On Comics and Noir
with Alex Segura, author of 'Secret Identity: A Novel'
#NuevasPaginasconLupita is a space that is both an archive and resource aimed to "spotlight" Hispanic/Latinx/e authors with newly published books. The goal is to connect readers to new and/or old favorite Hispanic/Latinx/e authors and their books! So give this & every post a share to help us reach more readers!
How does it work?!
Here’s the deal, I came up with a set of casual/random/funny questions to ask each Hispanic/Latinx/e author, I interview. For now, the questions will all be the same but maybe in the future I’ll launch this into more specific questions to the author or maybe I’ll turn this series into a mini-podcast, or maybe……well, you get it! The possibilities are endless.
If you are new here don’t forget to check out all the other amazing interviews! We also have a great line-up of guest authors coming up so make sure you don’t miss an issue by subscribing now!
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Hey Heyyy Book Franz!
One of the biggest things I hoped people would be able to pick up through the Nuevas Paginas initiative is the vast spectrum of topics, themes, and genres that Latino/e/x authors are covering in literature. Because our community is writing! We are writing about so many different things and we are experimenting and forging new paths!!! Just like this week’s featured author who is mixing his love for comic books and noir into a powerhouse of a novel. I won’t keep you from learning more about this author and his book but I do want to say - I am incredibly excited to read this book and I hope you will be too!!
Without further ado, our special guest author today is…Alex Segura!!!
Could you tell me a bit about where this photo was taken? Is it special to your book in some way?
The photo was taken in my office area (I say area because there's no door - it's just our back room, meaning anyone can walk in!) As a gift, my wife got three pieces of original art framed - one from my first full comic book ever (an Archie story), another comic I wrote, and in the middle, an original page from The Lynx sequences drawn by artist Sandy Jarell. I realize it's cliche, but the office is where I do most of my creative work - it's where the idea for Secret Identity became a proposal, then an outline, and finally a novel.
Tell me about your book without telling me about your book - share any literary inspirations behind your book! If there are none, the gap you wanted to fill in the literary canon with your book.
I love that you describe it that way because that's how I approach my writing - how do I write a book that only I can write, that also is the kind of book I'd love to read? I love noir novels, crime, true crime, mysteries, you name it - I'm also a lifelong comic book fan and now a comic book professional - a writer by night and marketing person by day. Comics have been my day job for over a decade. I love how Michael Chabon's The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay wove through existing comic book history to create a lost chapter, and when reading that book I was mesmerized and inspired (I was in my twenties).
But one thing I wanted while reading the novel was to read the actual comics being discussed in the story. That idea stuck with me - so when I got around to writing a comic book noir, a blending of my two passions, I knew I had to also include the comics - which is how we end up with these magnificent comic book pages embedded in the novel by Sandy Jarrell. In terms of tone, Secret Identity owes a lot to the work of great mystery writers like Patricia Highsmith, Margaret Millar, and Megan Abbott - true masters of noir and atmosphere that create feelings and textures to accompany the plot and characters. They inspire me always.
What are two central themes in your book that you connect with the most and why?
I really connect with Carmen's drive - and her desire to basically validate her parents struggles to get to the country by not only being a success but by also achieving her dream of being a comic book writer. Her intense focus and determination inspired me, and I created her! Another theme is ideas - and who owns them vs. who creates them. The history of comic books is littered with sad stories of creators losing their rights or control of their characters, and I wanted to create a meta-conversation about that, and how it echoes through the history of the medium.
If a book was home, where would your home be?
Probably somewhere in the Lower East Side of New York City, off the Bowery.
If your book was a famous musician who would it be?
I listened to a lot of Taylor Swift, Phoebe Bridgers, St. Vincent and Neko Case while writing this book - so any of them would apply. They're all immensely talented and fearless women who write songs about not only their victories but their stumbles and the gray areas of life, which are my favorite things to write about - how people pull themselves up after falling down, and then achieve greater heights than ever before.
What comfort food could a reader pair with your book?
A nice bowl of (vegan) mac and cheese, maybe some picadillo (Cuban ground beef with rice and black beans), or a slice of flan.
