"I learned to follow your dreams and start early."

Last week, my 4th graders Skyped 

with Chris Rylander, 

author of 

The Fourth Stall series.  

They loved this visit!

The students asked Chris questions.

1. Did you like writing when you were in elementary school?

2. What made you want to be an author?

3. What is your favorite part of the writing process?

4. Have any of your ideas been rejected?

5. What inspired you to write the Fourth Stall?

6. How long does it take for you to finish a book?

7. How did you develop the characters in the Fourth Stall?

8. If you could be any one of your characters, who would it be and why?

9. Which books inspired you when you were a young reader?

All of which Chris answered in an entertaining 

and thoughtful way.

I loved these two pieces of advice:

"If you want to be a writer. be a writer. 

Start right now!"

"I am a writer because I am a reader."

The students also got answers to some of their questions about The Fourth Stall, such as how Chris came up with the baseball trivia questions between Mac and Vince and what purpose they served in the book. 

My students left with some cool advice about writing and life: