So in the past month I’ve done something I swear I would never do. And I did it twice. I’m taking about webinars. I swore them off in 2008-ish when I did one that was an end-to-end hassle of software, hardware and personal communication. I felt underutilized and underpaid and definitely didn’t feel like I got my message across effectively. A lot has changed since then. Software has gotten better and I’ve gotten a bit better at working with whatever I’m given. Here’s a little rundown on the two events.

First talk was for NJLA, a little virtual keynote talk about Open Library. We used Adobe Connect software which was pretty straightforward to use even though it meant transferring my Keynote slides into PowerPoint. I got to give a talk, keep up with a chat window and answered questions afterwards. I thought it went well and I got to talk about Open Library to a lot of people without leaving my house. The talk is archived for NJLA members but otherwise not available online. Since I’ve been talking about Open Library a lot lately I’ve made a landing page for the various talks I gave.

The second talk was more complex as it was part of a multi-hour event called Library 2.016 with a subtopic called Privacy in the Digital Age. This one used Blackboard’s collaborate software which was a bit more of a hassle (could not use my presenter notes at all, had to read my talk from my laptop at home) but did allow for recording of the entire event so it could be played back, chatroom at all. My talk was short, twenty minutes, and then we had a brief Q&A session. The sponsor of the event, San Jose State University’s library school, made the odd choice of not making links to the recordings or the schedule of the event available to people who didn’t register. However, the link to the recording is a public link, so if you want to hear my talk, you can do that here. I’ve also put my notes and slides online in the usual place.

In both cases, the webinar format worked decently even if the software was a little clunky to get to know. Unsurprisingly, the trickiest issues were the human decisions that went into how to run the webinars, not the actual software or hardware. IU had a decent enough time and am going to consider maybe doing another webinar before another eight years pass. Big thanks to Allen McGinley and Steve Hargadon who made both events happen.

While making notes for Salli’s upcoming class – BUILD A FREELANCE ILLUSTRATION BUSINESS – she realized that one topic was worthy of it’s own session: Creative Playgrounds, which Salli and her brother/business partner Nate Padavick believe can energize your career. What IS a Creative Playground and why are they so important? Join us for the FREE webinar August 10th at 4:00 EST (or watch any time after the live class).

Take it from Albert Einstein “Play is the highest form of research.”

Webinar – School Visits with Suzanne Morgan Williams

Date/Time
Date(s) – 11/12/2014
7:00 pm – 9:00 pm

COST: $25.00 For All SCBWI Members – $30.00 Non-Members

The best school visits are age appropriate, energetic, engage the students, and add value to the school’s curriculum. How do you design amazing presentations? Gain confidence in your performance, teaching, and negotiations? How do you get schools (or more schools) to hire you? Author, former teacher, and school presenter, Suzanne Morgan Williams, uses handouts, exercises, and the online presentation to help you plan programs based on your strengths, your books, and students’ needs.

She’ll share her best tips for connecting with schools and negotiating fair deals. If you’re serious about giving presentations that leave schools buzzing tune in for this one. The webinar will end with an optional online question and answer time.  Homework and supplemental information will be forwarded to participants as they register. A link to the online classroom will be provided 24 hours prior to the event.

Click HERE to register for:

So You’re Not a Juggler: Planning Amazing School Visits with Suzanne Morgan Williams

Suzanne Morgan Williams is the author of the middle grade novel Bull Rider and eleven nonfiction books for children. Bull Rider is a Junior Library Guild Selection, is on state award lists in Texas, Nevada, Missouri, Wyoming, and Indiana, and won a Western Heritage Award from the National Cowboy Museum in Oklahoma City. Suzanne’s nonfiction titles include Pinatas and Smiling Skeleton. The Inuit, Made in China, Nevada, and her latest book, China’s Daughters.

Suzanne has presented to adult and children’s audiences and taught writing workshops at dozens of schools, professional conferences, and literary events across the US and Canada. A former teacher, she has an M.Ed, teaching credentials, and a Montessori teacher certification. She’s been commissioned to create teacher’s guides for other writers as well as to write and support community cultural and literacy projects such as Nevada Hispanic Service’s/Nevada Humanities’ Great Latinos Biography Project. Visit www.suzannemorganwilliams.com

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

Looking for new diverse books for your collection? We’re doing a webinar this afternoon at 2:00 pm EST with Booklist and several diverse publishers – don’t miss it! Sign up free here.

It’s going to be great!

by guest blogger, Emma Greenwood Emma Greenwood is the Green Columnist for Liberti magazine and author of work-in-progress, Seagull Eyes, a contemporary teen novel that was long-listed for the Mslexia Children’s Novel Competition 2012. Emma also writes teen-voice short stories and has been published by Mslexia and Cinnamon Press. She writes every day at the kitchen table but can type 55 wpm

Teachers and librarians are always looking for new ways to connect with children and teens categorized as “reluctant readers.” On September 25, 2012, you can participate in a free hour-long webinar that addresses that need.