In what ways has access (or little to no access) to Hispanic/Latinx/e literature defined you as a writer?
Both have defined me - the lack of Latinx lead characters in mystery fiction spurred me to create Pete Fernandez, my Miami-based private eye. I wanted to read stories about people like me, and I didn't see it. On the flipside, seeing characters like me - even if not Cuban, but still Latinx - felt like glimmers of hope as a kid - whether it was something like Miguel O'Hara, the future Spider-Man, or Jaime Reyes, the Blue Beetle, representation matters so much, and it affects not only how we engage with art, but how we choose to create it.
Where can readers keep up with your work?
On Twitter: @alex_segura
On Instagram: @alexsegurajr
A huge thank you to Alex Segura for taking the time to chat with me about his work! Please please make sure you purchase a copy (or request your local library carry a copy) of his book #SupportLatinxLit!
Bio for Alex Segura from his website:
Alex Segura is the bestselling and award-winning author of Secret Identity, which the New York Times called “wittily original” and named an Editor’s Choice. NPR described the novel as “masterful,” and it received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly, Kirkus, and Booklist. Alex is also the author of Star Wars Poe Dameron: Free Fall, the Pete Fernandez Miami Mystery series, and a number of comic books – including The Mysterious Micro-Face (in partnership with NPR), The Black Ghost, The Archies, The Dusk, The Awakened, and more. His short story, “90 Miles” was included in The Best American Mystery and Suspense Stories for 2021 and won the Anthony Award for Best Short Story. By day he is the Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Oni Press, with previous stints at Archie Comics and DC Comics.
A Miami native, he lives in New York with his wife and children.
Synopsis for Secret Identity from the Macmillan website:
From Anthony Award-winning writer Alex Segura comes Secret Identity, a rollicking literary mystery set in the world of comic books.
It's 1975 and the comic book industry is struggling, but Carmen Valdez doesn't care. She's an assistant at Triumph Comics, which doesn't have the creative zeal of Marvel nor the buttoned-up efficiency of DC, but it doesn't matter. Carmen is tantalizingly close to fulfilling her dream of writing a superhero book.
That dream is nearly a reality when one of the Triumph writers enlists her help to create a new character, which they call "The Lethal Lynx," Triumph's first female hero. But her colleague is acting strangely and asking to keep her involvement a secret. And then he's found dead, with all of their scripts turned into the publisher without her name. Carmen is desperate to piece together what happened to him, to hang on to her piece of the Lynx, which turns out to be a runaway hit. But that's complicated by a surprise visitor from her home in Miami, a tenacious cop who is piecing everything together too quickly for Carmen, and the tangled web of secrets and resentments among the passionate eccentrics who write comics for a living.
Alex Segura uses his expertise as a comics creator as well as his unabashed love of noir fiction to create a truly one-of-a-kind novel--hard-edged and bright-eyed, gritty and dangerous, and utterly absorbing.
The best ways you can support Latinx/e authors and Latinx/e literature is by doing the following:
REQUEST that your local library carry a copy
PURCHASE a copy of a friend, family member, your nemesis (hey! I’m sure they read too).
SHOUT about the book on any social media platform or to your friends and family!
SHARE this interview widely! Word of mouth does wonders for connecting readers to books.
REVIEW their books on any website that sells books
The other day one of my cousins asked in our family group chat….” Hey! What kind of music does Lupita listen to?” and without even missing a beat my brother replied “AUDIOBOOKS”!
The moment audiobooks stepped into my life, they became my music. I listen to them on walks, while doing laundry and chores — basically any moment I have to myself. So if that is you too (or if you simply want to fit in more reading during your daily life) check out Libro.FM! If you use the code LupitaReads you’ll receive two audiobook credits for 14.99 USD with your first month of membership. These credits can be used on your choice of more than 250,00 audiobooks on Libro. FM.
And if you need some audiobook recommendations - I made a list just for you!
Thanks for this-- I had marked the book to read several months ago and now I want to prioritize it!
I'm waiting for Secret Identity to come in for me at the library! I'm really looking forward to it.