Reading Landscapes--External and Internal, Outside and In with Susan Tweit

As a botanist and certified plant-nerd, Susan J. Tweit has a lifetime of experience reading the patterns that plants form across wild landscapes, and interpreting what those communities and interrelationships mean for the earth and we humans. "Some people listen to podcasts and audiobooks on road trips,” she says, “I identify wildflowers, grasses and trees at 70 mph, and speculate in my head about who lives where and with whom, and what those interrelationships tell us.” As a writer, she has had to learn to read internal landscapes too, something that didn’t come easy to Tweit as her writing work gradually evolved from just-the-facts-ma’am science journalism to personal essays and memoir. “Science has long been biased against writing that tells a story, or involves emotion and personal experience,” she adds. “Yet story is how we humans make meaning from the world, and how we connect with each other.” Hear Tweit talk about her writing journey—including her five books about New Mexico and the desert Southwest—and the challenges of finding her voice as a woman in science and writing. 

Susan's Biography: 

An award-winning writer, Susan J. Tweit began her career as a plant ecologist in Wyoming where she researched the life and relationships of big sagebrush, and dissected piles of bear poop to study grizzly bear habitat. Tweit began writing after realizing that she loved the stories behind the data as much as collecting that data. She's written thirteen books ranging from memoir and nature writing to kids and travel, along with hundreds of magazine articles, columns, and essays. Her popular “WildLives” nature commentaries aired on Southern New Mexico public radio for over a decade. When Tweit is not writing, she's most often outside eradicating invasive weeds—restoring nature, plant by plant. She calls sagebrush country home, and lives outside Santa Fe.

Find out more:

https://susanjtweit.com

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in programs presented by individuals or groups unaffiliated with SFPL do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of SFPL or the City of Santa Fe.