This is Black Mountain Institute Conversations, a series of interviews produced by Nevada Public Radio’s Desert Companion in collaboration with the Black Mountain Institute. Here, Desert Companion Editor Heidi Kyser talks with BMI’s Shearing Fellows about their passions, inspirations, community initiatives, and … of course … their writing.
This episode features Julián Delgado Lopera, a Spring 2024 Shearing Fellow. They’re the author of the novel Fiebre Tropical, published by the Feminist Press in 2020. It’s the story of Francisca, a 15-year-old Colombian immigrant to Miami. When Francisca’s mother gets involved in an evangelical church in their new hometown, the increasingly disillusioned Francisca meets the charismatic youth leader, Carmen. Their relationship takes Francisca on a coming-of-age journey marked by a legacy of female suffering.
