Sue Heavenrich's Newest Concoction: The Pie That Molly Grew! Craft Chat & Book Review by Kathy Halsey

 

Sue with her newest creation!

Book Review by Kathy Halsey

If you’re ready for some cooler weather and pumpkin-anything (latte, bread, or, dare I say ... pie?), my author friend Sue Heavenrich is here to serve up her newest book, THE PIE THAT MOLLY GREW, illustrated by Chamisa Kellogg, who added all the best artistic “ingredients” to this timeless picture book.  

Sue and Chamisa mix up a delightful read that will have you wanting to grow pumpkins, helping pollinators, and, of course, making a yummy pumpkin pie that will bring the people together. 

The cumulative story structure, based on The House That Jack Built, will have readers hooked already as they easily fall into the rhythm and rhyme Sue’s created. Readers follow Molly’s pumpkin from seed to sprout to table and learn that patience, nature, and nurture are needed to create family desserts that become traditions.   

I love how illustrator Kellogg adds her own special touches, weaving the pumpkin and growth themes throughout the picture book from the typography on the cover to the eye shapes of Molly and friends that echo the shape of seeds. I enjoyed the inclusivity in the images, too. We have diverse groups of people all enjoying the fruits of growing their own food.

This is the perfect book to celebrate fall, holidays, nature, as well as the community nature of gardening. Make sure to let readers know that author Heavenrich has grown and harvested pumpkins, too, and so can they. (Thanks, Sue, for providing pictures from her own garden.)

The Pie That Molly Grew GROG Q&A

Kathy: Sue, I love the read aloud-ability this picture book has. I applaud the genius move of using the well-known rhyme scheme from The House That Jack Built. Tell us a bit about the decision to use rhyme over prose. Did you write both and then figure out the stronger of the two versions?

Sue: A line came to me: “This is the pie that Molly made.” That set the beat and I figured I would just go along with it. I tried (really tried) to write it in prose, but it came out half-baked. When the editor suggested starting with planting the seed, everything came together.

Kathy: The rhyme scheme begins on the third spread of the picture book with “These are the roots that reach down and branch out, to anchor the plant that began to sprout”.  Is that the case for The House that Jack Built, too, or did you alter where the rhyme begins?

Sue: I wanted to keep the feel of the original nursery rhyme, but I also wanted to play around within it. The original House that Jack Built repeats everything as it accumulates lines from one verse to the next. I decided not to do that because strict repetition can get … repetitious. So I shortened some lines, changed words, all the while keeping the rhythm of the story going - especially on the last two spreads, because who wants to wait so long to get to the pie?

Kathy: Today it is hard to sell a picture book as an author only. While crafting this story, did you think about including multiple hooks for increased audience interest and salability? Why pumpkin pie? (I admit that’s my favorite, too.)

Sue: I’m always thinking about how many different ways a parent or teacher can use a book. Perhaps that comes from homeschooling my kids, or maybe from creating STEM programs for summer camps and library programs. So I knew I wanted connections to garden, native plants, and pollinators. And I also wanted a deeper connection to gratitude.As for why pumpkin pie - it’s my favorite kind of pie! 

Learn to make and pie and how pollinators help!

Kathy: I know we are both nonfiction nuts who love back matter. I enjoyed  seeing four pages of back matter discussing the process of seed to fruit to table, pollinators, and how to bake a delicious pumpkin pie!  Did you add back matter later in the revision process or did your editor suggest it? How do you suggest writers advocate for back matter? Is there a standard number of pages authors should create for additional information?

Sue: I love back matter! When I was homeschooling, I always wanted to know more, and wished authors had included resources and activities. I started my writing as a journalist, and my articles for adults and children would often include sidebars. So when I began writing picture books I thought: Gee, where would I add sidebars to this? When I write the manuscript, I keep a list of things I want to include as back matter. Then, at the end of the story, I’ll put in a section titled “suggested back matter” with subtitles. For this book I knew I wanted to write about pumpkins as crop native to the Americas, and include my recipe (which my grandmother used). I also wanted to highlight the ecological services of bees and show the diversity of bees that help pollinate pumpkins and other squash.

Can you see Sue's pumpkin peeking out at us? Like Molly, she grows pie!

