Kidlit Author Interview with Margaret Chiu Greanias

Margaret Chiu Greanias is the author of Amah Faraway and Maximillian Villainous. The daughter of Taiwanese immigrants, she grew up in New York, Texas, and California, while her Amah lived faraway in Taipei. Amah Faraway was inspired by her childhood memories visiting her Amah—exploring night markets, splashing in hot springs, and connecting with relatives—and by her children experiencing Taiwan with their Amah for the first time. She currently lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband, three children, and a fluffle of dust bunnies. Today we have this opportunity to chat with Margaret about her new book and publishing journey.

1. What’s it like having your book published during the pandemic?

When my editor Sarah Shumway first acquired Amah Faraway in 2020, we talked about how when it published in 2022, we would be emerging from the pandemic and beginning to re-connect with those we hadn’t been able to see for a long time. Since Amah Faraway is about re-connecting with a faraway loved one, this would be ideal. Well unfortunately, as you know, the pandemic is still going on!

Like for the pandemic itself, we’re learning as we go. As odd as it sounds, working with Sarah and the marketing team at Bloomsbury (and meeting my illustrator Tracy Subisak) during this time has been a very positive experience. Out of necessity, we’ve all had to adjust and pivot, and we’ve become more comfortable with working and meeting online. As a result, I’ve gotten to see everyone’s faces and connect face-to-face (virtually). I’ve really appreciated that part of it.

As far actually publishing during the pandemic? The conditions are uncertain and always changing. For me, that means lots of questions: Should I plan an in-person launch? Should I plan a virtual one? What are others comfortable with? Are people going to bookstores and browsing books? Will bookstores stock my book since I’m a relatively new, unknown author, and it seems like people are mostly buying books by authors they already know? So many questions! I don’t know what the impact of this will be so I’m trying to stay focused on things I can control… and making sure I have contingency plans! LOL.

2. Can you give us a short introduction of AMAH FARAWAY?

AMAH FARAWAY is about a young girl’s visit to her grandmother far away in Taipei. It’s a story about how families connect and love across distance, language, and culture. At first, Kylie is cautious with the less-familiar customs, food, and family. However, she soon begins to see Taipei through her grandmother’s eyes and is no longer scared of what is new.

It’s written in a modified reverse poem structure to highlight Kylie’s transformation. The lines reverse at a climactic mid-point, and changes in punctuation and context shift the meaning of the words and emotions of the story.

3. What was your inspiration for this book?

Since I began writing picture books, I’ve longed to tell the story of my relationship with my Amah (grandmother in Taiwanese). Even though we saw each other infrequently, I adored her. But like Kylie, I always felt a bit shy at the start of our visits–due to my own cautious nature, the distance, language barrier, and cultural differences. After I had time to warm up though, I was always at her side or hanging out in her room. Once I even followed her to my uncle’s house, a state away, when her visit with us was over!

While I had this idea for a story, I hadn’t found the right way to tell it until I came across a reverse poem. I was awed by how the tone changed between reading it from top to down vs. from bottom to top. I challenged myself to write in this format, using the forward text and reverse text to form a full story. Not just any story would work in this structure though, and eventually, I recognized the story of my relationship with my Amah might be the perfect fit.

The last piece fell into place when I remembered taking my children to Taipei several years ago. It was their first time. My mother, who was already there for an extended visit, wanted to show off her hometown. We visited so many places–like Taipei 101, fancy basement-level food courts, MRT stations/shopping malls, a hot springs hotel, a mom and pop youtiao shop, etc. She also planned a huge family banquet, inviting relatives my children and I had never met before. It was overwhelming. Naturally, my children were cautious. At first. But then, they began having so much fun. They went from questioning why we had to visit Taiwan to asking when we could come back.

4. What do you hope readers will learn or discover from reading AMAH FARAWAY?

I hope after reading Amah Faraway, readers will think of their loved ones who they haven’t seen in a long time and look forward to re-connecting.

I also hope readers will remember how Kylie, through opening her heart and sharing one moment of joy, began connecting with her faraway Amah and the Taiwanese culture.

For readers who have never been to Taipei or don’t know much about it, I hope they get a taste for the culture and people and are open to learning and experiencing more. Maybe this story will even tempt them to visit someday!

5. What is the most challenging thing you faced while writing or researching AMAH FARAWAY?

The most challenging part of writing Amah Faraway was probably sitting down to begin writing the story. I had thought about the idea for many months and was intimidated by how difficult the reverse structure seemed. I didn’t know if it was possible and had no idea how to begin. Once I overcame inertia though, I scribbled all over a notepad trying to come up with lines that could work in the beginning and end of a story yet mean different things. As I experimented, I learned. Once I had figured out my first few (and therefore my last few) lines, my confidence grew. After that, my excitement for what the story could be carried me forward and I was able to focus and finish the story.

6. How was the editorial process? Did you do any revisions?

I absolutely loved working with my editor, Sarah Shumway. I’m so grateful that she had a vision for this story and was able to work her magic on it.

Prior to acquiring Amah Faraway, she asked for a revise and resubmit to make sure the story felt contemporary. The R&R comments she provided were specific and actionable, and although the revision still challenged me, it felt doable and most importantly, her comments made the manuscript better.

After the acquisition, we did video call to discuss changes. My biggest concern was maintaining the integrity of the story’s reverse poem format and she was on the same page. Sarah was very respectful with the text and made sure I was okay with any suggestions she made. Happily, they were minor–mostly line break changes–because we’d addressed most of the changes needed with the R&R. Sarah kept me in the loop throughout the editorial process like when she came up with how she wanted to page out the story as well as when sketches and finished art came in.

7. Anything you are habitual about when it comes to creativity?

I do my best creative work when I let myself be messy. Two things I do when I’m launching into the creative process are:

I use a notebook where it’s okay to scrawl and scribble all over the page, or even run off the edges.
I also start draft emails when I’m fleshing out story ideas. I’ll type the working title into the subject line in all caps so I can easily find it in my Drafts folder. Then whenever I think of something related to the story, I will make myself short notes in my draft email. In the past, I’ve ended up with long email drafts that I’ve been able to turn into messy and relatively pain-free first drafts. The convenience of being able to access the draft anywhere I am (so long as I have connectivity and a phone or computer) is great–as is the idea of a draft email that will never be sent.

8. What’s up next for you?

My next picture book, HOOKED ON BOOKS illustrated by Kristyna Litten, is scheduled to publish in the summer of 2023. It’s about a grumpy anglerfish who wants to finish her book but keeps getting interrupted. So, she swims deeper and deeper in search of the perfect place to read.

9. If you read this book to a room full of kids, what message do you want to share with them?

If you haven’t seen a friend or family member in a long time or you’re visiting somewhere you’ve never been before and you’re feeling worried, remember that all it takes is one moment with an open heart to change things.

10. Do you have any suggestions you’d like to share with aspiring authors?

Beyond reading as many recently published (last three years) picture books as you can get your hands on, I think simply focusing on developing your craft without worrying about what comes next can be freeing, and it will get you ready to become published without the stress. I think it’s also important to put energy into developing marketable concepts. Strong concepts are so, so critical to getting published.