School Visits in Review

Over the last year I’ve visited an incredible variety of schools throughout the U.S. and U.K. It’s a fun change from being a teacher, because as a teacher, I tended to get insulated in my own classroom. I knew my own students very well, which was great, but I didn’t know what was going on in the other classes or what my students were like out in the real world.

As an author, I see a huge cross-section of the education system in a series of one-day snapshots. I never get to know any one group in depth, but I still feel privileged to meet and work with so many young readers. The travel schedule can be exhausting, but I love doing school visits. It keeps me in touch with kids. It keeps my writing grounded, and reminds me who I’m working for.

I often tell people that when I first started writing Lightning Thief, I imagined myself reading it to my fifth period class after lunch. As any teacher can tell you, that’s a very difficult litmus test. If a book can hold the attention of an entire class right after lunch, the author has done something right. Nowadays as I’m writing Percy, I imagine reading each passage to a school assembly. Every chapter has to have the right mix of humor, action and emotion. It has to move at a brisk clip. It has to be interesting, entertaining, and relevant to kids. It can’t lose them! I’m not saying I succeed 100% of the time, but that’s my goal, and school visits are an essential part of my writing process.

I always get many more requests to do school visits than I can possibly do. I know, this is a fantastic problem to have, but I hate saying no, especially when there are so many enthusiastic kids, teachers and librarians out there. I’ll start booking visits for next school year (fall 08-spring 09) on Jan. 1, and I’m already looking toward the date with some trepidation. I know there will be a flood of requests, judging from the inquiries my webmaster has already forwarded to me, and I’m not sure how I’ll sort through them fairly. I’ve made the decision that twenty school visits is about all I can book next year because of my writing deadlines and the number of events my publishers expect me to do. Several librarians have asked, “Are you still doing school visits?” They assume that once I get to a certain point with the success of the series, I will stop. I hope it never comes to that. Even if I must continue to cut back, school visits are so important to me. I can’t imagine writing for kids and not interacting with them in the schools on a weekly basis.

While I’m grappling with the problem of how to cut back, from time to time there are some schools that I seek out and volunteer to visit. I got the chance to visit some schools like this over the last few weeks.

Just before Thanksgiving, I presented at Winston School here in San Antonio. The school had come to my attention because they specialize in helping children with learning differences. This is an issue near and dear to my heart. After all, if it wasn’t for my son Haley struggling with ADHD and dyslexia, I never would’ve written the Lightning Thief. I offered to speak to the entire school – kindergarten through high school – which I don’t usually do. It was like talking to three hundred Haleys! Imagine running over the top of a herd of wild stallions. That’s sort of how I felt leading that presentation. All of them were full of energy, full of questions. Many were ADHD and/or dyslexic. All had struggled in conventional schools, but all were wonderfully divergent thinkers. The students seemed so at home at Winston, and so comfortable with who they were. I found it exhilarating!

This week, I visited another kind of school – KIPP Aspire Academy, also in San Antonio. The campus is in an old parochial school on the near West Side, quite close to the first house my wife and I ever shared in San Antonio. It’s a tough neighborhood – lots of poverty, gangs and homelessness. The kids who go to KIPP would be labeled “at risk” in almost any school district, but they made the choice to go to this charter school where they are pushed hard to succeed and to think about college. The school offers clear structure and lots of support. The teachers are incredibly dedicated. When they described their jobs and how long they work in a typical day, my jaw dropped. I learned about the school last year from an article in the Express-News, and I knew right away I wanted to visit and help out however I could. I am so glad I did. I’ve rarely spoken to a more appreciative audience or a more impressive bunch of young readers. As a teacher, I sometimes wondered, “Am I really making a difference?” The teachers at KIPP should have no doubt on this score. It is so obvious that they are changing these kids’ lives.

Today, yet another kind of school -- I drove up to Austin for a morning at Kirby Hall. Set in a 1930s women’s dorm near UT, tucked away on a quiet crooked street overlooking a park, the school has tons of atmosphere and character. It looks like an aging mansion with a long rich past, the perfect setting for a book. The classes are small and the kids were bouncing off the walls with excitement. The third grade made me a hand-drawn WELCOME sign for the front entrance of the school. The fourth grade made an encyclopedia of terms based on vocabulary words they researched in the Lightning Thief. The sixth grade did character collages. The fifth grade painted banners for the book covers. They all asked great questions, and after the two presentations, I got to see some P.E. games the third grade and their coach Deborah had come up with based on the Percy books. You haven’t lived until you’ve played Medusa in the Middle! I’m hoping to post the rules about the seven games they created on my website. Stay tuned for that!

