ANDREA NAVEDO

Acting was always a secret desire of mine when I was growing up.

I went to Mexico for three months after college and studied Spanish there. And I went to Cuba and studied at the University of Havana. I loved studying in other countries.

The black community sees itself as one group, and they are all experiencing the same experiences as a group with racism and whatnot, growing up in this country.

Latinos come from different countries, and they tend to segregate with only their country instead of embracing all the other countries, because in reality, all the Latinos are going through the same experiences of discrimination and racism.

My husband is actually Italian-American, and he thought I was Italian when he first met me.

When I was 11, I went to Puerto Rico for a month to stay with my grandmother. To see the way people lived there and experience my own culture was wonderful.

When I was in Mexico and started to dream in Spanish, I knew that was a good sign that I was learning the language. It was cool.

After moving to California, I decided to go back to school and get an education on various aspects of the entertainment industry.

I'm really Americanized. The only real Latina thing I do is cook rice and beans with chuletas and tostones. I do the healthier version of what my grandmother would have made: a lot less salt, a lot less fat, a lot more vegetables. Sometimes I serve it with brown rice, which is, like, sacrilegious.

There's so much humor in serious things sometimes.

When I discovered eyelash extensions, it was like the sea has parted; the sun came out. It was everything.

My mom was a single mother in the South Bronx living in adverse conditions. Seeing her struggles to get herself off of welfare and get back into the workplace and give me and my sister a better life - it's an inspiration for me.

My dad was in my life, and he was actually a very positive influence on me in my life. He was always there. He was a great dad. But my parents divorced when I was 5, so I grew up in a single-parent home.

My grandmother is bilingual, but she preferred to speak Spanish at home, so she would speak to us in Spanish, and everyone responded in English, sort of like what happens on 'Jane.'

You're not going to learn about acting on TV and in film. You'll learn more in plays and in class.

Soap operas are like TV boot camp. You have to be able to self-direct, learn a ton of dialogue in a short amount of time, and deliver a performance in one or two takes.

I can easily tap into the feeling of being a mother and the feeling of, you always want what's best for your kids. And that's where most parents come from.

Since I don't have much time to cook, I tend to cook in bulk and eat leftovers.

The most important thing you can do for yourself is get an education. Learn, listen, and respond. You have to study and practice to get better at your craft and to widen your skill set.

When my career started on daytime soaps, those characters usually didn't have much depth to them. The main goal was to memorize my lines in order to film efficiently the next day. But with 'Jane The Virgin,' the writing is strong, and everything is intentional.

I've seen other actresses refuse to be ugly. Even if the story line calls for it or the character calls for it, they just can't go there for vanity's sake, and they don't want to be perceived in an ugly way. I was like, 'Nah, I wanna go for this.'

It's really easy to give in to, 'I want to raise my kids,' 'I want to be the best mom, so I have to give up my dreams.' I don't believe that. I think, if anything, being a living example to your children is beautiful.

I have a cousin who, at age 36, passed away from cancer, and she left three girls.

Growing up, I didn't think it would be possible to be an actress - I didn't see a lot of Latina faces on TV or in movies. But that didn't stop me from trying. I realized early that anything I really wanted was worth working for.

In real life, we think people don't change, but they do. People do change in profound ways with all the different major things that happen in their lives.