An Inside Look with Celia C. Perez
*Season #SIX (Summer 2019)
How did you come to know Addie?
Writing a character is like getting to know a person in real life. I don’t necessarily know
their story, their feelings or motivations, and writing is like having a conversation where I
find out who they are. The first thing I knew about this book before there was a story or
a protagonist was that I wanted it to be about wrestling. From there, Addie came to me
as a kid looking for her father who happened to be a wrestler. I wasn’t sure what the
circumstances were—why she was looking for her father, what would happen, how she
would feel. Writing was the process of discovery.
What do you think is her most admirable quality?
I think her ability to forgive. Maybe I’m answering that as adult who knows that
sometimes the older you are, the tougher it can be able to set aside your feelings when
you’re hurt or disappointed. The adults in Addie’s life made decisions that were
sometimes selfish and sometimes done to protect her, or maybe in a misguided effort to
protect her. Either way, these decisions affected the course of her life. She’s angry and
confused and hurt, but she’s still willing to try to understand and to forgive.
Is there anything you wish she would have changed or done differently in her
story?
Hmm, I’m not sure. Obviously, her journey could have gone in different directions, but I
try not to think about those things once the story is completed. It was tough to come to
that big decision that she makes. But regardless of her decision, I think she would have
been okay, and that’s all that we can want for a protagonist, right? As the writer, there
are always little details I would love to change or tweak. I could probably continue
making these types of changes forever.
What do you think she can offer to other children that are experiencing similar
situations to what she went through?
One of the things Addie discovers is that making big decisions isn’t easy but that it is
empowering to be able to do this and to have choices. I think as adults it’s sometimes
hard to give that kind of agency to kids, in part because we want to protect them and
think we know what’s best. Addie also realizes that all the people who support her and
care for her are family whether they are related biologically or not. I hope that kids in a
similar situation can see these things in their own life and feel like they have the power
to determine for themselves who they will be in their own journey.
How did you research Addie and the circumstances she found herself in?
I was a big wrestling fan when I was in junior high and in my early high school years, so
I looked back at my diaries from those years to remember what that was like. I also
researched the history of professional wrestling and watched old wrestling matches.
While I personally did not experience the specific circumstances Addie is in, I do know
what it feels like to live with family secrets, to feel betrayed by adults and to not
understand the decisions that they make. I also know, as a parent, what it’s like to want
to protect your child and to not always be sure if the decisions you are making for them
are the best ones, even when you are making them from a place of love.
Do you and Addie share any similarities?
We’re both middle school wrestling fans! We’re both inquisitive. I think we are both
introspective and live in our own heads a lot too.
What was the hardest scene to write about her?
The hardest scene was probably the last scene in the book where she is with her
biological father. I wanted the ending of the story to be happy and hopeful, but also to
be realistic. I hope I was able to strike a balance.
Who do you think was her biggest supporter and why?
Addie has a network of support and everyone around her, from her mom to her best
friend to her newfound uncle, was supportive of her in her journey. I guess if I had to
pick one person, I would say her Uncle Mateo. I’m choosing him because he is the first
adult to really treat her like she is mature enough to make decisions that affect her and
to be honest with her.
Why do you think young people seem to be able to deal with family changes,
blended families, and various dynamics; sometimes better than the adults themselves?
Probably because they don’t yet have the life experience that makes it hard for some
adults to deal with these things. I’m sure this is generalizing and doesn’t apply to all
kids, but I think kids are more likely to see the positive in situations. I think they are just
more adaptable and willing to go with the flow and not get hung up on things like social
constructs than adults who have been around long enough to be shaped by what
they’ve been exposed to and by a lifetime of experiences.
What do you think Addie is doing as the present time?
I think she’s enjoying spending time with her newfound family and learning more about
what her parents were like when they were younger. When she isn’t babysitting her new
little brother, she’s probably helping Rosie with her tumbleweed statues and learning some high-flying wrestling moves!
