32. Ana Reyes ~ Uncovering the Secrets of the Past

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:00:00) - Hola and welcome to Latino Book Chat. I am your host, Christianne Meneses Jacobs. We invite you to participate in our conversations with Latino authors, illustrators and others who shared their insights into the book publishing industry. Anna Reyes holds a master of fine arts from Louisiana State University. She lives in Los Angeles, where she teaches creative writing to older adults at Santa Monica College. The House in the Pines is her first novel. It is a psychological thriller that was published in January 2023 and became a Reese Witherspoon Book Club pick. The novel follows Maya, a woman who witness her best friend's sudden death seven years ago and is still haunted by it. She returns to her hometown to find out the truth about what happened and confronts Frank, a mysterious man who was involved in both her friend's death and another recent similar case. Latino Bookshop Welcomes Ana Reyes. Thank you for chatting with us today.

Ana Reyes (00:01:02) - Thank you so much for inviting me.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:01:03) - Excited you're here. So I thought your book was thrilling. I had a hard time putting it down.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:01:09) - Wanted to know what was going to happen next.

Ana Reyes (00:01:12) - Thank you so much.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:01:13) - Suspense. So I wanted to find out what inspired you to write this story and how do you research?

Ana Reyes (00:01:20) - Well, the story was kind of a long time coming. It took me seven years to write. But the house itself, the house in the Pines is something that's kind of been on my mind for a long time. It appeared in the first story that I ever wrote. I was 11 years old and it was a story that I was trying to win a writing contest at the public library, so I'd never written anything before, but I was reading a lot of Scary stories by R.L. Stine, by Christopher Pike, sort of a horror and fantasy. So the first story that I ever wrote, it just took on that tone. It was about a young girl who gets lost in the forest and she comes upon this creepy house. So the rest of the story was kind of built around that. And years went by. I wrote a lot of poetry.

Ana Reyes (00:02:03) - I wrote some short fiction. But eventually I set down to write this novel and the house appeared again. And most of the book was kind of built around that house. It's a house with a secret. And that secret has always been the same from the beginning to now to the published version. But a lot of what is around that has changed. So I would say the sort of first inspiration was the House in the Pines itself.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:02:26) - It looks like you did a lot of research for this story. How do you go about doing that?

Ana Reyes (00:02:32) - Well, a lot of it is sort of based on my experience. So like she is going through Klonopin, withdrawal in the story. And that was something that I was actually dealing with myself when I started writing the book. Her situation is that she was kind of buying it from a friend and taking it not as directed. But in my case I had been prescribed by a doctor. I was taking it as directed, but then I had to switch doctors because I was, you know, living in a new place and the new doctors just cut me off of it.

Ana Reyes (00:02:59) - And I thought like, okay, this is probably for the best. I don't want to take this medication for the rest of my life. But I had been taking it for years to sleep. So suddenly going off of it was really, really difficult. I couldn't sleep. I was very agitated and this just went on for a really long time. So as I'm working through this, I'm also writing my first novel. So some of that found its way onto the page and ended up helping me process it and helped me get through it. But it also turned out to be the perfect sort of situation for a character who's an unreliable narrator. So when you can't sleep, when you're agitated, you know, when you are anxious, it can contribute to a situation where, you know you're losing touch with reality and you become an unreliable narrator. So that's what our protagonist, Maya, is going through. So sadly, I didn't have to do a lot of research there that was mostly based on my experience and then heightened somewhat for dramatic effect.

