Manny interviews Anjanette Delgado

Foto/Nereida García Ferraz

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por Manny López

(para el blog Gaspar, El Lugareño)

A few years ago I attended a presentation at the Miami Book Fair where a group of very talented women writers were presenting their new books. One of those women was Puerto Rican writer Anjanette Delgado. I was completely smitten by her. She came one day, we chatted, and I never wanted her to leave. I invited her to do one of my poetry nights at the gallery, and again she outdid herself. Aside from being talented; she is provocative in the best of ways, kind, and with such contagious happiness that you are forced to be as happy while around her. I would have to say Anjanette Delgado is addictive.

Pretty soon I will be finalizing my interviews, and my plans as I have said before, is to compile them in a book. I did not want this to be over without having Anja, as her friends call her, as one of my interviewees. She is a fascinating writer with an incredible freshness; a powerful voice in today’s women’s literature movement.

I invite you take a chance and get a glimpse of Anjanette Delgado… you will be fascinated...


What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?

Being stranded somewhere without something to read.

What is your idea of happiness?

Heavy rain + threadbare oversize t-shirt + chenille bedspread + good books/ movies + uninterrupted time

Who are your favorite characters in history?

Martin Luther King... and then, for the life of me, I can't think of any male favorites. I'm drawn to Peggy Guggenheim, Gertrude Stein, Alice Neel, Sylvia Plath, Ana Mendieta... Then there are the women who put up with Ernest Hemingway, the ones who put up with Picasso... they fascinate me no end.

The quality you most admire in a man?

Wow. What a great question. It's this thing... I want to say it's a swagger, but it's more than that. Erika, my character in "The heartbreak Pill" would say it's "peste a macho," (the beastly smell of man), but I'd say it's a kind of organic integrity. It's an "I am who I am, and who I am may not be perfect, but it's who I am, and it's not bad, i fact, you'll find it's pretty great if you get to know me..."

Of course, you want to get to know a man like that.
The quality you most admire in a woman?

Unity with all of her selves, or roles. Not just knowing who she is, but rather that artful blend that is complex, but not complicated, welcoming and exciting... and calm, unstressed. Something I've never been able to master.

Your most marked characteristic?

People say I'm passionate or that I have a focused intensity. But what I would say is most constant in myself is the creativity... the millions of ideas and opinions about everything, constantly swirling around, driving me insane.

What do you most value in your friends?
Friends who know when to be low-maintenance, but also when to be unapologetic about saying, "I need you here. Get over here. Now."

How would you like to die?
In sleep, having had a chance to say good-bye in some way, maybe by writing something marvelous. Wouldn't like to leave loved ones having to wonder. Wondering is the worst.

What is your present state of mind?
It's a mix... I'm relieved that I finished my second novel, The Clairvoyant of Coffee Park (La clarividente de la Calle Ocho in Spanish). It's my first novel written originally in English and it kicked my butt, but it also taught me a lot about myself.

I'm happy that "The Heartbreak Pill" (La píldora del mal amor) is due out this August on audiobook in Spanish from Recorded Books... And I'm excited to decide what to write next.

What is your motto?
If you're going through hell... keep going (Winston Churchill)


Anjanette Delgado is a Puerto Rican novelist living in Miami. She's the author of "The Heartbreak Pill" (Atria - Simon & Schuster 2008, 2009), now also in Spanish and in audiobook format as "La píldora del mal amor". Her novel have won several national awards and has been optioned for the big screen by Pantelion Films. Her upcoming novel is titled "The Clairvoyant of Cofee Park/ La clarividente de la Calle Ocho".
http://www.anjanettedelgado.com/