Anthony Manna is a retired
professor of literacy development-reading, writing, drama and other language
arts. He is also an author of picture books and a collection of twenty fairy
tales and folk tales.
He loves all kinds of books,
whether paper or electronic. He also loves writing and helping other writers.
Now
that I’ve introduced you to Anthony, let’s get to know him a little better.
Hello,
Anthony, welcome to Lemon Drop Literary. Thank you for agreeing to do this interview.
Thank
you for having me.
Why did you become a teacher?
I was drawn to teaching as a
profession because of instructors I had the pleasure of working with when I was
in a Catholic seminary.
From them I learned just how valuable a teacher can be
in helping young people grow mentally and spiritually while learning how to
make sense of human experience—mine and others.
In the seminary and later in a
monastery, I gained my first awareness of the value of embracing human
diversity, civil rights, and social justice.
What grade did you teach?
Teaching hooked me when I was
an aide in a Head Start classroom many years ago.
Following my seminary
experience, I became an English literature major, then onto a master’s degree
in English Education a.k.a. the language arts. After a three-year teaching gig
in Istanbul, Turkey, I worked on a Ph.D., again with a focus on English
language arts teaching and learning and drama as a learning medium.
Along the way, I taught language arts in a
preschool, middle school, and high school. And I loved the interactions, the
connections with students, and all the learning I was doing about reaching our
to students to motivate them to become confident, skilled readers and writers.
When I moved into the university, in addition to teaching children’s, tween,
and teen literature, and courses in writing—always with future and veteran
teachers and their students as my primary audiences—I developed research
projects that brought me into classrooms where I collaborated with teachers to
explore activities that encouraged kids and teens to love reading and writing
as they gained their proficiency.
Eventually, I totally lucked out and was
invited to teach teachers in Greece and Albania. Those were life-changing
experiences that awakened me to cultural experiences outside my comfort zone.
How has your teaching
experience influenced your writing?
As a writer, I draw on many
life experiences. As I continued teaching and researching at the university, I
got deeper and deeper into the styles and manners of many literary texts, particularly
texts that explored cultural diversity. Literature of many genres consumed me.
In the back of my mind I wondered if I would ever try my hand—and mind—at
crafting a story. You see, as a university educator I was obliged to either
publish or perish, so I kept my job and did a lot of academic publishing.
But
writing stories or poems or plays? That seemed the kind of writing reserved for
folks with special talent and skills. Ones, I imagined, I didn’t possess.
What inspired you to become a
writer?
I ventured into writing
stories because of my experience in a kindergarten in Greece. I had gone to
Greece on a grant from my university. The grant directed me to teach and
conduct research in the education department at Aristotle University in
Thessaloniki.
What better way to learn about Greek culture than in a school.
Into a kindergarten I went to collaborate with two very fine Greek teachers
whose English language skills allowed them to help me navigate life in their
classroom.
When story time rolled around each day, these kids stepped into the
worlds of myths I was very familiar with. Worlds inhabited by Zeus, Demester,
Atlas, Helios, Athena, Artemis, Icarus and other personages in that population
of intriguing characters.
But then I found myself in a fascinating story world
filled with giants, rival step-parents, charming princes and princesses,
struggling brothers, nasty goblins, mysterious asking spirits, and the like.
These stories were Greek folk and fairy tales.
With a Greek colleague, I
researched these stories, translated them into English, and reimagined them for
English speakers. That launched the Greek Folklore Project and my debut as a
story writer.
Which genres do you write?
So far, my books are
reimagined folk and fairy tales. Notice, please, how I avoid the more common
term when it comes to working with these tales, the word, “retelling.”
I soon
learned that the process of writing involved so much more than a mere
“retelling.” It involves shaping a narrative just the way any story writer does
it.
The labor of developing authentic characters in space and time conflicting,
struggling, losing, winning—whatever characters do to live a life and survive—or
not.
