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STEM Tuesday– Glow in the Dark — Book List

By on October 1, 2024   /   Bioluminescence, STEM Tuesday  

Ever wonder about fireflies or glowing ocean waves? Scientists are discovering just how many plants and animals use biofluorescence, bioluminescence, and ultra-violet light and how we might use these phenomena in the future.  

Mysterious Glowing Mammals: An Unexpected Discovery Sparks a  Scientific Investigation by Maria Parrott-Ryan

When a forest ecologist took an ultraviolet flashlight outside one night, he discovered something unexpected – a flying squirrel that glowed bright pink! The squirrel wasn’t making its own light using chemicals. Instead, it absorbed UV light and released it as the pink glow. This book dives into biofluorescence in animals and outlines future directions for scientific study.

Nature at Night by Lisa Regan

This visually stunning photo-illustrated book explores the ways plants and animals use biofluorescence, bioluminescence, and ultra-violet light for hunting, mating, or camouflage. In addition to aquatic animals, it also examines some unusual land-based ones, such as fungi, click beetles, chameleons, polka dot tree frogs, swallowtail butterflies, scorpions, and puffins. Texturing on a number of pages provides a glow-in-the-dark feature and the pronunciation guides in the text and glossary help with the scientific terminology.

Curious Creatures Glowing in the Dark by Zoë Armstrong, illustrated by Anja Sušanj

A fascinating lower middle grade text, which combines an evaluation of biofluorescence and bioluminescence with a wide range of historic and recent research by scientists and some intriguing future possibilities. The engaging text, detailed illustrations, and “Just Like You“ sidebars relate the numerous animal’s use of light to human actions. 

Glow Down Deep: Amazing Creatures That Light Up by Lisa Regan

In this second glow-in-the-dark book, which focuses on biofluorescence and bioluminescence in the ocean, stunning close-up photographs stand out against dark backgrounds. Ranging from tiny krill to delicate sea pens and fanged dragonfish to the unusual chain catshark, this stunning book discusses many well-known and also lesser-known sea creatures and the myriad of reasons they use light, including unique methods of defense. Intriguing facts, pronunciation guides, “Did You Know” sidebars, and a glossary create a really engaging book on glowing sea life.

Living Light: Conserving Bioluminescent Plants and Animals (Orca Wild) by Stephen Aitken

This book explores light made and used by living organisms, from fireflies to fungi to creatures in the darkest deep ocean. It also shines a light on research using bioluminescence to learn more about cancer and other diseases in humans. It ends with environmental threats, and actions people can take to conserve habitats that glow-in-the-dark creatures depend on.

Glow: The Wild Wonders of Bioluminescence  by Jennifer N R Smith

An oversize overview of bioluminescent organisms. From fungal fairy lights to denizens of the deepest sea, this book shows how light is used to communicate, attract, protect, and warn. One section features the anatomy of bioluminescence, another highlights current research.

Lights on! Animals that glow (series) by Joyce Markovics

This series of six books highlights fireflies, octopuses and squid, deep sea fish, jellyfish, shrimp and krill, and plankton. Easy-to-understand explanation of how bioluminescence works, animal adaptations, and conservation issues.

DK Bioluminescent Animals by Ruth Musgrave

A great high-low reader about fascinating glowing creatures. This photo-illustrated book offers a quick note about glowing snails, fireflies, and railway worms, then dives into a look at bioluminescent animals in the sea. Exposing many using light to hide, form glowing goo, trick predators or prey, and stump scientists. Lots of detailed information and a glossary make this a great introduction to the science of  bioluminescence.

Cold Light: Creatures, Discoveries, and Inventions That Glow by Anita Sitarski

The conversational tone of this fascinating photo-illustrated book creates an easily accessible evaluation of the many scientists involved in the creation and study of the science of bioluminescence from 1602 to the invention of chemical luminescence and LEDs.   

