Susie Spikol on Finding Wonder in the Everyday Wild

What if the wildest adventure isn’t in a faraway forest or on a mountaintop, but right outside your door?

In this episode, I talk with Susie Spikol, an award-winning naturalist, author, and environmental educator who has spent over thirty-five years helping people rediscover their sense of wonder. From exploring the sidewalks of Brooklyn to teaching families in rural New Hampshire, Susie reminds us that connection begins with curiosity.

Her book The Animal Adventurer’s Guide invites families to explore the world of “everyday animals” like ladybugs, crickets, worms, and frogs. She believes that holding a creature in your hand is a kind of “skin-to-skin connection” that deepens our bond with the natural world. In Forest Magic for Kids, she inspires children and adults to create fairy homes, secret forts, and tiny worlds using natural materials. Her upcoming Book of Fairies blends science and imagination, showing that nature can be both magical and real.

We talk about how unstructured play is disappearing from childhood and what happens when we reclaim it as adults, the beauty of imaginative play, and how domestic animals like backyard chickens can bring us closer to the wild. Susie also shares her passion for place-based education and how truly knowing where we live helps us feel rooted and alive.

Takeaways:

• Everyday nature can rekindle your curiosity
• Play matters for both kids and adults
• Domestic animals connect us to the wild
• Imagination deepens our bond with the Earth

Connect with Susie Spikol:

•  Website: susiespikol.com
•  Instagram: @susiespikol

Books:

• The Animal Adventurer’s Guide
• Forest Magic for Kids
• The Book of Fairies

Susie’s work reminds us that we don’t have to go far to find magic. The wild is already here, inviting us to look closer, play more, and remember that we are part of it all.

Transcript

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SPEAKER_01 0:51

Hi guys, welcome back to the Adventure Paradox podcast. We have an author with us today. She's an author, she's a naturalist, she has put some really incredible work into the world. She is going to have a podcast coming this spring geared towards children. We'll talk about all of this in a minute. But first of all, Susie Spickle, how are you? And where in the world are you coming in from today?

SPEAKER_00 1:13

Oh, Kat, so glad to be on your podcast. So nice to meet you. I am in southwestern New Hampshire. And that's kind of where I am, a tiny little town in Hancock, New Hampshire. No traffic lights, one store. That's it.

SPEAKER_01 1:29

Oh, I love it. Similar to my little town, one stop lights, mom and pop stores. I love it. And I just want to read your introduction because it's so powerful. And I want to make sure I don't miss anything. Ever since she can remember, naturalist and writer Susie Spickle has always looked for where nature and story meet. Over the course of her 35-year career as a naturalist, she has taught thousands of children, parents, and teachers, and given hundreds of public talks and received numerous awards, including the Garden Club of America's Whole Award and New Hampshire's Environmental Educator Award. Congratulations.

SPEAKER_00 2:08

Thank you.

SPEAKER_01 2:10

Putting a lot of work out into the world. She is premiering her first podcast this spring, Wild at Home. As I said, it'll be a podcast for children and it will premiere on New Hampshire Public Radio. Very cool. Your first book published in 2022, The Animal Adventurer's Guide, How to Prowl for Owls, Make Snail Slime, and Catch a Frog Bear Handed, won the National Parenting Products Award. We'll talk about your other two books in a minute, but can we start with that one? Like, what was it about? Where did it come from? And how would you like our listeners to be thinking about this book today?

SPEAKER_00 2:49

Well, it is an activity guide for families. So I like for everybody to think about it as an opportunity as a family or as an individual or as a kid to go out and connect with the everyday animals that are in their neighborhood. So I'm not talking about having bald eagle experiences unless that's in your neighborhood. I'm talking about woolly bear caterpillars and ladybugs and kind of very entry-level animals connecting with them, kind of the everyday creatures.

SPEAKER_01 3:21

I love that. And I don't think I have ever heard that expression, entry-level animals. It's making me think about when my children were really small and roly-polies and insects and spiders and butterflies and all the little things on the ground. What would you say your entry-level animals or gateway animals or little ones might be? You mentioned a few, but what are some of your favorites?

