Jessica Speart's Blog - Posts Tagged "jessica-speart"

I attended the Bug Fair at the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History a few weeks ago and came home with a bunch of questions swirling around in my head. Here are a few that beg an answer.

1. Why does a pest control company sponsor the Bug Fair? Oddly enough, Western Exterminator Company is the proud sponsor of the Bug Fair. Terminix also had a booth there. Doesn't that seem a bit odd? I guess my confusion stems from the fact that, as far as I know, the purpose of the Bug Fair is to make people aware of how incredible bugs and butterflies are. Having an exterminator company as the sponsor seems rather contradictory. Isn't it their job to kill bugs? I'm still trying to figure this one out. Perhaps they promote the Fair in order to ensure there will always be a multitude of bugs. After all, exterminator companies need bugs to zap. Otherwise, they'd be out of business. So, I guess promoting bugs really does make sense.

2. What is it with kids and tarantulas? And who knew they had such a fascination with them? Every other kid walking around the Fair seemed to have a Tupperware container with a live tarantula squirming inside. Come to think of it, mayber Tupperware should be the Fair's sponsor. Thank God for those tight fitting lids. I'd hate to see eight hairy legs peering out at me. Do kids actually play with tarantulas, anyway? Whatever happened to doing something constructive with their day, such as playing computer games? I mean really, how much fun can it be to watch a tarantula eat a few live crickets every week? Or do these unnaturally hairy, scary spiders have hidden attributes that I don't know about?

3. Okay, who would be a grasshopper for $4,500? Yes, that's right - $4,500. No joke. There actually was a grasshopper on sale for that price by the name of Tropidacris dux monster. That translates into 'Giant Brown Cricket.' Personally, I think it's false advertising. This bug isn't a cricket but a gigantic grasshopper with abnormally huge wings. How big is this thing? Large enough so that hunters once mistook them for birds in flight. You might shoot it too if you saw one flying at you.

4. What makes someone decide to become an insect chef and who really wants to eat mealy worms, scorpions, ants and giant water bugs? It doesn't matter to me if they're sauteed, filleted, barbecued or roasted. Okay, okay. I know bugs are the terrestrial cousins of shrimp and lobster (which I happen to really love) and eating them is supposed to be good for the planet. I don't care. This is where I draw the line. A slice of banana worm bread, anyone?

"This book reads like a novel. It must have been fictionalized. You made up the dialogue, right?"

I’ve been hearing that a lot lately in regard to WINGED OBSESSION. The answer is no: the events as told are absolutely true. And no: Kojima said things that even I couldn’t have imagined.

WINGED OBSESSION is what is called narrative, or creative, nonfiction. That doesn’t mean I made up the story. The book is factually accurate, but purposely written to read like fiction. Basically, narrative nonfiction is fact-based storytelling. The writer works to create a compelling narrative that will, hopefully, keep the reader turning each page. This is done by applying some of the same skills that are used in fiction – setting each scene, presenting fascinating characters and creating a strong narrative persona.

"Still, you must have taken some creative license with the events. How else could you know what the characters in your story are thinking?"

That’s easy. It just requires exhaustive research and that’s something I truly enjoy. I love digging into actual events. What’s more fun than trying to figure out what compels people to do what they do? The great thing about narrative nonfiction is that it doesn’t have to be told as purely objective journalism. You’re allowed to bring emotion to your characters and create a sense of drama while following a story arc.

I know I’m reading good narrative nonfiction when my attention is riveted and I can’t put the book down.

Here are some of my all-time favorites:

“In Cold Blood” by Truman Capote. Talk about chilling! This book still haunts me. And it was the first of its kind.

“Into Thin Air” by Jon Krakauer. Not only did this guy climb Mt. Everest, he then wrote a bestseller about it.

“The Orchid Thief” by Susan Orlean. Need I say more?

“Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil” by John Berendt. Thus began my love affair with Savannah.

“Praying for Sheet Rock,” by Melissa Fay Greene. Okay, I admit it. I’m fascinated with the South.

“The Perfect Storm” by Sebastian Junger. A great book. The author’s not bad looking, either.

The fact that such outrageous, fascinating and shocking events actually happened makes them all the more compelling. There’s no escaping the old adage: the truth is stranger than fiction.

Narrative nonfiction provides the best of both worlds.
Winged Obsession: The Pursuit of the World's Most Notorious Butterfly Smuggler

Yay!! I just managed to upload the first of ten books in my Rachel Porter Mystery Series. Gator Aide is finally an ebook! http://amzn.to/IF0qqr

I've been hard at work this summer converting more Rachel Porter stories into ebooks. I now have 5 more to add to the growing list.

1. TORTOISE SOUP can be found at: amzn.to/Uslv8M

2. BIRDBRAINED: amzn.to/Nd5T8T

3. BORDER PREY: amzn.to/Q8607s

4. BLACK DELTA NIGHT: amzn.to/OPL69l

5. A KILLING SEASON: amzn.to/OXTwvR

Six down. Four more to go!