This month’s STEM Tuesday book list was prepared by:

Sue Heavenrich, author

Sue Heavenrich, who writes about science for children and their families on topics ranging from space to backyard ecology. Bees, flies, squirrel behavior—things she observes in her neighborhood and around her home—inspire her writing. Visit her at www.sueheavenrich.com.

Maria Marshall, a children’s author, blogger, and poet who is passionate about making nature and reading fun for children. When not writing, critiquing, or reading, she watches birds, travels the world, bakes, and hikes. Visit her at www.mariacmarshall.com.

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Editor Spotlight With Hannah Kimber

By on September 29, 2024   /   Articles, Editor / Agent Spotlight  

I’m thrilled to welcome Andrews McMeel Kids editor Hannah Kimber to the Mixed-Up Files. She is the proud cat mom of Gordo, Kiko, and Pickle. She is also my editor for HART & SOULS. I am so grateful she could tear herself away from work and her fur babies long enough to share her wisdom and publishing insights. 

Let’s do this!  (Meow) 

Lisa: Hi, Hannah! Please tell us a bit about Andrews McMeel Kids.

Hannah: Andrews McMeel is known in the publishing world for its high quality webcomic collections, poetry, and of course a handful of middle grade bestsellers like Big Nate, Phoebe and Her Unicorn, and Trapped in a Video Game. In the last few years we’ve added some amazing titles to our kids’ roster, including Meems and Feefs, Pocket Peaches, Enola Holmes Graphic Novel Series and Cat Ninja. Our kids’ publishing program acts as an extension of our history in newspaper comic syndication: high quality graphic novels that inspire, delight, and make reading fun! In addition to graphic novels, we have illustrated middle grade prose (Matt Sprouts and the Curse of the Ten Broken Toes, Hart & Souls, and the Show Strides series), non-fiction, and younger reader graphic novel formats (Bean the Stretchy Dragon, Birtle and the Purple Turtles, and Kitten Ninja). At Andrews McMeel we hope to connect to the—not necessarily reluctant or hesitant, but—”distracted” reader. 

Lisa: How did you get involved with children’s publishing?

Hannah: I started as an assistant to the Andrews McMeel CEO, Kirsty Melville. This was a really unique position because I got to see the business from the top down. Kirsty is a very hands-on publisher and the team is intimate, so I was able to participate in a variety of meetings and tasks related to publishing on both the editorial and the sales and marketing side. I initially thought I wanted to work in adult publishing, but then I met Erinn Pascal, our fantastic Senior Editor, and working with her convinced me that kidlit was the place to be—it’s meaningful, rewarding, and SO much fun! I love that working in children’s publishing reminds me not to take myself so seriously.

Lisa: What middle grade books inspired you as a child?   

Hannah: I’m peak Millennial, so I have to, of course, say Harry Potter. I remember staying up late, the night before I started a new school. I couldn’t sleep but was immediately comforted by escaping into the world of Harry Potter! I was a big fan of fantasy, so I also loved reading The Chronicles of Narnia, His Dark Materials, and even Lord of the Rings when I was a bit too young to truly take it in, but was excited about the movies coming out (I reread it later in college).

 I had a lot of other one-off books that also inspired me. I loved Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine, Holes by Louis Sachar, and Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls. I grew up in Kansas so I also had a particular affinity for the Laura Ingalls Wilder series! I loved anything that was an escape.

Lisa: What middle grade books are you working on now that you’re excited about?

Hannah: I’m doing a lot of graphic novels, which is really fun because my educational background is in art/art history. It’s so fun to not only be stretching my writing muscles all the time, but extending that to visual storytelling and the way that the text and the images work together. I just finished working on a great graphic novel called Life Really Socks about a pair of socks where one “twin” gets lost in a washing machine portal. It’s clever and silly—my favorite!

Lisa: What tips do you have for writers regarding writing and submitting?

