Keka Dilano: Spreading Her Wings as a Writer
Keka Dilano, an author with Ybernia Publishing House, has written books in a variety of genres, and now her fantasy saga Draconangelus is available in English for the first time. Her life as an air stewardess has shaped much of her writing, bringing real-world inspiration to her imaginative stories.
In this article, Keka shares her journey as a writer, the challenges she faced along the way, and how her experiences in the air continue to influence her storytelling.
Spreading my wings as a writer
When I was a child, I always dreamed of becoming a stewardess. I wanted to fly around the world. Happily, I can say that’s what I have been doing, day after day, for the last thirty-four years.
Despite my jet-setting inclinations, I could have also become a poet or a novelist. That dream stalled when I showed some poems to my literature teacher at the age of 16; he was very critical and told me I was not close to making it as a writer. He didn’t add anything constructive or offer any advice or useful tips.
That teacher could have put me on the right path, but he didn’t. As my creativity kept growing inside of me, I looked for an outlet. When I was 25, I worked as a hotel animator for a short period of time. Then, I started making musical adaptations for an animation team in Menorca, based around Broadway shows and Walt Disney films, and this lasted for several years. During this period, my work entailed adapting the script, doing all the choreographies, decorating the stage, preparing the costumes and getting paid for my work as a stage manager.
Putting pen to paper
It´s well known that a writer is a good reader. And since my favourite literary genres have been always the Spanish classics and series like Harry Potter and Twilight, I ended up creating a fantastical saga of my own.
When the first seed of the Draconangelus idea came to me, I was 40 years old. In three months, I wrote 700 pages, which became the volumes 1 and 2 of my angels and dragons’ saga. After 8 years, I finished the trilogy in Spanish. Today, after twelve novels written in different genres and a lot of experience as a self-published author, I am publishing the first part of Draconangelus, with its incredible cast of human-dragons and earthly angels, in the English language. This makes me doubly happy because of the ancient legends about dragons that can be found in the mythology and Celtic culture related to Ireland, a country I adore.
Many people ask me if I learned to write novels in any writing course, but I didn’t. If you want to write, I always say that the only thing you need is an idea. First, start writing to explain it to yourself or to the people you want to reach. Secondly, don’t forget to buy a good writing manual (you can find a lot of them in any big library). If after all those steps you still want to pay for a writing course, fair enough! But it is not absolutely necessary if your wish is to tell a story. Of course, you have to correct the manuscript thousands of times on your own; but with some perseverance, you can have a good story ready to take off in this marvelous writing world. Once it’s published, you can feel so proud of your books and yourself.
Travelling influences my writing
My experience as a stewardess is reflected in many of my novels, from the cities that I have visited to the people that I have met, via different cultures, smells, tastes and so on. In fact, the main character in the saga is an air stewardess, just like me.
But also, the experience of age helped me to become the writer that I am right now. I’m in my fifties and I use this life experience to craft well-rounded characters and to delve deeply into their feelings and psychology, something only enhanced by meeting so many different types of people on flights.
Now, I can combine being a stewardess with being a writer. But I wonder if I could have become a novelist or a poet when I was younger than 20, and I am sure that probably I could have become a decent writer if that teacher had advised me properly. Nevertheless, I wouldn’t have been so experienced and with so many ideas and projects as I have now at this moment of my life.
If Keka Dilano’s journey as a writer inspires you, don’t miss the chance to dive into Draconangelus, now available in English. Packed with fantastical adventures and deeply influenced by her life experiences, this saga is just one example of the incredible talent supported by Ybernia Publishing House. Visit their website to explore Keka’s work and discover more stories that ignite the imagination.
Get a copy of Draconangelus I here
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Main image: Ybernia
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