This morning I was privileged to attend a short story reading event in my area.  As a writer, I think it’s important to take advantage of these kinds of opportunities.  It’s valuable to hear from other aspiring authors.  This group, I must say, was adorable.  They were my grandson and his kindergarten classmates.

Each of the five and six-year olds wrote and illustrated a story and read aloud to a room full of photo-taking parents and grandparents.  My heart leaped a bit as I heard my sweet grandson, Manning, reading his story about the trip he and his family made to Lego Land.  I was on the edge of my seat the entire time.  The story had it all – plot, action, suspense, and very loveable characters.  I am so proud of him.

The teacher did an excellent job of coaching the kids, and they all loved sharing.  When their story was told, she supplied a bio for each of the authors.  She told us their name and where they live – for example, my grandson lives in his house.  We also learned what these up-and-comers do in their spare time.  This ranged from playing video games to playing outside, but my favorite was one little girl who likes to run around her couch.  And, what do these young authors want to be when they grow up?  Everything – doctors, lawyers, teachers, soccer players – you name it.  My grandson wants to do construction, which fits in perfectly with his love of Legos.

I was a bit surprised that two of the children want to be spies.  One of them wants to be a spy and a mailman, which I think has real possibilities of success provided the Post Office is still around twelve years from now.

None of the kids mentioned wanting to be a writer, but I think the seeds have been sown for some of them to do just that.  I overheard the couple next to me saying that the girl who said she wants to be either a lawyer or a cake maker really wants to make cakes.  The lawyer thing she added to make her dad happy.  By the looks on the parents’ faces, these kids are already doing a great job of that.  Most of their stories were dedicated to their mom and dad.  Only one child hadn’t made up his mind yet about his future – when you’re six, why not keep your options open.