Kathy:What is your favorite spread in this book? (I love the spread with all the different tables that are placed end-to-end to make room for the pies!) What was your reaction to the illustrations when you first saw them? 

Kathy: Sue: I love the illustrations, and am so grateful that Chamisa Kellogg took on this book! Here’s the thing: we both love pumpkin pie, and we both grow pumpkins in the garden. Not only does Chamisa know pumpkins, but she brings such expressive joy to the page.

I have a couple of favorite spreads. One is where Molly and her brother are waiting (and waiting) for the seed to germinate … it takes such a long time that a bird builds a nest! And I really love the spread where Molly is in the garden with the bees, and she is journaling. 

Kathy: With The Pie That Molly Grew, you will now have 4 books out for young readers. How has the process of book creation stayed the same and changed over the years? 

Sue: I’m pretty sure the general process is the same: I’m minding my own business, perhaps weeding the beets or shoveling snow, when SMACK! An idea whaps me upside the head. And then I have to write it down before it flies away. And later I get curious, and start investigating this idea: is it a picture book idea? Does it need more words, and maybe a few chapters? And then I do some research on the topic, and then I fall down a rabbit hole and do more research than I’ll ever need… and then I scribble things on a page, cross them out, try again, and again… 

Kathy: How are l you celebrating this book launch and how can readers get involved? 

Sue: We are in the middle of a Blog Tour! And I am so grateful that you have offered a blog stop where we can stop, rest awhile, chat, and maybe get a cold glass of lemonade. Last week we visited Vivian Kirkfield, Maria Marshall at the Picture Book Buzz, and Carol Baldwin. On Friday I’ll be dropping in on Beth Anderson and then on Monday, the 28th I’ll hang out with Lauri Fortino at Frog on a Blog. 

My book release event will be September 9 at Tioga Arts Council in Owego, NY and co-hosted with Riverow Books. There will be reading, science and art activities, pumpkin cupcakes, and a silly song or two. I hope to visit a couple more blogs in October and November, and I know KidLit411 will be doing a giveaway mid-September. I’m so glad I saved those freebie calendars that come in the mail - I need one to keep track of what I’m doing and when!

Find Sue here on SM!

Website:  http://www.sueheavenrich.com/

Archimedes Notebook blog:   https://archimedesnotebook.blogspot.com/

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/SueHeavenrichWriter

Sue's pumpkin flowers, just like spreads from illustrator Chamisa Kellogg!

MUSHROOM RAIN: Debut and Craft Chat with Author Laura Zimmermann by Kathy Halsey

Shifting points of view and perspective, reviving a latent draft, how the day job informs the author's work and visa versa, plus facts you never knew about mushrooms-- it's all here with debut author and developmental psychologist Laura Zimmermann! Let's begin with a review by former K-12 librarian, now children's literature writer, - me!

MUSHROOM RAIN Review

What one learns when reading picture books, especially nonfiction! This "dig" into the world of mushrooms is both fascinating and magical. With the illuminating illustrations of Jamie Green and the lyrical language of author Laura Zimmerman, readers enter a unique world of fungi.

Such an enticing, active opening!

It’s a simple fun, er fungi read as well a great way to introduce elementary students to biomes and the interdependence of flora, fauna, and weather. The illustrations draw the reader’s eye to examine and linger on the double-page illustrations with multiple points of view. 

Back matter is inviting and interactive with an invitation to the reader to examine the illustrations in the front matter, and go on a mushroom walk themselves. Hands-on art activity will be a boon to educators and parents, too. Writers will learn much from the sparse yet sensory language and the way words and art really do create a special world. (I wish I’d written this!)

P.S. Give this to the skeptic who still believes kids don't like nonfiction. This is a book to pour over whether it's raining mushrooms or not. (Yes, mushroom rain is real! Check the back matter!)

Craft Chat with Laura K. Zimmermann

 

Kathy: I read that you came upon the “spore” for MUSHROOM RAIN from a Storystorm idea one year.  You began with research on women scientists, moved on to Beatrix Potter, and discovered the world of mushrooms. How long did that process to find the “right” topic take? How did you discover that mushrooms were “the” topic?

