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STEM Tuesday– Plants– Writing Tips & Resources

By on July 15, 2025   /   Plants, STEM Tuesday  

Hello, and welcome back to STEM Tuesday! I’m Stephanie.

My brain is still in April… I keep thinking about the mysterious intersection of nature and writing. Which identity comes first, the writer or the naturalist? Surely, not all naturalists are writers, and not all writers are naturalists. But where the intersection exists, what’s the cause? Do people first love nature, and that gives birth to their inner writers—or, because of and through their inborn writerly tendencies, do they appreciate nature? “Unanswerable” questions like this one are often very productive for young thinkers, bringing up concepts including correlation vs. causation and nature vs. nurture. If the admittedly dichotomous question isn’t flawed to begin with, the answers are personal anyway—and for me at least, maybe rooted in childhood exploring, reading, and writing. After all, exploring nature is not just something we do in a forest or park; it also happens on the page.

That said, if you haven’t yet, take a look at the books we’re featuring this month and, if you teach, classroom ideas. Today I’ll focus on writing tips and resources.

Writing Exercise: Invent a Cool Plant

One of my earliest memories of world-building was deciding that basketballs should grow on plants. As an adult, maybe that sounds like an impossible premise. But what if it weren’t impossible—what then? I imagined a forest with basketball-hoop trees and basketball bushes. I thought about what the insides of the balls contained (are they fruits?), and how they would have developed to self-inflate? Or maybe they grew deflated, like heavy-duty, rubbery balloons, and you had to pick them and blow them up? My 10-year-old mind was enthralled by the possibilities writing fiction offered.

Last week, Carla suggested the classroom activity of designing a deadly plant. This time, design a plant that sparks joy for you. It doesn’t have to be truly possible; it just has to be thinkable. If you can think of it, explore it.

    • What purpose does the plant serve in its environment?
    • How did the plant evolve, and what are its defense mechanisms?
    • What are its ideal soil conditions—or is it epiphytic (an “air plant”)?
    • If this plant were to really exist one day, maybe 2,000 years from now, which existing plants might contribute genetics?
    • What does it look like, smell like, taste like, and how have these factors impacted its evolution?

To read more about facts as fantasy seeds, revisit this post.

Writing Exercise: Making Facts Sticky!

For this non-fiction exercise, pick a plant to gather information about. Write down at least five things you already know about the plant, especially the most basic, common things. Got it? Great! Now it’s time to make those facts memorable—what Chip and Dan Heath call “sticky.” If you haven’t read their book Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die, this will be a brief introduction.

What goes into memorability? The Heath brothers say there are six main components: simplicity, unexpectedness, concreteness, credibility, emotions, and stories. For example, keeping your facts simple means depending on things that readers already know, rather than overexplaining. Unexpectedness is important generally, even more so for kidlit audiences. Concreteness is physicality, something immediately evocative.

I’ve chosen roses as my example. Here’s one fact that’s not very memorable or interesting: “Mini roses can be as small as ¼ of an inch in diameter.” That’s great—but how small is that, in real life? Using comparisons can help by depending on ratios that readers already know. Here are some rewritten versions of the same fact:

  • Mini roses can be as small around as #2 pencil erasers.
  • Mini roses can be as small around as shirt buttons.
  • Mini rose buds can be smaller than a dime.
  • Mini rose buds can be smaller than an earbud.
  • Mini rose buds can be smaller than a piece of O-shaped cereal.

Each of them is better than the original, but the best version depends on your intended audience, down to whether it’s a grade school kid or a teenager. I like the last option the best. The cereal seems the most accurate, most immediately evocative, most familiar to kids, and maybe even somewhat emotional—kids love food! My second favorite is the earbud comparison.

For your own exercise, which plant did you choose, and what comparisons did you come up with? Whether you’re writing with kids, or for kids, I hope this has been productive for you. You may also like this origami plants book I came across for kids. Adding a kinesthetic element to lessons always seems to help with stickiness, in my opinion.

Thanks for reading. See you soon.

