Candace Fleming, award-winning author for Children's picture books and young adult nonfiction and fiction books, spoke at the 13th Annual Butler Lecture Series at Martin Recital Hall on Tuesday. Her lecture was followed by an audience Q&A, then a book signing alongside illustrator Eric Rohman who has illustrated many of Fleming's works.
In introductory remarks, Butler Center curator Jennifer Clemons described Fleming as a "friend to the University and Center,” having helped establish the Butler Center 15 years ago. Previous series speakers have included Kyle Lukoff (2024), Ebony Elizabeth Thomas and Renee Watson (2021), Andrea Davis Pinkney (2018), and Jane Yolen (2014).
Visceral Creativity
A theme throughout Fleming's address was tactile experiences during the processes of research and writing. When writing drafts, Fleming said she uses cheap blue pens. That way, after a hard day of writing, with blue ink stains on her arm she can truthfully say, “I'm blue…I wrote today."
Fleming also told a story from her youth, having just had her heart broken at a high school dance. Her mother's comfort came by means of a story from her own youth when she learned about the tragic disappearance of pilot Amelia Erhardt. Fleming remembers hearing how her mother “watched, waited, willed Amelia home” helped pull her from her own trifles and recognize the profound ways stories can be a window to empathize with feelings and experiences we don't participate in firsthand.
Like many creative souls, Fleming thrives on new experiences through travel to inspire her research. A trip to Egypt provided sensations of sand skittering beneath her feet and the dark, quiet of the tombs which informed The Curse of the Mummy: Uncovering Tutankhamun's Tomb.
Visiting Alexander Palace in St. Petersburgh, Russia allowed a critical shift in Fleming's perspective. Experiencing firsthand how close the palace gates were to the village and everyday life was a window into how the last czar family of Russia had created a psychological distance between themselves and those they were charged to lead. She then recognized that writing the award-winning The Family Romanov would need to include peasants, soldiers, and Revolutionaries to tell the story truthfully.
Finding the Story
“Searching and finding is not natural to me," said Fleming. When Dominican professor Cecilia Salvatore asked about her research process, Fleming admitted “It's so messy.” Sometimes an unexpected spark opens the path for a project for the author. After taking six full pages of notes on Faberge eggs, Fleming joked, the author turned course to research the exciting tale of the Russian Revolution.
Fleming described the research for what was initially meant to be a true crime story to be like lifting a rock. In The Rise and Fall of Charles Lindburgh, Fleming would write about the “underside” of a man's life who, while known to most as a national hero, was also part of a secret society of eugenicists and had secret families. “Research can take you to shocking places, and I wasn't ready for it,” she said.
Fleming prefers to do research with primary sources. “That's where the telling, intimate things are.” She begins a project by discovering which institution carries the most primary sources on her current topic of interest. Even if many documents are available digitally, Fleming prefers the hands-on experience of sifting through them. In researching for what would eventually be Amelia Lost: The Life and Disappearance of Amelia Earhart, Fleming parsed through hand-written letters of sympathy to George Putnam. This allowed her to read the endearingly personal notes Erhardt's widower put on the envelopes of these letters.
Fleming explained she has only begun to focus on nonfiction for young adult audiences in the last 5-8 years. She has a widely spanning oeuvre which includes many picture books as well as nonfiction and fiction books for older children. When an audience member asked whether writing nonfiction or fiction offers more rewards, Fleming said “I need them both.” She enjoys people's responses when she admits a fact-based story of danger and excitement like The Family Romanov is followed up by a picture book called Bulldozer's Big Day.
A Reliable Guide
Beyond being an author of high stature, Fleming is passionate about providing true stories to young readers. Her goal is to provide escapism so enticing her readers will gobble it up in one sitting like a cake. She recognizes that teens are daily awash with information, and she sees her role as guiding them through narratives and wild seas.
At the same time, she trusts teens to wrestle with contradictions founds in her stories which embody the human condition. Such as depicted in Death in the Jungle, her forthcoming book about the 1978 “revolutionary suicide” of Jonestown. Despite some adults questioning whether such material is fit for teens, Fleming views the tale cautionary yet human, and one she trusts her teen readers to empathetically wrestle with
As a hopeful author of books for youth, these campus events are incredibly inspiring. Make sure to check out the SOIS Signature Events page for future awesome lectures on campus.
More Candace Fleming books found at Rebecca Crown Library:
