Meet Rena Patel

Today we’d like to introduce you to Rena Patel.

Rena, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I’ve always loved stories. The earliest memory I have of writing something of my own was in kindergarten. I wrote and illustrated a four-page book about my favorite thing to do during each season of the year. Kindergarten was also the year I had my first leading role in a play. My teacher picked me out of all of the girls in the three kindergarten classes to play Clara in our school’s holiday production of The Nutcracker because according to her, I was not shy. Looking back on it, it kind of feels inevitable that I’m here, almost 20 years later, completely enveloped in storytelling of every form.

I decided I wanted to write a book in sixth grade after a boy in my class got stuck in the P.E. shed. I was reading Narnia at the time and thought, “Wouldn’t it be crazy if he found a tunnel to a magical world in that shed?” What resulted was a 266-page novel that would’ve gotten me sued by the C.S. Lewis Estate. That book was my proudest achievement, but I don’t think I would’ve had the drive to see it through to the end without the support of my seventh grade English teacher, Mr. Alzamora. He would take every chapter I wrote and give me back extensive notes and words of encouragement.

I went to a small boarding high school in Claremont, CA. Coming from public school, I felt isolated in my first few months since most of my peers went to private K-8 feeder schools in the area. I ended up auditioning for a role in the theatre department’s winter comedy because I didn’t have any close friends, and the table with all of the theatre kids in the corner was always full of laughter. My desire to make friends may have driven my decision to audition, but the magic of storytelling kept me there. It was almost a sort of homecoming after a nine years hiatus from the stage, and I loved every part of it. From acting onstage to learning about lighting and sound, to eventually writing and directing my own play, I fell in love with all of it. My time as a “theatre kid” really shaped the way I told my stories. Dialogue is the driving force in a script, but so much of a story is told non-verbally, through an actor’s intention, the lighting, and blocking. Most of what I write starts off as dialogue in my head, and the characters and conflict come after. The parts that are left unsaid intrigue me the most in a story.

I studied English and Creative Writing (and also Pre-Med, but that’s another story) at Scripps College, also in Claremont and started finding my own voice in projects. I began writing my current project, an urban fantasy novel loosely based off of the Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice called Here We Stand, as well as a romantic comedy stage play about dating as a young South Asian American woman. These two pieces were my first foray into writing South Asian characters. I think occupying traditionally white roles during my time in theatre and meeting really reshaped who I thought could be the protagonist of a story.

As I wrote more of my own stories and reflected on the types of narratives I consumed as a child, I realized that like many children of immigrants, I didn’t see my experience reflected in the mainstream canon. Our stories were readily available. We were writing and documenting it. Writing those stories is one thing, but we need someone to ensure their success and advocate for a space in the industry, whether it be publishing, film, T.V., digital media, etc. I decided to apply to law school so that I could become that advocate for the development of more diverse stories.

I’ve never been the type of person to just do one thing. Honestly, the thing I need to work on the most now is saying no to things, even if I really want to do it. I have lofty dreams of being a showrunner, a bestselling novelist, an award-winning playwright, a kick-ass executive who opens doors for diverse stories like mine. Who knows if any of that will come to fruition. And I’ll be completely honest, even with hard work, a lot of where I am now came down to luck, being at the right place at the right time and meeting people who support you through your goals. But I love telling stories, and I love being a part of someone else’s journey in storytelling. So whether it’s on the page, onstage, or behind a desk, I will always be working on a story.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Oh dear, when is anything worth doing ever easy?

I’ve been privileged that most, if not all of my obstacles were abstract and not material. My parents are immigrants from India, and they worked hard to ensure that I would never have to worry about the cost of my education. But success for an immigrant family has a concrete criteria, and writing and the arts were never one of those things. I was never outwardly discouraged from writing, but it was never considered something that would ensure my success.

My parents are both very science-oriented people. My father studied mechanical engineering and my mother is a physician. While they both pursued professions that they were interested in, I’m sure much of that interest was fabricated by the need to succeed. Engineering and medicine were two fields that guaranteed a steady and significant paycheck as well as profound respect from the community they were a part of. Their definition of success did not necessarily include pursuing a passion, because more often than not, passion did not equal security. And for an immigrant, security was success.

That idea was instilled in me and sometimes haunted me. I took the prerequisite courses for medical school in college because I thought it would be the only way I could have that security in life. And because I was raised with the belief that there are only certain paths that lead to success, and unless you’re the best of the best, you won’t be successful in a creative field, I was convinced that I wasn’t good enough in my passions on a larger scale. I was good in my small bubble, but would that be enough in the real world? My parents sacrificed and endured so much to give me the life I have, and if I failed what was all of that for? That insecurity, the feeling of never being good enough, is definitely something I still struggle with and will probably continue to feel as I continue on in my journey as a writer. I think what’s been the most helpful in dealing with insecurity so far has started with accepting that failure isn’t forever, and just because something didn’t work out the first time, it doesn’t mean that you can’t learn from it and try again.

We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
In addition to working on my book and getting through this first year of law school, I have a romantic comedy play in the works about dating as a South Asian American woman, I’m working on a project in conjunction with TV Asia, and I’ve got the beginnings of a podcast in the works with a good friend of mine from college. I’m also trying to write at least one short story a month, just to keep the creative gears running. And who knows, there may be a couple of surprises throughout this new year.

Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
Luck has definitely played out in terms of who I meet and what sorts of opportunities a person will bring my way. It’s really easy to think “Oh, if I didn’t go to that event or that conference or that party, then I would’ve never met this person and x, y, z would’ve never happened.” Luck only takes you so far. You can have all the luck in the world and be given every opportunity, but if you’re not ready to put in the work then you won’t get much out of it. That’s the difference between good luck and bad luck in my opinion. Luck is luck, but it’s what you do with it that makes it good or bad.

Contact Info:

• Website: rena-patel.com
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/renapatelwrites/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/renapatelwrites

Image Credit:
Jessie Horowitz, Claremont Tamasha

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