A nature-loving creative, Stephanie Jackson writes poems, articles, picture books, and middle-grade novels. Her nonfiction has been published in Cricket magazine and her poems have been published in various literary journals including Dirigible Balloon, Tiny Seed, Cosmic Daffodil, and Touchstones, where she’s been a contributing poetry editor. Professional affiliations include the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) and The Authors Guild. She graduated from Utah Valley University in April 2025 with an undergraduate English creative writing degree. You can find her online at StephanieWritesforKids.com and on Goodreads.

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Author-Illustrator Spotlight: Jessixa Bagley

By on July 14, 2025   /   Author Interviews  

In today’s Author Spotlight, Landra Jennings chats with author-illustrator Jessixa Bagley about her new middle-grade graphic novel, Jazzy the Witch in Broom Doom (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, July 15). She’ll share her inspiration behind writing it, her creative process and a few hints about the next Jazzy book!

Book Summary:

“Whimsy abounds in this playful” (Publishers Weekly, starred review) middle grade graphic novel about a young witch who struggles to fit in—perfect for fans of The Okay Witch and Hooky!

In her town full of witches, Jazzy’s always been a little bit different. She’s not excited about magic. She forgets the steps to spells. And even though her parents run the town’s broom shop, she doesn’t want to fly.

Then, one day, she discovers what she was born to do: cycling! Now she just has to find a way to get a bicycle…and learn how to ride it. But will her new passion come between her and her best friend—and possibly get her in big trouble?

Interview with Jessixa Bagley

LJ: Welcome to the Mixed-Up Files, Jessixa! Thanks for joining us today.

JB: Thank you so much for having me.

LJ:  First off, I want to tell you how much I enjoyed this novel. Your characters’ expressions—those nuances—really take us into the heads of the characters and into the story. There are so many laughs and so much heart. Can you tell us about your inspiration for writing this book?

JB: It’s a funny thing how the idea came about. I had a dream, and when I woke up in the morning, I drew a picture of a little witch that looked kind-of like me as a kid. It made me think of a lemonade stand or Lucy’s advice booth in Peanuts, but the kid in my dream was selling bicycle seats for broomsticks to witches. I posted it on Instagram and the feedback was: This needs to be a book!

Around that time, my son was learning how to ride a bike and I was reflecting on how I had a really hard time learning how to ride a bike myself. As I began developing my little witch character, I found myself putting more of “me” into her. I also added some snark and sass because I love characters with some texture. So, my inspiration was a mix of the unconscious, my childhood, and some bits from real life.

Developing Ideas

LJ: I’m always curious about how author-illustrators work. How do you develop your ideas?

JB: My process has changed over the years. Before I was published, I was looking everywhere for a story, trying really hard. I didn’t feel the ideas were coming to me very easily; the stories didn’t feel interesting or personal and I didn’t have much of a connection.

These days, as I’ve tuned more into my own experiences and my childhood, I might be inspired by something in a dream, I might get ideas while I’m meditating, or something in the world might catch my eye. I try to capture these moments. During school visits, I show the students the place in my sketchbook where I do just that—I jot down words or phrases or an animal that I like, because there’s something inside of those that was inspiring.

Writing and Illustrating

LJ: What’s your creative process like? Does the writing come first, or the pictures?

JB: These things are usually happening simultaneously. I jot down some ideas and then I’ll sketch a little and go back and forth.

For illustrations for Jazzy, I had my stylistic approach from that initial sketch. I was also inspired by Adrienne Adams’ The Woggle of Witches, which has a beautiful and moody quality to the artwork, and Norman Bridwell’s The Witch Next Door series, with those minimal illustrations and simple colors. I wasn’t intentionally creating something retro or vintage, but I was picking up on the things that I liked.

As far as the writing, my process is that after I get the initial concept, I outline the novel, considering total word count and what I plan to happen. Then I’ll reverse-engineer, writing the whole manuscript before I start sketching. My years of creating picture books (those page-turn moments!) and making comics really informs my work. For this project, I was focused on dialogue, because graphic novels are all dialogue.

