Great Americans A to Z: Norma Fox Mazer

N is for Norma Fox Mazer, (1931-2009) an award-winning American author of children and young adult books.

Norma grew up as the middle child of three sisters. She loved school and reading. When she was a teenager, Norma felt like she was an outsider and began to set herself apart from her family, being labeled “the cold one.” She started writing for the school newspaper and toying around with the idea of becoming a writer.

Norma went on to college, got married, and had four children. After her third child was born, Norma and her husband (Harry) realized that they had dull jobs and unfulfilled lives.

With several unfinished stories and only dreams of becoming a writer, 28-year-old Norma promised herself that she would commit to pursuing a writing career and would write for at least one hour at the end of each day. Her husband, who was also an aspiring writer, made this promise with her.

Three years after their one-hour-a-day writing challenge, Norma and Harry received an insurance settlement that enabled them to write full-time. Since then, Norma has written over 30 books and has won many awards for her novels. Her work features young characters overcoming difficult situations such as bullying, the death of a parent, and child abduction.

How do you overcome procrastination in your work?

If you work at home, how do you balance work and family time (especially if you have to cook and do laundry!)

What is the purpose or vision for doing what you do? 

Great Americans A to Z: Kristin Hunter Lattany

K is for Kristin Hunter Lattany, (1931-2008) an award-winning American writer and teacher.

Kristin began her writing career at the age of 14, working for a weekly newspaper titled The Pittsburgh Courier. She wrote about encounters between people of different races and genders. Kristin also learned how to channel her anger at racism in her writing.

Kristin earned her bachelor’s degree in education and went through many jobs: she has been a third grade schoolteacher, copywriter, public information officer, and television scriptwriter. In 1955, she won a national television contest for her script Minority of One, a documentary about a black student entering an all-white school. To prevent controversy, the network rewrote her script to feature a French-speaking immigrant student entering an all-white school.

Kristin also became a novelist and college lecturer. She taught creative writing at the University of Pennsylvania and Emory University. Her works include seven adult novels and four children’s books. Many of her novels were based on her real life experiences.

For instance, Kristin’s novel Breaking Away (2003) was about a college teacher and her students facing racial discrimination. In real life, Kristin experienced such things as students insulting her to her face, and finding Aunt Jemima pancake mix boxes near her office. The University of Pennsylvania’s 1993 water buffalo incident (where one student was charged with racial harassment toward a group of black students) occurred while she taught there.

Kristin’s novel The Lakestown Rebellion (1978) was about a black town facing closure due to new plans to put a highway in its place. In real life, Kristin was involved in protests against the construction of the Crosstown Expressway in Philadelphia that would destroy homes and businesses in predominately black neighborhoods.

Great Americans A to Z: Gary Paulsen

Gary Paulsen (1939-still living!) is an award winning American author. Many of his books feature young characters learning how to survive in harsh conditions.

Growing up in a military family, Gary had a rough, unstable childhood. His family moved around a lot, and he found it hard to do well in school. His parents were alcoholics and his father was seldom in his life. He claims that his mother was promiscuous and had many lovers. Gary also claims that the household maid sexually abused him.  As a teen, Gary found solace in reading books from neighborhood libraries.

When Gary reached adulthood, he held many job titles before becoming a writer: he was an actor, engineer, professional archer, rancher, sailor, singer, soldier, teacher, and truck driver.

Gary wanted to become a writer because he felt that he had many stories to share from his personal experiences. But he was not a good writer at first.

Gary’s skills developed slowly. He  surrounded himself with other writers who would help him and critique his work. He was persistent and eventually developed his own voice and style. Gary never gave up writing, even when he was not good at it. The result of his persistence is that he is the author of over 200 books, and he's won such awards as the Newberry Medal and the American Library Association’s Margaret Edwards Award. His popular children’s novel Hatchet was adapted for film and titled A Cry in the Wild.

Do you believe that writers are born or made? Can anyone become a good writer?  

Great Americans A to Z: Ann Petry

To kick off my Great Americans A to Z challenge, I start with Ann Petry.

Ann Petry (1908-1997) was an American author. She was the first African-American author to sell one million copies of her novel.

The Street, published in 1946, sold over 1.5 million copies. 

Although Ann began writing as a child, her first career was in pharmaceutical sciences—not writing. She graduated with a Ph.G. degree (graduate in pharmacy) and became a pharmacist in her family’s business. But like many passionate writers with day jobs and other careers, she never stopped writing.

Ann was raised to ignore sexist stereotypes of her day. While most women were taught to bar their outlooks and aspirations, Ann was taught to think beyond limits. In a Washington Post interview, Ann said that the women in her family never thought that they could not do certain things because they were women.

How empowering!

Ann also rose above the harsh racial realities she experienced in her lifetime. As a child, Ann had to endure discouraging teachers including one who refused to teach her because she was black. She had another teacher who made her read Jupiter’s lines in Edgar Allen Poe’s The Gold Bug.

(Excerpt) Jupiter the illiterate slave:
"Why, to speak de troof, massa, him not so berry well as mought be." 

But there was one teacher who would realize and affirm Ann's talent. That teacher was Ann’s high school English teacher who told her that she was talented enough to become a writer.

Despite stereotypes of women and minorities, Ann’s achievements prove that much is possible for ALL hardworkers who are dedicated to their craft.

Be empowered no matter what!