 

Laura: I spent a couple of years researching, writing, and revising the Beatrix Potter story. Had you asked me before I came across Beatrix’s research if I would ever write a book on mushrooms my answer likely would have been “no.” I just never thought about them that much. What really shifted my views was trying to see them from Beatrix’s perspective. The more I did that, the more I began to see what it was that Beatrix loved and a whole new world opened to me. Beatrix introduced me to some of their different shapes and facts like there are mushrooms that smell “exactly like a dead sheep.” But over time, as many manuscripts without a home do, Tales and Toadstools drifted into my “writing drafts” computer folder and I moved on to other things. Then one day, I stumbled across an article about mushroom spores as cloud seeds. I was back in research mode and discovered even more wonders I hadn’t known about. And from that moment on, mushrooms were “the” topic.

 

Kathy: Like many authors, you have a day job. How does your job as a college professor at Shenandoah University intersect with your writing? Does one feed off the other? What skill sets transfer to your writing and research?

 

Laura: They feed off each other. I am a developmental psychologist with a specialty in early childhood. As a researcher I focus on the science side of psychology with a focus on how children perceive and interact with the world. And that focus can be seen in my writing which is based on finding ways to get children as excited as I am about wonders in the natural world. I recently read a review of Mushroom Rain written by Jen Forbus who captured my goal for writing and research perfectly, “Together Zimmermann and Green prove how fascinating--and beautiful--science and nonfiction can be.”

The dark background highlights these unique mushrooms. 

 

Writing picture books has also helped me see and chop excess words in my scientific writing. My college students hear “cut the fluff” a lot from me these days as well. Picture books also find their way into many of my classes. There is a picture book for some aspect of nearly everything I teach. Picture books truly do have stories to tell for people of all ages.

 

Kathy: What drew you to nonfiction writing for children? What do you like most about writing nonfiction?

 

Laura: As a scientist and professor, I gravitate to nonfiction. I’m always down one research rabbit hole or another. The e-books my university students and I created for children in Uganda, Ghana, and Sierra Leone years ago led me to nonfiction writing for children. What I have discovered along the way is why I am still on this path. The natural world is filled with wonders, sometimes we just forget to look. Writing nonfiction for children reminds me of how much is still out there for me to discover.

 

Kathy: I love the sparse wording in Mushroom Rain along with its lyricality. Tell us about your drafting process and how you sifted through facts to shape your story? How did it change over time?

Consonance, assonance, and appeal to the reader's senses.

 

Laura: I generally start by listing cool facts I find in my research. In the case of Mushroom Rain, I also had my Beatrix Potter manuscript. I am a big fan of recycling information from stories that never found a home and when I looked back over Tales and Toadstools, some of my favorite parts revolved around the mushroom life cycle.  So first, I combined that with the cloud seed information. After that it was a matter of figuring out where to put my other favorite facts about mushrooms. Those facts moved around quite a bit before they found their place so the story flowed. Of course, I had tons of help with this from my amazing critique partners—Mushroom Rain would not be where it is today without them or the incredible editorial skills of my agent, Kaitlyn Sanchez, and my editor at Sleeping Bear, Barb McNally.

 

Kathy: As a former school librarian, I crave good back matter. Did you envision four pages of back matter or did your editorial team give you the option? The back matter design is quite engaging, too. Did you have any say in that?

 

Laura: I love back matter too. I think it is the researcher in me. I like the sparse writing style, but by necessity it leaves out cool things I want to share with my readers. The space allotted to back matter was determined based on the book’s layout which was created by the Sleeping Bear team who helped bring it to life. Picture books are all about streamlining, so I did have some cutting to do, but in the end all of the key ideas found a place. All things art and design were created by Jamie Green and the art director. But I love how it turned out. It fits the feel of the book perfectly.

 

Kathy: Tell us about your next projects and plans. Any school visits or conferences on the horizon?

Laura: I have some wonderful Mushroom Rain related interviews and events on the horizon. But what I am most excited about is Earth Day! Stay tuned to social media for more on my first book events with kids!! I’ll also be posting information about our activities on my website (https://laurakzimmermann.com/mushroom_rain/) so even if you aren’t near Winchester, VA you can still join in on the fun!