Overall, making graphic novels is fun because there’s that sense of the unexpected that comes through during the process. I just try to go with the flow and stay loose and let things happen.

Creative Tools

LJ: What’s your medium? Do illustrators still use pen and paper or is everything software-driven now?

JB: I used to be much more of a traditionalist. Thumbnail, then pencil, ink, color. That’s how I did my comics. For most of my picture books there was very minimal involvement of digital tools. I created everything by hand and with watercolor. I loved doing that.

But making picture books the traditional way creates so much pressure because if you don’t get it right, you’re starting over. And an entire graphic novel done in traditional fashion can also take a real physical toll.

The newer tools allow for moving things around, changing things. They make the process easier and more fun. I’m trying to be freer with how I make art. For me, that’s allowing for the opportunity to work smarter. I enjoyed using Photoshop for iPad for this project, my first attempt to do an entire book digitally.

Character Expressions

JB: You mentioned the facial expressions that you loved. I created this postcard, as part of my pre-order goodies, reflecting Jazzy’s different moods.

LJ: Thank you so much for sharing the postcard! It really nails Jazzy’s feelings. For those interested in obtaining a copy, Books of Wonder may still have some of the pre-order goodies available with purchase.

Deep relationships

LJ: I love how you handled relationships, with Jazzy and her family, with her best friend Aggie, with her mentor Madame Melcha (even the bickering familiars got a relationship arc!). How did you balance all those threads?

JB: Collaborating on graphic novels for upper elementary with my husband Aaron had me thinking on character arcs for that slightly older reader. So, I was used to keeping an eye on what was happening with the different characters, building that muscle memory, like, “When’s the last time we saw Aggie or Madame Melcha?” And making sure that the characters all evolved a little bit differently.

One of the relationships I loved the most was that minimal arc that Aggie’s familiar, Cassie has with Jazzy’s familiar, Fiona. Cassie hates Fiona. Fiona likes to needle her. I enjoyed having a moment where they come together. So even though this novel is for a middle grade audience that’s a bit younger than the books I did with Aaron and the relationship arcs are simpler and more straightforward, I still wanted to make sure that they were there.

Favorite Scene(s)

LJ: There were so many scenes that were hilarious with a lot of fun details. There were also others like the “I found it” scene (where Jazzy stares into the television) that were simpler, but impactful. What was your favorite scene to create?

JB: There’s three that come to mind. I really love the conversation that Granny Titch has with Jazzy where she’s telling the family history over the course of a few pages. It was an opportunity for me to go outside the panels and do more of a flowy composition. I also liked being able to tuck in bits about the history of witches.

A similar moment occurs with Madame Melcha where she’s telling Jazzy about her past. Witches have a complicated history and I really liked the opportunity to acknowledge some of the things we know about witches and witchcraft, like, for instance, that relationship to nature and to the harvest, while also keeping the story sweet and joyful and age-appropriate

My other favorite scene is when Jazzy and Aggie go to the junkyard and they make the bike. We see Aggie coming prepared. She has her spell and Spellopedia and she’s very confident. But Jazzy has to bring her own magic to it too. And she’s a little unsure, but she makes it work because she really wants this and she really loves this. I loved that element—that when we really want something, we can bring a lot more of ourselves to it and we can actually make it happen.

On Learning How to Ride a Bike

LJ: There are actually quite a few panels about riding a bike after that scene. What was your thinking there?

JB: I mentioned that I was a very late learner to riding a bike and I fell a lot. I was very much like: Why can’t I just do this thing? Well, it takes practice. You have to form this energy force effectively between yourself and this object. You have to find your balance.

So, after Jazzy created a bike for herself, I found a really fun opportunity to have all that in there. What are the things you need to think about when riding a bike? Because maybe some of the kids who are going to read this novel don’t know how to ride a bike yet. I wanted that little tutorial and also the message: You’re going to fall and that’s part of it. It’s okay.

To the heart of Jazzy

LJ: The theme of being your own person is meaningful for so many. Can you share with us what drew you to that theme?

