It was a weeknight and one of my twin daughters marched into the room, waving a book she'd finished. "Dad, why are books with science in them always about boys?" she asked.
I told her that simply wasn't true; there were loads of great science fictions with girls in them. She agreed, but argued that in those stories it was the boys who were doing science, and the girls were justalong for the ride. My other daughter took her sister's side and challenged me to give an example.
This left me in a difficult position. I could either go through our library to point out some wonderful examples of female-led science fictions, or just admit they were right and remain in my comfortable chair.
I've been asked several times how I came up with the idea forA Problematic Paradoxand my answer is always the same: it came to me in a moment of inspiration. I like that answer because it's simple and makes me seem very creative. The fact that this explanation is not true bothers me from time to time. Here's the truth: the story wasn't my idea. It was my daughters who suggested I write something for them that had a girl doing science.
My daughters were at an age when many young women turn away from STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math), believing those areas of study unfriendly or out — of — the — norm for girls. I also read about how important role models can be to young people. It's one thing to tell a person they can do something, but seeing someone like them doing that thing can be more powerful.
So, I kept two guidelines for the book in mind: First, the story had to be fun for anyone, because it's as important for boys to understand that science is for everyone. Second, I wanted the main character, Nikola, to be imperfect. She should be someone with shortcomings as we all have. I think this not only makes a story more interesting to read, but also helps make it clear that the most extraordinary things can be done by ordinary people.
