Friends,
meet Carolyn Bennett Fraiser, an accomplished writer, graphic
designer, and missionary whom I had the privilege of meeting several
years ago at the Carolinas SCBWI Conference. We reconnected again
when she stepped up to be the critique coordinator for our region
after I resigned. Thank you, Carolyn. And as writers are wont to do,
there’s always some shoptalk. I noticed she also had a book coming
out from Reycraft and since they make beautiful books (why yes, I’m
biased!) I got a copy of it and knew I had to share it with you
all. Moon Tree is a lesson in being attentive, developing laser-sharp
focus on the little known yet interesting stories all around us.
Congratulations
on the publication of Moon Tree: The Story of One Extraordinary Tree.
I have never known about this forgotten chapter in our history. It is
indeed a captivating story, beautifully written, illustrated by
Simona Mulazzani. Thank you for taking the time to chat about it. I
see that you have another book about Moons, so I’m curious, which
book came to you first? And if you are obsessed with moons? Or trees? 
For
me, Moon Tree came first. I was fascinated with the story of
astronaut Stuart Roosa and the moon trees and spent a couple of years
researching then finding the right structure to use for the story.
After it was under contract, I was contacted by an educational
publisher to do the book on Moons. Of course, I accepted. Since
educational publishing typically is faster than trade publishing, it
beat Moon Tree by one month! But having them release together was
such perfect timing!
Serendipitous! I do love that about educational publishing.
I
think I’m a bit obsessed with both moons and trees! I’ve loved
star-gazing since I was a kid and growing up just south of Cape
Kennedy in Florida, space was always a topic of discussion in our
house. My dad loved space too! But I also enjoyed nature. My favorite
place to read was at the top of a tree in our back yard. My mom
always knew where to find me for dinner. So you could say that I love
both very much. Moon Tree was the perfect combination!
Indeed! Isn’t
nonfiction writing just the perfect vehicle for people like us who
are piqued by one little fact and then go chasing it down a rabbit
hole? And of course, we’re rewarded with stories!
Absolutely
yes! Once I saw my first moon tree, I couldn’t let it go. I dove
into research and followed every rabbit hole I could. I’m glad I
did! Stuart’s personal journey was fascinating in itself, but I
didn’t stumble across the story of the third-grade class until I
was months into my research. That made it a “must tell” story!
And you do so beautifully. “In
a forest of ordinary trees, one sycamore has a secret few people
know, a story unearthed in the stars. It all begins...with…” Your
writing is so lyrical and poetic. I’ve got to know whether you had
that beautiful voice from the very beginning? I’d like to think
that even if you started out with a clunky draft, you could somehow
feel the poetry underneath and brought it out during revisions.
Oh
no. That would’ve been way too easy! My first draft was written in
a very straightforward, expository format. I had sidebars and
everything! I think my initial word count was up around 1500. I
worked in as many details as I could. There was no poetic quality
about it. Then I experimented with a very casual telling of the story
from the perspective of the tree. I was still trying to find my own
voice as an author and honestly didn’t know what would work. I
submitted that version widely, but it didn’t sell. Then in a single
day, I received two rejections: one editor loved the voice but
thought the topic was too niche, then an agent loved the topic but
hated the voice! It really is all about perspective, isn’t it?
Anyhow, the agent suggested I try a more lyrical voice. I was
thrilled – I loved lyrical voice! So I took some time to figure out
the best way to restructure the story with the right voice, and it
worked.
I
do so love revising because that’s when I can see what was
originally in my imagination look more like it on paper.
Absolutely.
It took me months after that to find the right angle, but once I did,
it all fell into place. Isn’t it great when a manuscript just
clicks together like that?
How I wish it happened more often and more quickly! I’d
like to know if there are some interesting tidbits that didn’t make
it into the book.
