Humanity and community: Dr. Robyn Seglem organizes visit with multilingual author Pablo Cartaya – Illinois State University News

Magical. A dream. Enthralling.

These are just a few words used to describe critically acclaimed author Pablo Cartaya’s fall 2024 visit to Bloomington-Normal. The visit was organized by Dr. Robyn Seglem, professor of middle level literacy and technology in the School of Teaching and Learning and director of the Mary and Jean Borg Center for Reading and Literacy.

Through a series of creative writing workshops and assemblies, Cartaya engaged with students at Thomas Metcalf School, Bloomington School District 87, McLean County Unit School District 5, Illinois State University, and Central Illinois Bridge Academy. These events brought multilingual stories to life for multilingual students.

“When you are new to a community, it can be hard to fit in,” Seglem said. “Cartaya brings his stories to life through personal, relatable experiences he has had in his life.”

Cartaya calls Miami home and celebrates his Cuban-American heritage through his writing. He composes in a variety of genres, including novels like The Epic Fail of Arturo Zamora (2017), Marcus Vega Doesn’t Speak Spanish (2018), Each Tiny Spark (2019), and The Last Beekeeper (2022).

He wrote a nonfiction essay featured in Hope Wins: A Collection of Inspiring Stories for Young Readers (2022), created a graphic novel titled Curveball (2024), and published a short story collection called A Little Bit Super (2024). In May 2025, his next book will be out titled A Hero’s Guide to Summer Vacation.

He has also worked with Disney, Apple TV+, and Sesame Street, as well as appeared in commercials, sitcoms, music videos, plays, and musicals. In all of his creative endeavors, he centers themes of family, culture, and community—a perspective he shared with students, teacher candidates, community partners, and university faculty during his visit to Bloomington-Normal.

Holly Zehr, library media specialist at Thomas Metcalf School, described Cartaya’s visit as well-organized and incredibly positive. He held an assembly with third–eighth graders and conducted graphic novel writer’s workshops with fifth–eighth graders. Zehr characterized Cartaya as “kind, friendly, knowledgeable, and accessible” and said her students’ responses were overwhelmingly positive.

“My third and fourth graders had been reading Curveball (his latest graphic novel) in library time, and their enthusiasm for the text doubled,” she said.

She looks forward to further partnerships with Seglem to continue connecting students and authors.

Kim Taber, director of Multilingual/Multicultural Programs at Bloomington District 87, echoed this enthusiasm: “When he entered into the fourth-grade classroom and students overheard Cartaya speaking in Spanish to their teacher, there was a buzz of excitement with students whispering to one another, ‘He speaks Spanish!’”

Cartaya talked with fourth and fifth grade bilingual students at Bent Elementary School and conducted a workshop with bilingual students who enjoy reading and writing at Bloomington Junior High School.

Taber said Cartaya connected with all students over topics like abuelas, food, and growing up.

“He engaged with and inspired our students to be proud of who they are—of all of the elements that make them who they are—and to share their stories with others,” Taber said.

Cartaya’s visit impacted learners of all ages. Edcel J. Cintron-Gonzalez, Ph.D. candidate in children’s and young adult literature at Illinois State, attended a creative writing workshop held at Milner Library. Cartaya motivated him to continue his research in Latinx/e youth literature and media.

“He is a fantastic and wonderful person, and he encouraged me to keep pursuing my writing and dig deep into my childhood memories for inspiration for my next literacy projects,” Cintron-Gonzalez said.

While empowering others to feel seen and heard, Cartaya also felt seen and heard by the students he interacted with. He shared the following in his Substack newsletter:

“I was in a small town in Illinois, and I was asked to talk about my new book A Hero’s Guide to Summer Vacation, which comes out May 6, 2025. The novel has many thematic elements in it, but at its heart, it’s a novel about grief in its many forms and the journey one takes to processing it on their own terms.

“I wasn’t prepared for the tears I shed that day, but I was heartened to see the grace the students gave me when they offered a tissue and said, “It’s OK to cry here.’”