Okay, I’ll admit, so when I signed up for World Read Aloud Day again this year, it was with a sense of “doing something nice for the kids” and “giving back a little.”  I was patting myself on the back.  Taking time from my busy week to read to children (besides Mose and Lew).

But here’s the thing… WRAD isn’t just for them. It’s for us too.

I remember, a few years back at AWP, my amazing sister was on a panel with Richard Ford, about writers in the schools, and how wonderful it is to work with kids.  And my sister made a point I’d never heard someone make. She said.  ”People see it as service. But they should be begging to volunteer their time in a school. If they knew how wonderful it was, they would.”  (or something like that. I didn’t write down exactly what she said.)

Her point was that writers work alone, and they use up a lot of their energy writing. They get drained. They tap out.  They forget why they began writing in the first place. They focus on the work of it. They lose their joy.

But kids? Kids are FULL of joy and eagerness and energy. They  fill you back up! They might tire you in other ways, but you can’t spend an hour with a bunch of excited kids, full of awesome questions, and awe and admiration for the fact that you MAKE BOOKS, and not come away reinvigorated.  You can’t work with kids and writing, and not remember why you started writing.

So today I skyped with eleven schools.  Eleven!  Oh, the wonders of technology.  Schools from all over the country. I read the kids picture books (my next book, Charlie & Mouse, as well as my old favorite, Rain Makes Applesauce, by Julian Scheer) and novels (both Seven Stories Up and my WIP, The Orphan Island). I answered questions, and I told them about my day. I introduced them to Lucy (my assistant, who works for carrot-bits and chew toys).

And now? I feel so ready to write. I feel so IN LOVE with The Orphan Island. I feel so… connected. Re-dedicated.

So now, while I have that boost,  I need to take a little time away,  to crank out a draft.  (I’m shooting for April).  I’m putting a moratorium on new skypes for the spring.  But I’ll be back in the fall. I promise.

And I will always always always do WRAD.

You should too.