Hannah: Don’t give up! But also, don’t linger. Let me explain: Try to remember that publishing and in general the book market is very cyclical. What may be rejected or not sought after for a period of time can also see a resurgence in many ways later down the road. That isn’t to say that we should be repeating things we’ve done in the past, but rather adding new and modern spins to them. If you have a project that continues to get rejected—don’t necessarily give up on it. It’s okay to keep it on the back burner for a while and revisit it later when it may be more viable on the market. And similarly, don’t linger on a project so long that you forget that you have other projects inside of you, too! Keep writing, keep creating, keep being curious and seeing what is out there.

Lisa: What advice would you give to a debut author? Both in terms of writing and working with an editor?

Hannah: In writing and in terms of working with an editor I would say be flexible and open to collaboration! Editors are kind of interesting people because we have to have both the creative side (type B) and the business side (type A). As a fellow creative, I know how vulnerable it can be to put your work out there, and I try to always respect that in the work I do with authors. The business side of me also wants the project to be the best that it can be based on the knowledge I’ve gathered working as an editor, and the knowledge my team brings to the table! I think it is the most fun for both author and editor when the creative process is a respectful collaboration. And I think that creating kidlit should be fun, honestly!

Lisa: What are some under-represented MG topics you’d like to see more of?

Hannah: I think we are lucky to be in a time where people are becoming more cognizant that there has been a lack of topics, themes, or voices on the market. At Andrews McMeel we are constantly striving to make sure that our books do not reflect one world view or theme, and we are also very careful to make sure that a variety of people with a variety of backgrounds work on each of our books to ensure that they are authentic, sensitive, and relatable. That being said, there are still plenty of topics out there that are not being covered by authors! For example, mythology is a very trendy theme but we still see a lot of Greek or Western-centric mythology. I also am loving the recent surge in middle-grade novels-in-verse. It seems like this format can tackle a lot of themes or topics that may be untouched because they are sensitive (i.e. grief, death, bullying, etc.) I think that whatever theme authors are writing about, as long as it is authentic and comes from a sincere place, then there is a place for it out there!

Lisa: What makes your eyes light up and your heart sing when scanning the submissions folder?

Hannah: A proposal that helps me answer the hard questions! Don’t be afraid to position your proposal and envision it on the market. Don’t be afraid to have comp titles or potential BISAC codes! I think some people can be worried about putting labels on their work too soon and having that be a turn off, but publishers are going to change BISACs/positioning ideas/etc. as they see best for the book. As an editor, what I love is when I can see that the author has thought through some of these questions and really knows their work inside and out. Obviously the real work begins when the deal is made, and many of those things can change. But what doesn’t change is my impression that the author is thinking through all of the decisions related to their book!

About Hannah: 

Hannah Kimber has been with Andrews McMeel since 2019. In 2016, Hannah graduated with her MA in English Literature from Saint Louis University in Madrid, Spain. After three years of living and working in Madrid, Hannah moved back to her hometown of Kansas City and started working as a store manager at Barnes & Noble, a dream-come-true for anyone who understands a serious book-buying addiction. While pursuing a role in publishing, Hannah encountered Andrews McMeel—an independent publishing house right in her own backyard. After joining AMU as an assistant to President & Publisher Kirsty Melville, Hannah was able to get a top-down view of the publishing business.

As an editor, she mainly acquires children’s books in the upper middle grade age-range, with the occasional adult humor or comics collection. Hannah also works on licensed projects in both the children’s and adult categories. Middle grade and YA graphic novels and illustrated fiction are always welcome, but she also enjoys projects that play with format and design in interesting ways. Fantasy, adventure, and historical and contemporary fiction are her favorite themes. She appreciates stories told from a fresh perspective.

To learn more, please check out her Manuscript Wishlist .

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Matt De La Pena looking down court with middle grade novel as picture book sets to release

By on September 26, 2024   /   Author Interviews, Fiction  

By Faran Fagen

Acclaimed author Matt De La Pena’s newest picture book, Home, is coming out in March. However, his little-kept secret is that he’s working on his first middle grade novel in many years that comes out in 2026. Matt zoomed in with the Mixed-Up-Files to tell us about his dive into middle grade amid the release of his latest picture book and other adventures.

