When we learned that former WtW Community Ambassador and current Community Ambassador Mentor Anna O’Connor (Ireland) recently published the very timely children’s book Santa’s Magic Mask, we had to find out more! We chatted to Anna about the book’s writing and publication process, what it’s been like seeing it in the hands of children, and how her experience as both a CA and CA Mentor has influenced her writing.
How did you come up with the idea of Santa’s Magic Mask, and how did you know it had to become a reality?
I’ve always loved writing, so when the kids I babysit began to worry that Santa wouldn’t call this year, a story seemed like the natural way to ease their minds. I’d spent lockdown making face masks with my mom and selling them in aid of LauraLynn (Ireland’s only children’s hospice) so masks were at the forefront of my mind—that’s why it made so much sense for Santa’s solution to be a magic mask.
I think it’s important to appreciate how intelligent children are. They have a great understanding of what is going on in the world, and the last thing children need this year is another thing to worry about. Christmas is the most magical time, so it was important to me that that was the case this year, too.
What was the entire process like? Take us from first draft to illustration to publication.
It actually didn’t take that much time—maybe two months altogether? The idea was probably stewing in the back of my brain for a while because as soon as I put pen to paper the words were there. Once I had the first draft down, there was a lot of tweaking. I had to be sure the rhyming structure was right. I then sent it to a few family members and friends to see what they thought before I considered it a final draft.
Danny Foley, the artist, is a good friend of mine. We met at Activate Youth Theatre at Graffiti Theatre Company, and as soon as I was happy with the story I sent it to him and asked him if he wanted to get on board. He agreed and got to work on the drawings. Because there was a really tight time limit we couldn’t go through the traditional publishing route so we sent it off to printers ourselves and just waited for the copies to arrive!
Illustration by Danny Foley.
What has the reception of the book been like? How does it feel to know kids are reading it?
We never could have imagined that it would have gotten the response that it did! It’s funny to think that a story I wrote to calm the children I babysit is now being read by children all over the world! From the moment we posted about it on social media we have been going nonstop. We launched it on a Monday night and not even ten minutes later I received a message from a local news site asking to interview me. I completed the interview the next morning, and from then on I got calls and messages from lots of media outlets. It even got to a point where we were in newspapers without knowing it!
Even better, however, is the response from readers. My day is made whenever I see a review come through. Children have been declaring it their favourite Christmas story and want to read it again and again. We’ve received such lovely messages, some of which have made me cry! The strangest thing has been having people refer to me as an author and asking me when my next book will be coming out! I suppose I’d better get to work …
What has your experience as Community Ambassador Mentor been like, and why should WtW members apply to be a Community Ambassador?
No other experiences have better aided me or helped me grow as a writer. I absolutely love having the opportunity to work and engage with other members of the Write the World community. Acting in a Mentor position has been particularly enjoyable, as it means a lot to me to be able to help and guide our Community Ambassadors. I would really encourage Write the World members to become CAs. You will make amazing friends (hi guys!) and learn amazing things. You will grow as a writer and reviewer. Having the chance to help other writers is wonderful and a great way to help yourself, too. I can say without doubt that being involved in the Community Ambassador programme was a significant turning point in my writing career.
Note: Applications for the next Community Ambassador open periodically. Be sure to sign up as a Young Writer and receive newsletter updates to be notified when applications are open.
