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La Linea Novelist Yolanda Cruz Promotes 3rd Book: El Sonido de las Estrellas
“The characters in my novel are women who are dreamers and fighters, but I don’t just write for women” – Yolanda Cruz
The La Línea-born writer and 2013 finalist of the ‘Premio Planeta’, is currently promoting her third novel, “The sound of the stars”
Unless something comes up, Yolanda Cruz Ayala starts every morning by dedicating time to her social media before sitting down to write. The La Línea-born novelist, who was one of ten finalists in the Premio Planeta, 2013 for her first book, “Rose Petals Marmalade”, is currently promoting her third novel, “The sound of the stars” (edited by Universo de Letras), and has finished her fourth book, “Without heartbeat”, although a publication date is still pending.
Meanwhile, she’s enjoying reading the feedback from her global readership, and is compiling them for her next project.
It was her husband, José Luis who came up with the idea for her to send her first manuscript to the prestigious Premio Planeta. Being a writer himself, he saw from the first moment that her novel – one of thousands submitted – had real potential for success.
He wasn’t wrong, and this acknowledgement highlights a before and after of Yolanda Cruz’ literary career. She was then close to finishing what would become her second novel, “Crystals in the sky of Manhattan”, which links to her first book which she says has brought her the most satisfaction – the digital version was released in 2015, and the paper version published by Booket, in 2017.
“It is a cinematic and very visual novel…although, I think in a way, all of my novels are. But it’s true that, “Crystals in the sky of Manhattan” is the one that had the biggest impact,” the author acknowledges.
She was moved to share one of the comments she received on Twitter: “A boy with a severe visual impairment contacted me to tell me that he was able to enjoy my novel thanks to ONCE, who converted it into an audio book… And he thanked me because by listening to my novel, he was able to “see” a movie on the big screen, and was transported back to the era when Hollywood was at its most glamorous…Whatever happens with a book, any kind of recognition for my work as an author is priceless.”
Although she admits to being happy to see her third book hit the stores, and is especially thankful for the personal support from her editor, Adelaida Herrera, a Gibraltar born author living in La Linea, she admits to having been disappointed by the lack of attention paid to the so-called “peripheral” writers by traditional publishing houses.
There are many authors who do not have the opportunity to promote their work in Madrid or Barcelona, or do not reach the right figures to join the best sellers in the market. “Considering that the population of this country is not well-read, and that the editorial groups seem to always promote the same authors, no matter how good or bad the novels are, the truth of the matter is that it is a bit of an uphill battle.”
Despite this hostile environment for new voices, Yolanda Cruz, who considers herself a ‘prophet in her homeland’, acknowledges the power of social media for reaching an international audience…In her case, she already has more than 3,300 followers on Twitter alone.
As for her style, the creator of characters like Julia, Sara and Claudette Dumon, avoids artifices and labels, and assures us that she does not understand those who put on an intellectual act that comes across as unnatural.
“I write what I like to read: dialogue-heavy novels in which characters have their everyday life with things always happening… And I like changing the era and the setting, for example, from New York in the 1950’s to Paris in 1900, when it was the cultural capital of the world…And it’s true that my main characters are usually women who are dreamers and fighters, but the male characters also carry a lot of weight in my books…I don’t write just for women.”
La Linea Novelist Yolanda Cruz Promotes 3rd Book: El Sonido de las Estrellas
