STRAIGHT TALK
with Katie McKissick
Katie McKissick is creator
of the online comics series
“Beatrice the Biologist.”
Drawing inspiration from a
number of scientific topics
largely based in biology,
McKissick’s comics are short,
sweet, and poignant. Her simple
yet visually compelling drawing
style paired with her relatable
characters create a truly
refreshing communication
tool for science.
Visit her website here.
By Megan Guerber
Contributor
MG: Can you tell us a little bit about how Beatrice
the Biologist came into being? What are your goals for
the project?
KM: I started Beatrice the Biologist after I
left my job as a high school biology teacher.
I wanted to write articles about commonly
misunderstood science concepts, explaining
them in a fun and approachable way.
My goals for Beatrice are and always will be to
make science interesting for the casual reader.
I write (and draw) for general audiences, so
no prior knowledge is needed to consume my
content.
MG: I have to admit that my favorite of your works
deal with bathroom and body humor. One of the best
things about comics is their ability to introduce taboo
18
material to a broad audience using laughter. How do
you feel humor helps one to learn and remember?
KM: Things are much more memorable if you
have an emotional response. We remember
times we were extremely happy, sad, or mad
really well, so as a teacher, I always tried to
find different ways for my students to connect
with the material, whether it was funny,
surprising, or just plain odd. I’d ask them to
empathize with viruses—to imagine what it
might be like to need other cells to keep on
existing and reproducing, but destroying them
in the process. Things like that. Connecting to
concepts that way makes them more interesting
and more memorable. The same goes for
humor. If someone giggles while learning, that
is perfection!
SciArt in America October 2014