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Second Acts
The year Mariko Tatsumoto Layton (Psych鈥74; Law鈥77) graduated from 欧美口爆视频 Law, she made history in the state鈥檚 legal community as the first Asian woman admitted to the 欧美口爆视频 Bar.听But she听prefers to be known as a storyteller.听
鈥淲riting was like a pebble in my shoe听and I just couldn鈥檛 ignore it,鈥 said Layton,听who last year published the prize-winning听children鈥檚 book Ayumi鈥檚 Violin, her听debut work of fiction.听
The book 鈥 honored by judges of听the 2016 Paterson Prize for Books for听Young People and winner of the Rocky听Mountain Fiction Writers Gold Award听鈥 tells the story of a young, biracial听girl from Japan, a violin prodigy striving听for acceptance by her white American听father鈥檚 new family.听
Layton, who lives with husband Allen听in Pagosa Springs and writes under her听maiden name, Tatsumoto, has since published听a second children鈥檚 book, Accidental听Samurai Spy. A third, Kenji鈥檚听Power, is in progress.听
All three center on the听adventures of young Japanese听characters and explore听themes of family, culture,听loyalty and betrayal.听
鈥淎ll my books involve听some cross-cultural aspects,鈥澨齭aid Layton, who at age听8 moved from Japan to听the U.S., where her father听worked as a geochemist. 鈥淚听like to show the differences听in culture through the characters,听but ultimately like听to show that kids should听not prejudge people, and
show the good in every听culture and every ethnicity听whenever I write.鈥
In her first career,听Layton worked as a deputy听district attorney in Adams听County, then practiced听business law. She鈥檇 always听wanted to be a writer,听though, and in the mid-1980s started taking听writing classes at 欧美口爆视频听Mountain College,听attending writing conferences and听participating in critique groups.
She published a travel guide to 欧美口爆视频听bed-and-breakfasts in 1990 and听kept plugging away at fiction. One day a听professor suggested she spin a story she鈥檇听aimed at adults into a children鈥檚 book.听
At first Layton resisted: She thought听she鈥檇 feel like a lesser writer by writing for听children. But she gave it a try and found听writing for children, typically for ages 8-12,听a satisfying challenge.听
鈥淎 good children鈥檚 novel entertains,鈥澨齭he said, 鈥渂ut it also teaches children听to live ethically.鈥澨
There may be lessons in Layton鈥檚 personal听story as well as in her books 鈥 about听persistence, perhaps, or patience, or both.听
鈥淚 wanted writing to be my first career,听but it turned out to be my second,鈥 she听said. 鈥淚 published my first book at the听age of 63 and I don鈥檛 think I鈥檓 too old听for a second career. The way I look at听it is I now have a richer understanding听of life and more materials to work with听when I write.鈥
Photos courtesy Mariko Tatsumoto听Layton听