Ten Terrifying Questions with Jamar J. Perry!

Jamar J. Perry lives in Maryland, USA, and has a PhD in Literacy Education, Language, Culture and Social Inquiry from the University of Maryland. He was previously a teacher and started writing for children so that Black boys, like his students and the boy he once was, can see themselves in literature as the heroes of their own stories and understand how magical and joyful they really are.

Today, to celebrate the recent release of his debut middle grade fantasy novel Cameron Battle and the Hidden Kingdoms, Jamar J. Perry is on the blog to take on our Ten Terrifying Questions! Read on …

Jamar J. Perry

1. To begin with, why don’t you tell us a little bit about yourself – where were you born? Raised? Schooled?

I was born in a small city called Columbus, Georgia, located in the United States of America. I was raised there until I was about 5 years old; after that, my mother re-married and moved her four boys to Phenix City, Alabama. In those times, I thought I was moving a hundred miles down the road, but, in reality, we moved 10 minutes down the street to a new city. From there, I attended school and graduated from the local high school. After, I went to college where I received a Bachelor’s degree in Teaching, a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership, to finally, a PhD in Literacy & Language.

2. What did you want to be when you were twelve, eighteen and thirty? And why?

When I was twelve, I didn’t really think I was good at anything, not career wise. I always brought home good grades, but I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with my life. As an isolated kid, I read and wrote a lot of bad books to take myself out of my normal because fantasy worlds were my bread and butter. Who knew that one day I would become an author, doing what I loved from the beginning of my life?

When I was eighteen, I wanted to be a psychiatrist, spurred on by my own lonely childhood. I changed that after my first semester of college because I just couldn’t stay away from reading and writing. I wanted to foster that love in other people, so I decided to become a teacher. I found it incredible that others didn’t love reading and writing as I did and I made it my mission to educate every child I came into contact with; I wanted to give them all books to read, creating a lifelong love of learning new information.

After I turned 30, I found that I wanted to continue teaching, but this time, I wanted to help shape the classroom in an administrative role. I took my talents and became a trainer, a coach, and a professor for people who wanted to be teachers. This allowed me time to continue writing on my own time; thus, my debut novel was born!

3. What strongly held belief did you have at eighteen that you don’t have now?

I used to believe that our lives were predestined, that everything we were meant to be had already been planned beforehand. When I was younger, I always thought that the life I lived was because I was supposed to live it in that way. As I grew up, grew into new experiences, and became more knowledgeable of the world, I realized that life is never as we think. As I made mistakes and as I gained successes, I realized that life wasn’t linear, that there was no “right way” to be the person I wanted to be. I now believe that I can be anything I want to be, doing anything I want to do, and that there are multiple paths. And then, there are multiple paths one can take when they have another goal to reach. You never stop learning and growing.

4. What are three works of art – this could be a book, painting, piece of music, film, etc – that influenced your development as a writer?

Octavia Butler’s Kindred—this was the first novel I read while I was in college. It placed Black people at the forefront, made them main characters in brutal settings. I saw a Black person as the hero of the story, going through the trauma of an uncertain time period to make sure they existed in the future. It made me understand that for Black people, the past is precarious, the present is uncertain, but the future is wide open to us.

Jordan Ifueko’s Raybearer—this novel was absolutely beautiful to read, from the inventive worldbuilding, to the way things were described, and the different perspective it gave to young adult fantasy. This author is definitely one to watch and I absolutely love playing in her worlds.

Amari and the Night Brothers by B.B. Alston—this novel provided me with the necessary window into another world, to escape from my own ordinary. I absolutely love how this author took such a familiar concept of boarding schools and magic institutions and created something so inventive. This was such a standout of my reads in 2021!

5. Considering the many artistic forms out there, what appeals to you about writing a children’s book?

For me, it’s the possibility to give young readers a window into the fantastic, into things that they haven’t seen or heard about before. When I write, I make sure I can provide social commentary to those who don’t share in the same raciality as the main character, but do it in a fun and escapist way. I think that this is why I write fantasy novels; it is important for me to spread messages of equality and equity through the lens of marginalized children fighting battles, doing magic, and becoming heroes.

