A big box of DANIEL getting ready for school visits!
Here in Michigan, the new school year is just over a month away. In other parts of the country and world, school's already begun or never ended. I can't keep it straight, but all I know is that it's prime time for me to get out the word about DANIEL THE DRAW-ER and the upcoming, currently untitled sequel.
HOW IT WORKS:
Before our school year ended last month, I was invited to visit with four classrooms in my local district. Most of the kids had read a good portion, if not all, of DANIEL THE DRAW-ER and were excited to ask questions about how I came up with my ideas, my writing process, and what was next for Daniel and his friends. When time allowed, I read a favorite section of the book out loud (almost always it was the part where Whiskers gets stuck in the tree. Really fun for me to read!).
At least one of the classes drew pictures about their favorite DANIEL THE DRAW-ER character or what they would draw if they had a magic pencil. One of the teachers made copies of the students' work for me, and I'll share some of those with you soon.
Each of the teachers sent home order forms so the kids could buy a paperback copy of the book, which I signed and personalized while visiting the class. I tried to keep the cost of the books down because I know what it's like to be the parent of multiple school-aged kids, always overwhelmed with requests for fundraisers and field trip money. For those children who were unable to purchase a book at my visit, I also brought signed bookmarks for each child. I also am happy to donate a copy of DANIEL THE DRAW-ER to the school or community library.
As an independent author, my most difficult battle is marketing my book. Children who read this level of story don't typically own eReaders and don't usually shop on Amazon or scan through Twitter. They rely on parents, grandparents, teachers, and librarians to introduce them to fun, worthwhile books. That's why your word-of-mouth is so, so, so important. Without it, the kids don't even know I, or Daniel, exist!
If you are a teacher or a librarian, or someone who works with a group of kids who might enjoy an author visit, please let me know. You can reply below, or contact me through the contact form on my site. Obviously, at this time I need to limit in-person visits to locations in the SE Michigan area, but I'm also available for Skype or Google+ virtual visits, if your school or library has that capability. If you have other ideas, let me know, too! I'm eager to share this story with as many kids (and adults) as possible!
And, as always, thank you for your support!
HOW IT WORKS:
Before our school year ended last month, I was invited to visit with four classrooms in my local district. Most of the kids had read a good portion, if not all, of DANIEL THE DRAW-ER and were excited to ask questions about how I came up with my ideas, my writing process, and what was next for Daniel and his friends. When time allowed, I read a favorite section of the book out loud (almost always it was the part where Whiskers gets stuck in the tree. Really fun for me to read!).
At least one of the classes drew pictures about their favorite DANIEL THE DRAW-ER character or what they would draw if they had a magic pencil. One of the teachers made copies of the students' work for me, and I'll share some of those with you soon.
Each of the teachers sent home order forms so the kids could buy a paperback copy of the book, which I signed and personalized while visiting the class. I tried to keep the cost of the books down because I know what it's like to be the parent of multiple school-aged kids, always overwhelmed with requests for fundraisers and field trip money. For those children who were unable to purchase a book at my visit, I also brought signed bookmarks for each child. I also am happy to donate a copy of DANIEL THE DRAW-ER to the school or community library.
As an independent author, my most difficult battle is marketing my book. Children who read this level of story don't typically own eReaders and don't usually shop on Amazon or scan through Twitter. They rely on parents, grandparents, teachers, and librarians to introduce them to fun, worthwhile books. That's why your word-of-mouth is so, so, so important. Without it, the kids don't even know I, or Daniel, exist!
If you are a teacher or a librarian, or someone who works with a group of kids who might enjoy an author visit, please let me know. You can reply below, or contact me through the contact form on my site. Obviously, at this time I need to limit in-person visits to locations in the SE Michigan area, but I'm also available for Skype or Google+ virtual visits, if your school or library has that capability. If you have other ideas, let me know, too! I'm eager to share this story with as many kids (and adults) as possible!
And, as always, thank you for your support!
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