Interview with Priya Swaminathan

We are so excited to interview author ​Priya Swaminathan on our blog today. Read about her newest book, Deepa, M.D. below. 

KidLit in Color: Please tell us about your writing process. How long did it take you to write and sell this book? 

Priya Swaminathan: The idea for Deepa, M.D. had been kicking around for a while. Over the course of many years, I jotted down ideas, wrote chapters, and outlined different mysteries. In 2021, I had more time to focus. It took a while to get together a coherent draft that got an agent’s attention. Lilly Ghahremani at Full Circle Literary gave me invaluable notes that helped me find Deepa’s voice. Many months and a few drafts later, Lilly shared the book with publishers. Dainese Santos at Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers saw a spark in what I had. With her guidance, I was able to shape the manuscript into the book that’s on shelves now!

KLiC: What kind of research did you do for Deepa MD?

PS: I used to make documentaries and love research. I read books and academic papers. I listened to kids and families talk about their experience with chronic illness. I picked the brains of nurses and doctors. My brother, an emergency room physician and educator, read through early drafts and gave me advice on how to make Deepa, Uncle Jai, and their patients more realistic. But my favorite research was talking to kids about what the 7th grade was really like. I could do that all day. 


KLiC: What’s the one thing you want children to take away from your book?

PS: I want kids to laugh! That’s what I’ve gotten out of my favorite books.
 
Also…I’ve gone through tough times I wanted to wish away and pretend never happened. Looking back, those experiences changed me in big, sometimes beautiful ways. Deepa learns how to draw strength from the worst thing that’s ever happened to her. I hope her story sheds a little light on how difficult experiences can give you unexpected superpowers.
 
KLiC: Do you have any tips for pre-published authors?

PS: The best advice I got (thank you Gitty Daneshvari!) was to just keep writing. Before Deepa M.D., I worked on a book that never sold. It was discouraging. I felt really sorry for myself. There was a while when I wanted to give up and get into macramé (turns out, that’s a lot harder than I thought). The only thing that got me through it was writing more. I journaled. I tried my hand at different genres. I journaled some more…and eventually, I got enough mojo back to throw myself into Deepa’s world. Along the way, I figured out that I get a lot out of writing that goes beyond a finished product. That’s helped me keep going.

KLiC: What’s next for you? 

PS: I’m working on the second book in the Deepa, M.D. series! It’s a whole new mystery with a complicated 13-year-old patient that kicks up all the feels for Deepa. I’m also graduating from UCLA’s School of Nursing this June and hope to find a job working with oncology patients.

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Priya Swaminathan lived the dream of making movies and TV shows for twenty years before deciding to become a children’s author. In addition to writing, she is embarking on a new journey into medicine by studying nursing at UCLA. She lives in Los Angeles with her family and hopes that someday she’ll convince her husband to get a dog. For more information, click here.