Today we continue the series in which award-winning nonfiction authors discuss the joys and challenges of writing narrative nonfiction and expository nonfiction with an essay by Sue Heavenrich. Thank you, Sue.
One of my memories from kid-years is carrying a notebook around and jotting down the names of birds, mammals, plants, even rocks.
While visiting Grand Canyon National Park, I learned that there was one squirrel species on the north rim (Kaibab) and another on the south rim (Albert).
Scribble. Scrabble. Scratch. Into the notebook went their names.
That funny rock we picked up during an adventure? A concretion. And those blocky cubes that look like petrified fool’s gold? Pseudomorphic limonite.
Scribble. Scrabble. Scratch. Into the notebook.
While I love reading fiction, my writing skews toward facts. It’s as true now as it was in fourth grade. For me, writing is a way to explain, inform, and describe. Writing expository nonfiction allows me to pull together the best parts of being a journalist, science teacher, and curious naturalist. The challenge is to find a fun way to share concepts and facts so kids (and their adults) will want to learn more.
And that means exploring structure. One book project for an educational publisher asked the question, are ants like plants? That could have been a quick one-word answer. Instead, I found myself making a list. One column was titled “ways ants are—or could be—like plants;” the other column “ways ants and plants are not alike.” In the end, compare/contrast felt like the most fun approach.
Diet for a Changing Climate: Food for Thought also started out as a list: insects that people eat. Then I teamed up with Christy Mihaly and, over time, what began as a picture book field guide to edible bugs evolved into a middle grade book, complete with recipes and multiple chapters.
I’ll give you three guesses how 13 Ways to Eat a Fly started. I’d been at an outdoor event and lots of small flower flies were perching on the sun-warmed metal folding chairs. People thought they were bees, and were afraid to sit down.
Scribble. Scrabble. Scratch. People have no idea that some flies look like bees.
Another time, someone was astonished when I mentioned that a mosquito is a fly.
Scribble. Scrabble. Scratch. My list began to grow.
What became clear to me is that a lot of people have little understanding of one of the largest orders of insects: Diptera. Maybe I could do a “meet the flies” kind of book highlighting diversity. But when I sent it out, well, let’s just say the rejections I got back showed me the idea just wasn’t gonna … fly.
Back to the structure drawing board. Then one day I was smacking cluster flies with a swatter. “One down, a dozen to go,” I muttered. It’s possible a light bulb went off over my head, because that’s when I realized a reverse counting book might be a fun way to talk flies. Especially if they get eaten in gruesome and disgusting ways. Because, really, what parent wouldn’t want to read about that!
The other thing I wanted to do was include a layer of text for an older reader. At our elementary school the younger kids get paired up with older kids as reading partners. So I wanted to provide information older kids might like: how the digestive juices inside a Venus fly trap dissolve the meaty part of the fly, or how a fungus turns a fly into a zombie.
My favorite part of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math) picture books is the back matter. I’ve heard some folks dismiss it as just a place to put all the info that doesn’t fit in the main text. But for me, back matter serves an important purpose. It’s a repository of resources for teachers and parents, and a place to tuck in some fun facts for curious young minds. I imagine myself as a kid wondering how much nutrition could there possibly be in a serving of flies?
I’d chat more, but there’s this idea that’s been niggling at me… and I’ve got to find my notebook.
Scribble. Scrabble. Scratch.
Sue Heavenrich is a blogger, author, and bug-watcher. A long line of ants marching across the kitchen counter inspired her first article for kids. On Wednesdays she posts hands-on nature explorations at her blog, Archimedes Notebook (archimedesnotebook.blogspot.com). On Fridays she reviews STEM books. Her next book, Funky Fungi, coauthored with Alisha Gabriel, releases in the summer of 2022.
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5 Responses
This is one of the most clever and funny NF books I've read recently! Kudos to Sue for thinking up this brilliant idea/structure.
I love seeing how you slowly developed different aspects of this book, Sue. It's one of my favorite nonfiction STEM PBs.
I love this post on where your ideas come from and how you skribble, scrabble, skratch them down!
Scribble. Scrabble. Scratch. Love the alliteration you used to pull me through your journey into ideas and structure for your fantastic NF PB! Congrats, Sue and David!
So interesting and fun!