Lucía Rivera (24) has not had an easy life, contrary to what many might think. She rose to fame for being “the daughter of” and since she was 18 years old, the gossip press has made an effort to turn her into a character that she herself says she does not recognize. That is why she has decided to tell her story. She says that this book is not an autobiography, but rather a set of her experiences told of her from a vision that she hopes will help others as much as she has helped herself.
Your life has been told by third parties in the heart press, why have you decided now to write the story in the first person?
They had created a character for me that was not me, or I had created that idea in my head. Who better than me to tell my story and break with that idea of ??me. I have always written. So far nothing that extensive, but after collaborating with the media for a while I found that writing also helped me when I felt depressed. This book has helped me a lot and I hope it will help more people.
Of all the topics that you deal with in the book, which has been the most difficult for you to tackle?
About the mistreatment of my ex-partners. None of the women who have been through this believe that we have, but in writing the book it is true that I have relived those dark days. It has also been therapeutic, because I have been able to order what I thought.
And what do you think is the topic that will impact the reader the most?
Well, I think that same one. Because sometimes people believe that everything is going great for celebrities, and it’s not like that. Perhaps it was not expected that a model, “daughter of”, supposedly lucky and normative, would happen to this, but the truth is that this can happen to anyone.
What will the reader find in the book?
Well I don’t want people to think it’s an autobiography. They are experiences that have happened to me but told from a vision that can help others.
Who is it for?
Especially to women. Or anyone who wants to know the ins and outs of a woman my age. I show many realities of young people that are just as I tell them.
In the book you recount hilarious situations and other very dark chapters, it gives the feeling that you have lived a lot for your age. Do you think that because of life situations you have had to grow up fast?
I had very little childhood. We were always traveling from here to there. There were seasons when I changed schools every six months. There were also many happy moments. But yeah, I guess I had to grow up really fast. The press is another of the things that made me mature quickly. At the age of 18, I was already objectified in the media and made headlines for my boyfriends.
Many believe that you are a nepobaby, but when you read the book you realize that your beginnings in the world of modeling were not a path of roses at all…
We are painted as lucky but we nepobabies are also discriminated against for being so. It is true that I feel lucky to have been on film sets with my mother since I was little, for example Physics or Chemistry. And I feel lucky being able to dedicate myself to what I like. There are many talented people who do not work on their own. But let no one believe that everything has come to me. Since I was very little I have had to prove that I am worth more than the fame of my family, that I am not simply “daughter of”. That also exhausts. Nobody has given me anything, I have had to win my battles. Maybe some things are easier, but nothing is given.
You tell of your difficult beginnings as a model and that some representatives ended up upsetting you with demands on your body…
It’s terrible growing up obsessed with your body. Models start very small and in the world of fashion there are many very cruel people. People who constantly tell you “you’re not worth it”, “you’re too thin”, “now too fat” “put on your chest” and “now, take it off”. Not everyone in this world is like that, but I have actually met people who have caused me trouble. Obsessions with my body that are not good.
Have you felt objectified by the press?
I have been objectified in the media since the day I turned 18. I assumed that a sign that said “silly and beautiful” had been hung on me. Somehow I even believed it and I’m still working to get it off the hook. Sometimes the gossip press dehumanizes the characters and turns them into archetypes with biased information about our lives.
You have decided to open up to the book about two toxic relationships with physical and psychological abuse… has sharing it helped you overcome it?
Well, at times. Right now with the promotion of the book it is a constant re-victimization. It is not easy to talk about this and relive it. But I admit that writing it has helped me, it is a kind of cure.
About idealizing monsters, what would you say to a friend who is in that situation?
It’s very complicated. I have friends who are going through this situation right now and it is very difficult for me. I think the way out is for the victim to feel supported in order to get out of that situation. I think that is very important.
This book is very introspective, you talk about your feelings and your constant evolution. Has it helped you define your future goals?
Yes. I have found that writing is very therapeutic. I love it, I want to continue with it. On the other hand, I have realized that it is also a very absorbing activity. I have focused so much on it that when I finished it I was empty. I was like ‘And now what do I do?’. I would also love a movie about this book, with another actress playing me, of course.
In the book you talk about mental health problems, do you think that being a public figure has played for or against that?
Against. There were times when I did not leave the house so as not to get anything out of the press. There were days when I would go out and then spend the whole week eating my head in case one of the crazy things I had done as a child leaked out. The same thing happens with friendships and couples, you have to be careful because you don’t know what they’re going to say out there.
Is that why celebrities hang out with other celebrities so much?
Sure, but then they tell you that you’re a gold digger because you only go with celebrities.
Everything you say has repercussions in the media Of all the controversies this book has raised in the few hours it has been published, which one has bothered you the most?
Well, I already knew what was going to happen. But I would have liked the mistreatment thing to come out a little later. I think that classifies the book and it’s not just about that. Giving morbidity to something so serious may have seemed a bit strong to me. I also tell you that I am reading very little.
Why have you decided to use pseudonyms to talk about some of the men in your life?
To protect the people I’m naming and to protect myself. Some are people I don’t care about and others are people I care about or have cared about.
Do you think it’s easy to find out who each pseudonym you use is about?
It depends. Let’s see if you have been very attentive to the news about me, maybe so. But only some.
You don’t mention your parents’ names either, you just use the initial. Why have you made that decision?
It seems that this country cares too much who my father is. I prefer to stay away from the polemics in this sense, since the book is already being controversial for other reasons.
