https://annileenewton.com/thessalonika/

noun

1. The title of my novel about a girl willing to sacrifice her name and her identity

2. The middle name of Cleo Hart, a scholarship student at a prestigious New England university in the 1950’s

3. A feminized form of “Thessaloniki,” a city in Greece possibly named after Alexander the Great’s half-sister

Get to know the writer:

1. What is your novel about?

A college student masquerades as her male classmate to join an archaeological dig in 1954 Crete. While excavating Minoan ruins, she unwittingly enters a labyrinth of post-war sociopolitical conflict.

2. What genres would you say this story is in?

Upmarket Historical Fiction

3. How would you describe this story in two words?

esoterico, exoterico

4. What movie have you seen the most in your life?

From the age of two to five, I probably watched The Wizard of Oz 300 times.

5. What is your favorite song? (Or, what song have you listened to the most times in your life?)

Choosing favorites of any kind always makes me anxious, for whatever reason. But Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 23 has been a recurring refrain in my life for at least two decades. Especially the Adagio.

6. Do you have an all-time favorite novel?

Not really? Like I said, I'm not psychologically able to think about the world in terms of absolute favorites. Instead, how about three novels I've read (or reread) in the last five years that did something to me: The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood, Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry, and This Rough Magic by Mary Stewart.

7. What motivated you to write this story?

I wanted to write the kind of book I love to read.

8. If you could have dinner with one person (dead or alive), who would that be?

Now that I've got Mozart on the brain, it'd have to be him, the guy who compared his creative process to a cow pissing in a field. He'd order the sturgeon, and I'd make the chef angry by asking for mushroom goulash. We'd drink the most expensive bottle of wine available and charge it all to the Prince Regent of Bavaria's account. Salieri would send us a complimentary, but poisoned, Sachertorte for dessert.

9. Apart from writing, what else are you passionate about?

Knitting, reading, teaching, swing dancing. I also like zipping around the world.

10. What influenced you to enter your story to get performed?

I've had good experiences in the past working with podcasts to adapt my essays. I like collaborating on creative projects and seeing my writing through the eyes of other artists, especially when several different types of expertise are involved.

11. Any advice or tips you'd like to pass on to other writers?

Try to have as much fun as you can with your work. Give yourself space to take risks. Always be learning, but have fun with that too. Maybe make a collage once in a while. Somehow, it always helps me.