Caroline Hatton

I have known Caroline Hatton for many years.  She is what I consider a "Brainy."  A pharmacist, Ph.D. chemist, anti-doping sports scientist, French - English translator, children's writer and a tireless  volunteer for the SCBWI.   I am so pleased that the remarkable Caroline Hatton agreed to be interviewed.   

When and why did you start writing for children?

Maybe when I was ten years old, growing up in Paris. I ran out of school library books to read, so I started writing (what must have been awful) novels. Since I spent ample time rereading and admiring my prose, and I was ten, wasn't it writing for children, or at least for one child?

In time, I taped an index card inside the back cover of one of my notebook-works-in-progress to pretend it was a library book and loaned it to classmates upon completion of each chapter.

Or maybe I started writing creatively at age 38, when it dawned on me that hard-core science writing, in my day job as a scientist, offered no outlet for my emotions. I chose to write for children because I had always known that good children's books are gems. As a teen, I'd walk to school through Paris even if it took an hour, to save my bus money to buy books, including picture books.



What is the most  valuable advice you can give to a newly published  writer?


1. Try different promo approaches. Figure out what works for you, what you're good at, what you're comfortable doing.

2. Keep it fun. Don't make it so hard for yourself that you stop enjoying it. Live it up!

3. Compare notes with other (newly) published writers. Remember what we're trying to teach children when things get tough: that they're not alone. Sharing ups and downs and tips and horror stories is an integral and joyous part of a writer's life.

4. Make your editor's day whenever possible, by briefly sharing good news. Heck, you could even write another book!

5. Which leads me to what is truly my most valuable advice: never stop honing your craft.


What is one of your favorite children’s books that you'd like to recommend?

One of too many: Seven Kisses in a Row by Patricia MacLachlan, a 56-page chapter book that is masterfully crafted, tender and witty.

Will you being going to the Summer Olympics in Beijing? If not, will an independent service or the Chinese government do drug testing? 

No, I won't go to Beijing, but I have friends who will and maybe they'll buy me a T-shirt. The drug testing will be conducted by the Chinese government under the supervision of both the International Olympic Committee and the World Anti-Doping Agency. The lab or China Doping Control Center is staffed by Chinese scientists and led by Dr. Moutian WU, an esteemed friend and colleague of mine. As such, he is one of the worldwide professionals committed to drug free sport to whom I dedicated my new nonfiction science book, The Night Olympic Team - Fighting to Keep Drugs Out of the Games.


What are you working  on now?

Another nonfiction book about how scientists, including me, cracked mystery steroid THG in the BALCO sports-doping scandal. The analytical chemistry involved is so fundamental that it has applications ranging from archeology to medicine to space exploration, so I can't wait to write sidebars.

Short stories about horses and tweens. And I always have lots of ideas for Cricket stories and Highlights craft activities. I need 40-hour days, 8 days a week, or I need to retire from my day job!


What is your favorite  dessert and why?

A Bosc pear ripened precisely to my favorite degree of subtle sweetness with hardly a hint of crunchiness left, because perfect peary-ness is simply exquisite. O.K. so I'm picky, but I'm not difficult: if a pear is a nanosecond too ripe, I'm happy to feed it to the nearest horse.

BIO
Caroline Hatton is the one who bosses around more than a dozen SCBWI volunteer victims four times a year to make them put together Kite Tales for you--the newsletter of the SCBWI-Tri-Regions of Southern California.  For info far more useful to your own quest as a children's writer or illustrator than Caroline's bio, go to http://www.scbwisocal.org/htmls/kitetales.htm Or, to make the most progress along your journey, grab paper and pencil, and go write or draw!

Oh, are you still there? You mean, you really want to know more about Caroline?  Well, even though she's been around for more than half a century, she's truly only nine years old.  She's a pharmacist, Ph.D. chemist, sports-anti-doping scientist, French-English translator, and children's writer.  Her lovely husband has more than ten nicknames for her, including "You Busy Mouse" (perhaps because she's small, warm, and fuzzy all over???).

Caroline's latest book is The Night Olympic Team - Fighting to Keep Drugs Out of the Games (nonfiction, about how scientists, including her, catch athletes on prohibited performance-enhancing drugs).Her first book, Vero and Philippe, is a humorous, multicultural, middle grade novel about sibling rivalry turning to team work between Vietnamese kids in Paris. For info on her other books, visit www.carolinehatton.com <http://www.carolinehatton.com/>

Comments

[Alexis]

Caroline proves how exciting nonfiction is, especially in the hands of an expert. Congratulations on this timely new book!

[Barbara Bietz]

Tina,

Thanks for posting this interview about Caroline. Not only is she a talented writer, she is also a warm and generous person! We are lucky to have her in our community.

Barbara

[Patty Palmer]

Hey Tina,
Not sure of you do Meme's or not, but if you do, pop over to my blog for the rules.