JB: If I were to have had a theme in mind from the beginning, I don’t think the book would’ve worked. I didn’t want to make a self-help book for kids or beat anyone over the head with theme. I wanted to create this as much from a “kid feeling” as I possibly could. So, I really just set out to create this little book about this witch and her world.

It was only when it was done that I realized this book actually speaks to larger themes that could apply to kids in so many different ways: You don’t have to be what others expect you to be. Jazzy perceives that she’s supposed to be a certain kind of witch. And her family just assumes she’ll be into witchcraft because it’s their whole world. These sorts of expectations come in so many forms in real life for kids, be it academic, athletic, religious, cultural, or community. And that can be very hard when you don’t feel those things are your identity.

What I absolutely love about making books, about making art in general, is that people will look at it and reflect and bring their own feelings to it. I don’t get to decide what this book means to somebody, the same way I don’t get to decide what a painting means.

On Creating

LJ: Anything else you want to share?

JB: I hope I’ve set a tone for Jazzy’s world. That it can feel real in people’s minds and these characters feel big and rich. Making graphic novels is not for the faint of heart, for sure. But I have loved every second of this, even the hard parts, because it was just so much fun. I would encourage anybody that has an interest in it to give it a try. I know that it can be daunting. But kids love graphic novels so much. I feel like I’m trying to make up for all the books that I didn’t get to have when I was a kid.

More Jazzy

LJ: What will the next Jazzy book be like?

JB: I have so many more of those big, full-page moments that really add emotional heft to the book. This next book is even more expressive, even more yelling, more faces.

LJ: I already know we’ll love it!

Lightning Round

No MUF interview is complete without a lightning round, so. . . .

Coffee or tea?

I drink tea, but I like the idea of coffee way better. Like, I love the ritual and the idea. My body just doesn’t love coffee as much.

Sunrise or sunset?

Oh, that’s really hard. I’ll say sunsets. But what I have learned in living in a place where I get to see the sunrise, is that it does give you a sense of hope.

Favorite city besides the one you live in?

I have two. I’m a bit of a Francophile. I love Paris. And I do really love New York. My dad was from there.

Favorite childhood television show?

Pee Wee’s Playhouse. I’m staring at things from the show right now!

Favorite ice cream.

I like inclusions. So, I’ll say Mint chocolate chip.

If you could choose a superpower, what would it be?

Teleportation, hands down.

Favorite book from childhood?

Beatrix Potter books. I was really steeped in those when I was a kid. And that definitely led me as an adult to making books that featured animals. They were “delicate,” those books, with whimsy before I knew what whimsy was.

LJ: How can readers obtain a copy of the book?

JB: The book can be ordered at your local independent bookstores, Books of Wonder, Bookshop.org, Barnes and Noble, or Amazon, or any place books are sold.

About the Author 

Jessixa Bagley is a children’s book author-illustrator with a background in fine art and comics. She has had work featured in publications such as New American Paintings, Highlights Magazine, The Stranger, and Illustoria Magazine. She’s also the author of the middle grade graphic novels Duel and Dear Jackie (illustrated by Aaron Bagley) and the author-illustrator of the middle grade graphic novel series Jazzy the Witch. Jessixa is a two-time Washington State Book Award recipient; first in 2016 for her debut picture book, Boats for Papa, and again in 2024 for her graphic novel, Duel. Jessixa also received a 2018 Ezra Jack Keats Honor Award for picture book Laundry Day. Many of her books are Junior Library Guild Selections. In her work, she’s drawn to animals and emotional themes often inspired by her own experiences. Jessixa also teaches and speaks about writing and illustration. She often illustrates for other writers and artistically collaborates with her husband, Aaron Bagley. Jessixa lives in Seattle with her husband and son.

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Author Interview: J.E. Thomas, writer of the AI Incident

By on July 11, 2025   /   Author Interviews  

photo JE ThomasWe’re excited to welcome J.E. Thomas back to the blog. We so enjoyed her previous interview when Control Freaks released, and we’re looking forward to telling everyone about her newest book, The AI Incident.