Next week, in one of my last visits before winter holidays, I’ll get to speak at Cole Middle School on the Fort Sam Houston Army base. I met the librarian at a recent conference, and when she told me about her kids, and how many of them are dealing with so much uncertainty, having parents who are stationed in Iraq or Afghanistan, I really wanted to come visit their classes. I look forward to that!

In short, how could I not want to continue doing school visits? I always learn at least as much from the kids as they do from me. Every school visit is a gem. It never gets old. When I visit a school, I feel like I’m still a teacher, and that’s such a huge part of my identity, I can’t imagine losing that feeling!

The Golden Compass

Last week I got a question I’d been expecting for ten years: “What do you think about the Golden Compass controversy?”

Now that the movie is about to come out, suddenly the book’s religious/antireligious themes are making news. For many years, I was surprised no one was raising a stink about Pullman’s trilogy. Not that I have anything against it personally. I’m a big fan of his work. Still, the trilogy is basically about killing God. Given the protests we’ve seen from religious groups in the past over the Harry Potter books, I couldn’t understand why no one seemed to mind Pullman. The Golden Compass appeared on reading lists in every state, in many public school systems. Kids were obviously reading and enjoying the books. And yet, not a peep from concerned parents.

The book has been out for a decade. Now, suddenly, it’s news. Why? There’s a movie. The only conclusion I can reach: The people who tend to protest books don’t read. At the very least, they don’t read the books they are protesting. They rely on television, Hollywood advertisements, and hearsay to form their opinions. Maybe I should not be surprised by this, but still I find it sad. Censorship is always ugly, but it’s especially ugly when it has no rational basis and is not the product of an informed decision. I can totally understand and support any parent who reads a book for himself and decides that the book is not appropriate for his child. But to protest something one has never read – whether it’s the Satanic Verses or Harry Potter or Golden Compass – is the definition of prejudice.

Pullman’s themes are not my themes. I’m not an atheist, and if I’m interpreting his world view correctly, I do not share it. That does not stop me from enjoying his work. I can think for myself, and I give young readers enough credit to believe they can too. Sharing ideas, especially ideas we do not agree with, makes us all stronger thinkers. That is what good education, and good reading, is all about. I hope the movie version gets more people to read the books, and the controversy will certainly help Pullman’s sales. I suppose that’s the silver lining on the dark cloud of censorship! As always, I would encourage you to read these books and decide for yourself.

Pictures from Poseidon's Realm

Back from the Caribbean! I am the world's worst photographer, but fortunately Becky snapped a few shots I thought I would share. From top to bottom, we have the view from Paradise Point in St. Thomas with our ship in harbor, Becky on the deck of the ship as we sail out from St. Lucia, me with the boys at an old fort in St. Lucia, and me snorkeling in Barbados, keeping an eye out for hippocampi. I think I should use the last one for my new author photo. Okay . . . maybe not.

Blogging from Barbados

Happy Thanksgiving, mon! The family and I are on a cruise this week, taking a vacation in the Caribbean as we explore Poseidon's territory. Today we spent the morning swimming with sea turtles and snorkeling at Malibu Beach in Barbados. I knew I was in the right place when I saw that the Barbados flag is the trident of Poseidon. At the beach, a group of horses kept riding in and out of the sea, which helped me understand how the ancient Greeks might believe Poseidon created horses out of waves.

We've had a great week. We watched the sunset in San Juan and got serenaded by roosters as dawn broke over Antigua. We sailed a pirate ship out of St. Lucia. We took a sky ride to the top of St. Thomas. After rain in St. Maarten, the rainbow goddess Iris put on a beautiful display. The kids are loving the cruise ship's cafeteria, especially the pizza and soft-serve ice cream. They've also had a great time sampling the beaches, and brought back a ton of sand and rocks in their swimsuits! Tomorrow we sail back to San Juan and fly home to San Antonio from there.