Q: Where did your travels take you just before this interview?

A: Well, I just visited the Galapagos Islands on family vacation. Just before that, however, I was in author mode at the Juvenile Detention Center in Fresno, California. I had some powerful interactions with young children there. What I found most interesting about that visit was that the children on the inside are even deeper into the reading world than children on the outside. One kid said to me, ‘When I’m in my cell and reading one of your books it’s like I have a TV on inside my head.’ I’ll never forget that.

Q: What’s happening with your latest project, Home, which comes out March 11?

A: My newest picture book, Home, is a follow-up to LOVE, which is also illustrated by Loren Long. I set out to write this book during the pandemic. One of the things I was curious about during this time was what’s important to you when you’re stuck at home. The natural world relates what is ours. Home is the place we live. But the Earth is our home too. Home contemplates the idea that family is home. That’s how we connect to love. The spiritual aspect of home is what’s most important. Over the course of time, love is interrupted by adversity. But home is safe.

Q: Your books are full of metaphors for love and other key elements of our lives. Can you point out a powerful metaphor in Home?

A: A lot of people encounter the possibility of losing their home, whether it’s a natural disaster or losing a job, or other things. Probably the most important metaphor in Home is a big tree just outside the house. The tree is damaged in a severe storm. The neighborhood is rebuilt, but the injured tree remains among new plants and continues to grow. The tree is a symbol of resilience – the resilience of the human population. Home is the intersection of the natural world and the human world.

Q: You have such strong themes in your books, whether it’s love, home or resilience. Even going back to your YA books such as Sticky’s resilience in Ball Don’t Lie. Do you write with the intention of exploring these themes?

A: It’s an accident. Basically, I write each book by thinking ‘what am I most curious about’, and then go on that journey with my character. The ultimate crime in fiction is to let the message outpace the story. It’s more along the lines that my books are the things I’m curious about. This goes back to the idea that authors write about the same things in a different way.

Q: I’m sure our Mixed-Up-Files readers would love to hear about your Middle Grade book coming out in 2026. Can you talk about it?

A: I spent the last one-and-a-half years on this middle grade, and I probably had more fun writing it than any other book. It’s about an eighth-grader whose basketball skills get noticed by a powerhouse program in a distant neighborhood. They want him as the starting point guard, but he has to move in with a new family, away from his rough neighborhood. He has to choose at a young age whether to follow ambition or family, and every chapter explores that decision. The book is about the father and son relationship as well as what it means to be a boy/man. Just about all my books are about class and what it means to be a man, and this is no different.

Q: What’s it like writing middle grade after spending so much time with picture books?

A: I feel like a rookie. I’m learning so much about Middle Grade. What I love is there’s so much depth in Middle Grade even though at times it’s not as edgy as YA.

Q: Speaking of picture books, what was it like promoting Milo Imagines the World on Good Morning America?

A: It was amazing. The coolest thing about it was that I got messages from people outside of the book world. People who knew nothing about the book sent me all sorts of emails.

Q: I know you can’t pick a favorite book of yours, but which one of your books is speaking to you right now?

A: We Were Here is probably my favorite YA of mine right now. Everything I learned in writing Mexican Whiteboy I applied to We Were Here. A couple of moments hit me hard just thinking about them. Like when Mong walks into the water and we see him disappear. Mong wants to be in control of how he dies. It’s so sad. He leaves the message ‘We Were Here’. ‘We Were Here’ explores marginal people and how they want the world to know they exist.

Q: What’s the biggest difference writing Middle Grader as opposed to Young Adult and Picture Book?

A: When you first become an author, some people survive by reading. I wasn’t a huge reader. I came into this world as a writer

 

N

first. I often experience books in the world I’m writing for the first time. I’m blown away by the Middle Grade books I’m reading while writing my own Middle Grade. These books make me feel so lucky that I can do this too.

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