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MONEY SMART KIDS
Responding to Reader Questions
by Janet Bodnar

Every once in a while, when my file folders and e-mail box are crammed with reader questions, I like to take some time to explain how I handle your queries and comments.

First, let me say thank-you for all your feedback. Your input keeps me in touch with what's on your mind and what I should be writing about.

Although I can't respond to each question personally, rest assured that I do read every one and answer as many as I can in this column. I try to vary what I write about from week to week, addressing a wide range of subjects and different age groups. If your question doesn't turn up right away, it may mean that I'm waiting for the right opportunity to use it.

I'm delighted to hear from both adults and children, whether you're looking for information or sharing an experience. Occasionally, I use questions I have been asked on radio call-in shows, by audiences I speak to or even by friends and co-workers, if I feel they'd be of wide interest.

When I receive a number of questions on a particular subject, I try to choose one that's representative of the whole group or come up with a composite. If you don't see your exact query, you may see a similar one. Keep watching.

Sometimes I get questions on a subject I've recently addressed in a column. If possible, I try to do a follow-up, especially if the subject generates a lot of reader feedback.

To avoid being repetitious, however, I can't always return to the subject right away. But I do save questions for future use, and all my columns are archived online at Kiplinger.com.

Occasionally, I get a question that requires extensive research or a lengthier reply than I can give in this space. In that case, I use the question as the basis for a longer story in Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine, which I can then adapt into several columns.

Sometimes I don't use reader questions in a column, but instead write on a topical issue -- reporting on some new trend or product that affects children's finances, or weighing in with an opinion on a news event or story.

I do that because I feel part of my job is to keep you up-to-date and anticipate what you'd like to know, even if you haven't actually put your thoughts on paper or in an e-mail.