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MEET EDITH HOPE FINE (8/2011)
by Bonnie O'Brian

What did you most like to do when you were a child?

Edith Hope Fine

Our neighborhood was filled with kids. We played Red Rover, Statue, Hide in the Dark. We made a circus, put on plays, wrote newsletters that we peddled for a nickel, took ballet lessons in Susie Cooper’s basement. Bikes. Roller skates. My bro was the pogo stick champ and we had fun playing with our good old dog, Miscellaneous Hope Come Here. Down at the playground, we played softball—just kids, no adults. What a concept. Plus the solitary joy of climbing the cherry tree in the back yard with a good book.

Did you write stories when you were growing up? at school? Or at home as a hobby? As a young child, or as a teenager, or both?

We did write stories and drew Crayola illustrations in school. But my bro and me often listened to old stories told by my mom. “Far away and over the hills . . .,” she’d begin. And books. Once I figured out how to read, I was hooked. In sixth grade I wrote a crazy dictionary—lots of invented words. My mom typed the whole thing, A to Z, on her Corona typewriter—small pages for a little black notebook with 6 rings, reinforcing the idea that words are cool. I still have it. Looking back, I realize I’ve always been fascinated by words—real ones, especially those with intriguing Greek and Latin roots, and ones I made up. And today you can still find invented words in my books. Little did I know that my fascination with Greek and Latin would lead to CRYPTOMANIA! TELEPORTING INTO GREEK AND LATIN WITH THE CRYPTOKIDS, an adventure picture book that introduces 200 basic Greek and Latin roots. Illustrator Kim Doner really “got” the book. Her vision of the five CryptoKids and the places they visit in their refrigerator box Teleporter is perfect. (This book is temporarily out of print, but stayed tuned. Plans are afoot.)    (www.cryptokids.com)

When you went to college, were you already pursuing a writing career?

Absolutely not. I never dreamed that I could be a writer, despite one high school English teacher who clued me in that perhaps I had a way with words. I became a teacher, a profession I loved, before I turned to writing. In the beginning, I wrote for newspapers and magazines for several years, accumulating credits, then tackled the book market. Now I have fifteen books under my belt.

Do you focus on fiction or nonfiction? Which do you prefer? Do you find one easier than the other?

I write both F and NF. I like the mix, but bend toward fiction. Rather than “easier,” I’d say “different.” Some writers, like the amazing Jean Ferris, focus on one genre—in her case, YA. I’ve written across the board: science books, biographies, picture books, cartoon-filled grammar guides . . . whatever suits my fancy. With the two nature books, I got to visit the inside office of the Reptile House at the San Diego Zoo and consult with the herpetologist. Very Harry Patter. Writing nonfiction allows you to ask questions of experts—the kinds of things kids might wonder about. Through four biographies I’ve delved into the lives of people who’ve made a difference in our world: Geneticist Barbara McClintock, who received a Nobel at 81; Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King, Jr.; and writer Gary Paulsen who has brought so many people, especially boys, to reading, despite a lonely, harsh childhood. Picture books are exciting because you never know what remarkable things an illustrator will do while visually bringing your words to life for young readers. The NITTY-GRITTY GRAMMAR books? Hey, I had great teachers for grammar, so Judith Josephson and I developed a class for SDSU Extension based on the heaps of grammar-related cartoons we’d collected over the years. One day a guy said, on his way out the door, “Where’s the book?” A V-8 moment if there ever was one.  (www.edithfine.com           www.grammarpatrol.com)

What gave you the idea for WATER, WEED, AND WAIT?

A San Diego Master Gardener told co-author Angela Halpin and me that there were no school garden books for teachers to read to students. Aha—that proverbial “hole on the library shelf” that writers are always looking for! Angela started the school garden at her sons’ elementary school, so we proposed the idea to my CRYPTOMANIA! editor at Tricycle who had the vision to see this now-nationwide trend. We love Colleen Madden’s whimsical illustrations for WATER, WEED, AND WAIT, and her color palette. We’re still kind of stunned at how few kids can identify the most basic seeds—lima beans, radish, corn. We hope to get kids out in the fresh air, testing and tasting foods they’ve grown themselves. We’re honored that the book has been honored as a “Growing Good Kids—Excellence in Children’s Literature” winner by Junior Master Gardeners—a group that’s perfect fit for this book. And it’s cool that that actor/chef Jake Gyllenhaal has become an ambassador for the Edible Schoolyard program.  (www.edibleschoolyard.org    Book: www.waterweedwait.com )

 If some of your fiction stories are factual, do you write about people that you have been interested in for a long time

That’s certainly the case for ARMANDO AND THE BLUE TARP SCHOOLabout teacher David Lynch who went to Tijuana in 1980 to volunteer for a summer at the colonia by the municipal dump. Discovering that there was no school, he spread a blue tarp on the ground and began to teach. Today, thirty-one years later, he’s still at it. He’s built four schools and recently expanded his work to the dump outside Matagalpa, Nicaragua. Judith Josephson and I first did a feature story about him in 1985 for the Los Angeles Times and a reader sent money for his first school. David and his work stayed with us and we used a fictionalized boy, Armando, for the story. A playwright and composer read the book and created a musical based on it with a cast of 26 students, from third to eighth grade. David spoke to the packed audiences after all eight performances. Many in the audience had tears in their eyes listening to him describe his eager young students, the challenges in their lives, and how learning with David on the blue tarp changed their lives. (www.responsibilityonlne.com      www.bluetarpschool.com )

What do you most want the students to get out of your school visits?

I really miss being with kids in a classroom, so get a kick out of visiting schools. I touch on many aspects of writing in my interactive presentations—the importance of humor, bagging words that aren’t carrying their weight, the importance of finding that perfect verb. I show many versions of one manuscript, covered with scribbles and crossed out sections and marginalia, so kids understand that writing doesn’t happen with a finger-snap—it’s a process. I always have my eye out for those students with the gleam in their eyes who are thinking, “I wish I could write. I want to write.” I want them to think, “I can do this and I’m starting now.” For me, that’s the key.

Do you write every day and do you have set hours that you work?

I’m far too miscellaneous to have a set schedule and I can also turn on a dime, so my writing time is erratic. Plus, I learned from my parents the importance of spending time with friends and family. In truth, I’m an owl, so often write late into the night.

Do you work on more than one book at a time?

For sure. I have about four projects going at the moment . . . and I get lots of great input from my two critique groups. That’s where the magic happens—each person hears and comments on something different, starting with the positives. The positives are sometimes hard for writers to hear—we’re pretty self-critical, so outside eyes and ears are important to encourage and sustain our writing. Writers need bulldog persistence, even in the face of rejections. I’m excited that Kendra Marcus at BookStop Literary is now shopping my newest picture book.