Angela Montoya
I joined TikTok like the typical millennial…bored, during the “stay at home order” portion of the pandemic. I was quickly entertained by teens way cooler than I’d ever be showing me dances I would never achieve, enviable travel bloggers, and hilarious individuals that made me laugh until I cried. This app was GREAT!
Then I found BookTok, and my life was changed. An entire community dedicated to my greatest joys and passions? Heck yes! It did not take me long to establish interpersonal relationships with some of those BookTok-ers. One of them, nestled happily amongst all the brilliant authors, writers, and readers, was Angela. I consider her the trifecta BookTok-er: a debut author, a dedicated writer, and a passionate reader. Check, check, aaaannnnd check!
Angela is a necessary voice on the platform. She speaks with joy and from a place of humor, but a deep-rooted wisdom encases her messages. Her words are always delivered with a keen level of intentionality that proves just how genuine she truly is. Angela celebrates the good in the bookish world and calls out those who are doing it right, and sometimes that is all that needs to be said. She openly shares her experiences as a writer with us, she celebrates others’ wins, and she encourages those who are feeling down about the writing process to keep going. She’s like the Book-Tok-ers’ big sister, and we all love her for it.
Angela’s debut Latinx YA fantasy romance novel, Sinner’s Isle, is set to release late 2023. This book has everything you would want or need to escape into a fantastic new world - witches, pirates, blackmail, and, of course, romance. As soon as that pre-order button goes live, you better believe I am pressing it with my debit card in-hand!
We sat down via Zoom to speak about the traditional publishing process and what Angela’s individual journey was like. For those hopeful authors in the querying trenches (cough cough me), Angela’s story is a hopeful one. From Pitch Wars on Twitter to radio silence from agents, Angela has had a colorful experience that ultimately led to signing with an agent and a two-book deal with a publisher. YES!
I try to keep these conversations around fifteen minutes, but with Angela I found that I could not stop talking to her. Her wisdom is infinite, her joy is infectious, and her vibe makes you feel like you’re talking to a friend you’ve known for years. I hope you enjoy our conversation as much as I did!
Follow Angela along on her socials below to learn more about her as an author and human, and stay up-to-date on her latest book news!