Ana Reyes (00:03:56) - As far as some of the historical aspects of the book. I write a little bit about Maya's father, who was killed at the tail end of the Guatemalan civil war. So some of that I knew because my you know, my dad had told me these things when I was younger, but a lot of it I had to research to get the sort of historical facts because this isn't something that we learn about in school in the US. You know, the Guatemalan civil war was largely instigated by a coup that was backed by the US. The CIA went down there and trained these, you know, death squads essentially to protect the corporate interest of the United Fruit Company. So a lot of this I kind of knew vaguely, but I had never studied it in school. It was never presented to me in this, you know, historical way. So I did research with that, too. And I would say those are the two main without giving anything away, those are sort of the two main aspects of the book that I put a lot of research into.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:04:55) - I feel like there are several elements that enrich the story. So I was very curious as to how you were able to balance the mystery, the suspense and the psychological drama in your plot.

Ana Reyes (00:05:10) - Well well, thanks for noting that, because I definitely was going for suspense. And I think that my first draft probably. You didn't have a lot of suspense. I think that I was getting the story on the page, but as I developed it and as I worked on it later with my agent and then my editor, I became very interested in incorporating those tools and techniques that Thriller writers have have always kind of used. So, you know, you've got your red herrings and your plot twists and your cliffhanger endings. So the more that I that I developed the draft and the kind of stronger it got, I found that incorporating those elements, those sort of tried and true techniques, really benefited this story. So it didn't start out quite as suspenseful as it is, but I was able to kind of learn from the Masters by reading Gillian Flynn and Shirley Jackson and Patricia Highsmith, all these sort of classic thriller writers who are just masters of the form.

Ana Reyes (00:06:03) - So I was able to read those and take on a lot of what they're doing, learn from them.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:06:08) - I also think that there are some important themes in your novel, and one of them is the power of memory. And, you know, the book switches back and forth between the pressing and the past. I was wondering why you decided to to do that.

Ana Reyes (00:06:26) - Well, initially, it was set mostly in the present with just some flashbacks here and there. But the story from that summer, the summer that Maya witnessed her best friend's death, those flashbacks felt very interesting to me and to to my early readers, they were like, Yeah, we really like those flashbacks. So I kind of developed those and dove into the details and expanded them to the point of where it became a dual storyline with almost half of the novel set in the past. And the reason that I that I kind of gravitated towards that is that I realized that we know from the beginning of the book, pretty much we know that Aubrey, Maya's best friend, is going to die at the end of the summer.

Ana Reyes (00:07:07) - So knowing that, I think it lent a certain gravity to her final weeks, days and then ultimately her final hours, because the reader is wondering like, you know, we know what's going to happen, but how does it happen? Like, what choices is she making now that are going to lead to her death and how is it going to come about? So I really enjoyed writing those and I found that that readers were interested in it because of that sort of gravity of the situation.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:07:35) - Yeah. And always felt so sorry for Maya, you know, dealing with this trauma. What a traumatic experience for her. Yeah. To watch that happen, especially when she is watching. Frank, I have to tell you that my favorite character is Frank.

Ana Reyes (00:07:53) - You know, a lot of people have said that. Oh, yeah, Yeah.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:07:58) - That's funny. He is so creepy, but he's so fascinating to and intriguing. So tell us how you created Frank and what makes him so intriguing and and also very dangerous, I think.

Ana Reyes (00:08:12) - Yeah. Well. Well, Frank was all, you know, he was there from the start, but he wasn't quite as menacing as he is now. He was always the villain. But as I, you know, as I continued to work on new drafts and edit, I realized that his power is his ability to manipulate. So but what he does is it's really sort of it's sort of the extreme manipulation that there are manipulative people out there who share his tendencies, but he also has a very specific skill or we could even say power that he wields in order to to manipulate Maya. And so I think that power makes him very dangerous and very different from other sort of villains that we've seen. His his specific mode, his Mo is is very different from what we've seen before. And so for me, building up to the sort of reveal about how he does what he does involved really setting up his just just how how manipulative he is and how controlling and this need that he feels to be the only one in Maya's life.

