Back to school: Tips and resources for a succesful author visit

It's back to school time! I'm always inspired by this fresh start, and by the promise of new notebooks to fill up with stories. I buy at least a dozen of these at the beginning of the year. 

This time of year is also when I get a wave of Skype (that's virtual) school visits, and in-person author visits. School visits are my favorite: I love talking to educators and readers. There's just nothing better than talking about our favorite books and writing new stories. Hurrah for school visits! 

I'm excited to be part of Tattered Cover Bookstore's Educator Night on September 5th and 6th. If you're an educator in the Denver metro area, consider signing up and joining the fun.  

I love doing school visits so much, I even do a presentation on how to plan author visits at book festivals and educator conventions. I thought I'd share some of my tips and ideas, in case you are an educator looking for a place to start: 

Quick tips for a successful author visit: 

1. Decide how big you want the event to be. Consider starting smaller, with a Skype visit, or a short assembly visit arranged by the local bookstore (if available)

2. Build your team. It’s more fun if you get the community involved—plus, that way you’re not doing all the work yourself. Create a committee, enlist fellow teachers, parents, even kids.

3. Think local for less expensive visits—and kids love it when an author lives right where they do! I can attest to that :-) Try bookstores or referrals from other schools for author names. Local book fairs and festivals are a great way to meet authors.

4. Collaborate with other schools for bigger, pricier visits. Plan far ahead to allow time for fundraising and scheduling.

5. Apply for grants or organize fundraisers. PTO, book fairs, book sales are great fundraisers to get money. For travel expenses for the author, see if someone can donate miles/points for flights and hotel stays.

RESOURCES

Authors who Skype for free (a list compiled by author Kate Messner) 

Skype in the Classroom (through Microsoft, not necessarily book authors but any educational resource

Grants for school visits (these are just a few I found):

SCBWI Amber Brown Grant:

Target

Wells Fargo

Wal-Mart 

(You can contact any business for a grant, really, but these have existing forms)

Scholastic has a long list of grant possibilities

Want me to come to your school for a visit..? Find out more here, or email me at author-at-ftbradley-dot-com. 

Any educators or authors have tips or resources to share?

Linc's Bookstore Tour Stop #4: Tattered Cover

It's Linc again. I left Georgia, and now I'm in Denver, Colorado, heading to the fourth stop in my bookstore tour. Did you know this airport looks like a bunch of tipis? Pretty cool...

Anyway, here's the lowdown on my next stop:

Fourth Stop: Tattered Cover Book Store 
Place: Denver (metro), Colorado

Question: What makes Tattered Cover different from other bookstores?

Excellent question Linc! Of course the whole idea of independent bookstores is their “independence” – so every bookstore is unique. We at the Tattered Cover are particularly proud of our author event series. We love being able to connect authors with their readers, and because we have three stores, we're able to host over 500 author events every year!

Question: I have a day to spend in Denver. What should I do for fun?

Denver sure has a lot to offer for an adventurous person like yourself. The Tattered Cover staff loves to enjoy local music, eat at some of our fabulous local restaurants, and enjoy Denver's year-round (mostly) sunny weather. Right now you can explore “Pompeii” at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, learn all about Vincent Van Gogh's amazing career at the Denver Art Museum, and catch an indie flick at the Denver Film Center/Colfax, just a few feet away from our bookstore on Colfax avenue.

Question: If you could invent any spy gadget, what would it be and what would it do?

I think one of the coolest gadgets any spy could have would be a belt that generates an invisibility field – rendering the wearer invisible. While I can't imagine the science behind it, I'm sure there's a brilliant spy-gadget inventor somewhere just putting the finishing touches on this idea!

Question: Any cool events coming up for my kid friends who live in the area?

I don't know what kind of books your friends are interested in, but I can say that we have a calendar full of events for kids of all ages (and adults) this fall. From storytimes with crafts to paranormal mysteries for teens, we have something for everyone. All anyone needs to do is visit our website (tatteredcover.com) and check out our event calendar.

Sounds like Tattered Cover is the place to be, right?

Find Tattered Cover on Facebook, read the Tattered Cover blog, and follow on Twitter so you never miss an event.

I dropped a Kid Spy giveaway package with gadgets and a signed copy of Double Vision at Tattered cover, so head on over there to enter to win...