Writer Wednesday: Meet YA Novelist Medeia Sharif!

Welcome to WRITER WEDNESDAY! Today’s special guest Q&A is with the lovely and talented MEDEIA SHARIF, whose debut YA novel BESTEST. RAMADAN. EVER. hits stores this July 8, 2011. It’s a hilarious and touching coming of age story about a young Muslim American teenager named Amira who’s trying her best to respect and obey her strict parents during Ramadan but also trying to catch the eye of a cute boy she likes named Peter who’s not only NOT Muslim, but also… gasp… an artist! BOOKLIST praised her book as “upbeat and breezy… with a light tone and a focus on family, friends, and faith.”

Medeia is also giving away an autographed copy of her novel to one lucky winner of our special BESTEST. RAMADAN. EVER. book giveaway drawing contest! 🙂 (This is available for those of you in the U.S. AND Canada!)

To be considered for our autographed book contest giveaway drawing, please either post a comment here with your contact info/snail mail OR email me at paula at paulayoo dot com with your info. I’ll post the winner soon at a future Writer Wednesday blog, so stay tuned!

Until then, keep reading after the break for our Q&A with MEDEIA SHARIF!

Meet MEDEIA SHARIF, a Kurdish-American author who was born in New York City and now lives in Miami Beach. She received her master’s degree in psychology from Florida Atlantic University. Prior to her publishing career, Medeia was (and still is) a school teacher. BESTEST. RAMADAN. EVER. is my first novel and it will be published by Flux on July 8, 2011. She’s also super smart and belongs to MENSA. Wow!

Here’s a description of her novel, BESTEST. RAMADAN. EVER.:

“During Ramadan, we’re not allowed to eat from sunrise to sunset, for a whole month. My family does this every year, even though I’ve been to a mosque exactly twice in my fifteen years. My exercise-obsessed mom—whose hotness skipped a generation, sadly—says I could stand to lose a few. But is torture really an acceptable method? I think not.

“Things wouldn’t be so bad if I had a boyfriend, but my oppressive parents forbid me to date. This is just cruel and wrong. Especially since Peter, a cute and crushable artist, might be my soul mate. Figures my bestest friend Lisa likes him, too.

“To top it off, there’s a new Muslim girl in school who struts around in super-short skirts, commanding every boy’s attention—including Peter’s. How can I get him to notice me? And will I ever feel like a typical American girl?”

Praise for BESTEST. RAMADAN. EVER. (including a quote from yours truly!):

“A humorous, hip look at the ups and downs of fasting for Ramadan within the context of intergenerational and cultural challenges.”—KIRKUS REVIEWS

“Upbeat and breezy, this novel will be a useful addition to many YA collections seeking diversity with a light tone and a focus on family, friends, and faith.”—BOOKLIST

“Medeia Sharif’s sparkling debut YA novel BESTEST. RAMADAN. EVER. features the feisty, witty yet vulnerable Almira, who struggles with both self-esteem issues and a seemingly unrequited crush on a hipster artist. BESTEST. RAMADAN. EVER. deftly combines humor and poignancy with an authentic teen voice set against the multicultural background of vibrant Miami and Almira’s loving yet-strict Muslim family. The book’s universal themes will resonate with all teens balancing family ties with coming-of-age conflicts.”—Paula Yoo, author of SHINING STAR: THE ANNA MAY WONG STORY, GOOD ENOUGH, and SIXTEEN YEARS IN SIXTEEN SECONDS

“I laughed out loud as Almira struggled to fit in with her traditional family as well as the rest of the world.”—Sydney Salter, author of SWOON AT YOUR OWN RISK, JUNGLE CROSSING, and MY BIG NOSE AND OTHER NATURAL DISASTERS

“I love Almira Abdul—the honest, tell-it-like-it is, funny, and very real main character of Medeia Sharif’s wonderful, eye-opening debut, Bestest. Ramadan. Ever. Here’s a great, new voice in teen fiction.”—Melissa Senate, author of THE MOSTS and THEODORA TWIST

For more information on Medeia Sharif, please visit these links:

http://www.sharifwrites.com

http://www.twitter.com/sharifwrites

http://sharifwrites.tumblr.com/

Q&A WITH MEDEIA SHARIF

— Q: How much of Bestest. Ramadan. Ever. is based on your own life as a teenager?

— A: Not much. I’ve never celebrated Ramadan. Also, Almira is peppy and positive. I was kind of a downer at her age.

— Q: If your novel is based on or inspired by real people in your family and in your social circle, how have these folks reacted to their portrayal?