I believe that if a young reader can see themselves in literature as heroes, they are more likely to believe themselves as heroes. And if they can escape and have fun at the same time, then I have done my job!

6. Please tell us about your latest book!

My debut novel, Cameron Battle and the Hidden Kingdoms, is a middle grade fantasy novel about a pre-teen Black boy who lost his parents two years ago. He then has to go live with his grandmother, where she reads from an ancient book passed down through their ancestors. One night, with the support of his two best friends, Aliyah and Zion, Cameron goes to the attic where his grandmother has hidden the Book. When they read from it, a portal opens to a fantastical kingdom, where Cameron has to be the saviour of the people who live there, all the while, trying to figure out what happened to his parents.

7. What do you hope people take away with them after reading your work?

I hope that people learn something that they haven’t learned before. I want people to understand that mythology isn’t static, that it changes as people change, as culture change, as expression changes. I also hope that people begin to see Black boys as human, that they begin to see them as heroes and makers of their own stories. Cameron does exactly this in the book; he takes something as horrible as his parents dying and begins to write his own story, becoming the main character in a story within a story. I hope that all readers see that he has purpose, but I especially hope that Black boys begin to love on themselves and learn to value friendships and emotions like Cameron does.

8. Who do you most admire in the writing world and why?

I admire Octavia Butler a lot, and how she persevered in an industry that wasn’t really open to Black women writers in the time she was writing. Although a lot of her work didn’t become popular until she died, I am so happy that she got the flowers she was due while she was alive, with winning fellowships and selling as many books as she did. I remember reading one of her notes that had her goals on it, and she pretty much reached almost all of them before she died. Her novels are absolutely amazing, inspiring a horde of Black fantasy and sci fi writers to get agents and book deals. I wish I could have met her.

In a more global sense, I admire fantasy writers a lot because of how much work they put into their craft. They have to build entire worlds from scratch, sometimes taking years to finish their work. I read fantasy as a child, being inspired to write my own as I grew into my own writing. Although it is hard, I especially love making up new things because …fantasy allows you to! It may take years to write a fantasy novel, but the divergent roads one can take throughout planning one is the journey I love!

9. Many artists set themselves very ambitious goals. What are yours?

I want to be able to travel the world while supporting myself with my writing. I’ve always imagined spending a month or so writing in as many countries as I can before I reach retirement age. I think that we spend so much time working that we don’t get to really enjoy our lives and all the world has to offer. I think I can write more if I am able to experience more, to see more, to live more abundantly. Hopefully, Cameron Battle, its sequel, and other books will do well enough to where I can support myself in a way that will allow my writing to flourish without stress.

10. Do you have any advice for aspiring writers?

Just keep going. It took me about four years to get an agent and to get a book deal and there were many times that I wanted to give up. It’s rare for someone to get their first book deal on the first book they ever write. In my experience, people think that if they write a book, they will get an agent and a book deal. However, sometimes it takes years just to read in the genre you want to work in before you even attempt to write something that will be just as good. As a teacher, I always told my students that in order for them to write well, they have to be able to read well. And in order to read well, you have to be able to increase your reading stamina. And in order to write well, you have to be able to read in the format and genre that you want to write in. That’s how I was able to write Cameron Battle. Not only do you have to keep going, but you have to do research into genre, into format, and utilise librarians to help you find books that relate to what you want to write. This sometimes takes years, but there is no exact road map to this. You have to keep going because this industry is full of people telling you “no”, telling you that your story is just not marketable yet, that it is not ready. You only become ready if you are working at your craft. Keep going.

Thank you for playing!

—Cameron Battle and the Hidden Kingdoms by Jamar J. Perry (Bloomsbury) is out now.

Cameron Battle and the Hidden Kingdoms

Cameron Battle: Book 1

by Jamar J. Perry

Cameron Battle grew up reading The Book of Chidani, cherishing stories about the fabled kingdom that cut itself off from the world to save the Igbo people from danger. Passed down over generations, the Book is Cameron's only connection to his parents, who disappeared one fateful night two years ago.

Ever since, his grandmother has kept the Book locked away, but it calls to Cameron. When he and his best friends, Zion and Aliyah, decide to open it again, they are magically transported to Chidani...

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