With my most recent book, Loukas and the Game of Chance, I
reimagined a Greek tale of loss, struggle, and the search for redemption into a
middle grade/middle school fantasy, which draws on some characteristics of the
source tale, but moves into story territory far beyond the source’s economic
narrative.
I invented characters and situations that turn the tale into a
full-bodied fantasy driven by suspense.
What do you find most
challenging writing for your genre?
This is a question kids like
to ask when I visit them in their schools. I tell them my challenge is to
sustain trust in myself as a writer once I’m engaged.
I struggle to step away
from those pesky inner voices which tell me the writing is bad or too simple or
utterly uninteresting. Whenever these voices talk to me, I tell them, “Don’t
disturb me. You’re not my business anymore. Leave me alone.”
Then I move on,
staying with the process and always reminding myself that writing is rewriting,
that drafts are rough, and that if I keep working at it, something satisfying
may emerge. Writing is a discipline. I need to discipline myself to keep writing.
And it can be a labor of love.
What are you working on now?
These days, I’m working with a
book marketer as I move toward the release of Loukas and the Game of Chance on
October 1, 2019.
Folks—kids included—are surprised when they hear about the
social media outreach authors must engage in these days if they want to make
their books and themselves known.
With a book marketer, I’m learning to be
active on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Goodreads, and other social media
platforms. I’m learning about the best content I can come up with to draw
attention to myself and my new book.
You’ll hear a lot of writers—myself
included—complain about the time social media activity takes, and that means
the writing must be set aside temporarily. Complain and then accept outreach as
a reality of a writer’s life these days. In the little time that remains to
write, I am working on two stories. Anthousa Xanthousa Chrisomalousa (a
young female character’s name) is a variation of Rapunzel.
The Imposter
is a tale of deception, intrigue, and the struggle the main character engages
in as he tries to salvage his true identity from his enemy who stole it.
How many books have you
written?
As an academic writer, I
published several books—and many articles— about multicultural literature,
teaching strategies, educational drama, and approaches to teaching writing.
As
a story writer, I have co-authored Mr. Semolina-Semolinus: A Greek Folktale (Anne
Schwartz/Atheneum), The Orphan: A Cinderella Story from Greece (Schwarts
& Wade/Random House), and Folktales from Greece: A Treasury of Delights (CLIO/Libraries
Unlimited).
My solo book is Loukas and the Game of Chance which will be
released October 1, 2019.
Have you won any awards?
My
book awards:
Mr. Semolina-Semolinus: A Greek Folktale (Anne
Schwartz/Atheneum, 1997), co-authored with Soula Mitakidou, illustrated by
Giselle Potter~
American
Library Association Notable Children’s Book
Selected
among one hundred best books of the year by the New York Public Library
Recipient
of the 1997 Marion Vannett Ridgway Award for first-time authors and
illustrators.
The Orphan: A Cinderella Story from Greece (Schwartz
& Wade/Random House, 2011), co-authored with Soula Mitakidou,
illustrated by Giselle Potter~ is a Bank Street College of Education Best
Book of 2012.
Loukas and the Game of Chance, illustrated by Donald
Babisch—2019 Book Excellence Award Finalist.
What has been your most
rewarding experience since publishing your work?
School visits are exciting and
rewarding. I enjoy introducing kids and teens to my drafts while I’m in the
process of composing, revising, and revising again.
I do this with PowerPoint
slides. During these presentations, I like to dramatize my characters, using
the voices I hear them speaking as I write.
Each presentation ends with a
writing activity that I often assign to the groups I work with, giving them a
few days to complete the assignment with their teacher’s assistance, of course.
When I return to the school, it’s time for the students to share their writing
in small groups and also as solo presentations.
One successful writing prompt
I’ve been using lately asks them to write a story based on this idea: ...And
they lived happily ever after...or did they?...What might happen when “happily
ever after” turns into “...and they lived happily ever after until...
...something really bad or strange happened?”
What advice would you give to
authors just starting out?
