An Online Interview with Rick Riordan
Did your students know you write novels, and what did they think about that?
We never talked about it much in the classroom, but most of them were aware that I write books. I suppose they thought it’s cool, but they had a lot of other stuff to think about, being in middle school. Homework, peer pressure, who likes whom — all these tend to take priority over what their teacher does.
They would often say, “Wow, you write books? Can I be a character?” And I do frequently use names of former students for my characters, but the kids are always surprised how long it takes to get a name into print. If I meet a student in middle school, he/she will probably be in high school by the time the book is actually written and in the bookstores.
My favorite comment from a student: I assigned a five-page paper, and he rolled his eyes and said, “Mr. Riordan, just because you write books doesn’t mean we have to.” I laughed, but he still had to write the essay.
Another thing about my books and my students: When I first started writing adult mysteries, it never occurred to me that my middle school students would ask if they could read them. I always told them no — wait until you’re older. The adult books really aren’t appropriate for younger readers. Of course, many of the kids took that as a challenge and immediately went to the bookstore. I could always tell when a kid had read one of my Tres Navarre books because he would come to class with a funny light in his eyes, like, “Wow, Mr. Riordan, I didn’t know you were such a rebel.” I’m glad I have the Percy Jackson series to recommend to kids now, so I don’t have that dilemma anymore.
