Understanding Schools, Avoiding Miscommunications

Noisy-and-demandingLife is busy for your school visit hosts. Miscommunications happen. The result might be a madhouse schedule, payment that doesn’t arrive on the day of your visit, a lunch that isn’t delivered. But before going all “prima donna” or “pezzonovante” on them, cut schools some slack. Consider the challenges they face and address them before they become an issue.

One of my school library friends, Holly Kunkle of Camarillo, California, shared some of the challenges schools face today when booking an author visit:

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How Much Should I Charge? Three Rules of Thumb

MoneySign-BlackWhen you are figuring out what to charge for a school visit, here are three rules of thumb that can help:

• Be decisive about what fee works best for you.

• Don’t be defensive about your fee.

• Silence is your friend if you have to negotiate your fee.

Rule of Thumb #1: Be decisive about what fee works best for you
Authors’ and illustrators’ fees for school visits are all over the map, so you’re free to come up with your own figure.  If you’re at a loss of where to begin, check out publishers’ sites for their author and illustrator appearance pages to get some examples. The median fees (not the average) will guide you. For example, here’s what I found at the site of Little Brown Young Readers division, a publisher’s grid that includes 80 authors and illustrators from 22 states, DC and one Canadian province.

Primary grades or “All Ages” (30 author and illustrators)
FEES:
NEGOTIABLE = 2
N/A = 2
Authors/illustrators who post a local plus non-local fee = 13:30
Local fee range = $500 – $2000
Median local fee = $775
Non-local fee range = $450 – $5000
Median non-local fee = $1250

Grades 5 and up (50 authors)
FEES:
NEGOTIABLE = 5
N/A = 2
Authors who post a local plus non-local fee = 13:50
Local fee range = $250 – $1500
Median local fee =$500
Non-local fee range = $100 – $5000
Median non-local fee = $1,000

Rule of Thumb #2: Don’t be defensive about your fee.
If people question your fee, just say, “This is what I charge.” You don’t have to do a dance or explain why you’re worth it. Just know that you are worth it!

Rule of Thumb #3: Silence is your friend if you have to negotiate your fee.
I was a garage sale recently. A shopper showed interest in a table and chair set. My friend blurted, “It’s $60 or best offer.” She should’ve just said, “It’s $60” and let them make the next move. Her next action would then be determined by their actions or comments.

With school visits, don’t take a potential host’s silence as a “no.” Don’t assume they can’t afford you. They’re thinking it over. If they counter with a price or ask if you can do any better, you can either choose to negotiate or stand with your original fee.  And your silence in this exchange is just as significant. When you don’t chatter, good things can happen.

Getting Invitations to Speak at Local, State and National Conferences

ALA Collage - Cropped

There are four basic ways to get gigs and be visible at local, state and national conferences such as ALA, ILA, NCTE and those that are subject specific.

• Keynote speaker: Authors who keynote at state or national library or reading conferences are either invited directly by the organizers or promoted to organizers by publishers. A publisher may choose to promote a debut author, a front-list author or a popular backlist author. Expenses are picked up either by the publisher or the organizer, and the author may or may not receive an honorarium for this appearance.

• Book signing: Authors who sign books at a publisher’s booth at national trade shows are invited by the publisher to appear. These signings are generally reserved for front-list authors from that calendar year or who are on the publisher’s current bestseller list. A publisher may offer full or partial reimbursements for travel and/or lodging to the author along with free entry to the trade show, but all other expenses are up to the author.

• Session or workshop presenter by invitation from the organizer: This gives you a special designation in the conference program and offers an opportunity to be scheduled for a book signing.

• Session or workshop presenter by proposal sent in by you: You can submit proposals to do a session or workshop at a conference by following the organization’s submission policy and deadlines. Conference registration fees are usually waived for the session organizer, but other expenses are your responsibility. This does not guarantee you will have a special designation in the conference program or an opportunity to be scheduled for a book signing.

• Conference participant: For those who keep their ear to the ground, merely being a participant can offer information about issues that the author can address in upcoming proposal submissions. It’s also a way for you to meet potential hosts and generate contacts for future events.

TIPS
• Let your publishers know you are eager to speak or sign at conferences. If you have specific conferences in mind, tell them. Suggest they promote a panel of their authors to speak on a topic to the organizers.

• Make a grid of proposal deadlines and themes for upcoming conferences. (You might combine efforts with your writers group to generate this.)