Ana Reyes (00:09:11) - So when they're together in the summer, the first when they meet, he wants to be everything to her. You know, he doesn't like that she's going off to college. She doesn't like that she has a best friend who she really wants to spend time with and her mother. So to me that, you know, there's a certain ring of truth in that type of person who just wants like all all of you, but was able to sort of amp that up with this very specific skill or technique that he has. And I had a lot of fun writing that character. I do hear a lot of people say that's their favorite character. That's specifically what they want to ask me about. And I think it's because he is a very different sort of villain.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:09:47) - He really is. Was fascinated by him and and how he does things. And I really was surprised I didn't see it coming. You know, it's like, wait, wait a second. What happened.

Ana Reyes (00:10:01) - Here? Yeah, I love to hear that.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:10:04) - Back and reread that chapter. I'm like, okay, let me figure it out. I was like, Wow. Yeah, it was very surprising. So I really like that. Thought it was very unique. Like you said, I have not seen that happen before. Are there some influences that has shaped your writing style and voice?

Ana Reyes (00:10:22) - Yes, many. So I've loved, as I mentioned, growing up reading R.L. Stine and Christopher Pike. So I've kind of always been drawn to that sort of thriller pacing and mystery. But as I got older, I would say that the writers that really influenced me were probably Shirley Jackson, Jennifer Egan, who wrote this fantastic book called The Keep That, I will say is definitely an influence on this book. And then some sort of contemporary writers that I really enjoy reading who who write in the thriller genre. People like Alma Katsu is an incredible writer in the horror genre. Katie Gutierrez is a writer that I'm recently really enjoying. I read her debut novel More Than You'll Ever Know, and I think she's a master of suspense.

Ana Reyes (00:11:06) - So there's pretty much any writer out there who's using suspense on the page I'm learning from.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:11:12) - Are you currently reading something?

Ana Reyes (00:11:14) - What am I reading right now? I just recently finished a book that I blurbed called Mister Magic by Kiersten White, and that's also a very suspenseful book about a creepy children's show and the survivors of that show. So that's what I just read that I would most recently read that I would definitely recommend.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:11:33) - So we know that you were selected by Reese Witherspoon for her book club. What was your reaction and what has been the response from the readers so far?

Ana Reyes (00:11:43) - It was just a dream come true. You know, I thought, you know, this is my first book. I didn't even sort of imagine that my first book, something like this could happen. So when I got the call from my editor, she said, Hey, do you mind if we jump on a zoom with your agent later? And I was like, okay, sure. So I didn't really know what she was going to say or even if it was good or bad.

Ana Reyes (00:12:01) - But I jump on Zoom and she's she just told me, you know, Reese Witherspoon chose your book. And I almost like I didn't really believe it at first. I was like, what? Like, how did she even get like like, how did this happen? Um, and the second thing she told me was, you have to keep it a secret. So Reese Witherspoon is the one that makes her announcement and nobody else can like it. Just can't get out before then. So I had to keep it quiet. And that was the hardest part, was I wanted to tell everybody. I wanted to put it all over social media, of course, but but I couldn't. I had to keep it a secret. So that was just really exciting. And I think that. Getting chosen for her book club. Not only is it a huge honor, but it it allows people who might not hear about the book to hear about it. So I didn't expect so many people to read my book in the first year.

Ana Reyes (00:12:46) - But, you know, here we are just four months later and so many people have read it and, you know, it's being translated into other languages and it's being read in in the UK and in Australia, and I've heard from people there. So I think that this experience, I'm just so grateful and feel so lucky because it's allowed me to reach people that I don't know that I would have reached as a debut author.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:13:08) - Yeah, I read a quote from her about your book saying that she couldn't put it down.

Ana Reyes (00:13:14) - Yeah, no. I've memorized that quote.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:13:19) - And I'm thinking, Yes, I know. You are so right. The same thing happened to me. I couldn't put it down. So it's so cool. I really love it. So are you working on anything new?

Ana Reyes (00:13:32) - Yes, I'm working on my second book. I haven't really said what it's about yet, but it's also a thriller. It has a little bit more. I think it's scarier. It might have a slight more horror flavor to it, but it's also, you know, a suspense novel.

