We have to dig deep, actualize our beliefs, and live our truth.
As a part of this series, we had the pleasure to interview DC Frost.
DC Frost is a second-generation Angeleno whose debut novel, A Punishing Breed (2024), was recommended by the New York Times. Her second book, A Shadow of Jaguars, is coming out October 20, 2026. Before writing full-time, DC published several short stories in literary journals and worked in nonprofit fundraising, at a Hollywood trade publication, a movie trailer production company, a San Francisco advertising agency, at Disneyland’s Haunted Mansion, and as a waitress. Drawing inspiration from Southern California’s rich blend of class, culture, and beauty, Frost lives in Los Angeles with her husband and a rescue dog.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Before we dive into the main focus of our interview, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your childhood backstory?
My father was a football coach and teacher; we moved often, living in twenty-one different houses by the time I was twelve. My mother worked at home, then later worked in the food service industry. Every summer we camped throughout the United States and Canada. My parents were involved in numerous community and educational organizations such as the YMCA, schools, and churches. I was an only child until my sister was born when I was thirteen. I had a lot of time on my own and started writing stories when I was eight, concocted elaborate stories for my Barbie dolls, and by the time I was twelve, I learned to play the guitar and began writing songs.
When you were younger, was there a book that you read that inspired you to take action or changed your life? Can you share a story about that?
When I was twelve, my father gave me a book to read, Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee by Dee Brown. Afterward, I devoured other books on Indigenous Americans. These books profoundly changed my perspective, and I began to see our country through the eyes of the original inhabitants: their experience of the land, their rituals and beliefs, their spiritual connection to nature. My father’s family was white; my mother’s parents were indigenous to the United States and Mexico. Through my grandparents’ tales and experiences of growing up in Texas and Mexico, and later working as farm and factory labor, I began to realize that we are not ‘the other’; we are from this land, this country, and we need to seek out and tell these stories. I’ve imbued these ideas in both of my books, but particularly the upcoming A Shadow of Jaguars.
It has been said that our mistakes can be our greatest teachers. Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
I’m not sure this is funny, but when I was younger, I desperately wanted to fit in. In high school, a girl ‘friend’ always called me a racist name in math class. She thought it was hilarious. Outside the classroom, Mexican students were being physically harassed by football players. In college, I majored in Theater Arts. One day, one of my professors pulled me aside and asked why I was trying to be an actor when the only roles open to me were maids and prostitutes. I was embarrassed by these incidents. As if I did something wrong, or I should feel shame for being who I was. Slowly, I began to realize that there is NO fitting in; there is only standing out, and embracing who and what you are, connecting with others who share or empathize with your experience. I learned that writing about our truths can reach people on a different level — and that understanding our commonality and differences is the start to a dialogue for a better connection to the humanity within all of us.
Can you describe how you aim to make a significant social impact with your book?
In my upcoming novel, A Shadow of Jaguars, I explore the lives of Latino/Latina maids, nannies, gardeners, and others as fully realized human beings, with complex histories, strong family ties, belief systems, and deep connections to their community. My grandmother worked in the fields with her parents, and my grandfather was an immigrant who walked across the Mexican border as a child. Their stories inspired and motivated me to become a writer to capture their culture and experiences. In these days of Federal anti-immigrant rhetoric and the horrific actions of ICE, it is worth reminding people that our immigrant workers are taking care of our children, cleaning our houses, our gardens, picking our fruits and vegetables, and building our houses. Their hard work is the infrastructure of our lives. We are entwined like the fibers of a rope. Together we are strong; apart we are a frayed nation. And to me, it’s personal.
Can you share with us the most interesting story that you shared in your book?
A Shadow of Jaguars begins in a Mexico City cathedral with a robbery during an overnight vigil at a family crypt. This was based on a true story. The family did not want to pursue charges because the thieves were very polite and particularly kind to the older women. The thieves apologized profusely and said that they needed the money. I love this story because it points out cultural differences between Mexico and the United States, and highlights that in Mexico, as in the United States, there is an eternal discussion about race and culture. And in Mexico, there are still fraught feelings about the European/Spanish invasion of their indigenous population and their country.
What was the “aha moment” or series of events that made you decide to bring your message to the greater world? Can you share a story about that?
I wrote literary short stories for many years. My favorite books were mysteries and thrillers — Agatha Christie novels, PD James, Stephen King, Michael Connelly. I also loved books like The Return of the Native, To Kill a Mockingbird, In Cold Blood, and Lolita; controversial or not, they changed me. My aha moment came when I decided to write a novel in the mystery genre. I realized that a specific genre can open up a reader to different ideas and questions. It’s easier to enter people’s lives, histories, and experiences with critical questions of race and identity if it’s within the boundaries of a particular kind of story that a reader is familiar with. If a reader can discover a character’s humanity within a genre, they can find the common threads that connect all of us.
Without sharing specific names, can you tell us a story about a particular individual who was impacted or helped by your cause?
I don’t want to be too specific because we live in dangerous times. But in addition to writing about immigration in these times of ICE, I have protested, attended meetings on how to advocate for and protect vulnerable communities. Closer to home, ICE agents raided a Home Depot near our house, and an American citizen who was doing work for us had to escape ICE agents who were herding up anyone who looked Latino. He was able to share his experience with someone I care about — and this person is now much more careful in their movements and exposure. This person is here legally, but the government has been slow to renew work permits and green cards — and this individual trusted our federal government and believed they were safe. They weren’t safe; they aren’t safe, no one is safe when we are willing to let people be kidnapped illegally off of our streets.
