Meet Troupe 21’s NoNieqa Ramos

Meet Troupe member NoNieqa Ramos! The New Year will begin with a bang for this debut picture book author, who has two (that’s right, TWO!) outstanding picture books coming out in 2021, and a third in early 2022. NoNieqa’s YOUR MAMA, illustrated by Jacqueline Alacántara (HMH/Versify), publishes April 6, 2021. HAIR STORY, illustrated by Keisha Morris (Lerner/Carolrhoda), publishes September 2021. And BEAUTY WOKE, illustrated by Paola Escobar (HMH/Versify), publishes February, 2022.

NoNieqa is an educator and literary activist, and the writer of celebrated YA books THE DISTURBED GIRL’S DICTIONARY and THE TRUTH IS. Want to learn more about NoNieqa and her authorial journey? Check out the Q&A below!

Get to know NoNieqa!

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What is your earliest picture book memory?

My earliest picture book memory is reading a Little Golden Book of the poem Owl and the Pussycat by Edward Lear with my mother. I recited it to my first child when I breast fed them--that and I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud by William Wordworth and Macavity the Mystery Cat by T.S. Eliot.

Today, my partner of almost 20 years, (the Owl), has promised to take me away from a country in which Trump earned 47 percent of the popular vote. As soon as there is a Covid vaccine, we plan to take some honey and plenty of money, possibly on a pea green boat, to where the bong trees grow.

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What was your favorite story as a child?

I can still remember lying on this scratchy autumnal-colored couch depicting log cabins and pinecones and spending the entire day reading my first 400 page book, LITTLE WOMEN by Luisa May Alcott. I grieved Beth’s death like she was part of my own family. I also grieved Jo rejecting Laurie and choosing (whack) Professor Bhaer, which I only forgave her for decades later. Of course, I fancied myself as Jo, completely disastrous socially, adventuring to NY to become a great writer. Later, I devoured another heart-wrenching Alcott book, JO’s BOYS, and it probably influenced my stint as a foster parent.

Name three picture books that you adore.

My partner and my stepson ride motorcycles together, and my kids have motorized bikes, so we all resonate with Isabel Quintero’s beautiful Pura Belpré and 2020 Tomás Rivera Mexican American Children’s Book Award winning work MY PAPI RIDES A MOTORCYCLE, illustrated by Zeke Peña. My own Papi does not ride a motorcycle, but he skydives and got me to do it once. I watched him dive out of a plane on his back. So I love the homage to adventurous father-daughter relationships.

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Meg Medina’s Pura Belpré winning picture book MANGO, ABUELA, Y YO, is a beloved classic in our house. In it, an English-speaking Latina and her Spanish-speaking Abuela learn to communicate with each other showing that love transcends language. My partner, children, and I are all learning Spanish as a second language, with hopes to practice in Puerto Rico after Covid, and we pray everybody has the patience to put up with our attempts at anything beyond the preterit tense.

Out of the many brilliant works of art by Monica Brown, a family fave is Kirkus-starred WAITING FOR BIBLIOBURRO, which was inspired by the heroic efforts of real-life Colombian librarian Luis Soriano. In it, voracious reader Ana awaits the library burros’ arrival for new books, and one day decides to write a book of her own. When I was a kid, I used to write fake Dewey decimals on my books to pretend I had a library of my own. (See the ridiculous code on my ancient copy of THE OWL AND THE PUSSYCAT above.) Librarians are the heart of schools, and I appreciate them to the moon and back.

What picture book authors inspire you?

There are MANY PB authors who inspire me on the daily like the brilliant Isabel Quintero who also wrote a fave YA of mine, GABI, A GIRL IN PIECES, a Booklist Best Books of 2014! I want to shout out Yamile Méndez, author of DE DONDE ERES, which was named one of New York Public Library's Best Books for Kids 2019, and who schools me with her profound wisdom every time she speaks.