SEASON #SIX (Summer 2019)
Interview #122 with Tamara Bundy (Author of Pixie Pushes On)
Interview #123 with Lindsay Lackey (Author of All the Impossible Things)
Interview #124 with Tae Keller (Author of When You Trap a Tiger)
Interview #125 with Jamie Sumner (Author of Roll With It)
Interview #126 with Hena Khan (Author of More to the Story)
Interview #127 with Phil Bildner (Author of A High-Five for Glenn Burke)
Interview #128 with Leslie Connor (Author of A Home for Goddesses and Dogs)
Interview#129 with Gillian McDunn (Author of Queen Bee and Me)
Interview #130 with Jody J. Little (Author of Worse Than Weird)
Interview #131 with Jenn Bishop (Author of Things You Can't Say)
Interview #132 with Kaela Noel (Author of Coo)
Interview #133 with Rebecca Stead (Author of The List of Things That Will Not Change)
Interview #134 with Gae Polisner (Author of Jack Kerouac is Dead to Me)
Interview #135 with Emily Blejwas (Author of Like Nothing Amazing Ever Happened)
Interview #136 with Joy McCullough (Author of A Field Guide to Getting Lost)
Interview #137 with Kim Baker (Author of the Water Bears)
Interview #138 with Erin Entrada Kelly (Author of We Dream of Space)
Interview #139 with Jess Redman (Author of Quintessence)
Interview #140 with Melanie Conklin (Author of Every Missing Piece)
Interview #141 with Lindsey Stoddard (Author of Brave Like That)
Interview #158 with Rebecca Ansari (Author of The In-Between)
Interview #159 with John David Anderson (Author of One Last Shot)
Interview #160 with Tracy Holczer (Author of Brave in the Woods)
Interview #161 with James Bird (Author of The Brave)
Interview #162 with Marcella Pixley (Author of Trowbridge Road)
Interview #163 with Barbara O'Connor (Author of Halfway to Harmony)
Interview #164 with Alan Gratz (Author of Ground Zero)
Interview #165 with Lisa Fipps (Author of Starfish)
Interview #166 with Ann Braden (Author of Flight of the Puffin)
Interview #167 with Kimberly Willis Holt (Author of The Ambassador of NoWhere Texas)
Interview #168 with Elana K. Arnold (Author of The House That Wasn't There)
Interview #169 with Erin Soderberg (Author of The Great Peach Experiment)
Interview #170 with Donna Gephart (Author of Abby, Tried, and True)
Interview #171 with M. Evan Wolkenstein (Author of Turtle Boy)
Interview #172 with Lindsey Stoddard (Author of Bea is for Blended)
Interview #173 with Jess Redman (Author of The Adventure is Now)
Interview #174 with David Levithan (Author of The Mysterious Disappearance of Aiden)
Interview #175 with Chris Grabenstein (Author of The Smartest Kid in the Universe)
Interview #176 with Ali Standish (Author of The Mending Summer)
Interview #177 with Holly Goldberg Sloan (Author of The Elephant in the Room)
Interview #178 with Jeff Zentner (Author of In the Wild Light)
SEASON #ELEVEN (Fall/Winter 2021)
Interview #179 with Katherine Applegate (Author of Willow)
Interview #180 with Padma Venkatraman (Author of Born Behind Bars)
Interview #181 with R.J. Palacio (Author of Pony)
Interview #182 with Kyle Lukoff (Author of Too Bright to See)
Interview #183 with Barbara Dee (Author of Violets are Blue)
Interview #184 with Anne Ursu (Author of The Troubled Girls of Dragonmir Academy)
Interview #185 with Margaret Finnegan (Author of We Could Be Heroes)
Interview #186 with Jasmine Warga (Author of Shape of Thunder)
Interview #187 with Joseph Bruchac (Author of Rez Dogs)
Interview #188 with Kathryn Erskine (Author of Lily's Promise)
Interview #189 with Elly Swartz (Author of Dear Student)
Interview #190 with Heather Clark (Author of Lemon Drop Falls)
Interview #191 with Veera Hiranandani (Author of How to Find What You're Not Looking For)
Interview #192 with Elizabeth Eulberg (Author of The Best Worst Summer)
Interview #193 with Cathy Carr (Author of 365 Days to Alaska)
Interview #194 with Carol Cujec and Peyton Goddard (Authors of REAL)
Interview #195 with Gillian McDunn (Author of These Lucky Stars)
Interview #196 with Alyssa Colman (Author of The Gilded Girl)
Interview #197 with E.L. Chen (Author of The Comeback)
Interview #198 with J.M.M. Nuanez (Author of Birdie and Me)
SEASON #TWELVE (Winter/Spring 2022)
Interview #199 with Jamie Sumner (Author of One Kid's Trash)
Interview #200 with Chad Lucas (Author of Thanks a Lot, Universe)
Interview #201 with Jenn Bishop (Author of Where We Used to Roam)
Interview #202 with Rebecca Caprara (Author of Worst-Case Collin)
Interview #203 with Leslie Connor (Author of Anybody Here Seen Frenchie?)
Interview #204 with Caroline Gertler (Author of Many Points of Me)
Interview #205 with Margaret Finnegan (Author of Susie B. Won't Back Down)
Interview #206 with Shawn Peters (Author of The Unforgettable Logan Foster)
Interview #207 with Aisha Saeed (Author of Omar Rising)
Interview #208 with Adrianna Cuevas (Author of Cuba in my Pocket)
Interview #209 with Jennifer Swender (Author of Stuck)
Interview #210 with Brenda Woods (Author of When Winter Robeson Came)
Interview #211 with Danya Lorentz (Author of the Book Of a Feather)
Interview #212 with Saadia Faruqi (Author of Yusuf Azeem is Not a Hero)
Interview #213 with Ellen Hopkins (Author of What About Will)
SEASON #THIRTEEN (Summer 2022)
Interview #214 with Nora Raleigh Baskin and Gae Polisner (Authors of What About the Octopus)
Interview #215 with Lauren Wolk (Author of My Own Lightning)
Interview #216 with Rebekah Lowell (Author of the Road to After)
Interview #217 with Gillian McDunn (Author of Honestly Elliott)
Interview #218 with Dan Gemeinhart (Author of The Midnight Children)
Interview #219 with Melanie Conklin (Author of A Perfect Mistake)
Interview #220 with Kyle Lukoff (Author of Different Kinds of Fruit)
Interview #221 with Tracy Edward Wymer (Author of The Great and Mighty Benjamin Teller)
Interview #222 with Louise Hawes (Author of Big Rig)
Interview #223 with Paul Acampora (Author of In Honor of Broken Things)
Interview #224 with Shannon Doleski (Author of Gabe in the After)
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