Rica Baptista: The Box of Possibilities by Janet Costa Bates

KLiC: Please tell us about your writing process. How long did it take you to write and sell Rica Baptista: The Box of Possibilities? 
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JCB: I am a ‘pantser’ by nature. A single sentence will often come to mind and, without a clue of where the story is going, I start writing. Some people have great success writing this way, but I find that when I write longer pieces, my plot falls flat even though I’ve been told that my characters are strong and the voice is spot on. The problem is that when I try to be a ‘plotter’ and carefully lay out all of the details beforehand, I lose the voice. My remedy was to find middle ground - I’ve become what I call a ‘quilter.’ I allow myself to write scenes as they come to me. With a very slight outline, so slight that I don’t know if I can even call it an outline, I begin to weave the pieces together. Some scenes make it into the story and some don’t, but this ‘quilting’ method allows me to have some idea of where the story is going while keeping the voice strong. 

I’m not a fast writer but, since THE BOX OF POSSIBILITIES was sold on proposal (I already had a contract for the first book in the series), I had no choice but to write it somewhat quickly. Luckily, it flowed!

KLiC: What are your favorite illustrations in the book?

JCB: As a chapter book, THE BOX OF POSSIBILITIES has black and white illustrations on some, but not all, of the pages. But even in black and white, Gladys Jose managed to capture the personalities of the characters perfectly. That’s evident even from the first illustration you see, which is the book’s cover. Rica and her best friend Laini’s expressions reveal their excitement about what could potentially be in the box while Rica’s older cousin Serenity looks completely annoyed at their excitement. When I saw the very first illustration of Rica (for the first book in the series, LLAMAS, IGUANAS, AND MY VERY BEST FRIEND), I was excited because the day before I had just put my granddaughter’s hair in the same style, including the clip on the side of her hair. I was happy to see an authentic representation of a young Black girl. 

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

JCB: I want kids to be encouraged to dream! Imagination is the building block for anything that ever has ever been or will ever be accomplished or invented.

KLiC: Do you have any tips for pre-published authors?

JCB: Build community. Find the people who will encourage you when you’re feeling discouraged, who will offer honest feedback, and who will genuinely celebrate your wins. Fortunately, there are an abundance of wonderful people in the kidlit community.  If I ever decide to quit writing (which I might have done a few times - it didn’t take), I will still find ways to stay connected to the kidlit community. 

KLiC: What’s next for you? 

JCB: I’m very excited about my next project! Read to Grow, a Connecticut based literacy organization, asked me to write a board book for them. LOVE GROWS HERE will be donated through the organization’s partner hospitals. Last year their Books for Babies program distributed books to 25,000 expecting families and families with newborns in Connecticut.

​Janet Costa Bates is proud to share her Cape Verdean American heritage through the RICA BAPTISTA series and picture book, SEASIDE DREAM. Honors for her picture book TIME FOR BED, OLD HOUSE include an NAACP Image Award nomination, starred reviews, and multiple 'best books' lists. Her latest book, LOVE GROWS HERE, will be gifted to 70% of newborn families in Connecticut through the Read to Grow organization. When she's not doing bookish stuff, she enjoys letting her grandchildren wear her out. You can find Janet online at janetcostabates.com  and on Instagram @jcostabates.