Like her first book, this one is super funny and has standout characters, plus it’s a heartwarming story of Malcolm finding love and family. I love the publisher’s description of the book:

“The Wild Robot meets Restart when Colorado’s unluckiest foster kid battles a rogue AI robot at school.”

Doesn’t that make you eager to read more?

So, here’s another chance to spend time with the author.

J.E., thank you so much for agreeing to answer more questions for us.

Thank you so much for inviting me back!

First of all, I’m sure readers would love to know: What made you choose to write a novel about AI?

I’ve been a science fiction fan for as long as I can remember. For that reason, I never thought developing autonomous AI programs was an impossible feat. Instead, it was simply a technological advance that simply took a while to create.

Now that autonomous AI programs are here, I wanted to envision what happened next. Would the characteristics that make us human keep pace with technology, or would the line blur? Would we act based on the foreshadowing the sci-fi greats presented, or would we be caught unaware?

Exploring those concepts is so much fun. That said, I’ve read studies about today’s tweens reading less for pleasure and feeling high levels of anxiety and isolation, so even while I addressed some of the headier issues associated with AI, I wanted to do so in a hopeful way.

I should note that AI also has a presence in my debut novel, Control Freaks. In that case, it appears as a program called DougApp that scans the internet for information and writes papers based on prompts for one of the main characters’ stepbrother. Interestingly, I developed that manuscript a few years before ChatGPT hit the main stage.

That’s fascinating you were ahead of the curve with DougApp. Sometimes it’s hard to believe AI has come so far. I’m glad we have authors like you who are using their own creativity to come up with story ideas.

Speaking of that, how did you come up with the characters for this story?

Characters arrive without much fanfare in my imagination. One minute, I’m happily slurping ice cream; the next, my brain is packed with fictional people like Malcolm Montgomery, the unluckiest kid in Colorado foster care, and FRANCIS, a rogue AI computer.

I’ve had this process for as long as I can remember. I just accept it now, lol.

Once I had the skeleton concepts for Malcom, Tank, FRANCIS, Mrs. Bettye, and others, I started investigating their backstories.

Loneliness is a major theme in The AI Incident, so I did a lot of research about how loneliness presents in people from different backgrounds. For instance, how does it affect the way they walk, talk, or even breathe? How does it affect the way they view the world? And, importantly for all of the human characters in The AI Incident, how does loneliness affect their ability to open themselves to new, and potentially life-altering, situations?

You really went into detail on the research, and it shows in how realistic the characters seem. In addition to helping readers understand loneliness and be more understanding of others, what else do you hope readers will learn from this book?

There are two big lessons I hope readers take from The AI Incident. The first is that it’s important to question information. Just because a computer program says something—for instance, that the sky is purple—doesn’t mean that’s so. Computers can bring information to us instantaneously, but it’s important for us to ensure that it’s true. Interestingly, I’ve noticed that several AI programs have disclaimers now that say something along the lines of “AI can make mistakes. Please verify information before using it.” I think that’s a very good heads-up.

The other lesson is that there’s value in making human friendships and connections. It’s certainly faster and easier to respond “Okay” when an AI program says, “Let’s be friends,” but there’s still a lot to be said for taking the time and making the effort to have bonds with other human beings.

Do you have any thoughts about the future of AI?

I have so many thoughts! I’d love to share them… But I’m incorporating them in my next book.

Can’t wait to find out what they are and to read about the characters who’ll show them to us.

Did you have an interesting or fun experiences while writing or researching the book?Cover of book, AI Incident

One of the most interesting experiences I had was a long interview with a retired social services caseworker. This person spent decades working with foster children in Colorado, and she shared incredible stories about her time managing care plans for hundreds of children.

I learned so much about how being untethered from a family impacts not only the children, but also the biological parents or guardians, foster parents, adoptive parents, and the adults in the foster care system who support them all.

Yes, it does. My sister was a caseworker, so I’ve heard some of those stories firsthand.

What was the most surprising thing you learned about yourself as you wrote this book?

