Three books published, two in English, the other 17 writings awaiting publication. Behind this trajectory is Maria Cuadrado, 19 years old from Malacca, who is one of the great promises of Spanish literature.
This Thursday the young Andalusian, who is in the second year of Translation and Interpretation in English at the University of Malaga, before the year due, will present his book Todo y nada, nada y omnes.
Although his life seems full of things, Cuadrado has had difficulties to overcome. At the age of 12, he was the victim of one of the scourges of society: school bullying.
She, who is a very capable person (she has an IQ of 150, out of 100 which is the average) suffered psychological abuse from both students and teachers to the point that she had to change schools and go to the public where they are. advanced the course.
As a just deliverance, he took refuge in writing, a great feeling when he was little. “At the age of 5 he knew how to read perfectly” and at 6 he was already reading 400-page stories, remembering that he was already listing scenes at the age of 7.
Poster presentation by María Cuadrado. María Cuadrado
But the inspiration for his first novel came to him at 12, when a disturbing episode happened to him. In his head he formed the story of three years behind him.
“From the 12th to the 15th century, in addition to taking courses, I had the pure leisure to write books, the use of narrative arts, the psychology of characters, the development of the story, and the power etc. not from the heart. that chapter, even though I couldn’t write, until the summer of 2020, when I was in ESO III, I got it,” he said.
That book was published by Ultra Self and is the first in the Black Tears saga that he wrote, although it has not yet seen the light of day. The following year, he completed a new novel, How long have I been with (2019), which he published under an Indian publisher, and has now released his third novel.
Cuadrado dreams of one day being able to make a living from his books, although he wants to connect her with a translator’s work. “If I’m just a writer, I’d like to leave the house a little bit and I’d like to communicate with people, so I also work as a translator, even if I didn’t have to,” explains this native of Malaga. A woman whose hobbies range from going to the gym, hanging out, shopping or looking for shells in the sea. “It’s something that relaxes me a lot,” he admits.
Everything and nothing, nothing and everything, in a story of heartbreak
Cuadrado in 2021 and with 14 out of 14 in selectivity, entered the English translation and interpretation course at the University of Malacca at the age of 17. Or it was an easy year.
He saw that he was the smallest in a world where there were adults of all kinds. “I would like to stop being different, because it is tiring. Also, I wanted to grow up faster than I should have because I lived through a situation of lost love and I tried to do things that I could not do because of my age,” he said.
It was that experience of lost love that inspired him to build this book, in Spanish and in the form of a poetic prayer, written in just two months, although he insists that it is not entirely true.
Yet it is not just any book, since it has a property that makes it unique: a kind of people, or a place where the stories are known.
María Cuadrado, with her book
“I wrote it in the first and second person, but I wanted to remove the gender, as it happens in English, where you don’t know if you are writing to a boy or a girl. After they gave me a challenge; I accepted it”, explains Cuadrado, who affirms that love and love are something free a universal that has no gender.
“When you hear a Taylor Swift song, you don’t know who’s talking if I don’t tell you. I wanted my book to be like that, so that everyone can identify, whether it’s a man or a woman. He reads it whether he’s a man or a woman,” insists this girl from Malacca.
always to the ground
Despite having more books written than years of life, Cuadrado keeps his feet on the ground and does not think that he is better than others. “I know I’m a very intelligent person, but I’m not better than anyone,” he said.
For he always admits that he does not want to be seen. “For I have had much more attention in my life than I would have liked or wished to have had. If only I had been more careful in certain areas, my life would have been easier.” to say
He also advises people who are in his situation not to show that they are very competent: “Even if there are no problems, the issue of envy is the biggest stumbling block that a person like this is going to find. In fact, I recommend from experience that it should not be said. The benefits of telling a lot they are less than all that will harm you.
In addition, Cuadrado is also critical of people who tell him that they are wasting their time studying translation or writing books, when research could be progressing as a cure for cancer.
“People believe that because I am very capable of committing my life to things and none, I am very sorry but it is not. In that sense I do not feel any anxiety, as I want everyone else to be happy and do what makes me happy, because I do this I will do it,” he concluded.
What he does, he does what he is most happy about and without any trouble: writing a book and getting a degree.
