When I heard that a colleagues father, Milton Johanides, had written a novel, I was intrigued and knew that I had to interview him for my blog -
Platform Hub (PH) - Can you tell
us a little bit about yourself?
Milton Johanides (MJ) - I was born in Ilford in Essex and
both my parents were Greek Cypriot. I always enjoyed writing but it has taken
me this long to do something about it.
(PH) - Is this your first book?
(MJ) - Yes, first published book, though I have a pile of
old manuscripts which could be resurrected at some time.
(PH) - Without spoiling it for
us, could you tell us a little bit about the story?
(MJ) - It is a story about a fictional hero who fights
for his freedom and rights. I have tried to create a character who is an
unlikely hero but who has things happening to him which test him to the limit
and bring about changes in him and in society around him. The backdrop is the
period from the 1900s to the Great War.
(PH) - Where did you draw your
inspiration from?
(MJ) - I suppose real life was my inspiration although
none of the things that happen to Artie ever happened to my grandfather as far
as I know! I have tried to capture the spirit of being Greek at that time. The
events in both Cyprus and Greece back then were typical of nations trying to
come to terms with who they were and finding out how best to deal with change,
so there´s always lessons for us to be learnt today.
(PH) - Are there further
adventures in store of Artemis Papayiannis?
(MJ) - Oh yes! The second part is already out and I´m
working on the third. I am not calling it a trilogy though, in case there are
more in the future.
(PH) - As you will know – I’ve
written a couple of scripts. Have you
considered turning your book into a script?
(MJ) - Readers have said it would make a good film. I´m
open to offers!!
(PH) - Part of the reason I set
up this blog was to bring together like minded individuals – would you be
looking to do any collaborative pieces with any readers?
(MJ) - I would look at this if it came up, but really I
tend to be a bit of a lonely soul when it comes to writing.
(PH) - When I wrote my script, I
started off on Word. I was then told
about a scriptwriting package called Celtx – do you use any software to aid you
or just pen and paper?
(MJ) - Everything is written on Word, on one file,
formatted then saved as a pdf. This is the format lulu.com prefers when they
publish it.
(PH) - Do you have any another
projects on the go?
(MJ) - Not writing wise no, but I am also a keen painter,
so when the third book is finished I shall spend a bit of time doing that.
(PH) - I’ve seen some of your
amazing Art on Facebook – are you self-taught?
(MJ) - Yes, I´m self taught. I learnt a lot from the
street artists in Spain.
(PH) - Are you involved in any
Art or Writing Groups in the local community?
(MJ) - We did a lot of this in Spain, especially with the
gallery we had as a base. I think I personally prefer to work alone, though I´m
not ruling out something happening in the future along these lines.
(PH) - How do you go about buying
a copy of your book?
(MJ) - Just go to lulu.com and write my name Milton
Johanides in the search box. Then follow the instructions.
(PH) - Thank you for taking the time out to answer my questions!
If you are looking for a unique Christmas Gift, I would suggest ordering your copy of "The Astounding Adventures of Artemis Papayiannis" now! The copy I bought (that has now kindly been autographed by Milton) took just over 2 weeks to arrive. But it was worth it to have a brand new, freshly printed book.
Originally, it was a gift for my wife's Christmas, but now I'm keen to read it from cover-to-cover myself so Heather is getting an early Christmas Present this year!
If you are an author and would like your work highlighted on my blog - feel free to E-mail me or contact me via the Platform Hub Facebook Page!