SPEAKER_00 3:52

Yeah, I think kids really want to touch animals, and I think it's important for them to touch animals respectfully to be taught a respectful way to do it. And I'm thinking mostly of things like ladybugs and earthworms and grasshoppers and crickets. I was just outside today with a group of students and we found a big juicy cricket. It was getting cold where I live, so this is the last bit of the cricket's life, but it was so big and beautiful, and everybody got a chance to hold it and feel it. And I think those things go right into the heart of a child. And it's visceral, it's what we need to be doing to make those connections happen. Like when you have a baby and you have those 36 hours where it's skin to skin, or 48 hours where you just are like in touching your baby and your baby's on you, and your husband or partner, whoever is in your family, and that skin connection is where you bond. Well, I feel like that's true for some animals and kids that holding in the hand is that skin to skin connection for them to develop a deep relationship with the natural world.

SPEAKER_01 5:02

Oh, so good. And it does make me curious. Your upbringing for you, were you out in the woods? What was it like for you?

SPEAKER_00 5:12

Yeah, I had a really interesting upbringing where I grew up in Brooklyn, New York, which most people would probably think, how do you become a naturalist and live in Brooklyn, New York? I was really fortunate to have parents that were bird watchers. So we went all over the city and went birding. And then we had summer times up in Vermont, and that's where I really had my chance to be out in the wild world. But I did love the Brooklyn experiences, like the cracks in the sidewalk and the little bits of nature that you could find in between buildings. And whenever you did find nature, it felt really special because it was so uncommon.

SPEAKER_01 5:52

So good. I spent a little bit of my youth in Wenatchee, Washington, which is the Apple capital of the world. And then we moved to Santa Fe, New Mexico, and that's mostly where I grew up. Very dry, very, very different environments. And I remember going back to Seattle and being at, I believe it's the Powell bookstore, this huge bookstore that's like seven stories. I might be exaggerating, but it's a really big bookstore. And the sun came out, Susie. I swear the whole bookstore tilted because all of the people in the bookstore moved to the windows, like sun. And I remember thinking in a place like Seattle, a very, very wet, humid environment, you're even hungrier for sunshine. In the same way, growing up in the desert, we're hungry for rain. I would always say the desert will sing when it rains. It's like rain drops, oh my gosh, like you disappear immediately, evaporate, you know? And my experience of going to New York City, I've only been twice. The second time the year my book came out, it was part of my book series. And I remember thinking, wow, seeing nature in the city, you're so much hungrier for it. It's so much more important here in a way, that paradox, because it's only in the sidewalk, it's only in the park. They've had to work really hard to keep it, but nature just has this wildness to hold on wherever we are. So I love that story. And of course, that's where it started for you.

SPEAKER_00 7:28

Yeah, I loved how you describe that resilience of nature to pop up, but you know, it does find its way in the cracks. Or for me, there were like vacant lots in my neighborhood, and that's where it all was: the butterflies, caterpillars. There were even fireflies on my block in Brooklyn. This is back many years ago. I don't know if they're still there, but it was pretty magical.

SPEAKER_01 7:51

I love this magic. And when you're speaking to your audience and thinking about your readers, are you thinking about that child you once were? Do you feel like your avatar, as they like to say, is the kid in the city or the parent, or who are you really channeling your genius to?

SPEAKER_00 8:12

Oh, that's sweet. I actually think that I never really grew up. I am still just a kid who is so excited to see the everyday nature. I love like slugs and snails and oh, I love mushrooms, just things that you can see in your everyday world. I love all those birds that come to your feeder, the chickadees, the blue jays. I'm a big fan of squirrels, chipmunks, things like that, salamanders, things that I encounter on an everyday basis where I feel like I can have a deep relationship or connection to. So I think I'm really just connecting with the kids that I work with at their level. I never got past being 10 years old in my excitement about the world. And that's really what I bring to the table when I'm teaching.

SPEAKER_01 9:02

I love it. I love it so much. And something we touched on before we started recording is that line or spectrum between domestic animals or farm animals or animals that we might care for versus the wildness of nature. How do you see those two in your work or in your teaching?

