By Corrine Weaver
Cynthia Bates is not used to being the centre of attention.
“I had attempted to keep this whole thing low-key,” she says. “I was not really out to get a whole lot of attention.”
But the December release of her first book, Mikayla’s Victory, made Bates somewhat of a celebrity in Centretown. She appeared in television segments on both the CBC and CJOH and interested people are phoning, wondering where they can get copies of the book.
“It’s been an overwhelming week,” Bates says.
The 48-year-old physical education teacher and guidance counsellor at Glashan Public School on Arlington Street, said the book is loosely based on her former students.
The plot centres on a young girl who wants to compete in the pentathlon against an older rival. She must overcome her insecurities in order to attain her goal.
Current students at Glashan show a lot of interest in reading the book. Although bookstores are behind in orders, a few students have managed to find it.
“It seems interesting that a teacher wrote a book. I wanted to see how well she did,” says Lei Du, a Grade 7 student at Glashan.
Another seventh-grade student, Stella Karami, says “I wanted to see what kind of stuff she could come up with.”
This is Bates’ first serious attempt at writing, except for an unpublished submission to Runner’s World, but she says she has always had an interest in putting pen to paper.
“I remember being eight, nine, 10 years old and having a writing club,” she says. “We’d write stories and little newspapers and stuff like that.”
What Bates would like to do right now is share her interest in writing and her ability to reach her goals with her students. She plans to talk about goal-setting with Grade 7 and 8 students at the official launch of her book on Feb. 10.
“I’m interested in sharing with the kids,” Bates says.
“I’m more than halfway through my life and I’ve accomplished this goal that I’ve had in the back of my mind for a long time.
I think it’s important to share with people the fact that you’re never, ever beyond the point where you can set and accomplish goals for yourself.”
The next step for Bates is the release of her second book in the spring, a prequel to the first. She has started a third book and is working on ideas for books with more of an adult theme.