Well,
the manuscript went from 1500 words to 350, so a lot of details had
to be cut. I did fit a lot of that into the back matter, but not
every detail made sense for the book. Since the main focus of the
book was on the seedlings, I included as much as I could about that
story line.
One
thing I didn’t have room for was the history behind the quarantine
process. Astronauts from Apollo 11, 12, and 14 had to be quarantined
for 3 weeks because the government was afraid they would bring back
“moon bugs” from the surface of the moon. Everything had to be
decontaminated including the seeds. That’s when the container broke
in a vacuum chamber. After Apollo 14, the government realized it was
unnecessary. But the fun part is that they didn’t take the law off
the books until the early 1990s!
Most
of what I had to cut were parts of Stuart’s story. He was shy,
red-headed boy from Oklahoma who followed his dreams – even in the
midst of the highly competitive arena of space travel. But he also
had a mischievous sense of humor, so that made some of his stories
fun. Faith also played a big part of his life, but after he traveled
into space, he began talking about it more. The journey seemed to
draw him closer to God.
I definitely wanted to know more about Stuart. So thank you. Please
tell us a little about your writing journey, both the craft and
business of it, given you’ve done such a wide variety of it.
That’s
a whole different interview! I’ve loved reading and writing since
elementary school. I studied it in college and even went on to get a
master’s degree. I’ve written for nonprofit organizations for
almost 20 years and a lot in the Christian magazine market. I was
able to make a career of it because I didn’t limit myself to just
writing one specific things like books. I was open to all kinds of
writing. And it’s made me a better writer.
That
said, I thought my experience would make it easy to transition into
writing for children. It didn’t. I knew how to write, but I spent
almost 10 years learning the craft before publishing Moon Tree. But
learning how to write for children has made me a better writer
overall. I write more concisely and can break down difficult concepts
in a way that I couldn’t do before. That has helped me write better
copy for my day job.
What’s
next for you? I see M is for Mason Jar: An ABC for Young Homesteaders
is in the pipeline. What a terrific idea! We’ve been practicing
permaculture techniques in our backyard for the past few years but
we’re nowhere close to being homesteaders. My husband is a keeper
of bees, however! Do tell us more about your property. Pictures? Oh my! I'm salivating. Your property is both beautiful and bountiful. What a great blessing!
We
have about an acre of land in western North Carolina but by no means
is it a fully operational homestead. We do what we can to work with
the land to stay healthy and save money along the way. We have a
large vegetable garden. I grow and dry herbs. I even forage
dandelions for a skin salve. We preserve a year’s supply of tomato
sauce, pickles, jams, pesto, etc. I make our own bone broth as well
as cleaning sprays, and laundry soap. We just finished building our
chicken coop and hope to have chickens in residence next spring. My
husband chops any wood from downed trees on our property that we use
for fuel in the winter. We try to incorporate one new thing every
year, but lack of time is often our enemy.
I
actually wrote M is for Mason Jar on a dare. A homesteading group
that I belong to online had a fun thread about the ABCs of
homesteading during the pandemic. It was a very adult version, so I
joked with my husband about writing a children’s version. He
challenged me to do it, so I did. I never thought it would be
published, but Familius Publishing picked it up and it is scheduled
for release in Fall, 2024.
(Note:
M is for Mason Jar is a tentative title; it has not been officially
announced yet and is subject to change).
I love that you wrote M is for Mason Jar on a dare! Congratulations!!! Here's to many more beautiful books.
I've been home for two months now and getting ready to go on another trip. Lots to catch up on. While I was gone, my review of He Leadeth Me: An Extraordinary Testament of Faith by Fr. Walter Ciszek was published in the Advent-Christmas 2022 issue of The Star, our parish newsletter (reproduced below). And I turned in my Apologia essay, Falling, for The Lamp. I was hoping it'd be published in the Easter issue but they did one better and it's in the Lenten issue that's dedicated to Pope Benedict XVI. May he rest in heavenly peace! I can't wait for my own copy.
