In-person Visits:
I love interacting with readers of all ages! With over 15 years as a public school educator, I appreciate all that you do (THANK YOU!) and look forward to the opportunity to bring a day of inspiration, motivation, and bookish engagement to your students.
Full Day Program: $2,000 + flight cost*
Includes book signing & lunch with students or faculty + 3 of any combination of the following 45 minute presentations: assembly, Q&A, or workshop. To schedule a visit, please contact me.
Now booking for 2024!
I currently offer several presentations for grades 3-12, including:
The Writing Life
Best for: all ages
This assembly presentation is an inspirational look at the winding path that led me here, the stories behind the books that I’ve chosen (or have chosen me!), a call for students to see the value in their own story, and a challenge to use that unique perspective and singular voice for good.
AUDACITY: a closer look
Best for: grades 6-12
This presentation offers a behind-the-scenes look at the astonishing person and the complex history that inspired AUDACITY, a National Jewish Book Award finalist and winner of the Jefferson Cup. I’ll invite students to join me as I recount the journey from drafting, research, interviews, and revisions to the finished book.
Revise, revise, and then revise again!
Best for: Grades 5-10
This presentation begins with a confession: When I was a young writer, I avoided revision, AT ALL COSTS! I then share with students how much I rely on that very thing as a professional writer today. I use the timeline of a recent novel to outline the crucial role revision plays in my writing process, and to encourage students to incorporate revision into their own work.
Cultivating Awe
Best for: Grades 3-7
The world around us is anything but ordinary. With a pinch of imagination, and a heaping dose of awe, the smallest things become extraordinary. In this presentation, I look at my three speculative fiction titles: A NEARER MOON, THE LIGHTHOUSE BETWEEN THE WORLDS, and A WAY BETWEEN WORLDS, the inspiration behind the stories, worldbuilding, and the very real-world emotions and circumstances that ground these fantastical stories.
Figurative Language in THREE PENNIES
Best for: grades 3-7
I loved writing this book more than should be allowed for something classified as “work”! A huge part of the fun was the many kinds of figurative language I used to tell this one-of-a-kind story, something I love to share with students.
Local rates:
Full Day Program: (within 3 hours’ drive of Golden, CO only)
Includes 3 of any combination of the presentations described above + book signing & lunch with students or faculty: $1,500 + hotel cost**
Half Day Program: (within 60 miles of Golden, CO only)
One of the above presentations + Q&A + book signing: $500***
those pesky asterisks
*this cost includes the author’s choice of flights plus travel insurance because although exceedingly rare, things like snow days and bouts of bronchitis do happen!
**if needed; depending on school day schedule, usually only one nights’ hotel stay is required, before the day of the presentation
***to be scheduled between 10:00 am and 2:00 pm to allow for travel and traffic.
Virtual Visits:
I offer a limited number of FREE 15 min. Skype or Zoom visits (during very specific time frames) with classrooms that have read at least one of my books.
45 min. Skype or Zoom presentation: $250