• Propose a session.  You will end up expending money for this if accepted, but it gives you a great platform for meeting potential hosts. For best results, focus on state and local branches of the national organizations.

• Join relevant organizations. When you join a professional organization, you will have access to benefits such as listserv discussions, early announcements of upcoming events and reduced rates for events.

• Look for the state and local affiliates of national organizations for speaking opportunities.  For example, the ALA (American Library Association) has a list of state and regional chapters. They also have a spreadsheet showing which state library associations also have school library associations.

Here are a few parent organizations to check out:
ILA –   International Literacy Association
ALA –   American Library Association
NCTE – National Council of Teachers of English
NAEYC – National Association for the Education of Young Children
Also, look for subject-specific conferences (math, science, social studies, etc)

Understand that this is a “long-tail” investment: the longer you’re in the organization and the better you know the people in it, the more visibility you’ll receive over the long term.

Do you have any tips you’d like to share? I’d love to hear from you.

5 Ways to Encourage Schools to Read Your Book Before Your Visit

11 Travels - Stratford - 2Boys with RQ booksAuthors and illustrators — it’s a no-brainer: before you visit a school, all the kids should’ve have heard or read your books. We know that the educational value of a visit is deepened when kids are familiar with the author’s or illustrator’s books and the visit is anticipated by the whole school.

But — is it just me, or is this happening less and less? I’ve even visited schools that don’t have my books for kids to check out from their library. (True!) And it’s not that I’m asking a lot. In my pre-visit printed materials and emails, I ask the primary grades to read two of my picture books (total read-aloud time = 15 minutes, max). I ask the intermediate grades to read two of my picture books (total read aloud time, 17 minutes, max).

You can state in a contract or letter of agreement that reading your books is required, but good luck with enforcing compliance! So what be done to greater encourage schools to read your books in advance of your visit?

1. Be realistic: don’t expect kids to have heard or read all of your books. Tell them which ones you will be featuring in your assemblies. And if you write novels, suggest passages or chapters for read-alouds. It might also help to do a one-sheet outline of how books connect to the points you’ll be making in your assemblies.

2. Be clear: In your letter of agreement, request that the school tell you how they plan to share your books with students. For example, will the librarian read them to all classes? Will teachers read them to their individual classes? Will a volunteer do this task (and if so, how will they reach all kids?) This will give you a better idea of how invested the school is in this task.

3. Be bold: ask which of your books the library already has on hand and how many copies. Suggest that they have at least two copies on hand of the books you’ll be featuring in assemblies. If they are short on funds for obtaining your books, suggest funding opportunities.

4. Be helpful: offer alternative ways to reach kids efficiently. The school might
• borrow copies of your book from other schools in the district or from the local public library
• have separate copies circulating among primary grades and intermediate grades
• ask the parent organization to provide a set of books for each grade level; and if they don’t have a budget for this, suggest they find funding through a local donor.

5. Be understanding: if your efforts to help don’t work out, roll with it. Have a Plan B in place for doing assemblies to kids who don’t know your books. And be happy that at least they’ll know about them by the time you leave!

Do you have any other advice to offer or anecdotes to share? I’d love to hear from you!

Podcast: Evergreen School Visit Advice

Brain Burps About Books - LogoGrab your earbuds and turn up your speakers for some “evergreen” school visit advice. This is an interview that the one-and-only Katie Davis did with me on her podcast, Brain Burps About Books.  Katie is a writer, an illustrator, and a video marketing maven (her description — and it’s true!) Her podcasts include interviews with publishing industry leaders on the creation, promotion and writing of children’s books.

This interview is an hour long. In case your time is short and you want to jump to the bits that are of greatest interest to you, I’ve provided a list of topics we discussed and approximate times in the podcast they appear (minutes & seconds).
Episode #31: School Visit Questions with Expert Alexis O’Neill

