Manuel Ramos, Our Writer from Denver

by Daisy Villicana

Daisy Villicana and Manuel Ramos at the University of Colorado Denver, 2015.

Photo Y. Abdala-Mesa

Interviewing Manuel Ramos, an author of many books like King of Chicanos: A Novel (2010) and Desperado (2013), was a fantastic experience: he is full of energy and amusing. I have read Desperado; this book was based on the "North Side" known as "The Highlands."

He is a local author, he is our writer from Denver, and even though he was born in Florence, CO, he has lived most of his life here in the mile-high city. My classmates and I had the privilege to meet him, and we got to ask questions about him and his book Desperado. In his conference, Manuel Ramos mentioned that he loves to write, that it is his passion. He said that he loves to create stories and expand on them. He told us that he started writing at a very young age and that he always wrote when he had spare time in his job as an attorney. When he retired, he began to write full-time. He submitted a short story, and it won a contest, and that is how he started his journey as an author. When we asked him about how he created all the stories from his books, he said that he has always had them there and loved to write about them because they were pure fun. He also said that he does not have any resemblance to any characters, that they are all fictional and not based on anyone, though there is an attorney character that appears in his works that might be familiar to some. When class was over, I asked him if he had time to interview with me. He said he did have time. The reason why I chose to interview Manuel Ramos was because he is local. I was very curious as to how he got his fame. It was fun to interview him because he was open, and it was easy to talk to him. The first question I asked him was, "Would you consider yourself a Latino/Chicano/Hispanic in Colorado?" He answered yes because he embraces his Hispanic culture and his American culture. He tries to embrace both and tries to make the best of it, though he would not tell me how he identifies himself. He said that it all depended on the person, if they identify themselves as American or Hispanic, Chicano, or Latino, it all depends on how they perceive themselves. Another thing that I found interesting was his answer to the question, "Do you ever get scared by your own ideas, those that you have in your head for short stories or novels?" He answered no. He said, "Why would I be scared?" I replied, "I thought that you would be because some of your books are very dark." He said, "No, these are fictional stories that are not real." I found this very interesting because I do not know how he can sleep at night with all those noir thoughts in his mind. Manuel Ramos is the kind of man who loves to entertain people with his imagination; he loves to create something new, so people have something to read and have fun. He was fascinating to interview and to get to know. He is kind, and he loves to give back to his community. When I asked him this question, "In your book Desperado, do you feel as if you are preserving the memories of what was the North Side?" He said they were just stories, that it was mostly fiction and that it was not true, but he is staying true to the community that was once there. He wants people to know that there was once a North Side in Denver. Even though the Highlands is the new name now, people will always keep their memories. Just like Manuel Ramos did. He lived, and he still lives in the North Side, and he has many memories there. I was happy that I had the opportunity to interview him because I got the chance to read one of his novels and talk to him about it. It was an amazing experience !!!