Today we’d like to introduce you to Rex Ogle.
Hi Rex, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Well, I basically started out as Texas trailer trash. But I always had a love of stories, especially in book form. On the occasions I got to see her, my abuela always took me to the library, where she encouraged me to read as much as I wanted. So when my home life got bad–because of poverty and domestic violence–she told me if I needed to run away, to run away to a library and escape into a book. So, I did just that.
I fell further in love with books (and, in middle school, comics) and realized I’d wanted to be a writer all along. Despite the rough start, I pushed myself to follow through on this crazy dream. So, I moved to New York City with a duffle bad and a few hundred dollars. Then, I coerced my way into jobs at Marvel, DC Comics, Scholastic, and Little Brown. By day, I was an editor, but when I’d come home, I’d write every night for five or six hours. For over a decade, I logged hundreds of rejections from agents and editors, but I refused to stop. All I needed was to get my foot in the door… so that I could kick it open.
After my memoir FREE LUNCH got published, I got noticed by teachers and librarians. With a few book deals under my belt, I quit working to focus on writing full-time. I’d been saving up ideas (and finished novels) since I was a kid, and I was ready to take the world by storm… well, a storm of words anyways.
In the last few years, I’ve published twelve books. Most of my titles fall in the middle grade and young adult space (so basically for ages 8-18), but my upcoming memoir ROAD HOME–about being disowned for being gay and living on the streets of New Orleans–is definitely more mature. I’m 17 during the story, but I have a pretty solid feeling that my book won’t end up in high schools because of the content. If it does, then it’s thanks to the amazing librarians and educators who believe every story has a place, especially those that will resonate with readers.
It almost feels ridiculous that I’m getting to finally live the life I wanted as a boy: waking up, hitting the gym, walking my dog, then writing the rest of the day, sometimes into the night. I have a 20-year plan of dozens of books I want to write for young readers, so I’m crossing my fingers that happens. Hopefully, the work ethic I forged–the one that got me out of the trailer park–will keep me writing until my fingers fall off. That’s all I’ve ever wanted, to make stories. And now I’m doing it.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Ooof. So many rejections. LOL. I mean, going from being a poor kid in Texas to New York City was a huge wake-up call. I was trying to get into an industry filled with folks that went to Harvard, Yale, and Brown. These people were crazy smart, and all I had was a lot of ideas. But I think it was that out-of-the-box thinking that set me apart. I was a total book nerd from rural Texas, part Mexican, a survivor of a shit childhood, full of depression and anxiety, and gay. All that led me to fight, tooth and nail, for basically everything in my life. So, it didn’t faze me in the professional workspace. I mean, sure, I had lots of nights where I was like, “What am I doing?” but then I’d get lost in writing a new novel. All my trauma and pain and frustration and fear would fall away. And when I’d come up for air, I’d be like, “Oh yeah. This brings me joy.”
At first, all the NOs I was getting from agents and editors were really debilitating. Then, one morning, I woke up and was like, “Nah. Rejections aren’t anything to be ashamed of. It means I’m putting myself out there. And for every thousand NOs, there’s bound to be one YES.” So, I kept going. It took longer than I thought–a LOT longer, actually, LOL–but now that I’m doing it, I can’t help but wake up smiling most days.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
There are so many great writers out there, and publishers publish thousands of books, so it’s gotten really hard to stand out. For a long time, I was hung up on writing the next Harry Potter. (Cue hundreds of rejections.). Then, one day, I decided to try writing about something I didn’t want to write about: my childhood. I grew up ashamed of where I came from: my parents’ unemployment, evictions and subsidized government housing, the public screaming, the private violence, the depression and anxiety born out of trauma. I wanted to forget all of it. Instead, I started writing about it.
Now I do dozens of schools visits every year talking to students around the country about pain, survival, and finding hope. I never thought I’d be doing this sort of thing. I mean, I hate public speaking cause I’m a mess on the verge of a panic attack every time I step up on a stage. But I connect with these kids, and they write me letters or send me DM’s saying my story resonated with them, making them feel less alone. And that’s amazing cause I always felt so alone as a kid.
I love writing stories for young readers–probably cause I’m so childish myself. (I love spending a Friday night playing Mario Kart or board games with friends or just building LEGOs and watching cartoons.). But what makes me stand apart from my peers anymore is the diversity of genres and formats I can work in. I write memoirs and fiction, I write in prose, in verse, and in sequential storytelling (comics and graphic novels). I write fantasy, sci-fi, horror, superhero, contemporary… I mean, I feel like a machine made for coming up with new ideas. (Take that, A.I.)
I have so many stories swimming around in my brain that I started writing under a pen name, REY TERCIERO. Under that umbrella, I write graphic novels re-imagining old classics that I loved as a kid. Basically, I’m giving facelifts to old stories through the lens of modern-day teenagers and kids.
I’m so proud of every book I write. I mean, I fall in love with every character and root for them as they fall down and get back up. But the ones that seem to resonate most with readers are my memoirs: FREE LUNCH (about poverty), PUNCHING BAG (about domestic violence), and ABUELA, Don’t Forget Me (a love letter to my grandmother who was always there for me). But I’m also doing memoirs in graphic novel format that focus on much lighter and universal topics: FOUR EYES (about getting glasses) and PIZZA FACE (about going through puberty). In a way, every time I go back and revisit my childhood, the pain of the past lessens, reminding me of how far I’ve come and how lucky I am to have made it this far.
So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
I mean, I’d love for everyone to go out and buy my books cause they’re really fun (except for the serious ones, but those are important in their own way).
Collaborating with stories and heroes I loved as a kid is always amazing. In my career, I’ve worked on projects for Star Wars, Transformers, LEGO, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I’ve even written stories for X-Men and Batman, which made me pinch myself and be like, “Whoa. When I was a kid, I had posters on my walls of X-Men and Batman, and now I’m writing stories featuring them.” So, I’m always down for more of that.
But I’d also love to work with new people and new organizations for good causes. I’d love to partner with Trevor Project on my memoir ROAD HOME to speak with queer youth about surviving homelessness and restarting a life after the trauma of that experience. I’d also love to partner with No Kid Hungry for my story, FREE LUNCH, to show kids going through food insecurity now that it’s nothing to be ashamed of and that they’re not alone. And I’d be super stoked to join forces with a big pizza chain for my graphic novel PIZZA FACE–mainly cause, as a poor kid, I spent weeks at the public library during the summer months reading books to earn free personal pans pizzas from Pizza Hut. Plus, I think it’d be a blast to have free pizza parties for Title 1 schools. No matter where they come from, every kid deserves a slice or two.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.rexogle.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thirdrex
