Leigh Ann Henion—Night Magic: Adventures Among Glowworms, Moon Gardens, and Other Marvels of the Dark

Advance copy: Backstories on books by NASW members

Cover of the book Night Magic: Adventures Among Glowworms, Moon Gardens, and Other Marvels of the Dark by Leigh Ann Henion showing the title and author’s name in white print on a dark blue background, with photos of night creatures including fungi, owls, flowers, moths, lightning bugs, and salamanders.
NIGHT MAGIC:
ADVENTURES AMONG GLOWWORMS, MOON GARDENS,
AND OTHER MARVELS OF THE DARK
Leigh Ann Henion
Algonquin Books, September 24, 2024
Hardcover, $30, Paperback, $19.99
eBook, $14.99, Audiobook, $24.99
Hardcover ISBN-13: 978-1643753362
Paperback ISBN: 978-1643756202
eBook ASIN: B0D1QT7J7G
Audiobook ASIN: B0CV2ZMSRB

Henion reports:

Night Magic: Adventures Among Glowworms, Moon Gardens, and Other Marvels of the Dark was, in part, inspired by an article I wrote for the Washington Post Magazine about synchronous fireflies.

After that piece ran, many readers reached out to let me know that they’d started turning off their porch lights more often. I was amazed that my story led to real-world action that reduced light pollution, and I decided to embark on a larger quest to explore the importance of natural darkness in an age of increasing artificial light.

Portrait photo of Leigh Ann Henion in an outdoor setting.
As I say in Night Magic, I might have previously tried to align with natural darkness via far-flung research trips, neglecting my home region of Appalachia. But we are increasingly in need of models of how to find wonder on our own patch of planet. So, I chose to focus on the landscapes I know best to explore overarching, global issues.

My Washington Post Magazine story served as bedrock for my book proposal, which my agent, Heather Carr, sent to Amy Gash at Algonquin, who acquired it. I subsequently spent the next couple of years in the company of owls, moths, salamanders, and other nocturnal creatures.

I attended a Bat Blitz as well as a festival known as Mothapalooza. In a variety of seasons, I stayed up late with biologists, primitive skills experts, and others to seek out forests alight with bioluminescent mushrooms, trees full of screech owls, and valleys teeming with migratory salamanders. I also synthesized a lot of peer-reviewed research.

In addition to being funded by my advance, the book was supported by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. Among other things, that allowed me to gather a group of science advisors. It might be helpful for aspiring authors to keep a running list of grants and fellowships even if they don’t yet know when or how that information might be useful. It’s important to trust that time will come—though it might take longer than expected.

Above all, I’d advise anyone interested in writing a book to pay attention to what makes them insatiably curious.

Contact info:

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Tell your fellow NASW members how you came up with the idea for your book, developed a proposal, found an agent and publisher, funded and conducted research, and put the book together. Include what you wish you had known before you began working on your book, or had done differently.

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Banner image adapted from original photo by Leigh Ann Henion.

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Advance Copy

The path from idea to book may take myriad routes. The Advance Copy column, started in 2000 by NASW volunteer book editor Lynne Lamberg, features NASW authors telling the stories behind their books. Authors are asked to report how they got their idea, honed it into a proposal, found an agent and a publisher, funded and conducted their research, and organized their writing process. They also are asked to share what they wish they’d known when they started or would do differently next time, and what advice they can offer aspiring authors. Lamberg edits the authors’ answers to produce the Advance Copy reports.

NASW members: Will your book be published soon? Visit www.nasw.org/advance-copy-submission-guidelines for information on submitting your report.

Publication of NASW author reports in Advance Copy does not constitute NASW's endorsement of any publication or the ideas, values, or material contained within or espoused by authors or their books. We hope this column stimulates productive discussions on important topics now and in the future as both science and societies progress. We welcome your discussion in the comments section below.

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