We chat with author Angel Luis Colón about Infested, which is a YA ghost story about a Puerto Rican teen’s battle with a malevolent spirit targeting his apartment building and the all-too-real horrors of gentrification.
Hi, Angel! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
Hi! I’m a Puerto Rican writer from the Bronx, but I’m living in New Jersey now. I love running, reading, and baking (I’ve become pretty excellent at that last bit thanks to the pandemic).
When did you first discover your love for writing and stories?
I’ve devoured books for as long as I can remember, but I think it was back in elementary school that one of my English teachers, Mr. Grome, really ignited my love of writing. He was supportive of my imagination and it’s truly amazing how much of an impact he had on me.
Quick lightning round! Tell us the first book you ever remember reading, the one that made you want to become an author, and one that you can’t stop thinking about!
Ah, the pressure! Okay, okay. First book I can really remember reading is The Plant That Ate Dirty Socks by Nancy McArthur. I have no idea why, but I adored that book as a kid. The book that made me want to write was Clive Barker’s Books of Blood – those stories changed the shape of my brain. As for a book I can never stop thinking about, well, that can be a long list, but Bodega Dreams by Ernesto Quinonez is forever etched on my memory.
Your latest novel, Infested, is out now! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Ew, that’s too many roaches. ‘Ew’ is a word right?
What can readers expect?
Readers should expect to be a little more than skeeved out with some of the events that happen in Infested, but they should also expect a few laughs and a few things to really think about along the way.
Where did the inspiration for Infested come from?
It all sort of happened so fast. My agent mentioned coming up with a horror concept – no rush – and the idea popped into my head within minutes, it was so fast, in fact, that I pitched him the concept then and there. Once we got a chance to stew on it, I realized how much of my own life I could draw into the story and it was a full sprint from there.
Were there any moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
It was important to me – especially as a I drew from my own upbringing – to really focus on crafting the kind of story I would have wanted to read when I was a teenager, so the main character, Manny, became a fast favorite. He allowed me to explore a lot about my culture and what it was like to be at an age where my choices really began to matter.
Infested marks your first foray into YA. Did you change your approach at all or face any challenges?
I was worried about how far I could go at first. My adult novels aren’t shy with shocking moments, so my first impulse was to hold my normal self back from going too far. Thankfully, my agent and my editor assured me that I didn’t need to pull away from the kind of craziness I wanted to inject into this story. This gave me a lot of the confidence to tackle the social issues in the novel as well.
I like to think delving into YA has really leveled up my writing game.
What’s next for you?
So much! We’ve got Infested coming out on July 25th, I have a new adult novel, Pop!, out with editors now, so hopefully folks will hear about that soon, and, if I wasn’t busy enough, I’m writing another YA horror novel set in the world of independent wrestling that has been an absolute blast to write so far.
Lastly, do you have any book recommendations for our readers?
I’ll limit myself because I could go on and on, but my recent reads have all been bangers.
- The Making of Yolanda La Bruja by Lorraine Avila
- Burn Down, Rise Up by Vincent Tirado
- Where There Was Fire by John Manuel Arias (this releases in September and is excellent)
- All The Sinners Bleed by Shawn Cosby
- The Beast You Are: Stories by Paul Tremblay
