Author Visits—Virtual & In-Person
I delight in talking to kids of all ages and adults about writing, reading and the publishing process. Our time together can be anything from a fun read-aloud of one of my books to an in-depth, interactive workshop. I can provide activities to enrich the experience and foster curriculum connections. I’m happy to work with you to customize a presentation.
Workshop topics:
Picture Book Basics and Beyond—Can you tell an engaging story from start to finish in 500 words or less?
Editing Like An Editor—We work with one of my manuscripts at three different stages of development—initial submission, an expanded version, and finally, the finished text awaiting publication. Students learn how the publishing process depends on compromise and collaboration. They test their editorial instincts by cutting and shaping a real manuscript. Finally, they compare their choices to those of a professional editor. All editorial gain, no editorial pain.
That Squirrel Is Nuts! Creating True-To-Life Characters—Students learn the nuts and bolts of how writers develop complex, engaging, relatable characters. We’ll explore the importance of research in character development. Finally, students will begin to create characters of their own.
Virtual Author Visits for 2022:
45-60 min. Presentation for a classroom or group: $150
30 min. Author Story Time plus Q&A with one of my books: $50
In-Person Rates:
Please note: For everyone’s safety, all in-person visits must adhere to current health regulations.
Full-day Visit—three presentations of up to one hour each: $1000
Half-day Visit—two presentations of up to one hour each: $600
Author Lunch Add-On: a casual “brown bag” lunch and bookish conversation for a small group of students, a book club, or a writing group: $150
Travel expenses calculated for locations over 25 miles from Reading, MA.
Free 10 min. Author Visit for Scout Groups, Clubs, Book Groups, etc. (limited availability):
I’d love to say hello to your class or book group via Skype or Zoom. Please contact me to schedule our free 10-minute visit.
Let’s talk!
Whether you’re interested in an in-person or virtual author visit, please fill out the form on my contact page. Use “author visit” in the subject line. I’ll get back to you to discuss scheduling and your specific needs.
Past Events:
Join me and my esteemed colleagues Don Tate and Mark Hoffman as we explore and illuminate the picture book creation process from start to finish.
This event is offered by the Writers’ Loft, and you can REGISTER HERE.
October 19-20—Picturing The World: Nonfiction Picture Books
Boston Book Festival panel discussion with Lesa Cline-Ransome, Gloria Respress-Churchwell, and Karlin Gray, moderated by Megan Dowd Lambert
11am-12pm
Mary Norton Hall at Old South Church, 645 Boylston St, Boston, MA, 02116
November 24—An Unlikely Story Book Reading & Signing, 2 pm
Join me and Lisa Rogers, author of 16 Words, as we read and talk about our new picture book biographies. 
An Unlikely Story Bookstore & Cafe, 111 South Street, Plainville, MA
April 2, 2019—International Children’s Book Day and Babymoon’s happy birthday!
April 6, 2019—Babymoon‘s official launch at Whitelam Books in Reading, MA, 5:30 pm. Click here to preorder your copy.
April 7, 2019—Babymoon at The Blue Bunny Books and Toys, 11 am
May 4, 2019—Babymoon and You Are Light event with author-illustrator Aaron Becker at Odyssey Books, South Hadley, MA, 2 pm
May 7-8, 2019—Babymoon at the 2019 Partners in Perinatal Health Conference
May 11, 2019—Babymoon at Magic Beans in Brookline, MA, 1pm
May 18, 2019—Babymoon Story Time at The Silver Unicorn Bookstore, Acton, MA, 11 am
June 1, 2019—Babymoon and 9 Months event with author Miranda Paul at Books Of Wonder (uptown location) 217 W. 84th St., NYC. 1-3 pm,
August 1-4—What Miss Mitchell Saw pre-publication premiere on her home island of Nantucket! Details to come!
September 3, 2019—What Miss Mitchell Saw’s happy book birthday!
September 8, 2019—Author visit to Doula Noliko Utsuzawa‘s Japanese Maternity Support Group, Boston, MA
~October 1, 2019—172nd Comet Sighting Anniversary—Visit to Nantucket’s Mitchell’s Book Corner and the Maria Mitchell Association.
Annual Events
February 1st is always World Read Aloud Day!
Let’s celebrate World Read Aloud Day together! We’ll choose a book that suits your class for a read-aloud. We’ll also have time for Q & A.
Learn more at LitWorld or on author Kate Messner’s website.
Teachers & Librarians: Please fill out the form on my contact page with WRAD in the subject line to request a free, 20-minute Skype visit. I’ll get back to you with my availability.
April 29-May 5, 2019
To celebrate 100 years of Children’s Book Week, KidLit TV interviewed 100 children’s book creators, and I’m one of them! In this interview, I talk about why I wrote BABYMOON, how I learned more about my characters thanks to Juana Martinez-Neal’s illustrations, and why I need a much, much bigger bathtub.