I'm thankful for vacation, and thankful to be going back to a job I love -- writing books! I'm especially thankful to all the readers who have made Percy Jackson their own. I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving. Eat some turkey for us, as we're living on tropical drinks, pizza and chocolate at the moment. A tough job, but someone has to do it!

Demigod of the Week

Thanks to Philippa and her mom, who sent in this picture from the Texas Book Festival. Last year I had corresponded with Philippa's mom when their family was in Germany, because Philippa was trying to find the Titan's Curse. We figured out how to get her a copy. This year, it was great to meet them in person! Philippa is our demigod of the week!

Haley's Recent Reads

God bless Neal Shusterman. A couple of weeks ago I was looking for something to give my son Haley to read. He starts every day of home schooling with silent reading time, and it's often difficult to find books he'll enjoy. Though he's made great strides with his dyslexia, he is still a fairly reluctant reader. I rummaged through my bookshelves and found a copy of Dark Fusion: Dread Locks, which Neal had signed for me at NCTE a couple of years ago. I gave it to Haley, selling it on the Greek mythology angle, and he agreed to give it a try. I came in thirty minutes later to start him on math, and I couldn't tear him away from the book. This doesn't happen very often. When he gets engrossed in a story, I usually let him keep reading. That's one of the advantages of home school -- flexible schedule. As long as the work gets done, it doesn't matter when you do it. So I let him read. A few hours later, he was done with the book. One sitting. I was amazed.

The next day, I handed him Red Rider's Hood, another Dark Fusion title. Haley devoured it. The next day, I handed him Downsiders. Haley usually gets a twenty minute break during his school day. That particular day, he used his break time to read. That has NEVER happened before.

Well, you get the idea. Haley has become a huge Shusterman fan. His most recent read was Everlost, which is a much longer book. Still, he finished it in a day. We have since scoured the local bookshops for all of Neal's titles, and I'm hoping we can make them last at least another week. What we'll do after that, I'm not sure. But it is so wonderful to see my reluctant reader son eating up books. So thanks, Neal! You've got a new devoted reader and made this dad's job a whole lot easier!

Demigods of the Week

I had a great visit at Sartartia Middle School today. The kids were very excited and brought tons of books to sign. Special thanks to Mary (pictured above) who visited from her elementary school. Mary's in fifth grade and dressed as Medusa for Halloween because she likes the Percy Jackson books. She got special permission to visit Sartartia with her mom today and dressed up for the occasion! Also thanks to Daniel, who won the bookmark design contest for the seventh grade with the excellent artwork you see above. I signed it, and copies will be distributed to his classmates. Thanks, Mary and Daniel. You're the demigods of the week!

Pictures from Sugar Land

I'm spending the week doing visits in Fort Bend ISD, Sugar Land, Texas, just outside Houston. Before coming here, the only thing I knew about Sugar Land was that it was Tom DeLay's former constituency. Fortunately, the city has other things going for it.

Today I had a good visit with the students of Colony Meadows Elementary. I was greeted at the door by a host of Olympians, as pictured above. Can you tell who is who?

I met with 2nd through 5th grade, read from Titan's Curse and told stories from Greek mythology. Afterward the teachers asked if I'd take a walk down the 4th grade hallway because those students were working on writing. I thought I was going to look at projects or something. I turned down the hall and found it was packed with 120 fourth graders, all looking at me! We had a nice impromptu Q&A session about writing, revising and publishing. Thanks to Carol Scott of the PTO and all the other volunteers who helped make the visit a success!

Tomorrow I'll be visiting Sartartia Middle School. I'm told 'sartartia' is a Native American word for potato, because the school was built on a former potato farm. Alas, their mascot is the jaguar, not the spud. "Go, taters!" has a nice ring to it. Then it's back home tomorrow afternoon and back to writing.

While traveling I've had a chance to do some reading. I just finished and enjoyed The Warrior Heir by Cinda Williams Chima. Now I'm reading a quirky but fun superhero novel called Soon I Will Be Invincible by Austin Grossman. So many books, so many plane trips -- one upside to traveling, though it will be nice to get home!

