I approached a student at Field Day as she was in the middle of a game. She was waiting for her turn in a relay where you have to carry a soaked sponge to gather water in a separate bucket across the blacktop. As I approached, I offered an encouraging “Are you ready?!”
She surprised me with her response. “Miss P said you’re a writer!”
I explained that I’ve written four books.
“Yeah and they are all for teachers!” She was engaged in a conversation about me being an author. So much so that she was suddenly being yelled at by her relay teammates. “It’s your turn! Go!” they shouted. She remembered that she was supposed to be taking part in field day instead of talking to her Principal about writing. She did her part to fill the bucket with water but I think she’d probably rather talk more about writing.
I filed this conversation away, and made a mental note to chat with her in the future about her interest in my writing career. If I could guess, I think that one day she’ll do some writing of her own.
We need to make sure we encourage these young writers. Writers write. But they also talk about writing too. I can’t wait to follow up with her and learn more about her interest in writing. I’m hoping that our conversation at Field Day sparks her to engage in her own writing career.
Hopefully someday I’ll be able to say to her, “I heard that you’re a writer!”
Rich
