The ironic thing about doing all this is that I’m naturally predisposed toward keeping a low profile (which, with a name like Ulises, wasn’t exactly easy to do growing up). And yet here I am, an author, now having to run around telling people how great my book is so that they take pity on me and buy a copy! Dear gods, I even had to get a URL with my name in it. Who would have guessed…So what do I do?

Writing
I know you probably wouldn’t have guessed this, but I write. A lot. I’ve been writing since I was in high school, but Solstice is my first published novel and my first real step into “serious” fiction (my ‘first’ novel having been an Anime fanfic that I will never again talk about ^_^). While I tend to gravitate toward writing about the end of the world and similarly uplifting themes, I also enjoy writing comedy.

In fact, my next novel, Inventing Vazquez, is a comedic satire about Latino/as in the film industry. Which, coming on the heels of Solstice, should be plenty fun to market...

“From the author of Solstice, the post-apocalyptic sensation of 2007 [not really], comes…a lighthearted comedy about a mousy Latina working for a major film studio!”

And if that isn’t bad enough, I’m already several chapters into my next next novel, The Mourning Syndrome, which is another fun-filled, happy story…about the end of the world.

I try not to worry too much about the fact that I have nearly schizophrenic writing tendencies. Writing is my life. It’s something I do not because I want to be famous or rich or because I’m so full of myself I just have to tell everyone about it! ^_^ I write because it’s what I enjoy doing, and because I like being able to have a voice about things that are important to me.

Music
I love music. In fact, I won’t write a word without some music playing on my headphones. My tastes have been described as eclectic. Mostly because I’ll have playlists that include Death Metal, Japanese Pop/Rock, alternative, indie rock, Chinese classical music, Lao dance music, cumbia, and Mexican trios.

I’ve been writing music for the past year, taking advantage of a brief stint I had as bassist with a local Detroit punk band in 2007 (and an even briefer stint with a blues band named Big B and the Magic Bullets, although technically we’re just on hiatus now) to write my own songs. I’m primarily a bassist, but I also play rhythm guitar and drums. In fact, considering how quickly I’ve picked up the drums (I bought my long-belated first set in January of 08), I think that’s the instrument I should probably have been playing in the first place. Oh well.

In any event, I've finally got some song recorded and posted on MySpace under my working band name, The Pineapple Brigade. Hope you'll check it out!

Art
Since I clearly don’t have enough to keep myself busy with, I also like to draw. My style is Anime-esque, but I draw as a way of bringing my characters to life. It’s easier for me to write my stories if I have a sense of what my characters actually look like. Please stop by the café if you’d like to meet some of my leading ladies.

So what else is there?
I was born and raised in New York City, and I now reside in Michigan, because, well, it makes natural geographic sense to move from NYC to Michigan. Given my affinity for cold weather and snow, I guess it’s equally fitting that I’ve lived in NYC, Buffalo, and now Michigan. I’m a first-generation Mexican-American, which is very important to me as a writer, and certainly influences the type of stories I tell, as well as how I choose to tell them.

I did my undergraduate work at the State University of New York at Buffalo, and my graduate work at the University of Michigan. My writing, and its deeply post-colonial slant, was inspired by the teachings of both schools, so I’m particularly proud of my alma maters, and grateful to all my former professors and mentors.

Want to drop a line?
I always welcome constructive criticism or general thoughts about my writing. If you'd like to drop me a line, my e-mail address is silvaul [at] yahoo.com.