Grade 5 student Diana S. shares the inspiration behind The Rival Chefs, a story about friendship, rivalry, and the competitiveness in the culinary world. We sat down with her to talk about her creative process, the research behind her characters and themes, and what it was like bringing her first book to life at just 11 years old.

What inspired you to start writing The Rival Chefs?

I was inspired to start writing The Rival Chefs because I’ve always been interested in cooking and how competitive the culinary world can be. I wanted to create a story about two talented chefs who challenge each other and push themselves to do and be better. My goal was to share the book with my friends and classmates and encourage them to read, write and think creatively.

Can you tell us what your book is about?

The book is about two talented chefs, Mark and Elias, who start off as rivals at a prestigious culinary academy and constantly try to outdo each other. In the end, they realised their rivalry was holding them back, and they made something great.

My favourite character is Mark because his journey to success shares a lot of emotional depth. His desire to help others through food makes his character grounded and meaningful, not just driven by pride. It is especially nice to see his story develop, as he learns and grows, having been raised in an orphanage.

Where do you get your ideas from for the book?

I did lots of research as I was writing the book. It was important to me to bring social issues to light through my story, so I explored topics such as orphanages, homelessness, and cancer research. I also wanted the book to represent diversity, so I researched signature dishes from different countries and created characters from various continents to make the story more inclusive. Reading many books also gave me new ideas, and learning persuasive writing in school and how to hook readers in school helped me make my story more exciting.

How did you get your book published?

After I first came up with the idea for my story, I was talking to my dad about it and he encouraged me to start writing everything down. My family supported me a lot throughout the process, and they always pushed me to keep going even when it got difficult.

Once I finished writing, the next step was publishing the book. My dad spent a lot of time researching publishers and finding a professional illustrator, which was one of the hardest parts of the journey. I then worked with the illustrator and my teachers to turn my manuscript into a finished book in both French and English. It was a really interesting experience, especially explaining my characters in detail so they could be brought to life in the illustrations.

What was the most fun part of writing your book?

I really enjoyed watching my story finally fall into place like a puzzle. I was especially excited when I saw my book in print for the first time! It took me a year to write my book, starting with the idea and then writing the manuscript over the past few months, and seeing it all come to life was my favourite part.

Thank you Diana for sharing, and our heartiest congratulations on your new book! You can support her journey as a young author by purchasing her book, coming soon to Amazon.