Author Sandra Neil Wallace on Digging Deep– plus a GIVEWAY!
Hello world!!
Welcome to my kidlit blog, Blissfully Bookish. I’m continuing my love for nonfiction and this week, I got to chat with an author who also loves STEM and space as much as me. Please say hi to author Sandra Neil Wallace, here to discuss her latest picture book, Rock Star: How Ursula Marvin Mapped Moon Rocks and Meteorites, illustrated by Nancy Carpenter and published by Paula Wiseman Books/S&S.
BUT first- YAY! Sandra is generously giving away a FREE copy of her book. To be eligible to win, please comment on this blog post. Contest ends Nov 21, 2025, US only.
Please describe the journey to publication and inspiration for Rock Star: How Ursula Marvin Mapped Moon Rocks and Meteorites.
The inspiration to write about geologist Ursula Marvin came quickly after reading her obituary in the New York Times. Even though I write about extraordinary Americans overlooked in history, I was still surprised that Ursula is largely unknown, despite her discoveries that helped unlock the origin of the moon and what we know about our solar system. I also learned that this trailblazer in space science was a Vermonter who had lived close to where I do. The mountains where Ursula developed her yearning to explore and discover what they were made of are the same peaks that I love to hike. And just as I had done in sports journalism, Ursula chose, persisted, and succeeded in a profession where women were unwelcome and faced big barriers.
But the path to publication was a rockier, longer one than I expected. In 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic shut down in-person research visits to the Smithsonian archives, which had recently acquired the Ursula B. Marvin collection. With much of that collection undigitized back then, I had to re-think my research methods and needed more time to research and write Rock Star.
What message would you like the book to impart to children?
Rock Star is an invitation to explore. We want children to be curious and brave, and this is an adventurous, true story of a trailblazing geologist who ignored societal expectations and studied the solar system, making seismic discoveries in science.
Please paste a short and compelling excerpt from your book.
“As the ice hummed beneath her snowmobile, Ursula started to sing. Happy and free, she finally knew she could do anything. Belong anywhere. Especially in Antarctica.
She could find meteorites. She had the strength to be an explorer, and she thrived in the coldest place on Earth.
With her confidence soaring, Ursula rode her mighty machine across the snowy desert, dreaming beyond science. In her imagination, she was a snowmobile racer, competing with style and spirit.
Faster and faster Ursula rode, carving her own path under the midnight sun until she reached her yellow tent.”
This is a great biography on Ursula Marvin. How hard was it to sell a nonfiction biography? We often hear this market is saturated.
In my experience, pitching picture book biographies is consistently difficult and manuscripts get rejected. Yet the path to publication is not closed. Educators continue to seek out stories to share with young readers about history makers who have been overlooked. For me, forging partnerships with editors and developing a shared and valued history together is vital.
What is your research/writing process like for nonfiction?
Each picture book biography is a bit different, but typically I immerse myself in research material until I find a rhythm or a throughline to the story. At that point, I then pause the research and spend time nurturing the creative writing part of the manuscript. After that it becomes a dance between research time to support or enhance the text and writing time to accentuate what I’ve uncovered and how to tell it in a compelling way that stays true to the story.
How difficult was it to write a biography on a deceased person? How did you conduct your research and were you able to interview anyone?
One of the ways I determine if writing a picture book biography on a specific trailblazer or changemaker will do justice to that person’s legacy—no matter how passionate I am about that person, their life, and their accomplishments—is if there is a trail of that person’s voice that I can follow and get access to. Ursula wrote beautiful, poignant ice journals that had, fortunately for me, been digitized. In them, she pours out her hopes and fears and documents her discoveries while becoming the first woman to search for meteorites in Antarctica. I also conducted interviews with family members, including with Ursula’s niece, who gave invaluable insight on Ursula and lent me childhood photos. Interviews with Ursula’s scientist and explorer colleagues confirmed Ursula’s seismic impact on space science—from uncovering how the moon was once an ocean of magma, to its craters being caused by impact events. Her discoveries are so significant they continue to serve as building blocks for ongoing research on the solar system.
Please share your favorite books from the last 5 years that inspired you.
Oh, there are so many picture book biographies that I love! Some recent titles include The People’s Painter by Cynthia Levinson and illustrated by Evan Turk; The Fire of Stars by Kirsten W. Larson and illustrated by Katherine Roy; Fighting with Love by Lesa Cline-Ransome and illustrated by James Ransome; and RESPECT by Carole Boston Weatherford, illustrated by Frank Morrison. Each of these titles are powerful, beautifully written true stories that stay with you. They are well researched and unfold in a fresh, new way. That’s what I strive for as a creative.
What is the best piece of advice you would give to other writers?
When you have your final draft, read your work aloud. Wherever you stumble or come across something that gives you pause, mark it but keep reading. When you’ve finished reading your entire manuscript out loud, go back and examine what caused the stumbles and pauses. Was it a confusing sentence? Was it perhaps a poorly chosen word? I’ve found this action to be very helpful before sending a manuscript to an agent or editor.
Bio
Sandra Neil Wallace writes about people who break barriers and change the world. Her true stories for young readers have received 20 starred reviews and won several national awards including the Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction for BETWEEN THE LINES: HOW ERNIE BARNES WENT FROM THE FOOTBALL FIELD TO THE ART GALLERY, and the NSTA OutstandingScience Trade Book for MARJORY SAVES THE EVERGLADES.A former ESPN reporter and the first woman to host an NHL broadcast on national TV, Sandra’s newest title is the star reviewed ROCK STAR: HOW URSULA MARVIN MAPPED MOON ROCKS AND METEORITES, illustrated by Nancy Carpenter (Simon & Schuster, A Paula Wiseman Book, OCT 14, 2025).
Links
Website: https://sandraneilwallace.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sandraneilwallace
IG: https://www.instagram.com/sandraneilwallace/
ORDER LINKS:
Books can be purchased at your favorite bookstore or through bookshop.org
https://bookshop.org/p/books/rock-star-how-ursula-marvin-mapped-moon-rocks-and-meteorites-sandra-neil-wallace/e98c350ac84b22bb?ean=9781534493339&next=t&next=t&affiliate=1688
For more information and additional resources, check out the book at Simon & Schuster’s website:
https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Rock-Star/Sandra-Neil-Wallace/9781534493339