SPEAKER_00 9:22

Yeah, I mean, I think domestic animals are really important in the development of children's sense of compassion for other beings. First, cat or a dog, a hamster, those pets that we live with, that's really where children can see, like step in the paws or the feet of another animal. They can pretend to be them. And I think that's so important. And then with the wild animals, they're always such a gift. You don't know what you're going to see. And that's what's really compelling about going outside into the natural world, is every day is an unexpected trip. You don't know what is out there, and that's very exciting. And it's always a teaching opportunity. You know, you walk along and you see a snake, and it's a chance to talk about it, look at it, think about it, be with it. But then you can go home and be with your domestic animals. My kids grew up having chickens, and I think that was really important. How to care for an animal. All of those things teach us how to be generous humans and how to give to animals in the world. And since we can't really go up and hug something like a bobcat or pet a bear, you can, though, give your dog a hug and spend time with a horse. And those animals were from a line that was once wild. So there's always a little bit of wild in every domestic animal. And I love having kids spend time thinking about that and looking at those connections.

SPEAKER_01 10:54

So good. Yeah, I love that compassion for another being. And you had me thinking about the don't judge another until you walk a mile on their moccasins or something like that. And I was thinking, or a mile in their hooves, or with their paws, or with their wings, and just to get into the imagination of how children can often get a little closer to understanding nature and specifically when caring for a domestic animal. I love that you had chickens. My kids are obsessed with chickens. Very happy our neighbors have 12 chickens. We got plenty of animals. But there's something about chickens or animals who live outside where you are going outside into nature to connect with them. They're not necessarily coming in and out of your house, although maybe your chickens did. I don't know, you know. No. Our pony has been inside the. But um, I'd love to just hear you touch on that connection to drawing children out into nature and the cycle of care, as you see the naturalist.

SPEAKER_00 12:04

Well, one thing you just reminded me of Kat is I have a good friend that has had chickens in the past, and her husband said he's very clever, he said, if you want to see wildlife, get chickens because all the wild animals come to the chicken coop to see if they can get a free meal. Right. That's part of life, though. I mean, when kids have the opportunity to have domestic animals like chickens or sheep or cow or horse or goats or pigs, stuff happens and there's predators, or chickens get sick, or cows have trouble.

SPEAKER_01 12:37

Yeah. So I think touching on, and I love that humor. If you want to see wildlife get chickens, I love that.

SPEAKER_00 12:46

That's actually, do you know the writer Simontgomery? She's an incredible naturalist writer. She wrote The Soul of an Octopus, which was like Yeah, yeah, yeah. She's my neighbor, and we're close. And her husband, Howard, he's a writer too. And he said that. I just thought it was so true.

SPEAKER_01 13:04

Oh my gosh, it's a total mic drop. So funny.

SPEAKER_00 13:07

Yeah. Part of having those opportunities with domestic animals is also, or any animal is really the cycle of life. And I think that's really compelling for kids. It brings up a lot of opportunity to discuss the big questions of life, like what happens when your animal dies or when they're not well and taking care of them. In terms of getting kids outside with a little bit of domestic animals involved, I love, and I've done this several times or many times over the course of my many years of teaching, is having kids spy on their dog or cat after we've studied wild canines or wild felines, and to see if they can see what those ancient wolf behaviors are still happening in their dog or their cat. And I think that's really compelling for kids. The whole idea of spying on something is very exciting, and then the idea that they're living with a dog who was a wolf many years ago, right? That's very exciting. So I often will use those as a way to draw kids and making those connections from domestic to wild.

SPEAKER_01 14:19

So good. A conversation we're having daily at the moment is that we used to be monkeys. And like, what was that like? So just sort of the silliness of it and bananas and poo and that kind of stuff. But you're reminding me, I really wanted my first dog to be a border collie. And I remember reading about border collie's and this idea of giving eye, one of the few breeds that like still has that deep instinct to hunt and kill in them. And that now we have domesticated or harnessed that for herding purposes. So interesting.

SPEAKER_00 14:57

Yeah, yeah. I do have some friends with border collies, and sometimes I feel like they're giving me the eye, you know, they've so intelligent, such intelligence in that dog breed.