Ana Reyes (00:13:47) - And this one is going to be set in Texas.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:13:49) - Oh, Texas.

Ana Reyes (00:13:51) - Yeah. Where my family lives.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:13:54) - Yeah. Oh, wow. Well, that's exciting. Yeah. You know, I don't tend to read this kind of novels, but, hey, I think they're going to be my favorite now.

Ana Reyes (00:14:05) - Good. Yeah, I love. I mean, I read. I try to read every genre because I think that, you know, helps me as a writer and just kind of helps me be aware of what's out there. And I love most genres, but I find that when I just want to sit down and get lost in a world and like, forget where I am, like to me, thrillers and suspense, there's something about them that just pulls me in.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:14:25) - I have to tell you, I think this was my first experience, you know, reading one of this kind of like, you know, contemporary novel, you know, because I read Edgar Allan Poe before, but, you know, I can't I have to read just a few of them because they are very scary to me.

Ana Reyes (00:14:43) - Well, thanks for giving it a shot. I really appreciate that.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:14:47) - Yeah. Yeah. So I'm definitely going to be excited to to wait for your second book. Yeah. Thank you. And Will, you know, find out more about other books like yours. That's so, so cool. I think they're really cool. I like them. I like that suspense, wanting to know what's going to happen. Oh, my God. How is this working? How it happened? How how did he do it? You know? Right. That's what I was trying to get is like, oh, my goodness. So yeah, it's quite an experience to read your book. I have to tell our listeners, you know, it is really a cool experience. I really was very excited reading your book and I know that you are a teacher also, that you teach creative writing to older adults. So tell us about that.

Ana Reyes (00:15:34) - So I did that up until recently. I'm actually moving to another state now, so I just had to leave that job.

Ana Reyes (00:15:40) - But I will hopefully do something like that in the future and absolutely plan to continue teaching creative writing as a teacher to older adults. I think that that really helped me a lot just with my own writing, but also my own like like my life, my experience. Because a lot of these writers, they're all older. I have students in their 60s, 70s, 80s, even 90s. Wow. And yeah, and they've just been through the most incredible experiences. Some of them have experiences that are just really out there, like, you know, a woman who escaped the Iranian revolution and the trunk of a car. Oh yeah. Another woman who was in the Blitz during London and had to be evacuated to the countryside as a child. So some of them have had these really larger than life experiences. And even the ones that haven't, you know, when you get to that age, I think that every person has a story, not just one story, but many stories, powerful stories. So so getting to hear these stories week after week really helped me.

Ana Reyes (00:16:38) - I was able to gain some of the wisdom that they had. So hearing their stories helped me understand, you know, what's important to to people not just writing, but to people. They're sharing the most important things and they tend to all be the same regardless of where they're from. So, you know, love, death, birth, career, like all of all of these things that people are writing about again and again sort of helped me think as I get older, what's important? What are the things that I'm going to want to write about? And then I'm going to be thinking about, you know, when I'm in my 80s. So, so it really helped me a lot, both as a writer and a person.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:17:14) - There a reason why you concentrate on that demographic as opposed to the younger kids that are starting college.

Ana Reyes (00:17:21) - It was kind of a happy accident where I have a friend who's also a writer and kind of a mentor named Winona Whaley, and she had been leading this class for several years and she wanted to step into a different position.

Ana Reyes (00:17:33) - So she asked me like, would you be interested? In doing this. And I happen to be looking for a job because I had recently completed my masters and moved back to California and I was looking for work. And so she offered this to me and it ended up being really the best job I've ever had. I love teaching. I love teaching students of all ages. But this, for some reason, this demographic, I just really liked what they brought. I like I liked hearing about their lives and I appreciated how comfortable they were in their skin. You know, these are people who, unlike some of the younger students, you know, they really they know who they are. They're not so worried about saying something and class that, like their peers might think is silly. Like they, you know, they know who they are at this point in their lives. And and I just really loved that about them. Like, I felt very comfortable. I felt like they there's just a lot of mutual respect and admiration.

