Zoraida Córdova

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Zoraida Córdova
Born (1987-06-26) June 26, 1987 (age 36)
Guayaquil, Ecuador
Pen nameZoey Castile
LanguageEnglish
Alma materHunter College, University of Montana
GenreYoung adult fiction, middle grade fiction, romance
Years active2012-now
Notable worksLabyrinth Lost
Website
zoraidacordova.com

Zoraida Córdova is an Ecuadorian-American author of children's books and romance, best known for her Brooklyn Brujas series. She also writes romance as Zoey Castile.

Personal life[edit]

Córdova was born in Guayaquil, Ecuador and came to the United States when she was five or six years old.[1] English is her second language.[2]

She grew up in Hollis, Queens.[3] Her favorite books in high school were In the Forests of the Night and Demon in my View by Amelia Atwater Rhodes, which she first read at age 13.[3] Impressed by the fact that Rhodes was published when she was 14, Córdova was inspired to start to want to become a writer as well.[4]

Córdova attended the National Book Foundation’s writing camps in high school, with the help of a supportive teacher,[5] and the Summer Solstice writing conference at Pine Manor college.[3]

She says that she wrote many unfinished stories in college, accumulating multiple "Part 1s", and completed her first novel at age 19.[1] After college, she interned at PMA Literary and Film management, where she first met the person who would become her literary agent.[3]

Córdova identifies as Latina and is one of the co-founders of the Latinx in Kidlit blog, a website centering fellow Latinx writers.[6]

Selected works[edit]

Córdova wrote her first query letter to a literary agent when she was 17.[7] She wrote two more novels before writing the novel that ultimately made her able to get literary representation.[8]

The Vicious Deep Series

Córdova wrote what would become her debut novel, The Vicious Deep, as part of the National Novel Writing Month in 2010.[1] It sold to Sourcebooks within a week of submitting.[3]

The Vicious Deep follows Tristan, a boy who gets swept away by a tidal wave and lands on Coney Island, having developed strange powers.[3] It was published by Sourcebooks in August 2012.[3]

Córdova says that she has had an infatuation with the sea ever since she was a child, saying that she had been sent a VHS of The Little Mermaid by her grandmother while still living in Ecuador and started to develop an interest in mermaids.[3] While there is one biracial Ecuadorian and Greek side character in the novel, Córdova says that "it all began in Ecuador" for her.[3] She first had the concrete idea for the novel when she spent a summer in Coney Island.[3]

Two sequels, The Savage Blue and The Vast and Brutal Sea, followed in May 2013 and June 2015.[9]

Brooklyn Brujas Series

Her second young adult series, Brooklyn Brujas (Witches), originally began as a Latinx version of Charmed and has been inspired by Córdova's Ecuadorian heritage.[10] Córdova says that she wanted to write about identity, family, and magic, while being inclusive of people of color, without taking from preexisting mythologies, ultimately creating a fictional pantheon of gods, inspired by many different Latin American cultures.[11][12] She worked on multiple drafts of what would become the first novel, Labyrinth Lost, for years before it ultimately sold in 2014.[10]

Labyrinth Lost follows Alex, a bruja who hates magic and accidentally makes her entire family vanish when she performs a spell to rid herself of her own magic.[13] It was published by Sourcebooks in September 2016 and received a starred review from School Library Journal.[14] In April 2017, it was announced that Paramount had acquired movie rights to the novel.[15] As of May 2019, the project is still in early development and no producer or writer has been attached yet.[15]

A sequel, Bruja Born, about Lula, the sister of the protagonist of the first book, whose life is turned upside down after a bus crash, was published in June 2018.[8] Córdova says that she didn't feel the story was complete after the first novel and that she didn't want to "mess up" Alex's ending, so chose the point of view of her sister instead, writing a much more "darker" novel in tone than the first.[8]

A third novel in the series is slated for publication in 2020.[16]

Star Wars

She wrote the short story "You Owe Me a Ride",[17] included in the short story collection Star Wars: From a Certain Point of View, featuring 40 authors' takes on stories taking place during the first Star Wars film, Star Wars: A New Hope, as told through the perspective of supporting characters.[18] The collection was released in October 2017.[19]

Córdova is also the author A Crash of Fate, a Star Wars canon universe novel released by Disney-Lucasfilm Press in August 2019.[20] It tells the story of Izzy and Jules, two best friends on the run from vengeful smugglers and pirates.[20]

She also wrote the short-story "The Lost Nightsister" included in the short story collection The Clone Wars: Stories of Light and Dark released by Disney-Lucasfilm Press in 2020.[citation needed]

Other works

She also writes romance under the pen name Zoey Castile, most notably her Magic Mike-inspired Happy Endings series about male strippers falling in love.[21]

In October 2018, it was announced that she would be co-editing a young adult fantasy anthology featuring called Vampires Never Get Old together with author Natalie Parker, featuring stories by authors Samira Ahmed, Julie Murphy, Rebecca Roanhorse, Laura Ruby, and Victoria Schwab. Publication is planned for fall 2020.[22]

Her middle grade debut, The Way to Rio Luna, about an eleven-year-old who finds a book that transports him to a fairyland, was announced in October 2019 and planned for publication with Scholastic in summer 2020.[23]

Bibliography[edit]

As Zoraida Córdova[edit]

Adult

The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina (Atria Books, 2021)

Young adult

Vicious Deep Series

  1. The Vicious Deep (Sourcebooks, 2012)
  2. The Savage Blue (Sourcebooks, 2013)
  3. The Vast and Brutal Sea (Sourcebooks, 2014)