I have so much love for Meg Medina, Newbery and Pura Belpré winning author, who is a friend and madrina to all BIPOC writers. When I met her at the National Book Festival in D.C., she took the time to chat with my child about their CAPS FOR SALE t-shirt and they never forgot it. I’ll never forget a school librarian bursting into my classroom to share with me that Meg had shouted out my debut THE DISTURBED GIRL’S DICTIONARY in her keynote speech. I felt like a goddess had somehow seen me the ant. At my first NCTE event where I was a brand new author feeling very disconnected, Meg invited me to my first Latinx author event where I met incredible creators and activist like David Bowles.

I am so inspired by Monica Brown, whose books have received Pura Belpré Honors and Américas Awards. She is a professor of English and at Northern Arizona University. Somehow, she made the time to mentor me in the Las Musas mentorship program, and she regularly mentors writers through Latinx in Publishing! She is a pillar of the literary community, and I’m blessed to know her. I am sure many writers have magical Meg and Monica moments to share!

What themes and ideas will readers find in your stories?

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In my picture books, readers will find the motifs of family and cultural pride. Recently, at an SLJ panel, the moderator said my debut picture YOUR MAMA (April 6th, 2021) was the “anti-Betty Crocker” and that made me laugh. While writing it, I envisioned children celebrating their smart, fierce, ambitious mothers, and mothers celebrating their smart, fierce, ambitious children in tandem. Hair Story (September 2021), follows two friends, a Boricua girl and a Black girl, as others first try to tame their tresses and eventually celebrate their gorgeous, natural hair. I see it as a book about self-love and friendship. In BEAUTY WOKE (February 2022), family and community support and cultural pride rescue BEAUTY from succumbing to the despair of living in a racist country.

Ultimately, I hope readers will find my picture books to be celebratory anthems of self-love and community.

Where do you typically write?

I consider my office part museum, part temple, part library, and part zoo. I write surrounded by books and altars, my gecko crawling about her terrarium, and my cat invading my lap, my desk, or somehow, snoozing ON the radiator. Through my window, I have a view of the inevitable escaped chickens I raise, migrating deer families, and Circus de Soleil squirrels. My walls are marked with the cardinal directions for my moon ceremonies.

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How do you approach revision?

I always start each writing session by revising the pages I previously wrote. I think this is my method of coping with the blank page! With picture books, I have to constantly remind myself not to cling to particular words and phrases that may be lovely, but not essential to the text. I am always talking to myself because picture books, like poetry, are meant to be read aloud, and I need to know what my work sounds like to my readers.

What are your favorite writing snacks?

I am an out-of control snacker so that list is endless. Sometimes, aguacate sliced open and salted with a sprinkle of lemon juice. Guacamole on tortillas. I love Black Jack and Clove gum and Howard’s Violet candy, which my kids think tastes like hand soap.

What’s been the best part of your debut experience so far?

I began my writing career as a YA writer who debuted in 2018 with THE DISTURBED GIRL’S DICTIONARY without belonging to a marketing collective. I had absolutely no idea what I was doing and looking back, I’m not sure how I got through it alone. I was invited to join the phenomenal sisterhood LAS MUSAS with my sophomore book THE TRUTH IS and that changed everything. I gained guidance, ride or die friendships, and the ability to fight for justice and equity with extraordinary creators. After the announcement of my picture book debut in 2020, I was thrilled to be invited to join the Soaring 20s and the PB Troupe 21s! Especially in the pandemic, they have both been an incredible source of support, cheerleading, respite, and light, and I’m so proud of the art we are creating for our precious young readers.

So, the best part of my debut experiences and my writing life in general is community!

What advice can you share with pre-published authors

See the previous answer! It is absolutely essential to find community. Maybe that means starting out with a trusted critique partner. It could mean having a weekly cafecito with other pre-published writers to just talk shop. Take a chance and reach out to other creators during conferences. I believe to be successful and happy you can’t work in isolation. In this fraught field and on this fraught planet, we creators need each other now more than ever.