This post was originally sent through my author newsletter on May 20, 2022. To subscribe to my newsletter and receive up-to-date news, musings, and more, use the form on my homepage: KathrynHolmes.com.
On my Instagram this month, I've been sharing Reels with fun facts about painted turtles and dachshunds. Why? Partly to continue spreading the word about the Class Critters series...and partly because I'm the kind of nerd who finds fun facts to be really cool.
One of my favorite parts of writing the Class Critters books has been researching the various animals the kids turn into. I didn't know much about painted turtles or dachshunds or house mice before I began writing Tally and David and Madison's stories. And the thing is, when the kids in Mrs. Norrell's class turn into animals, they really become those animals. So, in order to flesh out each character's adventure, I needed to know what those animals' days might actually be like. How do they move? What do they eat? What endangers them? How do their senses influence how they experience the world?
Without my research, I might not have the scene in Tally Tuttle Turns into a Turtle where Tally eats—and enjoys!—bugs. Without my research, I wouldn't have known that dogs aren't completely colorblind—they can see blues and yellows, while oranges, reds, and greens are rendered as shades of gray. (In the chapter where David Dixon breaks into the cafeteria kitchen, he discovers some very unappetizing-looking fruits and vegetables...) And without my research, I wouldn't have learned that mice can squeeze their bodies through any hole that's big enough for their skull. That certainly affects how Madison Morris moves through the school building on her day as a mouse!
Honestly, research is one of my favorite parts of the writing process. Research can deepen a moment or characterization. It can open up new paths for the story to take. It can inspire new ideas. It can also verify that ideas I've already had are plausible (and let me tell you, that validation is particularly satisfying).
Research doesn't just mean reading books or going down a Google rabbit hole—though of course it can be and often is those things! But I also love doing interviews with experts in various fields. Going back and forth with someone on the phone or in an email thread is so much more inspiring to my author-brain than just seeing a fact written out on a page.
For The Distance Between Lost and Found, I was able to interview the Chief Ranger of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. He helped me determine how it would be possible for my characters to stay lost in the mountains for as long as the story needed them to be lost. I asked questions about the terrain and the vegetation at the time of year the book takes place. He also explained search-and-rescue procedures—the many things that would be happening outside my characters' point-of-view. The ranger even suggested a crucial moment early in the story, in which my characters take a tumble into a rhododendron thicket; that fall from the path is what gets them properly lost.
For How it Feels to Fly, I turned to a dance psychologist I'd interviewed previously in my work as a dance journalist. As I crafted Perform at Your Peak, the summer camp where my main character goes to deal with her anxiety issues, I checked in with this psychologist about what would and would not be recommended or allowed in an inpatient-style therapy setting. I asked her about how a teenaged ballet dancer with body-image and anxiety issues such as the ones my character faced would be counseled. Her thoughts, as well as the advice she'd given when I'd interviewed her for magazine articles on similar topics in the past, helped me make both Perform at Your Peak and my protagonist's emotional journey authentic.
And remember two weeks ago, when I said that I had something new on the horizon that I hoped to be able to tell you about soon? Well, I still can't say much, but I did a fun and useful research interview while writing that book as well. I was able to speak to a soil researcher from Cornell University about various tests that might be done to determine soil health...in the event of, say, a crop circle formation at a large corn and wheat farm. (That's your teaser for this newsletter: the new book involves crop circles!)
Research can be an intimidating word. It can conjure up dark, quiet libraries and stacks of thick books. Now, I personally like the sound of a dark, quiet library and a stack of thick books, but I know that's not for everyone! So, when I talk to students, I try to show them that research doesn't have to be scary. It simply means that when you don't know something, you either ask someone who does, or you look it up. It's about taking the time to learn something new.
In a virtual school visit this past Tuesday, a second-grade teacher asked me, "What would your advice be for our students?" It's a broad question, but at the same time, a fairly easy one to answer.
My advice was, "Stay curious."
I was Zooming with five classes at the same time, so chances are, at least one kid out of the bunch harbors dreams of becoming a writer. I went on to talk a bit about how curiosity helps me come up with ideas and tell stories. That said, curiosity is a quality that will serve those students well no matter what they end up pursuing in the future.
Kids are naturally curious. My daughter's most-used word right now is probably "Why?" Adults, on the other hand, may feel too stubborn or embarrassed to ask or investigate when they don't know something. Or they may feel like they already know enough about the world. They may even resent not knowing. (I wrote "they," but let's be real: aren't we all like this about certain things and at certain times? I know I can be...)
Loving fun facts—like the fact that dachshunds have 125 million scent receptors in their nose as compared to humans' 5 or 6 million—makes me a nerd, yes...but it also helps me craft my stories. Being curious, and being willing to follow up on that curiosity by digging deeper, makes me a better writer. More thoughtful. More empathetic. More creative.
So, what are you curious about this week? And what kind of research are you going to do to learn more?
~Kathryn
What I'm:
Reading: Sometimes, when I discover a romance author I like, I find myself requesting their whole catalog from the library! That's what happened this past week for me with author Kate Clayborn. I started with Love at First, which is about a woman who's incredibly attached to her dated apartment building and its quirky cast of characters and a man who, by inheriting a unit in the building from his estranged uncle, threatens to throw everything in her life out of balance. Now, I'm working my way through Clayborn's Luck series, a trio of books about three friends whose joint lottery win sets each of them on a path toward a new life and new love.
Watching: "Strange New Worlds," the latest new Star Trek show on Paramount+. I love the dynamic between Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount) and his Number One, Una (Rebecca Romijn), and it's fun to see younger, less self-assured versions of established original series characters like Spock and Uhura.
Listening to: I skipped Taylor Swift's Red when it came out in 2012, but lately I've been enjoying the new rerecorded album. That ten-minute version of "All Too Well" should really be called "All the Feels," amirite?
Loving: My daughter has been very snuggly lately. As in, she wants to be around me, preferably holding onto me, all the time. Sometimes, I want to say, "Stop leaning on me! Go do something else, somewhere else!" But I don't (unless she's got her elbow in my ribs...) because I know those snuggles won't last forever...
