My Fourth Published Book: Wild Wishes and Windswept Kisses
My sophomore YA novel, Wild Wishes and Windswept Kisses is out in the world as of last month. What a joy it’s been to hear from readers who loved falling back into the world of the Singh sisters! Although it’s the second in the Singh sisters duology, I truly believe you can start with either book and enjoy them as stand-alones. Wild Wishes and Windswept Kisses has more of what you might expect if you were a fan of Drizzle, Dreams, and Lovestruck Things: sisterhood, romance, luscious food descriptions. Joyful representation of Desi girls and queer girls. Plenty of cozy, seasonal vibes as the cover may suggest. If you’re fan of the Danish concept hygge, you’ll love these books!
Wild Wishes is also an inclusive story that takes place in one whirlwind day: the Singh sisters hit travel snags, compete in a short film competition, navigate a role-playing murder mystery party, and try to rekindle romance through dance. Relationships fall apart and come together, but through it all, the sisters can always lean on each other.
My Third Published Book: Sejal Sinha Swims with Sea Dragons
In addition, the second book in my STEM chapter book series also released in October! I never planned to have two books release in the same month, but that’s how the publishing stars aligned themselves. In this Magic School Bus style adventure, Sejal uses Imagination Fuel to explore marine life, learning about creatures like the blue dragon, who snack on prey much larger than themselves—and can even absorb the stinging powers of their prey.
Sejal and her friends also travel to hydrothermal vents deep at the bottom of the ocean, where entire eco-systems have developed without sunlight to power them. Kids ages 6-9 who are curious about sea creatures, love puppy antics, and wonder how to defeat big bullies would enjoy this series! I’m sharing a short excerpt later this email.
So I can sit back and relax, right?
As a writer, I always dreamed of getting my very first book published. That will be enough for me, I always thought. Other authors warned me that dreams have a tendency to keep growing, that you’ll always be reaching for more.
Well, now I’m four books in. Am I satisfied? Yes and no. I’m really proud of what I’ve accomplished and if the end arrives for me tomorrow, I’ll know I left a mark in the world with a few of my words. But it’s true too that I have more stories to tell.
I’m currently working on a middle grade graphic novel and a YA fantasy. Sejal Sinha Dives for Diamonds on Neptune releases in January, but I’d love to extend the series beyond the first three. I’ve entertained ideas for adult novels, older middle grade, picture books, and more. I even have a weird and slightly unhinged speculative YA horror idea! Quite different from my cozy YA romances, haha.
Will those projects come to fruition? I don’t know. Sales help. Library requests help. Your support helps. And some of it will be on my end, to keep challenging myself to grow my craft and write books that resonate with readers. My guiding light is the knowledge that historically there have not been enough stories about brown kids. I’m working to change that, to give them lots of choice, to let them be the leads of their own worlds. To fall in love and go on adventures and everything else that their white counterparts have always gotten to do.
Excerpt from Sejal Sinha Swims with Sea Dragons
Okay, here’s the promised excerpt! Note: due to AI bots plagiarizing from authors, I will remove the excerpt from Substack in a few days, though it will remain in your email if you’ve subscribed. Thanks!
In this moment of peril, Sejal and her friends have been shrunken down to be just a few inches tall by one of Professor Cheetah’s many gadgets. They had fun swimming with sea dragons, real marine life that resembles seahorses. But now the group has spotted another creature in the water.
Redacted.
Final Thoughts
Sending you warm wishes for a beautiful autumn and close of the year. As always, thank you so much for following along with me on this journey. As I sit safe and sound in my office, dreaming up stories, I’m intensely aware that the children of Gaza, Congo, and Sudan and so many more places are in immediate peril.
I hope you will consider speaking up for a ceasefire and a peaceful resolution for the conflict happening in Gaza now. Palestinians have not had equal rights under the Israeli government, and now civilians are being killed and displaced in large numbers. There has to be a better way.
If you’re the in US, call Congress now. Otherwise, let your own reps know how you feel.