SPEAKER_01 15:07

Oh, for sure, for sure. Let's go on to some of your other books here. In 2025, Forest Magic for Kids came out, which thank you so much. I have a copy of right here, y'all. And it is sparkly. I think it's a very good time to be talking about this because we're dropping this episode on Halloween, which is such a time of magic. And is it real? Isn't it real? What's going on? A little bit of sparkle, a little bit of glimmer, a little bit of reflection. But the subtitle of this book is How to Find Fairies, Make a Secret Fort, and Cook Up an Elfin Picnic. Talk to me, Susie. Where did this come from? This is so good.

SPEAKER_00 15:48

It's kind of funny because being a naturalist, I am very interested in science and very aware of the important role that science and truth have in our world. But working with kids, especially of late, I noticed that kids were not playing the way that maybe you and I had played when we were younger. There was less imaginative play and more directed play. So if we think about kids in my neighborhood, they're like on soccer teams and they have soccer practice or their dance class or art class. They're always going places and everything is really adult supervised. And I was reminiscing about all that time I spent outside unsupervised by my parents and imagining using books like the Book of Narnia, all those books where you go through a closet and all of a sudden you're like in this magic world that everything is happening outside. And so I really wanted to write a book that celebrated all the ways that nature gives us an opportunity to have big imaginations. And that might be building a secret fort, or thinking you're following the footsteps of a fairy when you're finding mushrooms, or mixing up a potion, which is just like pine needles in mud. But it's that embodiment of what it could be and what your imagination can dream into. And I think that's a really important skill for kids to develop. So forest magic for kids is a celebration of that.

SPEAKER_01 17:20

So good. It's powerful. And I think as I was looking through the book and we were talking before we started recording, you have all these great little exercises. And what's fun for me about it is that some of these are really geared towards children who probably aren't reading yet. So you're kind of writing for the adult parent who's reading and going, Oh, okay, we're gonna go make a gnome house, for example. Let's talk about that one. I think it's on page 86.

SPEAKER_00 17:47

Oh, yeah. I love that. I think building small worlds is a key ingredient to childhood. If you think about Lego sets, that's a small world, playmobil, small world, even on the video context, Minecraft small worlds.

SPEAKER_01 18:02

I do think this idea of tiny worlds and really tapping into creating a space of play.

SPEAKER_00 18:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 18:13

It is not being fed to you by a screen, which we haven't even gotten to that, but let's go there in a bit.

SPEAKER_00 18:19

I know, I know. Yeah, so small worlds are so important because kids are the boss of the small world. Like, where else are they ever the boss? It gives them an opportunity to sort of be empowered, to be the manager of it. It works their small motor skills because it's always tiny little pieces that are being manipulated outside. Their senses are all on fire. They're hearing, they're smelling, they're feeling, they're touching, everything. And then they're kind of working through social stuff. They're communicating a lot of times in the small world. If you're building it with a friend, you're figuring out who's building what and who's putting this where and what's this going to be. So, small world creation is really an important aspect of free play and imaginative play. And so, gnome homes, fairy houses, little spots for tiny little mice to have adventures in, all of that. I think we should have more of that.

SPEAKER_01 19:16

I absolutely agree.

SPEAKER_00 19:17

I've been visiting a bunch of kindergartens lately. And when I think of my kindergarten experience, I remember there was a dollhouse and there was blocks, and they don't have that in a lot of kindergartens anymore. They're at their desk, they're doing work. And I understand the need for education, but I want to advocate for the child. Children need time to play, and they need time to play unsupervised. I mean, parents can be nearby, but not directing the play, because that's where the big ideas come from.

SPEAKER_01 19:50

Absolutely. Speaking of big ideas, I just listened to a TEDx talk exactly about this. I don't remember the title, but it was something to the effect of losing the generation of children playing freely in the outdoors, something like that. And going deeper into some of the research about play and certain children and the ways that we learn. Adults too, by the way.

SPEAKER_00 20:14

Yes, yes. I'm so glad you mentioned that, Kat, because I've been thinking a lot about that lately with the kids, but then expanding it and thinking about well, how do I play? And do I play? And what is the role of play in an adult's life? But it's the same thing that it is for kids. It's an opportunity to stretch your imagination, to engage, to communicate, to connect in a different way. That's fun. So yeah, more play for everybody.

