Artemis Roehrig is a scientist and a mother, and she has co-written several books with her own mother. Her books range in topics from pirates to insect tattoos, so there is something for everyone in her catalog. We chatted about what it’s like to write intergenerational books, and how cool bugs are and she shares experiments from her latest book, Rainbow Science.
Leonora: Many of your books are co-written with your mother, Corinne Demas. How did this collaboration begin? What is it like creating intergenerational books for the next generation?
Artemis: Writing with my mom is always fun—we bicker a lot, but ultimately come together to create something we both like. Even with our individual projects we always proofread and critique one another’s work— it’s special having someone who can be brutally honest with you about your work. And, of course, my kids always give their honest opinions about my writing too!
Leonora: You work with insects in your day job, what drew you to insects and entomology?
Artemis: I love working with insects because they are such an integral part of our natural world. This field is also ripe for discovery—there are so many species we know very little about or haven’t even discovered yet! Plus, entomology is such an accessible science—you can observe insects at any age without needing fancy equipment and while staying in your own neighborhood. I wrote Do Doodlebugs Doodle? Amazing Insect Facts to get kids excited about more species of insects. I hope that the more people learn about insects, the less likely they will be to indiscriminately kill them. For instance, there are tons of pollinators beyond domestic honeybees, many species of wasps that don’t sting, and lots of insects that eat mosquitos!
Leonora: There is such a history of scientists getting tattoos of their study organisms, so I love that you have written so much for the Tattoos That Teach books! How did that project come about, and do you have any science tattoos?
Artemis: I love how popular science and nature-themed tattoos are right now! I have a very basic spider tattoo that I love using to teach people basic spider anatomy. So I was excited when Storey asked me to choose the animals and write the text four of the Tattoos That Teach books. Temporary tattoos are awesome since they allow you to showcase different animals and artists every day (I love the art Jillian Ditner and Aaron John Gregory did for my tattoo books). I’ve loved hearing from multiple people that they had used my tattoo books as a fun multigenerational activity at family events. I even signed a copy of Fluttery Friendly Tattoo Butterflies for a heavily tattooed mom—who was planning to use them to dress up her flower tattoos for a wedding.
Leonora: Your upcoming book, Rainbow Science, looks like a great addition to a homeschool or classroom science curriculum! Who do you recommend the book for and what is one of your favorite activities from the book?
Artemis: This book is for creative kids who love to ask questions. I designed this book to make activities accessible and achievable. So kids could focus on the explorative and experimental aspects of science without getting bogged down with lots of steps. While this book is certainly fun for a younger child and grownup (or older sibling!) to use together, I wanted to make a book that empowered 8-11-year-olds to do experiments without needing extensive adult assistance. It has always been important to me that more kids grow up seeing science as something fun and attainable, and break the narrative that STEM fields are open only to people who look, learn, or see things a certain way.
One experiment that I’ve loved watching my tween testers do independently is secretly one of the trickiest—making a rainbow with just a flashlight and a glass of water. They had fun experimenting with different flashlight angles and swapping out different amounts of water to see which combinations made the best rainbows. One tween got really into trying out different shapes of glasses, which morphed into an exploration of volume. Both classroom and homeschool teachers will be able to use the activities in this book as fun hands-on introductions to broader math and science curriculum concepts.
Learn more about Artemis Roehrig’s latest books on her website. Follow her on Instagram @artemisroehrig for the latest updates on book releases, events, cool pictures of bugs, and cool science experiments you can do with your children at home or in the classroom!
