One of the most frequently asked questions at my in person events is where I get my inspiration from. Without fail, I always struggle coming up with a satisfactory answer.
But the truth is that inspiration as a writer comes from everywhere. It comes from every experience, every moment, every interaction we have. Our pasts will always color the way we tell our stories. They will always inform the way we describe settings, develop characters, and what twists and turns the plot takes.
What I’ve come to realize, is that my voice, my author “brand” if you will (can you tell I’ve been researching better ways to market myself and my books?!), is heavily influenced by my background in biology and teaching. I went into my undergraduate studies pursuing a dream of a career in medicine, mixing my desire to help others with my passion for learning about the natural world. I earned my Bachelor’s degree in Biology, however after a semester in Copenhagen (the DIS program is AMAZING, check it out if you’re considering studying abroad) with more hands-on experience in the medical field, I decided that wasn’t what I wanted to do with the rest of my life.
I took a year off to regroup and work the family vegetable farm. (Forgot to mention that. I grew up tilling, planting, harvesting, and selling veggies every summer whether I liked it or not. As a kid, it was hard to work all summer instead of hanging out with friends, but now I can see all the ways it shaped me into who I am today. No wonder the natural world always called to me!) During that time, I explored different opportunities and career paths and eventually settled on teaching.
So I applied and earned my Master’s degree along with my teaching license in high school and middle school science. I taught for four years at my alma mater and loved interacting with the kiddos and seeing them find the awe in the forces and processes of the natural world. From the crashing waves of the ocean to the cellular processes happening at a microscopic level, our bodies and the world around us is extraordinary.
As the years went on, I became a better teacher, but the workload, administrative red tape and oversight, and the pandemic all took its toll. I found myself burning out with no way to slow or stop it.
So I quit.
It was an empowering and pivotal point in my career. I had been writing a book in my downtime on and off for a couple years before I left teaching. After a bunch of research and reflecting, I decided to pursue a career in writing more aggressively.
It’s been a wild ride, but I absolutely love what I do. Still navigating the best ways to get my books into the hands of the right readers, but becoming a twin mom and learning how to juggle kids with my career has been challenging.
Regardless, all these experiences only make my writing richer and my characters more authentic.
And that’s the answer I struggle to find every time someone asks for my inspiration. The short answer, everywhere, the longer answer, from my experiences on the farm, studying the natural world, in the classroom, and as a parent.
Maybe now I’ll be able to better articulate where ideas spark from in this intricate, somewhat disorganized, creative mind of mine.