Spartacus & the Circus of Shadows
By JEFF SPRY Cascade AE
Ever consider tossing it all away to join the circus? Imaginative Portland author Molly Johnson knows just how you feel. Her darkly comic adventure book, Spartacus and the Circus of Shadows was published by Portland’s Raintown Press in October and contains references to many Oregon landmarks, including a passage set right in Sisters itself. It’s been receiving decent reviews by independent reviews, authors and bloggers and Johnson is proud of getting it on paper and seeing it born into the world.
“It’s really amazing to see it in its physical form, and something you never expect to see happen,” she said from her home in Portland. “This is kinda like I’ve sent my child off to pre-school. I can’t write in it any more--I can only Facebook and Tweet about how it’s doing. Well, and promote it in schools and bookstores.”
Writing sports articles for her hometown Nugget newspaper in Sisters over ten years ago, Johnson never would have guessed her future path as a budding children’s novelist. Johnson graduated from Sisters High School in 2000 and continued developing her craft as a wordsmith in witty restaurant, movie and art gallery reviews for Linfield College in McMinnville.
Spartacus Zander is a loveable outcast in search of his mother, who has run away to join the circus to become The Amazing Athena, World-Famous Human Cannonball. On a quest to locate his missing mother, he meets and trusts a host of colorful characters who challenge his will and put him in dangerous situations, all in an odd odyssey to bring her home. It’s a crazed road trip, coming-of-age tale with touches of the fantastic and the funny.
Johnson needed something for graduate school at Portland State and she continued to develop “Spartacus” for the next two years and finished it in 2006.
“They have a lot of great programs and I met so many amazing people who helped me stay dedicated and committed to the project through their student-run publishing program,” she said. “After I graduated I submitted it to many publishers and was rejected but one of my professors contacted me and asked if they could use my manuscript in her book editing class. Because of that, a student in the class who went on to start Raintown Press, Cory Freeman, remembered the story and wanted it for their first book.”
The initial press run of “Spartacus” is limited to 1500 copies, 750 softcover and 750 hardback. It’s also available for Kindle on Amazon.com. Johnson’s writing schedule involved a lot of rewrites on plotting and revolving around ridiculous deadlines. The whimsical drawings used to illustrate the book were done by Robin Kaplan, an artist into steampunk style and fantasy realms.
Beside promotions for the book, Johnson is working on her next book and is plotting it out before diving back into the writing process.
“The blank page is not going to write itself. You have to sit down and actually write to be a writer and that’s the hardest part,” she said. “It’s so lonely but so rewarding too. It’s like having homework for the rest of your life.”
Info: www.raintownpress.com or for a signed copy of the book go to www.mollyejohnson.com.
Ever consider tossing it all away to join the circus? Imaginative Portland author Molly Johnson knows just how you feel. Her darkly comic adventure book, Spartacus and the Circus of Shadows was published by Portland’s Raintown Press in October and contains references to many Oregon landmarks, including a passage set right in Sisters itself. It’s been receiving decent reviews by independent reviews, authors and bloggers and Johnson is proud of getting it on paper and seeing it born into the world. “It’s really amazing to see it in its physical form, and something you never expect to see happen,” she said from her home in Portland. “This is kinda like I’ve sent my child off to pre-school. I can’t write in it any more--I can only Facebook and Tweet about how it’s doing. Well, and promote it in schools and bookstores.”
Writing sports articles for her hometown Nugget newspaper in Sisters over ten years ago, Johnson never would have guessed her future path as a budding children’s novelist. Johnson graduated from Sisters High School in 2000 and continued developing her craft as a wordsmith in witty restaurant, movie and art gallery reviews for Linfield College in McMinnville.
Spartacus Zander is a loveable outcast in search of his mother, who has run away to join the circus to become The Amazing Athena, World-Famous Human Cannonball. On a quest to locate his missing mother, he meets and trusts a host of colorful characters who challenge his will and put him in dangerous situations, all in an odd odyssey to bring her home. It’s a crazed road trip, coming-of-age tale with touches of the fantastic and the funny.
Johnson needed something for graduate school at Portland State and she continued to develop “Spartacus” for the next two years and finished it in 2006.
“They have a lot of great programs and I met so many amazing people who helped me stay dedicated and committed to the project through their student-run publishing program,” she said. “After I graduated I submitted it to many publishers and was rejected but one of my professors contacted me and asked if they could use my manuscript in her book editing class. Because of that, a student in the class who went on to start Raintown Press, Cory Freeman, remembered the story and wanted it for their first book.”
The initial press run of “Spartacus” is limited to 1500 copies, 750 softcover and 750 hardback. It’s also available for Kindle on Amazon.com. Johnson’s writing schedule involved a lot of rewrites on plotting and revolving around ridiculous deadlines. The whimsical drawings used to illustrate the book were done by Robin Kaplan, an artist into steampunk style and fantasy realms.
Beside promotions for the book, Johnson is working on her next book and is plotting it out before diving back into the writing process.
“The blank page is not going to write itself. You have to sit down and actually write to be a writer and that’s the hardest part,” she said. “It’s so lonely but so rewarding too. It’s like having homework for the rest of your life.”
Info: www.raintownpress.com or for a signed copy of the book go to www.mollyejohnson.com.
