Q&A: children's book author, Razil Fernandes '24

9th grader, Razil Fernandes, has published a children’s book! We were so impressed by Razil’s initiative and wanted to learn a little bit more about her inspiration and her process. You can purchase her book on Amazon. 

1. Can you tell us about the book? 

Doctors and their Medical Tools is about the tools of 5 different doctors that children would most commonly visit. This includes pediatricians, dentists, and ophthalmologists. There are fun facts included throughout the chapters, and games such as “Match the Doctor,” and word search to test readers’ understanding after they finish the book. It aims to inspire other young kids, especially girls, as seen in my last few pages, to pursue math and science subjects and keep their strong interest in STEM. This is important because there has consistently been a disproportionate number of men to women in the STEM field. 

 2. Speaking of the under-representation of women in STEM,

were you inspired to write this book because of this dynamic?

And is this book a way for you to help change that and encourage

more students, and young girls in particular to be interested in STEM?

 

Yes, I was inspired because of that dynamic, and the curiosity I remember

having about all these tools when I was in elementary and middle school.

This book is definitely a way for me to combat the issue and

encourage young girls and all genders to pursue their STEM interests. 

3. What inspired you to want to write a book and why a children's book in particular? 

I decided it would be best to write a children’s book because the

knowledge I wanted to share would not be too extensive and

further suitable for kids. I was inspired because of that dynamic,

and the curiosity I remember having about all these tools when

I was in elementary and middle school. An important theme of

my book is also gender inequality, so I wanted my target audience

to be younger individuals to spread awareness and encouragement.

This book is definitely a way for me to combat the issue and encourage

young girls and all genders to pursue their STEM interests. 

4. How did you choose your topic and

how long did it take you to write the book?

 

I set out to brainstorm ideas about what I wanted to write and

combined my interest in medicine with engineering to create

Doctors and their Medical Tools.It took me around 3 ½ months to formulate the idea, start writing,

finish adding images, and editing. Throughout this process, I had

a really fun time playing around with the features on Canva, which is what I

used for the graphics, and writing about tools that I had to do

some research on.

I used Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) to self-publish.

It was a simple process where I could upload my manuscript and choose

the cover style, margins, and size of the book. Since KDP is

linked to Amazon it uploads it there, available for anyone to purchase.

I recently ordered a copy, and it looks great!

5. What was the hardest part and the easiest part of

this whole process?

 

The hardest part of this book was deciding which publishing route

I would take and trying to understand the publishing method.

The easiest part of this entire process was definitely getting an audience to

read this book to. Ms. Mamdani directed me to Ms. Koteles,

a second-grade teacher, who I visited for a Book Q & A session. 

 

6. What advice do you have for other would-be authors?

 

My advice for other authors is that no matter how old or young you are,

you should write a book if you are interested. With the self-publishing route,

there really are no limits, and anyone can publish a book! I would

also suggest writing about something you are passionate about

or combining your interests. 

 

7. Any future plans for other books? Is there something

you are working on now?

 

I am currently working on brainstorming an idea for a future book,

which I am looking forward to writing because it should be an easier

process now that I fully understand how to go about the process.

I am also open to any suggestions in any genre.

Congratulations, Razil! We are looking forward to your next book!

Razil is a reporter for Spectrum and is also apart of the Red Cross Club, Science Olympiad,

and WISE (Women in Stem Education). 

If you’d like to learn more about Razil’s book or need advice on

getting your book published, feel free to reach out

to the librarians.

Is there a student, faculty, or staff member doing something interesting or special that 

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