I have enjoyed writing since I was very
young. I was fortunate that some of my teachers said nice things
about what I wrote, so that made me like it even more! I began
writing poetry and stories when I was in elementary school. Later,
I had a good friend who also liked to write. We would share our
stories and challenge each other to write more.
I began to keep a journal when I was in middle school. I filled
it up with all the things that made me happy, sad, and angry. One
important thing I learned about writing: it's a great way to
express feelings, and it's a lot cheaper than psychological therapy!
I also discovered that some of the things that really made me upset and
angry one day didn't matter at all a week later. I think that
helped me put daily events in better perspective.
As a college student I wrote articles and music reviews for my
college newspaper, as well as the papers I needed to write for school.
I also continued to write stories. As I think about it now, most
of these were probably pretty bad stories, but I learned more as I kept
writing. I still continued to read a lot, and I think that also
helped me learn more about writing.
When my children were small, I loved to read to them, and I began to
write stories for them. I dreamed of having my writing published,
but all I got was rejection letters from book publishers and
magazines. I decided to learn more about being a Writer by taking
a course from the Institute of Children's Literature. I learned
that there was a difference between wanting to write and Being a Writer.
The difference was knowing that I needed to write for a reader instead
of just writing for myself. (There is nothing wrong with writing
something just for yourself, but if you want to be paid for your
writing, you must be able to write something someone else wants to read.
You also have to find out how to get your writing to that
reader!) The ICL course helped me learn how to find the right
magazine or publisher for my work and how to prepare a manuscript.
Another important thing I learned from my ICL course is that I like
writing nonfiction. I had always thought I wanted to write stories
and picture-books. I was really surprised to discover that writing
articles was more fun for me. I am a very curious person (some
people would use the word "nosey"!). I like to find out about the
interesting things people do, and it is even better when I have a good
reason for asking! Soon after finishing my ICL course I sold two
articles to Listen magazine about teenagers who were involved in
exciting activities through Girl Scouting.
I have written several history books, and I really like it. History
was not my favorite subject in school, mostly because I did not like
memorizing facts and dates. Now that I am older, I understand that
history is the stories of people who lived in different time periods and
the struggles they faced. For my first book, The Dust Bowl and
the Depression in American History, I talked to many people who
lived through that time. They told me their own stories about what
it was like to live through dust storms. Sometimes their stories
were very sad and sometimes they were funny, but they were all real
stories about real people. For my third book, I was able to
interview men and women who served in Operation Desert Storm in
1990-1991. Beyond the dates and locations of events, they were
able to tell me how it felt to huddle in a bunker wondering if they
would be hit by chemical bombs, and if they would get home alive.
My next book was about Raoul Wallenberg, a Swedish
diplomat who went to Hungary during the Holocaust to save Jewish people
from the Nazis. I was privileged to interview some people who were
there at that terrible and dangerous time. They told me about
Wallenberg and his daring work there, and also about the many other
people who worked bravely to save others. Their story was
exciting, dramatic, and also very sad because of the many people who
lost their lives, including Wallenberg himself.
I have also written two books about famous American authors, Mark
Twain and Edgar Allan Poe. Both are favorite authors of mine, and
it was fun to learn more about them as I worked on the books.
I am also now writing my first fiction book. It is a historical
novel about a girl in pioneer times. She will have many exciting
adventures, and, as I write about her, I feel like I am having those
adventures, too!
I hope you enjoy both reading and writing!
