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- Column - From the Trenches - |
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February 28 / 2000 Out of the Mouths of BabesBy Susan McBride Author of And Then She Was Gone I had the good fortune to speak to 150 fourth and fifth graders several weeks ago. It was their school’s Reading Week, and for five days they were entertained by a variety of writers and storytellers. A man from a local cable channel performed the day before I showed up, and I heard about his talent for doing voices. How was I supposed to compete with that? On suggestions from fellow writers and parents - something I’m not, unless you count my two cats - I went armed with a few important things. A loose manuscript to show the kids what a novel looks like hot off the computer printer. A copy of And Then She Was Gone. And the three books I’d written when I was in fifth grade - to encourage them to create their own stories, like I did. Turns out, the Thursday I was slated to speak was "Pajama Day," and the students and teachers who showed up at the library to hear me talk were attired in flannels, robes and slippers. Made me wish I’d left my sweats on. Three classes of fourth graders crowded in for the first half-hour - the fifth graders would follow - all talking at the same time as they took their seats on a tiered semi-circle around me. "Are you the author?" a few asked as I walked around and handed out postcards with my book cover on the front. "Or are you just someone’s mother?" Kids say the darnedest things. I introduced myself and showed them the copy of GONE, while they sat wide-eyed watching me. Maybe they were expecting me to do voices like the cable guy. "Do you like to read?" I asked them. Most nodded energetically. "Do you like to write?" A chorus of "yes" went up, though I saw a handful shaking their heads. So I picked on them. "Why don’t you like to write? What’s the most difficult thing about it for you?" "Well, you see, when I hold the pencil in my fingers this way, my hand starts to cramp," an earnest boy admitted. "Okay, what else?" A pig-tailed girl chimed in, "Well, sometimes I don’t like how the paper feels against my skin." At least they were honest. We talked about books they liked and what made them good. "Because they’re not boring," seemed the consensus. "I hate boring books." I couldn’t disagree with that. They told me what they liked to write about. Mostly fantasy stories or even mysteries. They wondered why they couldn’t read mine. "Why is your book just for adults?" they asked. "Why can’t you write for kids?" I said that maybe someday I would, but that GONE might give them nightmares. "Do you make a lot of money?" a little boy wanted to know. I explained the most authors had to hold down regular jobs and write their books. "Bummer." Yeah, bummer. I showed them what a manuscript looked like and how much thicker it was than a published novel. They then inquired about the longest manuscript I’d ever written. "Over six hundred pages," I said. "Wow." At least someone was impressed. The questions kept coming; kids wiggled their hands in the air: "Miss McBride, is your book going to be a movie?...How do you get your ideas?...Did you ever win the Mark Twain Award (it’s for children’s books)?...Can you type fast?" Amazingly, when the hour was done, I felt energized. There’s something about a roomful of smiling kids excitedly talking about books that can’t be matched. And then their letters came in the mail a week later, thank you notes neatly--okay, some not so neatly--penned on lined notebook paper. A few had me laughing out loud. Here’s a sample of them, and you’ll see why: "Dear Ms. McBride, Thank you for coming to the school. You did good job! I learned that you don’t have to be famous to be an author. Your friend, Lutece Johnson." "I am very glad you came to our school. I learned a lot about writing a good book, plus I learned not to get discouraged if you don’t get your book published...I hope you make more money in the future! Your good friend, Amelia Kim." "I enjoyed hearing about books and the steps to make a book. I learned that getting published is real hard. I think it’s neat you won a contest. From, Erika." "I enjoyed you telling me how a book gets published. I didn’t know any of that. I enjoyed the way you spoke to us like adults. Sincerely, Rachel M." "Thank you for coming. It was very interesting to hear you. I think I might make a book one day. John A." "I like how you told us so much. I learned that kids could publish books too. I enjoyed your kindness. Sincerely, Mitchell." "Dear Susan McBride, I really enjoyed your speech about books. I learned a lot about what happens when you’re an author. Please come back some time again. Also thank you very much for the postcard. Sincerely, Emily R." Hey, Emily, you’re welcome. And thank you. I learned a lot, too. |
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