Marianne D. Wallace - Writer and Illustrator of Nature, Plants and Animals

I know I usually write about nature topics but this time I want to write about food and fiction.

Some of you familiar with me or my work may already know that I am writing a young adult (YA) novel. And that novel has some elements that allow me to delve into my Greek heritage (I’m half Greek by birth). So, in the spirit of accurate research, I had Greek yogurt for lunch today. Unlike supermarket yogurt, the Greek stuff has a consistency somewhere between cream cheese and sour cream. I love the stuff. And a Southern California market called Trader Joe’s carries a non-fat version that I mix with Greek honey or granola (well, everything can’t be Greek).

So I’m eating this yogurt trying to mentally describe the texture and flavor and realize that I’m doing this because the old Greek guy in my YA novel is going to offer the lead character some yogurt. I didn’t know he was going to do that but I’ve come to trust that my characters sometimes know what they’re going to do before I do.

Which brings me from food to writing fiction... This is a new genre for me. I’ve written and illustrated non-fiction nature books for several years and, although I started many fiction picture books (that usually had a plant or animal element to them), I always filed them for later to focus on my non-fiction. Now that is changing.

I am reveling in the creative freedom writing fiction affords me. I’ve cried with my characters, I’ve gotten angry with them and I’ve laughed and smiled at what they’ve said and how they’ve acted. Some are arrogant, most are pretty good looking, and others I would love to chat with over a cup of tea if only they were real.

And, to bring this back to food, I can also sit outside at a cafe on a lovely spring day with a pad of paper and my turkey sandwich or tea latte and write. That may be the best part of writing fiction. Unlike non-fiction, which ties me to my research library, my data, and my Internet sources and sites, writing fiction can be done anywhere. Yes, I still write on my computer and research information on the Internet, but I can also write drafts of whole chapters or entire picture book manuscripts on that pad of lined paper.

So I’m off to get a snack – I feel some inspiration coming.

Marianne