When she was a child in Colombia, Juana Medina’s mom gave her a boom box to record her stories. Combined with a family that prioritized and nurtured art, Juana grew up seeing drawing as another language. Juana joins Julie in this episode to talk about her winding journey to becoming a professional author and illustrator, the reason we need to deemphasize the importance of pedigree in art, and why we should be encouraging children to continue drawing even as they learn to read and write. Juana’s latest title, Elena Rides, is light, but it had its origins in a serious injury that Juana sustained that changed her perspective, slowed her down, and became a meditation on purpose. 

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