Doraine, it was so good to meet you and talk to you about how you got started writing nonfiction. Please tell us a bit about what you write.
I
have written a lot of nonfiction. I think because I like the research
part of writing more than because I love nonfiction. I know that sounds a
bit strange, but I do like taking complicated ideas and writing them in
an understandable way. I worked as editor for a military magazine for
eight years and one of the challenges was to make all that complicated
strategy stuff accessible to an average reader. It was a fun challenge,
at least on the days I didn’t want to pull my hair out.
I’ve
tried some picture books, but haven’t quite found the knack of getting a
story into 700 words or less. And I’ve written one novel which will
probably remain in a bottom drawer from now on.
I
love writing poetry. I like forms and I like free verse. I especially
enjoy the Poetry Friday community in the Kidslitosphere and all the
poetry sharing each week.
How long have you been writing?
Officially
in the children’s world, since about 2002. Before that I wrote
newsletters. I’ve pretty much always kept a journal since my mother gave
me a five-year-diary when I was eight. I was totally absorbed in what I
ate for breakfast and what I made on spelling tests.
You have written for a series of nonfiction books: America, My Country American Heroes. Please tell us how you found out about this series.
I
worked as a sales rep for Delaney Educational Enterprises for nine
years, selling books from about 150 publishers into schools. We met for
presentations from publishers on their new books for spring and fall
every year and I crossed paths with editors from several of those
educational publishers. The editor from State Standards Publishing was
one of those editors. She was a small publisher targeting state history
standards. I wrote a number of series for her. America My Country was
one of them. The educational market is a bit of a different animal from
traditional trade publishers. Few of them are looking for stand-alone
books. They want a series. It means more sales. It was a doorway into
the publishing world for me.
How did you break into writing nonfiction.
It
was simply what the publisher wanted at the time, although I’ve always
loved history. I would have written most anything, but she needed
Georgia history standards. So that’s what I wrote. Second grade reading
level for Georgia. Tell this life story in 200 words or less using no
contractions, no introductory phrases and no words that register higher
than a third grade reading level. It was a bit like putting together a
puzzle.
What tips can you give writers wanting to break into nonfiction?
You
have to love the research. You can’t be afraid to talk to experts. You
must keep exact records of where you got every tidbit of information.
And when you spit it all back out, it has to sound like a story.
Did you have to supply the photos/images? What tips can you share for this?
I
have never been asked to supply the photos for any of my books,
although when I came across one that I thought especially good, I might
include the url for the editor to check. Interesting, when the proofs
came back with photos included, we often had to make revisions to the
text based on which photos she chose.
What are you working on now?
I
began working on a couple of poetry projects this year. I think I
needed a break from the educational world. Right now I’m working on a
historical novel in verse. It’s a big project and I’m only about half
way through.
I recently read Walking on Water by Madeleine L’Engle. Here is an excerpt that has me pondering my work in progress:
I believe that each work of art, whether it is a work of great genius, or something very small, comes to the artist and says, “Here I am. Enflesh me. Give birth to me. And the artist either says, “My soul doth magnify the Lord,” and willingly becomes the bearer of the work, or refuses; but the obedient response is not necessarily a conscious one, and not everyone has the humble, courageous obedience of Mary…then the job of the artist, great or small, is to serve. The amount of the artist’s talent is not what it’s about.
I’m asking myself how I serve this work. We’ll see what happens.
Thanks!
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