Are there three things the community/society/politicians can do to help you address the root of the problem you are trying to solve?
We can abolish ICE and create a humanitarian and legal path to citizenship that doesn’t include kidnapping hard-working people on our streets and in their workplace, and throwing them into inhumane prisons. We must stop demonizing people who are coming to this country to find a better life for themselves and their children. Immigration is what our country is built on. Every single American is the descendant of an immigrant, unless they are from an indigenous family.
How do you define “Leadership”? Can you explain what you mean or give an example?
With “Leadership”, I always default to T.S. Eliot’s verse-play, Murder in the Cathedral.
In it, Becket is confronted with four temptations: worldly power, earthly pleasure, political alliance, and finally martyrdom. A true leader has to navigate each of these within themselves and their subjects/employees. In the end, a good leader conducts themselves and others in a way that is fair, pragmatic, selfless, and strategic. That kind of leader is rare; I’ve met a few.
All of us are vulnerable to temptation. Often, I see leaders who happily indulge in one, two, or all of these temptations, then blame others when things go wrong. I will say that when I experienced my last ‘good leader,’ I recognized it, I supported them, and I treasured that time.
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why? Please share a story or example for each.
1. Shut up, suit up, show up
It took me almost 10 years to write my first book, A Punishing Breed. I’d start, then stop. I was stuck. During the pandemic, I was seeing a therapist and complaining about being stuck. He said the next time we talk, I want you to commit to writing every day for a set amount of time. No excuses. I did. I finished the book in six months and wrote my second novel in 2 years. James Hollis, a Jungian therapist, came up with this phrase. Do yourselves a favor and listen to his conversation on Andrew Huberman’s podcast. It might change your life.
2. If someone is cruel to another person and nice to you, RUN!
A friend, potential partner, colleague fawns over you, then ridicules a co-worker, is mean to a waitress, or disloyal to someone else. RUN. They are not someone you want in your life. It’s also an indicator of racism and all the other ism’s. Run towards kindness and generosity.
3. Beauty is ephemeral, a moment in time, but character is everything
We’ve all been with someone who was flashy and lovely on the outside, but isn’t really there for you or their friends when the going gets tough. It’s easy for someone to be kind when things are going their way, but when life gets tough and things fall apart, a person’s true character emerges. In the end, character and kindness matter; our connection to another human being is everything.
4. Discover your passion, devote your time and efforts to that passion; if you realize that passion, if it dissipates or disappoints, find another passion
Life without passion is really just play-acting. And passion can be accounting, drawing, plumbing, building, politics, knitting, or writing. Don’t be a passenger on this earth; be someone who engages and changes the world.
5. Evil isn’t an outside entity; it has a room in the cellar of your house, a few cells in the makeup of your being
Your actions and choices have consequences, and how you deal with those consequences is the roadmap to your life. I was lucky to have parents who were kind, involved in their community, and absolutely against any kind of racism or people who were bullies. Like all of us, they had their issues, and so do I. We have to stay vigilant, question situations and people that weigh on our morality and ethics. I worry about people who are raised without any moral compass due to circumstances beyond their control. We have to dig deep, actualize our beliefs, and live our truth. As a friend once told me, “You need to learn to love people more.” She told me this through a Ouija board — a story for another time!
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
“The moment you realize you are mediocre is the moment you are no longer mediocre.”
The mother of an old boyfriend told me a story that I’ve never forgotten. She told me that when she was a girl, her family had a field where they grew strawberries for income. Every summer she would have to pick strawberries with all the seasonal workers; not as a lesson, her family wasn’t wealthy, and they needed all hands on deck. She always considered herself a level above the seasonal farm workers who were often itinerant, and mostly Latino and Asian. After all, her family owned the land; she was white and was college-bound. One day, after an exhausting day of work, she was standing in line among the other workers to tally up how much she had picked. She was exhausted, her muscles ached, and enjoying the camaraderie of her fellow workers, sharing stories of hard work and minor injuries, imagining a shower and a cold drink of water. All at once, she looked around and saw that she wasn’t different from anyone around her. They were all the same. You are what you do. And you make your future with your own two hands. She was no better, no worse. Maybe mediocre isn’t the correct word, but it came to her — that she was. And in realizing this, she no longer was ‘mediocre’. She saw herself in the long line of humanity that surrounded her; she was part of a glorious continuum. This phrase has stayed with me and has proven true throughout my life.
Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would like to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them. 🙂
Well, other than Barack Obama, who I believe is one of the most consequential leaders of our time, I would have to say, Stephen King. I’m a huge fan of his fiction, but his book, On Writing should be read by every aspiring novelist. It also details his own sobriety after years of alcohol and drug addiction and his very important message: don’t become so obsessed with work (success) that you ignore your family and loved ones. The heart of his fiction is always a moral tale. His characters have the ability to change, but they don’t always change for the better, and if they do, they don’t always survive. There is a core of humanity and truth in everything he writes.
How can our readers further follow your work online?
Please check out my website at www.denisefrost.net and follow me on Instagram @dcfrost_writer. A Punishing Breed and A Shadow of Jaguars (available for pre-sale until Oct. 20, 2026) are available wherever you prefer to buy your books.
This was very meaningful; thank you so much. We wish you only continued success on your great work!
Social Impact Authors: How & Why Author DC Frost Is Helping To Change Our World was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.