— A: So far I’m in the clear, because they haven’t read it yet. 😀

— Q: Admit it – is there a real Peter from your high school life? 🙂

— A: No, but high school would have been more interesting had there been

— Q: How much of Almira is Medeia? What were YOU like in high school? 🙂

— A: I would say a little bit. My personality does tend to seep into my characters. But really, I was into wearing black and reading Sylvia Plath at that age. Almira reads romance books and likes pastel colors.

— Q: The main character in your book is Muslim, but her coming of age story is universal and resonates with teens from all differentbackgrounds. How important was it for you to present a positive (and realistic) portrayal of a Muslim teen for readers who may not be familiar with this world? Did you feel you had an added responsibility? This is a question that many multicultural authors struggle with – how to tell the best story possible without getting pigeonholed and coming off as preachy or didactic.

— A: I wasn’t thinking about being a responsible writer at first. I just wanted to tell a story. It wasn’t until a later draft that someone pointed out that I should have a stronger religious thread in the novel. So I added onto that storyline, having Almira find greater meaning in fasting and going to a mosque.

I also wanted the novel to be realistic. Some characters will seem positive, some negative. I wasn’t going to go either way making everyone look angelic or demonizing the characters—it’s the same in real life, there’s the bad with the good. I was also careful about adding information about religion and culture. I’ve read novels with preachy dialogue and pages describing culture. I can’t remember where I read it, but I recall someone using the term “medicine dropper” to describe how an author adds information throughout the story to teach the reader something unfamiliar.

Also, some of my early readers called my writing voice-y and liked the main character’s personality. Almira’s religion is a part of who she is, not who she is. I’ve experienced people making assumptions and attempting to burden me with stereotypes, which is narrow-minded. Who I am runs deeper than labels of religion and ethnicity.

– Q: Where is the best place for you to write your books?

— A: In the sweltering heat and mosquitoes I can’t really go there until the fall, but I love taking my laptop to my balcony.

— Q: If you weren’t a writer/artist, what would you be?

—  A: I’d probably be a librarian. I’d want to be around books all the time.

— Q: Tell us something about yourself that most people don’t know.

— A: In the evening I like to go to the beach or bay and find a strip of land that’s fairly isolated (there may or may not be people in the distance), and I like to sit by myself for a few minutes gazing at the water. This is usually the most peaceful part of my day.

— Q: What was the most unusual job you ever had?

— A: I was a telemarketer in another life. Hmmm, being cursed at and hung up on. Yes, my skin is thick enough for literary critics.

— Q: Tell us about your first published book – what inspired the idea? How long did it take to write? Any fun details about the road to your first book’s publication?

— A: BESTEST. RAMADAN. EVER. is my first published book. It took me approximately a year to write. The details on getting it published aren’t too exciting. But my first manuscript, now that’s a different story. It was about a teenage murderer. I began writing it when I was 17, finishing it when I was 18. I had just taken an AP English class, so I was trying real hard to use poetic language and literary devices. It was dreadful. And I had no clue who agents were. At the time Margaret Atwood was my favorite author, so I figured her publisher might take a chance on me. So I first submitted my manuscript to Doubleday believing a contract would be mailed to me shortly; surely they would be knocking down my door. They were kind enough to return my work to me, even though I didn’t include a self-addressed stamped envelope (I had no idea what that was at the time, either). I put that novel on the back burner and started working on something else.

— Q: If you could give one piece of writing advice for aspiring YA novelists, what would it be?

— A: In my early writing years I was using rejection letters as a form of feedback. As my writing improved I received form rejections, then a few scribbled words of encouragement on them, and then personalized letters. But I wanted more since I knew something was lacking in my writing. So I started joining critique groups. The first one was online, and it was like hearing crickets. I would send chapters to the group, and some months I would get a critique and other times I wouldn’t. Then I found a local group that met in person, and half the members were rude or creepy, plus their critiques weren’t detailed enough. I finally found an amazing group through my regional SCBWI’s website. So, my advice is to seek feedback and find people or a group who are the right fit, or else your writing skills will stagnate. Receiving and following critiques is both a challenge and a way to hone your skills.

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Thanks again to the awesome Medeia Sharif for taking time out of her busy schedule to answer our questions. And remember – she’s offering an autographed copy of her book to one winner picked at random for our Writer Wednesday book giveaway contest drawing! To participate – please leave a comment here OR email me at paula at paulayoo dot com with your contact info and snail mail address. I will pick a winner at random and update everyone of the winner at a future Writer Wednesday blog. So stay tuned!

Until tomorrow’s TUNA THURSDAY blog… Happy Writing! WRITE LIKE YOU MEAN IT! 🙂