Widely renowned author Bryan Foneseca talks about writing his critical acclaimed novel “Hidalgo Heights”, the importance of multi-cultural understanding, and the art of character development.
What made you decide to share such a powerful and relevant story?
COVID fucked my money up. I’d accepted a job with a prominent sports media company before the pandemic shut down everything. What that offered was time to write a fiction novel, which I’ve always wanted to do. I tried in 2017 but didn’t finish. Probably best because I didn’t know what the fuck I was doing.
Then, there’s what we all experienced during the pandemic. Blacks and Latinos getting killed by police. Others suffering the effects economically, spiritually, and financially more than most other groups.
Your characters are so well developed, are they based on people you know?
Ha! I appreciate that. Many of them are. Some are combinations of multiple people combined into one, others are extreme versions of a single example, and so on. In professional wrestling, the best characters are an exaggerated version of themselves. Still, even those larger-than-life personas reflect real people. The same thinking applies here. I wanted it to be grounded in realism, and to do that, you need to look at reality. People are layered and complicated, as is the story.
How comfortable were you taking on multicultural issues?
Very. We all have our accounts, experiences, opinions, and ideas. I feel emboldened to talk about multicultural issues because too many of the motherfuckers talking about these issues aren’t multicultural.
I’m optimistic we’re getting somewhere. Grassroots organizations are working. Creatives of color are collaborating and sharing the importance of ownership. More minority-owned companies are impacting corporate America. Younger generations are inherently more progressive. To accelerate change, we each have a contribution to make. This is one of mine.
Will there be a sequel?
Absolutely! It’s being worked on now and ideally would come out between the fall of 2022 and the spring of 2023. I have huge plans for the Hidalgo Heights series, and this was always intended to have multiple parts. Need to get the word around about part one first, though.
What was the most challenging part of writing this release?
I didn’t really know what I was doing going into it and didn’t care about the traditional publishing standards. Hidalgo Heights reads like a series and in some areas the dialogue is formatted almost like a screenplay, and that’s intentional. I still wanted to be professional about it, so the main challenge was learning on the fly, adapting a bit, but still remaining myself and keeping the essence of the story I wanted to tell.
Do you see yourself on any of the characters? If so, which one?
Yes, two of them. Javier is like 16-year-old me. Puerto Rican, light-skinned, loves sports and rotisserie chicken. Highly emotional, easily frustrated, dependent on social media, has a huge heart, opposes authority and almost never believes he’s wrong. Sabiel Luna is more like current me. Rebellious like Javier but tactically smarter and less emotional. He’s old enough to understand social media is bullshit. He knows he’s better off as an independent writer unless being with a “major” is on his terms.
Can you share your writing process?
AppBlock and SelfControl apps keep me focused, blocked from social media, emails, or anything else distracting. I’ll block off 2-3 hours to write, take a break to eat, workout, or rest. If I’m playing music, it’ll be hip-hop instrumentals, a hip-hop record I’m uber-familiar with lyrically, or my Spanish joints since my Spanish is a work in progress (we getting’ there!). When I’m editing I always play music, usually hip-hop, Latin trap, UK drill, salsa, rock, or metal.
If there was one thing that you would want readers to take away from this novel what would it be?
If you’re of a certain social mindset, you’ll understand Hidalgo Heights the way I would – everything’s connected, things that hold certain people back are by design, but can be fought. Conservatives, there are characters for you too. They just ain’t ones I’d particularly grab arroz con pollo with. There’s something for everybody. Even if I fucking hate your guts, you’ll find something you’d enjoy and identify with.
Additionally, I’d hope to inspire people to create meaningful work of their own. Shit is mad liberating – exhausting, but liberating.
With all the acclaim you have received from this book, what’s next?
Continuing to push this book out relentlessly. Not enough people have this on their radar yet. So we’re connecting with outlets like Urban, submitting award nominations, and planning a hybrid book signing. My patience is being tested, but I’m focused on my long-term mission, and I have great people around me. Fiction takes a while to grow. I’m unknown at the moment, but everything we’ve done is a process. Authentic and honest growth takes time, but once it comes, it’s timeless.
Be’n Original
