An Interview with Diosa Xochiquetzalcóatl

Diosa Xochiquetzalcóatl, or Diosa X for short, is a multilingual and multidimensional spoken word artist, workshop facilitator, and international poetiza. She is a seasoned language arts educator with a Bachelor’s in English and a Master’s in Cross-Cultural Teaching. Diosa X was selected Regional 2nd Runner Up in Inlandia’s Hillary Gravendyke’s Poetry Prize in 2023 for her poetry collection titled When the Leaves Come Tumbling Down: An A to Z Poetry Collection About Loss. She was also selected as finalist for Somos en escrito’s Best Raza Short Story Award in 2023 for her piece titled The Weight of the Scales.

Diosa Xochiquetzalcóatl is currently serving as a board member for Círculo de poetas and Writers, works as a Poet-Teacher with California Poets in the Schools, and is a Workshop presenter for Palabras del Pueblo and writing coach for Quill & Company. Diosa X has been published in a variety of anthologies and literary magazines in the U.S. and in Mexico, and most recently Brazil. She is the author of six poetry collections: A Church of My Own (2021), Hechizera: Sus Sultry Spells (Editorial Raíces, 2022), West of the Santa Ana and Other Sacred Places (Riot of Roses Publishing, 2023), Felices Fiestas (Read or Green Books, 2023), Conversations with the Dead / Conversaciones con los difuntos (Editorial Desierto Mayor, 2024), and When the Leaves Come Tumbling Down: An A to Z Poetry Collection About Loss (Hawkeye Publishing, 2024), with her seventh collection, MeXicana, slated to released in August 2025 by Riot of Roses Publishing. To learn more about Diosa Xochiquetzalcóatl’s work, feel free to visit her website at www.diosax.net.

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Tell us the story of your book’s current title. Was it easy to find, or did it take forever?

MeXicana is a double entendre. It is meant to be read as follows: Me, Xicana / Mexicana. In other words, me, as a Chicana and Mexicana. For me, the title, which came to me one night in the middle of the night, perfectly encapsulates the dualistic and at times pluralistic themes explored in this collection—themes like culture, language, identity, religion, political and geographical borders, and patriarchal influences are not only explored, but dissected, and even contested throughout these poems. The title itself expresses the bilingual-binational conundrum: to be or not to be, that internal and external conflict of belonging and not belonging alongside the whens and wheres and hows of it all.

And because I have been called a prolific writer, the subheading “poemas y más poemas” or “poems and more poems,” I think suitably captures this prolific label. What could be expected from a prolific poet other than poems and more poems, right?!

Describe your dream book cover.

Well, all of my book covers have been a dream come true. My first book, A Church of My Own, was self-published, and surprisingly the system allowed me to use my own pictures; it came out stunningly. For Hechizera: Sus Sultry Spells, my publisher gave me the freedom to put it together using Canva, and voila: a witchy, mystical, otherworldly cover! I had the honor of having an artist from Michocan, Mexico, recreate the idea I had put together on Canva for West of the Santa Ana and Other Sacred Places. Her artistic design, of course, came out much more beautiful than I could have ever attempted to create. Felices Fiestas was created by another female artist who was also able to take my makeshift design and transform it into a masterpiece. My publisher for Conversaciones con los difuntos/Conversations with the Dead handpicked art from a local artist from Sonora, Mexico. I had no idea what to expect. It turned out to be a perfect match for my work! For When the Leaves Come Tumbling Down, the publisher allowed me to use my own picture, which they then perfected into an amazing cover. Lastly, for this new book, I reached out to my friend and her partner with a vague concept consisting of images rich in symbolism, and they took these, fused them all together, and brought the cover to life, truly creating the cover of my dreams. The only thing I requested as a final detail was the pink flower on the cactus, which she instinctively knew I would. Talk about synchronicity!

If your book had a soundtrack, what are some songs that would be on it?

This is a great question! I love music so much, so brace yourselves!

“Amor a la Mexicana” by Thalía

“Somos más americanos” by Los Tigres del Norte

“La Raza” by Kid Frost

“La Chicana” by El Gran Silencio

“Viva Tirado” by El Chicano

“Frijolero” by Molotov

“Together” by Tierra

“Humanos mexicanos” by Control Machete

“Suavecito” by Malo

“La Chicanita de Aztlan” by Amparo Ochoa

“Latin Active” by A Lighter Shade of Brown

“Los ovaries” by Jenny Rivera

“Cisco Kid” by War

“La pochita de Sinaloa” by Graciela Beltrán

“Ashes” by the Tewa

“Que me entierren con la banda” by Antonio Aguilar

“Sad Girl” by Thee Midniters

“Mexico Americano” by La Santa Cecilia

“Mexicayotl” by Juan Sant & El Mágico

“Pretty Girl” by NB Ridaz

“Itotiani” by Chicano Batman

“Smile Now, Cry Later” by Sunny Ozuna

“Viva México” by Aida Cuevas

“Wasted Days and Wasted Nights” by Freddy Fender

“Un puño de tierra” by Ramón Ayala

(And there were so many other titles that I had to cut out!)

Where is your favorite place to write?

There was a time, during COVID, when I lived in a house where the dining room and living room had large glass doors that oversaw a beautiful garden. I lived alone during that time, and had spent so much time and energy in building up my “Rancho Paraíso de las Diosas.” It was a sacred space. It was a peaceful place. It was, indeed, magical. On Saturday mornings, I used to sit at the dining room table with my coffee and breakfast, stare out into the garden and write. In the evenings, I used to lounge on the living room couch with my journal in hand. On beautiful sunny days, I would sunbathe in the hammock while giving way to my creative thoughts. My bedroom also had large sliding glass doors that faced the garden, so when cuddle weather arrived, I never left my bed nor my pen. For several years, Rancho Paraíso de las Diosas was my favorite place to write, but it is gone now. I have yet to create a brand new haven, possibly a Rancho Paraíso de las Diosas II. In the meantime, as long as I can write, any place and space will do for the time being.

What advice would you give your past self at the start of your writing journey?

I would give myself and everyone reading this the same advice I have always given to my son, “Nunca le temas a vida vida, sino, nunca vas a hacer nada.” In other words, “Never fear life, or else, you will never achieve anything.” Just do it—with shaky knees and all!

What’s one thing you hope sticks with readers after they finish your book?

I want readers to understand the complexities of being binational and bilingual. There are times when we walk on balance beams, trying to master two languages and two cultures, feeling the need to prove ourselves in both worlds. In the movie Selena, Edward James Olmos, who plays the part of Selena’s dad, couldn’t have said it any better: “We have to be more Mexican than the Mexicans and more American than the Americans! And it’s exhausting!” Despite this balancing act, it’s almost never just black or white either as we tend to live in a lot of gray areas, not sure of what category we actually fall into or when or how. There are those who may think that a Chicana and Mexicana are one and the same, and that is simply not the case. Nonetheless, whether we are juggling one or two or many hats, there is still this beauty and love and pride that we walk with. Learning how to embrace the beauty and discard what no longer serves is a permanent journey we embark on, and I would love readers to join me on this fantastic and sometimes frustrating, though always phenomenal journey this MeXicana calls life.

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