Texas Book Festival, part one

Those folks in Austin know how to throw a party. I made the decision to commute from San Antonio to avoid more time in hotels and get to spend evenings with the family, which means I'll be driving to Austin for festival activities three times this weekend, but it's been well worth it.

Friday was my first time participating in the Reading Rock Stars program. I spoke with the 3rd-5th graders at Reilly Elementary and they really rolled out the red carpet. I've never seen so much breakfast food! The library was decorated with huge drawings of Greek monsters and gods, and the kids were very well prepared. The festival provided each child with a signed copy of Titan's Curse. The kids were so excited I felt like Santa Claus. This is really a worthwhile program. Any other children's authors out there, if you're ever at Texas Book Festival, definitely consider participating. At the luncheon afterward, I got to meet Michael Hoeye (Time Stops for No Mouse) and catch up with Deborah Wiles. I met Deborah in Houston a few months ago when we shared space at a school book festival. Her great presentation was one reason I finally broke down and made a Powerpoint! If you ever get to see her speak, you really should do it. I wrapped up the day with a quick visit to Trinity Episcopal School -- bright kids with lots of enthusiastic questions, beautiful campus.

Yesterday, Saturday, I arrived early to do a video shoot for a short promotional film Hyperion is making. We were going to meet at a little park on Guadalupe, but there was a homeless rally going on so we went next door to the Austin Public Library. They graciously let us take over their children's section. After the filming, a mom appeared out of the stacks and said, "My son loves your books!" It turns out Thabo, her son, was over at the magazine section, so we went to surprise him. I thought the poor kid's jaw was going to drop off his face. His mom said they almost went to the comic store instead of the library, but they were really glad they happened to hit the library. Fortunately, my publicist Deborah had an extra set of books, so I was able to leave Thabo with a signed souvenir!

Afterward I strolled over to the capitol building and hung out in the authors' green room, which is always a treat. I'll send a shout out to young authors Pia and David who were there to read their work. It was a pleasure to meet them, and I wish I had that much poise when I was their age. I also got to chat with Steven Saylor and Jesse Sublett -- got to see Joe Ely but didn't get to introduce myself. Sherman Alexie came up and introduced himself, which kind of blew me away. Apparently his son Joseph is a Percy fan! I was bummed that I didn't get to see Sherman speak, as our events overlapped, but we got to take a picture together for Joseph. I also got to talk with Jeff Kinney for a while (Diary of a Wimpy Kid) -- really nice guy, and his book sounds great, so add another one to be "must be read" pile!

My talk was held in the Family Life Center of the First Methodist Church. I went over a few hours before the event to check out the space, and my first thought was, "Uh-oh." The place is the size of a basketball court (actually, it *is* a basketball court), and I thought, "There's no way we're going to need this much room." Even a huge crowd would've looked tiny in that sea of chairs. I am still very much in the mode of thinking that when I hold an event, no one will come. I know I'm not the only author who dreads this. I just spent too long touring before the Percy books, and I've seen my share of empty events. I'll be darned . . . we filled the place, as you can tell from the picture, which was taken by my parents from the back of the room. That tiny little figure in front is me. I did my first-ever reading from "The Battle of the Labyrinth" and it went very well, probably because the crowd was so friendly! We did the quiz game T-shirt giveaway and Q&A, followed by a signing downstairs. Thanks to everyone who came out and waited in line so patiently. Special thanks to my friend and author extraordinaire Jeff Abbott, who came with his family, and Linda Sue Park -- another great author I wish I'd been able to see -- who came by and introduced herself at the signing. And of course, thanks to my volunteer escort Mary G, and to Topher from BookPeople, who not only introduced me, but stayed to help with the signing for an entire hour. It was a great day, and I can tell you that I slept well last night.

Today, I switch hats and become an adult mystery writer. I'll be heading back up to the festival for a panel with Diane Fanning and Harry Hunsicker. Come on by if you're in the area!

Blog Entry Winner

This week I visited Carl Schurz Elementary in New Braunfels, where the librarian had a great idea. She started a blog about which god the students would want for a parent. To encourage responses, she told the students that one participant's name would be drawn during the author visit, and the winner would have his or her picture taken with me. Alyssa was our lucky winner! Good job, Alyssa, and thanks for participating!