Ana Reyes (00:18:20) - So so I really do think that this demographic I'm hoping to eventually get back to teaching.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:18:25) - Yeah, that's interesting. I didn't think that people in that age group would be interested in taking a creative writing class, but I guess they are.

Ana Reyes (00:18:35) - Yeah.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:18:37) - I was so surprised. Wow, that's really cool. Yeah. So you prepare something for our listeners.

Ana Reyes (00:18:44) - So I'm going to read it's about a page and it's the prologue. So the very opening of my book, I'm just going to read that and hopefully it'll give you a sort of taste of the tone and voice of my book. Prologue. Deep in these woods, there is a house that's easy to miss. Most people, in fact, would take one look and insist it's not there and they wouldn't be wrong. Not completely. What they would see are a house's remains, a crumbling foundation crawling with weeds, a house long since abandoned. But look closely at the ground here at this concrete, scarred by sun and ice. This is where the fireplace goes.

Ana Reyes (00:19:23) - If you look deeply enough, a spark will ignite. And if you blow on it, that spark will bloom into a blaze. A warm light in this cold, dark forest. If you come closer out of the cold, the fire gets stronger. Blows smoke in your eyes tumbling smoke with a burning pine smell that sweetens to the smell of perfume, then softens to the smell of your mother's coat. She's murmuring in the next room. Turn around and here come the walls shyly, like deer emerging from the trees frozen concrete becomes an area rug. Take off your shoes. Stay a while. Outside the wind is rising and there comes a clacking, a close, rapid shatter. It must be the windows in their sashes. A light snow sifts from the sky blanketing this cozy home, tucking it in for the night. Good night, little house, and good night, Mouse. Remember, for once, there is no reason to get up. No one to chase or run away from. From the kitchen comes the smell of home.

Ana Reyes (00:20:25) - The sounds of a city. This is how the world was once before the first colic, before the first scald, the first getting lost. And this is why you do it. Good night, Nobody. Good night, mush. And good night to the old lady whispering Hush, get a good night's sleep. Because when you wake, this house will be gone.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:20:47) - Wow. Yeah. Everything. Dad. It piqued my interest, and I was like, Huh? It's going to be about. Yeah. Have you ever seen a house like the one you describe here? No. It's only live in your imagination.

Ana Reyes (00:21:03) - I've seen it in my imagination. I feel like I've seen it because I've pictured it so much. I've written about it. I've like, really pictured it down to the last detail. So I do feel like I've seen this house, but in fact it doesn't exist.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:21:18) - That is a good thing, huh?

Ana Reyes (00:21:19) - Yeah, exactly.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:21:21) - Uh, the book is The House in the Pines by Anna Reyes.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:21:26) - Participate in this week's book giveaway by writing a review of Latino book chat on your favorite streaming platform. Send me a screenshot of your review As your entry. You can submit your entry via Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. At Latino Book Chat. You can purchase a copy of Ana's book at our online store at nicagal.com. A girl from Nicaragua, n i c a g a l.com. Ana Reyes. Thank you so much for chatting with us today on Latino Book Chat. It has been a pleasure to have you on the show. Thank you for having you on the show.

Ana Reyes (00:21:59) - It's been my pleasure to thank you.

Christianne Meneses Jacobs (00:22:02) - Thank you for joining us today. Visit us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at Latino Book Chat. Please subscribe on your favorite platform. Wherever you're listening to us today, please give us a positive review and as many stars as possible. Sharing this show will help it grow and continue to come to you. Thank you for your support. Latino Book Chat is a production of NicaGal Media. Today's episode was hosted, produced and edited by Christianne Meneses Jacobs.