Celebrate Nonfiction

Exploring the Joy of Nonfiction Reading and Writing

Nonfiction Authors Dig Deep by Melissa Stewart

Last year, award-winning children’s book author Laura Purdie Salas wrote this wonderful post for Celebrate Science. I especially love this
quotation:

 

“. . . there’s a common, crushing misconception
that fiction is creative writing drawn from the depths of a writer’s soul,
while nonfiction is simply a recitation of facts that any basic robot could
spit out. The reality is very different. I think my personality, my beliefs,
and my experiences are deeply embedded in the books I end up writing.”

When I posted a link to Laura’s essay on
Twitter, the response was incredible. Dozens of nonfiction creators replied,
“Me too!” Because I wanted to hear and share their stories, I’ve invited
thirty-three award-winning children’s book authors and author-illustrators to post here on
Mondays throughout the year.

Again
and again, what you’ll hear is that crafting nonfiction involves much
more than just cobbling together a bunch of facts. The books we choose to write
and the perspectives we choose to explore are often closely linked to who we
are as people and our experiences in the world. Nonfiction writers—all
writers—have to dig deep. If we don’t, our writing will fall flat, and no one
will want to read it.

Our passion for a project, our author
purpose, is what drives us to dedicate years of our lives to a single
manuscript. It spurs us on despite the obstacles and setbacks, and of course,
through the inevitable criticism and rejections.

Today,
I’m going to begin the series with the story behind Pipsqueaks, Slowpokes, and Stinkers: Celebrating Animal Underdogs (illus.
Stephanie Laberis, Peachtree, 2018)—a
book that began on a chilly December morning in 2013.

I’d
been thinking about and researching animal superlatives (biggest, strongest, fastest)—and then
anti-superlatives (smallest, slowest, weakest)—for a long time, but I didn’t really have a vision for the
book I wanted to create.

But,
as I lay in bed, waiting for the alarm to go off, these words popped into my
mind:

“Everyone
loves elephants. They’re so big and strong.

Everyone
respects cheetahs. They’re so fast and fierce.

But
this book isn’t about them. It’s about the unsung underdogs of the animal world. Don’t you think it’s time someone finally
paid attention to them?”

I jumped out of bed, ran to my desk, and scrawled
those lines in my notebook. I couldn’t believe it. In one flash of inspiration,
I had the book’s beginning and its hook and its voice. It felt like a gift from
the universe, and it was.

But it came with a catch.

As I typed the words
into a computer file later that morning, I realized that a dark part of my
subconscious was rearing its ugly head. That creative hook, that unique
perspective hadn’t come out of nowhere. They were born out of the severe
bullying I’d endured as a child. Writing this book would mean revisiting some
painful memories, and that scared me.

So I shut the computer file, and I didn’t
open it again for 6 months. By that time, I had made peace with the part of my
past that would drive the creation of this book. And I got to work . . . because
that’s what writers do.

It’s hard to believe that the description of
a western fence lizard’s hunting strategy could be autobiographical, but it is.
I was a clumsy, uncoordinated, unathletic kid, so that little lizard is
kind of my hero.

See how its “weakness” is
actually the secret of its survival success? I think that’s an important
message for kids because we all have our weaknesses, and I don’t think there’s
a kid in the world who hasn’t felt like an underdog at some point.

In the end, Pipsqueaks is a book about animal adaptations and about celebrating the
traits that make us different and unique. It’s my way of offering hope to children who are
being bullied right now.



22 Responses

  1. What a great peek into an author's process! I am glad this inspiration came to you and that you saw it through even though it had you dredge up painful memories (even though I have yet to get my hands on the book). I can't wait to read all the essays to come.
    Hugs,
    Erika

  5. Thank goodness for wonderful you, Melissa! We all benefit from your experiences, perspective, and wisdom. Thank you for sharing your process with the world. I know lots of readers will identify with you. xoxo

  9. Thank you, Melissa, for sharing your story behind this book. And thank you so much for writing the book! I recently had a conversation with another educator about how in the "anti-bullying" message, we are neglecting this very important part to stopping the vicious cycle–making kids strong so they can deflect the bullying. You are right: we need to offer them hope. We need to help students know how to ward off a bully. I am thankful my mother taught me how when I was a target. Sometimes, I wonder if there is anyone who has not been a bully's target at one time or another.

  11. Thank you for sharing your writing process and all the emotions that go along with it. I am sure as I bring this to students many of them will be able to relate to being the underdog and being able to share that even successful adults have had struggles in the past may help them to see that you do not have to be defined by your bullies.

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