On Monday, Jan. 22, 2024, author Kimberly Willis Holt began her tour of Louisiana schools in honor of the 25th anniversary of the publication of her first book My Louisiana Sky. Ms. Holt had posted on Instagram offering free school visits to Louisiana schools. Margaret Simon, teacher of gifted students at Jefferson Island Rd. and Coteau Elementary schools, responded to the post.

Kimberly Willis Holt’s book has been part of the 4th grade English Language Arts curriculum, so many of the students were familiar with the story. They were full of admiration and questions. Ms. Holt talked about the hard work it takes to be an author. “Number one,” she explained, “is you have to care about what you write about.”

After sharing her journey to publication, from her childhood visiting her grandparents’ Louisiana home, her mother’s encouragement, and her own curiosity “What if?”, Ms. Holt led the students to write their own stories. She advised students to keep writing. One student was seen carrying her story in her hands and before the car door was closed, she was reading it to her grandmother. Every student has a story inside of them waiting to be written, and Kimberly Willis Holt left them all feeling like they could be authors, too.