SPEAKER_01 20:41

Absolutely. So I'm looking at your book right now, and this piece, gnomes in their homes, and what we were just talking about with play and with creating a little place, especially for children where they're in charge. Like they create, you know, we've got a neighbor who keeps coming over. And I swear every day she's like, oh, oh, Taylor Swift's here. Okay, we got to go talk to her. And I'm like, what? Oh, right, that's right. That play comes up every day in her play right now. It's that Taylor Swift's here, we got to go talk to her. I'm like hysterical. Oh, just like the beauty of really returning children to nature, maybe away from all the hustle and bustle and noise of our culture, back to this quiet space. And yet you're doing it, and the pictures are so cute in this book, by the way. They're really, really engaging. You've got these two little gnomes hanging out on their little chairs. These are the little garden gnomes, right?

SPEAKER_00 21:41

Yeah. Do you see the little mushroom lamp? I love that detail.

SPEAKER_01 21:44

Oh my gosh. Yeah, I missed that. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Just for those watching on YouTube, there is a little mushroom lamp. You're gonna want to check this out. But I love that in this activity, gnomes in their homes, you're saying build your skills, constructing, problem solving, and world building. And then on the other page, you have a list which I love that the list is bring it.

SPEAKER_00 22:07

Bring it, baby.

SPEAKER_01 22:09

It's like secret notebook, pencil, bits of natural twine, or things like twigs, leaves, bark, and stones, wild building materials, decorating materials, including bark, seed pods, leaves, flower petals, a homemade gnome optional. Because it could also be imaginary. I'm wondering if that's what you're thinking there.

SPEAKER_00 22:32

Yeah, yeah. I think that it's really important to use those natural materials, especially if you're building it outside and not use anything artificial. So I'm not somebody who's going to be using glitter or glue or plastic beads or things like that. It's just bark and stone. And sticks and whatever is around on the ground. If it's on the ground, if it's not alive, I might use it and might have kids use it to build their home. And that's such a great challenge because it's so earthy. What would a gnome really do? This is what they would really build with. It's what's around. So getting into that and being accepting. And I think we can sometimes have an idea of I'm going to build this gnome home or a fairy home. And it's going to be really elaborate and it's going to be on a calendar on Instagram, whatever. But the reality is it's so much better for the environment when it's just ephemeral, you know, where you build it and you just build it out of all the natural things that are around you. And then you come back, see how long it lasts, and then you have to rebuild it. I think it's better all around.

SPEAKER_01 23:39

It's so good. And around the world, especially in civilizations that are not as westernized as we are, are not producing as many artificial toys and products and all these things. That's what they're playing with.

SPEAKER_00 23:52

Yeah. And really that is the first things that we play with: stones and sticks and water. And when you have a young child and you give them a birthday present and they want to play with the box, they don't care what's in the box. It's the box. It's that elemental. And I think getting back to basics is a really great thing for us. We're so modern. We've got our phones and we've got all of this, and we've got apps, and we've got video games and lots of screens. And it's really great to just get back to the basics: leaves, sticks, flowers.

SPEAKER_01 24:27

Are you familiar with the work of Andy Goldsworthy? Love it.

unknown 24:31

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 24:32

Okay. For our listeners who might not know what we're talking about, is he European, British? Yes, he's British. I feel like UK somewhere. So he makes these really huge, elaborate, natural sculptures that are then come from nature and return to nature. So for example, the first one I think of, and we had a book of his growing up on our whatever coffee table. And the first one I think of is like a spiral made of rocks on the beach. I think that was the cover of the book, right? But the point is, as the tide would come up, it would pull down the first rocks. And so then you just sort of have these rainbow stripes left. And then it would pull those until the spiral was gone, and all you have left is just a little remnant of someone playing or creating. And I really believe we came here to create, to play, to be with each other and with nature at the deepest level.