00:00  General announcements
05:54 Introduction of Alexis O’Neill, SchoolVisitExperts.com
08:00 Importance of authors being compensated for work
09:01 Surprising world of school visits following publication
09:30 Selling vs giving. Expertise & intent
13:54 AUDIENCE QUESTION: What’s the best way to get school visits?
17:48 Fees & discounts
28:53 AUDIENCE QUESTION: Crowd control. How do you deal with loud, noisy assemblies? How do you get their attention and respect in a humorous way?
35:45 AUDIENCE QUESTION: How can I connect with schools? Mailings fall flat. Other suggestions?
42:18 AUDIENCE QUESTION: How can I develop a program to create an on-going relationship with a school?
46:26 AUDIENCE QUESTION: How do you get in front of the decision-makers – teachers & librarians?
52.10 AUDIENCE QUESTION: How can we promote to schools and keep “green”? Who’s the first contact at a school?
57.22 AUDIENCE QUESTION: I donated a school visit. Media will be coming. What I should I be prepared for?
01:02:05 AUDIENCE QUESTION: How do you know what to charge for the different events? Do you think it’s important to include kids in the presentation or is it okay just to do a PowerPoint to the kids?
01:09:21 END of Podcast

Go Deeper: Multi-session Writing Workshops

If you’re like me, we do school visits that are typically one-shot, Big Events. For example, my visits typically involve doing large-group assemblies and smaller writing workshops for upper-grade kids all on the same day. But here’s something I’ve done recently that I love:  working with a single classroom in my local community over a period of time with primary school kids.

WORKING WITH FIRST GRADERS: In 2014, I took part in a creative collaboration with a seasoned first grade teacher, Kristen Nordstrom. We met at a conference and wondered if first graders would be able and willing to apply revision techniques to make their nonfiction writing “pop.”

Kristen scheduled me for three sessions with the kids in late spring. They were about to work on their African Animals project. Part of my role was to add “star power” to the mix — a published author who has worked through the exact same process that they were about to begin.

Session 1 (1:15 hrs): I demonstrated my research process with the class.

  • I showed them a photo of a horned lizard and had them generate wonder questions based on an image of the animal.
  • We practiced how to use those questions as a research guide.
  • I shared my rough drafts, the “final” piece, the revisions I had to make as requested by the editor, and the published article.
  • We generated examples of “juicy” verbs to catch a reader’s attention.

Session 2 (1:30 hrs): I visited the classroom 5 weeks later. In the meantime, Kristen was doing the heavy-lifting. She taught mini-lessons on verbs, similes and metaphors, research and drafting. I met with small groups and gave feedback on their works in progress. The purpose was to help them come up with attention-getting openings.

Session 3 (1:30 hrs): At my last visit, kids shared their final books with me and reflected on their writing and revising process. They were proud of their opening “hooks.”

To see the results, take a look at a short film featuring the young writers, filmed by older students:

This project led to Kristen and I doing teacher workshops for her school district and for the California Reading & Literature Project at California Lutheran University. 14 Lang Ranch - Teacher Workshop

WORKING WITH SECOND AND THIRD GRADERS: In 2015, I did a collaboration with another creative teacher, Kathi Byington, in her grade 2/3 combination class. They chose to do a biography project featuring American peacemakers.

Session 1 (1 hr.): Meet-the-author / research process introduction

15 Aspen Projects - Frederick Douglass & Harriet TubmanSessions 2, 3, and 4 (1 hr each):  Students met with me in “we-are-all-authors” critique groups. We shared feedback. The goal was for each to produce a book to enter into the Young Authors’ Faire sponsored by the Ventura County Reading Association. http://www.vcrareading.org/  As with Kristen, Kathi did many lessons with students in-between my visits. I served more to reinforce and extend than to relay information.

Session 5 (1:30 hrs): Publication Party. We “launched” their books with treats. The kids talked with me individually about their projects and writing. The result was a deeper connection with these young writers than could have been accomplished in a single-day visit. The students invited me to their “Living Museum” and “ A Midsummer Night’s Dream” performances, and met me at the local Young Authors’ Fair.

 

15 YAF - Aspen Elem - Kathi Byington & Alexis O'NeillWhy not talk with a local teacher and see if you can forge a creative collaboration in the next school year! Or if you’re already doing this, please leave a comment below and share what you’ve been doing. I’d love to hear from you.

Tips for Hotel Stays

Whether staying in a hotel for one night or a week of nights, here are some tips for making the experience a more pleasant one.

BOOKING

• Reward Points: I make my own hotel reservation rather than leaving it up to my host. This offers me reward points as well as a bit of control over my digs.
• Proximity & Price: I do a quick search of hotels closest to where I’ll be presenting, call to check on best-price offers (i.e. AAA discount), then run the price and location by my host for approval.
• Breakfast: I need fuel for the day, so I require a hotel that includes breakfast.

