Goodreads asked Karen Autio:

How do you get inspired to write?

Karen Autio It's different for each project. For GROWING UP IN WILD HORSE CANYON, it was the real canyon by that name near where I live where wild horses used to roam. I soaked up everything I could find about the canyon and then wanted to share what I learned with readers in an accessible format.

For KAH-LAN AND THE STINK-INK, I've loved sea otters from first sight in the 1980s at the Vancouver Aquarium. It was there I learned how dangerous an oil spill is for these marine mammals, and discovered while doing research for this book that a spill of diluted bitumen would wipe out the sea otter population in the affected area. I wanted to write a story that accurately portrays the serious threat and how people can be of greatest help to oiled otters. In B.C., sea otters are migrating south into more heavily populated areas so that animal–human interaction is increasing.

The idea for MAKING SEAKER was sparked by a librarian's request for a local story, and the 80-year-old book PADDLE-TO-THE-SEA inspired me to write this contemporary STEM novel set in the town of Nipigon, Ontario, where I grew up.

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