I've gotten to try on voices very different than my own, and I've become much more aware of structure than ever before. Also, you really weigh every word. There's no closer reading then when you read to translate.
Achy ObejasI feel possessive about stories I write in Spanish and so I usually end up translating those into English myself.
Achy ObejasBoth childbirth and abortion are medical procedures but neither is an illness, and sometimes they're both treated as such.
Achy ObejasOffspring were a joy or a shame, but still the crown of their elders, nature's unpredictable creatures.
Achy ObejasOur real world has evolved. It's become something much different, and inadvertently about healthcare, and about what it means to have good health, and to be able to have good health.
Achy ObejasEach genre has its own process. I'm very intuitive about poetry. I usually write first and second drafts out by hand. The other end of the spectrum is journalism, which is much more cerebral, more thought-out and planned. Fiction lies somewhere in between. I usually start intuitively but eventually I need to stop and consider structure, or research, or both.
Achy Obejas