Questions Kids Ask about Writing

“Any man who knows all the answers most likely misunderstood the questions.”

That’s a quote that has a lot of truth. Nobody has all the answers, but writers can get asked some interesting stuff. A few years ago I was asked to go to a high school and talk about writing. I had talked to a number of elementary school classes, but going to talk to teenagers was a little more challenging. I wasn’t sure I would have anything to say that would keep them interested. I talked to three different classes. Some were the more academically serious students. One class was full of kids that weren’t exactly the kids who always sat still and listened. But they didn’t run me out of the school and proved to be fun even if loud. To make matters more challenging that day, they had a substitute teacher who looked ready to run if things went downhill. We got through the hour together and no one got sent to the principal – not even me.

I’ve told you before that my favorite part of any talk is the question and answer time. That was true with the kids that day too. Kids can always come up with questions. Here are some of the questions they asked me that day.

“Do you get to pick your covers?”

Readers  or anybody who looks at books are often interested in book covers and how they are designed and who does the designing. The students were that day too. I told them that my publishers come up with the covers on my traditionally published books. Sometimes the writer is asked for input. Maybe descriptions of the characters or setting. Some of my publishers early on in my writing career designed the cover and sent it to me and that was that. But my current publisher always asks for my thoughts about the cover before it’s a finished deal. They have listened to my thoughts and sometimes changed a cover to suit. Writers who independently publish their work do design their own covers or hire someone to do the artwork. I did that for my nonfiction book, Angels at the Crossroads, and my middle reader book, Freak of the Week. I’ve also designed the audio book covers on those books where I did the narration of the stories. This is the one I’ve liked the best.

The kids also asked which was my favorite cover. At the time I told them The Outsider because the model for Gabrielle is the perfect Gabrielle. Then I liked my young adult novel, For Sheila, from several years ago because of the big old dog. But now I have a harder time picking a favorite, but usually say Angel Sister because of the little girl on the cover that looks just like I imagined Lorena in the story.

“Do you know any really famous writers?”

When kids ask me this, I’m always a disappointment. They want me to have chatted with J.K. Rowling or Stephen King. I haven’t. I’ve met a lot of writers, but none whose names I could drop to get the kids excited. One kid at a school talk once asked me if I was famous. I had to disappoint again and say no. He was a fourth or fifth grader and he went on to ask if I wasn’t a little famous. He so wanted me to be famous that I admitted I might be just a tiny bit famous. That made him happy and me smile.

“What is the favorite book that you’ve written?”

That’s a hard question to answer. It can be like saying which is your favorite child. They’re all my favorites. Scent of Lilacs because it got me back into the published ranks after several years out. Angel Sister because of using my mother’s memories of growing up during the Great Depression as the background. The Outsider because it brought me new readers. Murder at the Courthouse because I like mysteries. Discovery at Coyote Point, one of my kids’ books, because the setting is based on one of my favorite places on the farm. The Song of Sourwood Mountain because it is new and out there now for readers. The Gifting, another of my young people’s books, because writing it got me through a hard time while my dad was in the last stages of cancer. I can think of reasons to decide each book might be a favorite.

“Which book that you’ve written made you the proudest?”

I didn’t have an answer for that one back when the kids asked me. I don’t now. Maybe I should have told the kids I’m proud every time I finish a book. But then pride goeth before a fall, so maybe I’ll just say I’m excited every time I finish a book.

“Can you make a living writing?”

Another impossible question to give a general answer. Some writers get rich. Other writers make a comfortable living writing. Most writers shouldn’t give up their day jobs. I’ve had years I did okay and other years I worked for peanuts. A few years where the peanuts made a very small pile, but there was never any question of not writing. I am compelled to share stories and write.

So, those high school students didn’t ask any zany questions. I expected a few zingers, but the kids that day were kind.

How about you? What questions might you have asked if you were one of those students hearing me or any writer talk about writing?