Brooklyn Brujas Series

  1. Labyrinth Lost (Sourcebooks, 2016)
  2. Bruja Born (Sourcebooks, 2018)

Star Wars Canon Universe

Hollow Crown Series

  1. Incendiary (Disney Hyperion, 2020)

Middle Grade fiction

  • The Way to Rio Luna (Scholastic, 2020)

Romance

On the Verge Series

  1. Luck on the Line (Diversion Books, 2014)
  2. Love on the Ledge (Diversion Books, 2015)
  3. Life on the Level (Diversion Books, 2016)

Short Stories

  • "You Owe Me a Ride" in Star Wars: From a Certain Point of View, edited by Elizabeth Schaefer (Del Rey, 2017)
  • "Luz, Queen of Los Luceros" (Hanging Garden, 2017)
  • "Divine Are the Stars" in Toil & Trouble: 15 Tales of Women & Witchcraft, edited by Jessica Spotswood and Tess Sharpe (Harlequin Teen, 2018)
  • "The Lost Nightsister" in Star Wars: The Clone Wars: Stories of Light and Dark (Disney-Lucasfilm Press, 2020)
  • "Confessions of an Ecuadorkian" in Come On In, edited by Adi Alsaid (Inkyard Press, 2020)
  • "Vampires Never Say Die" in Vampires Never Get Old, (Imprint, 2020)
  • Fantastic Worlds: Impossible Places (Random House Children's, 2021)

As Editor

  • Vampires Never Get Old (Imprint, 2020)
  • Mermaids Never Drown ( Feiwel and Friends, 2023)

As Zoey Castile[edit]

Romance

Happy Endings Series

  1. Stripped (Kensington, 2018)
  2. Hired (Kensington, 2019)
  3. Flashed (Kensington, 2019)

Short Stories

  • Rogue Passion (Rogue Passion Publishing, 2018)

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c "Zoraida Cordova | Diversity in YA". www.diversityinya.com. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  2. ^ "Hypable Exclusive Interview with Zoraida Cordova". Hypable. 2012-05-08. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Zoraida Cordova interview". Young Entertainment. 2013-12-31. Retrieved 2019-05-30.
  4. ^ Sandy (2011-07-31). "Pirate Penguin's Reads: Interview with Zoraida Córdova, author of THE VICIOUS DEEP!". Pirate Penguin's Reads. Retrieved 2019-05-30.
  5. ^ Guerra, Erasmo (2013-06-19). "Vampires and Werewolves—and Mermaids? Oh my!". Cosmopolitan. Retrieved 2019-05-30.
  6. ^ Diaz, Shelley. "Family, Magic, and Identity: Zoraida Córdova on "Labyrinth Lost"". School Library Journal. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  7. ^ Rish, Jocelyn. "Zoraida Córdova, author of BRUJA BORN, on it being okay to take breaks". Adventures in YA Publishing. Retrieved 2019-05-30.
  8. ^ a b c ACourtofCoffeeandBooks (2018-03-23). "Bruja Born: An Interview with Zoraida Córdova". A Court Of Coffee And Books. Retrieved 2019-05-30.
  9. ^ "The Vicious Deep Trilogy". Zoraida Córdova. 2018-02-03. Retrieved 2019-05-30.
  10. ^ a b "Interview: Zoraida Córdova's New Book". The Young Folks. 2016-10-31. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  11. ^ Diaz, Shelley. "Family, Magic, and Identity: Zoraida Córdova on "Labyrinth Lost"". School Library Journal. Retrieved 2019-05-30.
  12. ^ Books, Aditi ~ A. Thousand Words A. Million. "Meet The Author: Zoraida Cordova, Labyrinth Lost - Interview + Giveaway |A Thousand Words A Million Books || A Young Adult Book Blog". Meet The Author. Retrieved 2019-05-30.
  13. ^ "The Life of a Bruja: Zoraida Cordova talks LABYRINTH LOST". YA Interrobang. 2017-01-25. Retrieved 2019-05-30.
  14. ^ SLJ. "Labyrinth Lost by Zoraida Córdova | SLJ Review". School Library Journal. Retrieved 2019-05-30.
  15. ^ a b "Paramount Nabs Magical YA Book 'Labyrinth Lost' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. 6 April 2017. Retrieved 2019-05-30.
  16. ^ "Brooklyn Brujas". Zoraida Córdova. 2018-02-03. Retrieved 2019-05-30.
  17. ^ "You Owe Me a Ride – Zoraida Córdova". Star Wars Awakens (in Dutch). Retrieved 2019-05-30.
  18. ^ "Top 10: Favourite 'From a Certain Point of View ('Star Wars')' Stories". futurism.media. Retrieved 2019-05-30.
  19. ^ "Top 10: Favourite 'From a Certain Point of View ('Star Wars')' Stories". futurism.media. Retrieved 2019-05-30.
  20. ^ a b Comtois, James (2019-01-31). "Star Wars to release books that tie in with Galaxy's Edge theme park". SYFY WIRE. Retrieved 2019-05-30.
  21. ^ Savard, Molly (2018-08-28). "Romance Author Zoey Castile's 'Magic Mike'-Inspired Debut". Shondaland. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  22. ^ "Rights Report: Week of October 29, 2018". PublishersWeekly.com. Retrieved 2019-09-26.
  23. ^ "Rights Report: Week of September 16, 2019". www.publishersweekly.com. Retrieved 2019-09-26.
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