Alisia Dale Talks Bringing "Sela Blue" To Life

Alisia Dale Grenville is a mother, wife, lawyer, entrepreneur and writer of the beautiful series Sela Blue. She was born to South American parents who immigrated to Canada where she and her sisters were born and were raised in a dual household that celebrated her South American and West Indian cultures. Her household was built and fostered on education and empowerment that “you could be anything you put your mind to”. Alisia later pursued a career as an attorney in the U.K., England, Wales, and the state of New York who specializes in Compliance and Integrity; Ethics; Legal and Compliance Risk Management. After she had started her own family she was inspired to create children’s books that would reflect her biracial family and resonate with her children.  What initially started as a story about her twin boys later morphed into a different character once she birthed her third child which was a girl. Sela Blue was born out of a desire to blend the whimsical backdrop of her hometown in Chateauguay, Quebec, in Canada with a character of color that children could immerse themselves in that wasn’t steeped in tragedy. “I decided I would keep it very authentic and real by showcasing three little girls growing up in a musical village with the episodic backdrop of a child...and that’s how Sela Blue was born.” We had the opportunity to chat with Alisia on her born day and discuss the origins of Sela Blue and her creative process.

Everyone seizes their moment of inspiration differently, how do you capture yours?

I was writing in between my job and my children. Whenever I had an inspirational thought, moment, or creative idea I usually harnessed those and took notes. It happens even in my regular day if I'm doing a crossfit workout or cooking, I will stop and take charge of the creative moment. I’m a very visual creative so if I can capture the picture that’s forming in my head and transcribe it then that becomes the thread for the story.

Has your writing process changed over the course of expanding your family?

A lot of times I write the most in the middle of the night. For me my most creative moments occur when my mind is quiet and all of the activity of the day has slowed down which happens when you’re asleep. When that moment arises I wake up because I need to use that time to write. When you’re a mother of twins, wife, have a household to run, etc. you have to take your quiet moments when they come. In the early stages I just wanted to be creative and didn’t have the deadlines of submissions to an agent or publishing deadline. The more Sela Blue developed in terms of story, theme, and tone I found the writing process became easier. 

What was the submission process like once Sela Blue was finished?

Once I submitted the manuscript I began to understand the rejection process which partially lies rooted in the systemic racism that is prevalent in the publishing industry. When I submitted Sela Blue (and I’m not alone in this, everyone gets rejection letters) I realized what I was up against. There is one particular rejection letter that stands out because I remember it said “No one wants to read this type of story,” and I kept thinking...you’re telling me no one wants to read the story of a sweet girl growing up in a village where the streets are named with musical composers? If I had pitched that story without identifying her as Black...it would have been picked up immediately. That letter was meant to nullify my experiences and say that my story doesn’t matter. At that point I decided to put my lawyer hat back on and reminded myself I knew how to trademark and incorporate a company...so then I did. In 2016 I went to one of the largest bookseller conventions. I was determined not to leave until I had a distributor and by the end of the weekend I did.

What advice would you give for handling rejection?

I think you have to grow into the fear of what rejection is. To fear rejection meant I was holding onto it. If I get rejected now I step back and think what can I learn from this? I want to embrace it and grow through the experience versus letting it define who I am in totality. It’s okay to say this didn’t work and how can I walk away from this a better and stronger person in spite of it. Not everyone’s opinion has to count. If that person, business, or brand has no basis in my fundamental self...I gotta let it go.

You wear the multifaceted role of mother, lawyer, writer, entrepreneur, what advice would you give to a person of color trying to break into a predominantly white industry.

I believe you have to try anything possible. I didn’t limit myself to certain publishing houses, illustrators, or people. I’m an artist that will throw a thousand colors on a canvas until I find something that sticks.

When it came to the illustration process how did you find your diamond in the rough?

I wish I wore the hat of a writer and a person who draws. I had to seek out an artist which was part of the creative magic of having an image in my head that could translate onto the page. We had to go through a few artists and we found her through a creative agency at the time who found her. I knew instantly when she drew Sela that this was it.

As a writer and businesswoman how do you market yourself on social media?

I’m constantly struggling with marketing on social media. Social media posting doesn't come natural to me in a sense that I can go viral. When you are first starting out it can be hard when you don’t have the ad dollars and build a social presence to market your brand. I have to outsource to help manage my social media because it’s not my forte. You always need to play up to your strengths and bring in people who can help you.

Tell us about Hearts of Gold and how you got involved

Hearts of Gold is a charity that has been running for the past 26 years and the founder Deborah Koenigsberger wanted to create a more sustainable life for homeless women and children. Every September they give out backpacks filled with the necessities for children to attend school and this was even more pertinent during COVID-19 when access to resources were limited. These backpacks come with everything so they can be equipped to start every year with fresh supplies. A board member reached out to me in regards to a partnership where Sela Blue could be included as of this past September 2020. We want to give children hope and the desire to know that their lives are normal and can be filled with imagination. We donated over 600 books where if you buy a book the proceeds will fund a backpack with school supplies and include a copy of Sela Blue and the First Day of School.