Myrna Mannausau admits she sees a little of herself in the main character of her newly-published book, ‘Merryweather Feathermeyer and the Magic Cape.’
“The story is actually, in a way, like the way I grew up – moving around all the time,” the first-time author said. “My intent was to evoke a feeling of how it feels to be the new kid in school.”
Mannausau said her family moved around a lot because of her father’s job. It wasn’t until she was married that she made International Falls her home.
“Being the new kid (in school) was exciting in a way because of all the new people to meet,” Mannausau said. “But in another way, you kind of feel like you’re being dumped on a different planet.”
Twelve-year-old Merryweather Feathermeyer knows that feeling of being the new kid and how it feels to be the target of bullying. So, Merryweather Feathermeyer takes refuge under a cape given to her by her grandmother and she uses it to shield herself from the bullying.
“She uses the cape until the day comes when she feels better about her situation,” Mannausau said. “Then she puts the cape in a suitcase and pushes it to the back of a closet. The magic part of the cape is it protected her in a way until she no longer felt she needed protection of that sort.”
Life as a writer
Mannausau said she hasn’t always considered herself a writer and that ‘Merryweather Feathermeyer and the Magic Cape’ “just kind of popped” into her head.
“And it went from there,” she said. “(Writing the story) was a fun experience.”
The former science teacher and preschool director said she finished the story from start to finish in a couple of hours. Not thinking anything would come of writing the story, Mannausau said it sat on a shelf for more than a year.
The publishing process started following a visit from a friend who lives in California, who read the story and encouraged Mannausau to seek a publisher.
“She really encouraged me to do this,” Mannausau said of her West-Coast friend. “I really respect her opinion.”
After a few rewrites, Mannausau sent the story to several different publishing companies before settling with Author House.
“It was a really positive experience,” she said of the publishing process. “With that company, I own the rights to the book, which is important to me.”
The book, which hit shelves last month, has generated positive feedback so far, Mannausau said.
“It was satisfying that my story went from a shelf to a book,” she said. “It inspires me to write another story.”
‘Merryweather Feathermeyer and the Magic Cape’ is available locally at The Coffee Landing, City Drug, Ronnings and Iverne’s. The book is also available online at Barnes and Noble, Amazon and in E-book form.