SPEAKER_00 26:03

Yeah. That makes me want to rush outside and build a stone spiral in my yard. It's so true. And I think it's great. Like where I live, we get a lot of snow. And one thing I love to do is build a snow sculpture. I usually make a dog or some sort of animal because I love animals so much. And instead of just using sticks or stuff, I'll put bird seed on it so it becomes a living bird feeder in a way. And it's just so much fun. And it's ephemeral. It's there until the snow isn't or the seeds are gone or the whole combination. And I think that's neat to watch things through the process. And since this is coming out on Halloween, that's a great thing to do with your jack-o'-lanterns. Kind of leave them out, put some bird seed in it, see what happens, see who shows up.

SPEAKER_01 26:52

So fun. I love that idea. And I love just putting out an invitation to nature. Like, come on over. We just want to see you.

SPEAKER_00 27:05

Yeah, exactly. And I think that's all we need is to remind ourselves of things like that. And most of us know that when we spend time outside, we feel better for it. And that's really true for our children too. My mom was always like, go outside, you'll sleep better tonight. And that's true. And now the science is showing that time outside increases your oxygen levels, increases your good feelings inside, decreases your stress hormones, gives you more vitamin D, gives your eyesight better workout. Like all of these things are now being studied. It's as if we needed them studied. We just know inside of our heart that being outside is good for us, but now we have the medical advice to get your prescription for a little dose of nature every day.

SPEAKER_01 27:53

So good. Time outside. I know the Japanese referred to it as forest bathing. Yes, yes. I love that invitation to really get out. And as we were talking about Halloween, I was thinking about doing a crossword puzzle with my daughter. So we're coming up with all these little Halloween phrases. But what do you say on Halloween day? And it was, well, obviously trick-or-treat is what you say, right? But I was thinking as we're connecting with nature, you know, and putting bird seed out, it's like there's no trick, it's just a treat so that we can see you and you could see us and see that we have this symbiotic relationship of observing one another and knowing and coming to love and care for one another.

SPEAKER_00 28:38

Yeah, the reciprocity of it, the time outside where we're connecting. And then as a result, we're better at taking care of the world around us. I think that's really important. And as a naturalist, working with kids, that's always my hope is that the kids that are spending time with me will take that into adulthood and be better stewards of the world, better livers in this beautiful one planet that we all live on.

SPEAKER_01 29:06

Absolutely. I love that so much. And allowing nature to care for us.

SPEAKER_00 29:11

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 29:11

To really receive the medicine of being in the woods too, because I love folks, you know, I remember a gal I used to ride with, and we'd meet up to ride, and she'd have a radio on her arm that was blaring music or whatever. And I remember saying, I can hear you coming, first of all, from a mile away. But second of all, if someone's coming up on us, you're not going to hear them because you're totally tuned out. And where we live here in the Tetons, right outside of Jackson Hole, Wyoming, that is sort of shunned. You're not really being present in nature and allowing yourself to hear and receive the birds, the water. I took this hike the other day to the wind caves, and there was a huge rock slide, right? Like, whoa, you know.

SPEAKER_00 30:02

Wow, that sounds exciting. Well, I love what you're describing, and I love that you're describing it as the gifts of receiving, and that is what it is. And I think it does make us feel more deeply connected to the place that we live in, the home place of where we are.

SPEAKER_01 30:24

Yeah, yeah. And I was gonna touch on that because the school my children go to really emphasizes their tagline is place-based learning. And I feel like this is something that our national education system has fallen out of a little bit, where we have this real drive for sports and achievement and all the testing and all of those things. And I'd just love to hear your take on it. And maybe we can weave this in to Book of Fairies, which is coming out in the fall, and also your podcast, which is coming Wild at Home. Could you speak on that?

SPEAKER_00 31:01

Yeah, I do consider myself a place-based educator. More, I mean, I'm a naturalist, but if I describe myself of what type of education I do with students, it's place-based. It's like what is happening in this place. So as a naturalist, I'm very specific to the Menadnock region of New Hampshire. And I love that because it makes you really, really know where you are. You know when the lily of the valley is going to bloom, or when the jack in the pulpit's gonna come up, or when the woolly bears are gonna be in your lead. You just know that. And that's really knowing the rhythm of where you are. And I agree with you, Kat, so much about the emphasis in education being misdirected. And maybe if we could start from the home place of where we are, it would build more community in the school, more connection to the place, more connection to each other. And then the other stuff, you can teach math and reading and science and social studies all through the place. So I would love to see a more integrated curriculum for students that was really centered where they are, specifically in the elementary grades. I mean, as they get older and their worldview can expand, then bring in other stuff. But why not stay local? Why not know your neighbors? It's like Mr. Rob Rogers, these are the people in your neighborhood. So yeah, I love that and I'm all about it.

