of Romance Writers of America and co-author of the popular young adult blog, YA Fresh.  Visit Kelly’s website, http://www.KellyParra.com.

Grafitti Girl ggirl

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Raised by her single mom (who’s always dating the wrong kind of man) in a struggling California neighborhood, Angel Rodriguez is a headstrong, independent young woman who channels her hopes and dreams for the future into her painting. But when her entry for a community mural doesn’t rate, she’s heartbroken. Even with winning artist Nathan Ramos — a senior track star and Angel’s secret crush — taking a sudden interest in Angel and her art, she’s angry and hurt. She’s determined to find her own place in the art world, her own way.

That’s when Miguel Badalin — from the notorious graffiti crew Reyes Del Norte — opens her eyes to an underground world of graf tags and turf wars. She’s blown away by this bad boy’s fantastic work and finds herself drawn to his dangerous charm. Soon she’s running with Miguel’s crew, pushing her skills to the limit and beginning to emerge as the artist she always dreamed she could be. But Nathan and Miguel are bitter enemies with a shared past, and choosing between them and their wildly different approaches to life and art means that Angel must decide what matters most before the artist inside of her can truly break free.

Invisible Touch touch Browse inside

Kara Martinez has been trying to be “normal” ever since the accident that took her father’s life when she was eleven years old. She’s buried the caliente side of her Mexican heritage with her father and tried to be the girl her rigid mother wants her to be — compliant and dressed in pink, and certainly not acting out like her older brother Jason. Not even Danielle, her best friend at Valdez High, has seen the real Kara; only those who read her anonymous blog know the deepest secrets of the Sign Seer.

Because Kara has a gift — one that often feels like a curse. She sees signs, visions that are clues to a person’s fate, if she can put together the pieces of the puzzle in time. So far, she’s been able to solve the clues and avert disaster for those she’s been warned about — until she sees the flash of a gun on a fellow classmate, and the stakes are raised higher than ever before. Kara does her best to follow the signs, but it’s her heart that wanders into new territory when she falls for a mysterious guy from the wrong side of town, taking her closer to answers she may not be able to handle. Will her forbidden romance help her solve the deadly puzzle before it’s too late…or lead her even further into danger?

(Publisher’s description)



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