Read, read, read books in the
types of literature you like—mystery, suspense, realism, poetry, short stories,
humorous stories, plays, fantasy, science fiction—whatever interests you.
Then,
reach out and read beyond your comfort zone. Talk to teachers, parents,
librarians and friends and ask them for recommendations.
Learn the craft of
writing from good teachers, workshop presenters in local libraries, and in
summer writing camps.
There are also many good books that help writers to
develop their craft. Books like Leap Write In: Adventures in Creative
Writing (Roost Books, 2013) and Rip the Page: Adventures in Creative
Writing (Roost 2010)—both wonderfully interactive guides by Karen Benke.
What message are you sharing
in your books?
Sooner
or later, we all make mistakes, fail, and experience tough times, but we all
can find the courage to face our struggles, persevere, survive, and
turn our life around.
When you’re not writing where
can we find you?
In the summer, in my garden. I
also spend a lot of time at the local gym in spinning, pilates, aerobic
classes.
And I love all kinds of theatrical presentations—local and in New
York, one of favorite cities. Theater is about life. Theater teaches me a lot
about how to live and also how not to live.
I’m glad that I once pursued a
career in acting—it was like living in stories that I presented to audiences
with other characters in the stories.
What are your favorite books?
Oh, my favorites could fill a
notebook or two.
Right now my favorites are Shout by Laurie Halse
Anderson, Voices in the Air: Poems for Listeners by Naomi Shihab Nye, Crossover
by Kwame Alexander, The Day the Universe Exploded My Head: Poems to Take You
into Space and Back Again by Allan Wolf, and Martin Rising: Requiem for
a King by Andrea Davis Pinkney.
Classics I love to read and reread are the
Harry Potter books, A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine Engle, Bridge to
Terabithia by Katherine Paterson, Holes by Louis Sachar, The
Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery, and all the tales by the Brothers
Grimm and Hans Christian Andersen.
On your website you have
educational materials for teachers. Can you tell us a little about them?
They’ll
find word games and activities that encourage active participation in reading
and writing.
They’ll also find videos; lists of recommended books, including
award-winning graphic novels for kids, tweens, and teen; links to websites for
readers and writers; lots of printable and downloadable teaching and learning
aids; and kids’ written responses to my school visits.
I also like to recommend
Reading With Your Kids
(www.readingwithyourskids.com).
It’s a lively interactive website that features award-winning podcast
interviews with authors and illustrators—mine will be available
mid-September—book-buying programs, truly interesting blogs about reading and
reading with kids, and fun activities.
What social media platforms do
you frequent?
I am active on the following
platforms:
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4710477.Anthony_Manna
Where can we find your books?
While Mr.
Semolina-Semolinus: A Greek Folktale (Anne Schwartz/Atheneum) and The
Orphan: A Cinderella Story from Greece (Schwarts & Wade/Random House)
are out of print, copies are available on amazon.com and in
libraries.
Folktales from Greece: A Treasury of Delights (CLIO/Libraries
Unlimited)—a collection of twenty stories and information about Greece’s
history, storytelling, and foolklore— is available wherever books are sold and
from the publisher at www.abc-clio.com.
Thank you, Anthony, for
spending time with us and sharing your story. We wish you continued success and
lots of luck.
Loukas and the Game of Chance by Anthony L. Manna, Illustrated by Donald Babisch (Mascot
Books, 2019). Synopsis:
A reimagined Greek folktale, Loukas
and the Game of Chance is the story of a flute-playing boy who
befriends a magical talking, dancing snake. The snake bestows fortune and
favor upon Loukas, but some years later, tempted by greed and pride,
Loukas loses all his riches and even his family. He now must embark on a
treacherous journey filled with suspense and intrigue to find Destiny, the Sun,
and the Moon. They’ll surely allow him to reverse his misfortune, restore his
honor, and win back all that he loves and treasures, won’t they?
The story is illuminated
by ten pen and ink drawings.