SPEAKER_01 32:30

When you decide to publish a book, how do you know when you're ready? You've been through three books, and I just want to point out I only have one here in front of me, but based on what I'm seeing and reading with the others, these are not simple books. They have beautiful, colorful graphics and lots of different layers and elements. And this is a beautiful book. How do you decide you're done? What's your team? What's your process look like?

SPEAKER_00 32:56

Yeah, I've been so, so fortunate to work with an incredible editor, the same editor on all three books. And she is such an inspiration for me. Just through our conversations, I get really inspired. And I feel like she's great at getting me to think about my strengths as a writer and my strengths as a naturalist and building books off of that. And my strengths really are about helping people of all ages, but specifically kids connect to the natural world. And then also the story, because young kids don't really deal that much in facts, they really deal in story. And so I feel like a great way to reach them is to go with the story and find those natural connections. So a good example might be the story about the frog who gets kissed and turns into a prince. Like that's a pretty magical story. You read that story or you tell that story, and then it's a great opportunity to learn more about frogs and what really is a frog and what's the true magic of the frog. It goes through this incredible metamorphosis. So I feel like kind of laying out the story and then building the science into it is really where I'm at. And my books really reflect that. My latest book, The Book of Fairies, which is also sparkly. It was a labor of love. This book I started when I was eight years old so many years ago. And it's filled with fairies from Eastern and Western European tradition, plus a few fairies of my own invention from when I was a child that explained natural things. For example, have you ever noticed that there's rainbows inside bubbles? Right. As a kid, I was like, what are those rainbows? I didn't know about light and prisms and all of that. So I decided that there were fairies inside of there, and they were the bubblinis. That's what I named them. And the bubblinis have a little rainbow in their heart, and that's what gives every rainbow a little bit of rainbow inside of them. I'm looking for the picture of the bubblinis, but I can't find it right now. But you'll have to get the book and read it.

SPEAKER_01 35:07

I'll have to get the book and future casting for future trick-or-treaters to dress up as a bubblini. Oh, right.

SPEAKER_00 35:16

How awesome is that? It's hard to see it.

SPEAKER_01 35:18

My camera smudgy, but it's very cute. Awesome. Thank you so much for sharing. And it has been such a gift to spend this time with you. And I know our listeners are going to want to follow up and check out your books, follow you. We'll have all of this information in the show notes. But where do you want people to find you? What socials do you hang out on? Website, where can they get your books?

SPEAKER_00 35:41

Sure. Yeah, I'm on Instagram a lot, just under my name, Susie Spickle, because it's a very uncommon name. And you can also visit my website, which is just susyspickle.com. And I would love that. And if you have any comments or anything you want to share about my books and things that you've done with your family or yourself regarding them, I'd love to hear it.

SPEAKER_01 36:02

Awesome.

SPEAKER_00 36:03

Kat, thank you so much. This has been so much fun.

SPEAKER_01 36:06

I know we've covered a lot of ground. I've been so excited to interview you and been sort of sitting on this book and then hearing you had another one. And I'm really thrilled you have a podcast coming out. And once it's out, we will add it to the show notes just so you know. So keep us in the loop. Maybe you'll even re-air this interview on there because you shared so much beautiful information about who you are, your origin story with this work, and the incredible gifts you're putting out in the universe.

SPEAKER_00 36:35

Thank you. And I so enjoyed talking with you and all the stories you share too, Kat. So thank you. Keep making great podcasts.

SPEAKER_01 36:42

Oh, appreciate you. Continue the story. And listeners, if you loved this, please share with a friend, subscribe, follow along, leave us a review. We love hearing from you. And if you want help getting your podcast into the top 2%, circle back. Or if you're craving adventures with horses, come see me because I'd love to hear you out. Come on over. Let's start looking for your flight. All right. Until we meet again, everyone, have a beautiful day and go seek that adventure that is seeking you.