As I mentioned, loneliness is one of the key themes in The AI Incident. While writing and editing this book, I allowed myself to explore memories of how I felt when I was deeply lonely. That’s how I realized the extent to which emotions seep into our thoughts, our dreams, our muscles and our bones. I gave many of those physical reactions to the book’s characters. I think I changed as much as they did by the story’s end.

Did you find this harder or easier to write than your previous book? And why?

I am extremely intimidated by a blank page. Writing the words “Chapter One” is very difficult for me. However, once I got started writing The AI Incident, I found the process of creating this book to be easier than creating my debut. I had more discipline. I had a writing schedule that I at least felt guilty about ignoring. I had more confidence, I guess. Also, I was paired with Levine Querido’s executive editor once again. This helped make revision my favorite part of creating this book.

We did ask you some questions about yourself last time, but if you don’t mind giving us another peek into your life, we have a few more.

Do you have any special childhood memories connected with books and/or writing?

I do! Both of these will definitely date me, but the first is reading under the blankets with a book illuminated by a flashlight when I was a kid. I was supposed to be sleeping, but I would get so immersed in whatever I was reading that I couldn’t bear to stop. I don’t hide under the covers these days, but I have been known to read through the night when I’m enraptured by a story.

The second is when I discovered that I didn’t have to be bound by the end credits of my favorite TV program, which was Star Trek. I would watch the reruns over and over after school. I watched them so much that I could recite the dialogue along with the actors.

At some point, I discovered that I could write fanfic featuring my take on these beloved characters. Not only did I enjoy that immensely, but my first published work was a Star Trek story.

Did you have any favorite subjects in elementary or middle school? And why did you like them?

I was definitely a fan of language arts in elementary and middle school. My imagination was like a wild pony trapped in a corral. When I had the opportunity to let it run free and create stories, I had a wonderful time.

What was your most difficult challenge during those years?

This may be surprising given that I incorporate science fiction in my work, but math and science were not easy for me. Physics was a disaster! I started college intending to become a veterinarian because I love animals, but I eventually had to admit that a job with deep roots in math and science wasn’t in the cards for me.

If you could be a fictional character from literature for one day, who would you be and why?

My answer to that question will change week to week, and likely hour by hour—but at this moment, I would swap places with Ryland Grace, the middle school teacher in Andy Weir’s Project Hail Mary. I would be the character near the end of the book, though. The edge of your seat escapades in the middle of the book are wonderful to read, but I wouldn’t want to deal with them in real life. The end of the book—which I won’t reveal because … spoilers—is something I would like to experience.

I’m sure readers would love to know: What are you working on right now?

I am excited to say that I have three projects underway: a YA anthology of, no surprise, science fiction short stories; an adult sci-fi novel; and an audio drama, which is a format I’m very excited to explore.

Can’t wait to see these books come out! I’m sure everyone will be eagerly awaiting the releases.

Thanks ever so much for being with us today. We wish you much success and happiness on your writing journey.

ABOUT THE BOOK: THE AI INCIDENT

Malcolm Montgomery is the new kid at Shirley Chisholm Charter Middle School. In no time at all, he’s been slapped with the weird kid label. Is it because he’s a foster kid who’s been in nine homes? Or maybe because he burps when he gets nervous…which is often? Malcolm has a plan to finally get adopted by a forever family before it’s too late. But then on Visiting Professionals’ Day, his school invites Dr. Alphonse Hatch, president of Hatch-ED—one of the fastest-growing artificial intelligence companies in the state—to give a presentation. Dr. Hatch brings his AI-powered robot, and events get set in motion that create…THE INCIDENT.

An irresistible MG novel about the role of AI in schools and in our lives…and what it means to be human.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

J.E. Thomas grew up near Colorado’s Front Range mountains. She spent her early summers stuffing grocery bags with books at the local library, reading feverishly, then repeating the process week after week. J.E. has bachelors’ degrees in Mass Communications and Political Science, as well as a master’s degree in Public Communications. Her first book, Control Freaks, was a People Magazine Summer Must-Read and a “Best of the Best” pick by the Black Caucus of the ALA.

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