EQUIPMENT

• Fan: I like arctic temperatures while sleeping, so I bring along small clip-on fan.
• Lighting: Hotels seem to have switched to LED lighting that is so dim, you have to turn on every single light in the room to actually see anything. I bring along a bright clip-on reading light.  If I’m in one location for a week and expect to write on off-hours, have been known to pack a foldable desk lamp.
• Power strip: Because many hotel room outlets are placed behind beds and heavy equipment, a power strip is a big help.
• Snacks: Trail mix. Anything chocolate. A must for those collapse-on-your-bed-before-dinner moments.
• Vase: To beautify the room on long stays, a few flowers in a collapsible, reusable plastic vase can lift spirits. They pack flat and can be found for anywhere between $1 – $10.

MAPS

• Map Between Hotel and the Presentation Site:  I’ve had my GPS be incorrect enough times that I now crosscheck multiple sources for my presentation locations before I leave home. If I’m driving, what’s most important to me are the directions and estimated travel time between the hotel and my presentation site. And since that time I was stuck in the middle of the Mojave Desert thanks to Google maps (true!), this has worked really well for me.

Do you have any hotel tips to share? I’d love to hear them! Leave a comment below.

5 Things to Do While Schools Are Sleeping

20150509_191953Here’s what you can do now while kids out of school and teachers are recharging their creative batteries this summer:

1. Business cards & bookmarks: Is it time for a redesign? A reorder? You can get some great deals through online printers such as GotPrint.com, Overnightprint.com and Vistaprint.com, to name a few.

2. Brochures & Websites: Is the information updated? Complete? Ask your critique group members to review your school visit page or print brochure. Better still, find a principal, teacher or parent give you feedback on it to see if you’ve made it clear how your presentation will benefit their students and tie into the curriculum.

3. Rates: Review your school visit rates. Do you need to change them for the coming year? If you’re unsure or you’re just starting out, compare with other published authors in your geographic region. A good place to start is with local PAL members of SCBWI.

4. Email updates: Enter your contacts from the past year into a database. This may include hosts of schools you visited or conference and workshop attendees. Be sure to note where you met them so that when you send them an announcement,  they know you’ve already established a relationship with them.

5. Reminders: Compose a note now to send in August reminding contacts of your availability to do school visits in 2015-2016. For schools you’ve just visited, ask them to refer you to another school. For contacts you made at events, plant the seed that you’re available in the coming year to inspire their students.

BONUS TIP
If you haven’t visited a school in 5 years, it’s time reestablish a relationship with them. Tell them what’s new. Suggest you return to meet their new batch of students.

If you do these five simple tasks (six, if you count the Bonus task!), you’ll be in great shape when the school year revs up again in August!

A Simple Card

Card - Holiday Cheer Reindeer with border2I don’t know about you, but I get a thrill when my mailbox includes “real” mail with hand-addressed envelopes and pretty stamps, not just catalogues and advertising (which go immediately in my recycle bin.)

Teachers, librarians and booksellers are no different.  A simple card that says “thanks” for what they do gives their day a boost.  And it shows you’ve gone the extra step to acknowledge their efforts to connect kids with good books.

I know that the holidays are fast approaching and you have much to do for your personal circle of friends and family. But before schools dismiss for winter vacation around December 19, why not take a moment and thank school visit hosts and booksellers from this past year for inviting you to their schools and stores. Send a holiday card. And if you miss them in December, a “Happy New Year” card when they return to school would be a nice surprise.  Your simple “gift” of thanks in your own handwriting will mean a lot to them.

Pricing Lessons

Dollar sign - goldThe new year is approaching fast. School visit invitations are ramping up – but so is your blood pressure. Do you feel as if you are constantly justifying your school visit fees to yourself and others? Do you second guess whether your services are priced to best reflect the content — and motivation — you deliver?

If you’re struggling with the fees you charge for your school visits, read this blog post by Melissa Dinwiddie, “5 Art Pricing Lessons I Learned the Hard Way.”  Replace the word “art” with “school visit presentation” and you will have some of the best advice ever about pricing.  Be sure to read the comments from readers as they share great advice, too. And when you’re done, leave a comment here to let us know what you think of this.

This guest post appeared “The Abundant Artist” blog by Cory Huff.  My thanks to Elizabeth Dulemba for bringing this to my attention.