Joining Orca’s publisher, Andrew Wooldridge, will be a reading specialist and literacy coach, along with a representative from Saddleback Educational Publishing. The webinar will cover strategies and resources effective in reaching struggling readers ages 10 and up, as well as present books that combine high-interest topics with accessible writing. You’ll also hear about new releases and best-selling series from Saddleback Educational Publishing and Orca Book Publishers.

Register now.

Have a question about “reluctant readers”? Please email [email protected] before September 24 and we will attempt to answer your query in the webinar. Questions addressed during the webinar will receive a sampling of current titles valued at $100. So keep them coming!

Webinar details:

Tuesday, September 25, 2012 1:00 pm (Central Daylight Time)

Free webinar for fans & librarians Tuesday June 12 – perfect for #JIAM2012 June is Audiobook Month. I love that Booklist’s webinars are archived, so that those interested can view any of the past webinars here. And if you can’t take part in real time at 2pm Eastern on Tuesday, sign up here anyway – you’ll get an email with a link to the video of the archived session as soon as it’s available. Here’s the complete scoop:

Celebrate National Audiobook Month this June with Booklist! Representatives from AudioGO, Books on Tape/Random House, Dreamscape, Recorded Books, and Tantor Audio will discuss the latest audios and upcoming trends in this hour-long, free webinar. Don’t miss the opportunity to connect with audiobook experts and get a preview of summer and fall listening titles.

E.L. James’ blockbuster as audiobook? Laugh your way through Ellen’s video that perfectly illustrates (not!) what we audiobook reviewers call “narrator match.” Just in case you’re wondering, you CAN listen to the real thing: The 50 Shades of Grey audio from Random House is read by Becca Battoe.

Many folks here in OZ (and elsewhere around the world too) would like contact with US agents. Well here is your chance to touch base with an agent who can also help you develop your writing and it is with the terrrific Mark McVeigh. I have met Mark a number of times in the USA and we have always got on really well. He is already running his first webinar and has more to come. He has been a great SCBWI supporter in his publishing career. So read on to find out more about his first webinar:

CREATING REAL PEOPLE IN PROSE:
Characterization and the Young Adult Novel
A 90-minute Interactive Webinar

This class will be conducted using a web-hosting site that is free and very user friendly, requiring no additional software or knowledge: you just click on a link and you're in the class. Attendees can see and hear me--and I can hear them-- using the free website, the built in VOiP audio, or a free conference call number I will provide.

PART 1: PRE-WEBINAR:
Reading assignment. (To be done on your own time, pre-webinar) I will assign a short middle grade novel (available in paperback) to read. In advance of class, I will e-mail a reader's guide to the book with page number/ notes to mark examples of good writing that shows us who the characters are, and how the author created them. This will be used as discussion material for part of the webinar.

PART 2: WEBINAR:
90 minutes, at a to-be-determined time that works for all participants. There will never be more than ten people per webinar.

Intro: CHARACTERS ARE THE BUILDING BLOCKS OF NARRATIVE: A brief discussion of how character is the key to all books--if you grow them thoughtfully, the story will spring up around them.

I. GREAT CHARACTERS AND HOW THE AUTHOR MADE THEM COME TO LIFE: Using the assigned reading, I'll examine techniques the author used to create character and how it supported the story arc and themes of the book.

II. HOW TO BUILD/ CREATE/ IMAGINE/ WRITE YOUR OWN REALISTIC CHARACTERS: A series of writing exercises for building a main character and secondary characters, together, create the world in which your story will take place.

III. A LOOK AT CURRENT MIDDLE GRADE BEST-SELLERS: I'd go over several currently popular, well written middle grade novels--many of which depend on a hook or concept--and how, despite the trends, they all start with great characters. (As part of post-webinar e-mail I will include a reading list.

IV. QUESTION AND ANSWER SESSION: 20-30 minutes for questions and answers.


PART 3: POST-WEBINAR:
Writing assignment: I will assign a "character development" exercise: a one page written piece about an original character. Participants would be encouraged to use the techniques discussed in the class.
Written Critique/ Skype or Phone Discussion: Every participant would get a written commentary on the assignment and a follow-up 15 minute one-on-one skype chat to discuss, ask questions.

FEE/ FUTURE CLASSES:
The fee would be $120 US, payable via PayPal in advance of class (10% of the gross from these webinars is being donated to the Paula Danziger Fund at SCBWI.)
Classes are small--ten people or less. In future there are plans for a webinar on picture books. - as Mark says .... having spent four years working daily with Maurice Sendak, everything I know about picture books comes directly from the master!

Couldn’t attend? Now Hear This: Audiobooks from A to Z archive is now available FREE: http://vimeo.com/12498196. Great suggestions for new acquisitions and summer listening from presenters Cheryl Herman, Library Marketing Director, Books on Tape/Listening Library; Michele Lee Cobb, Director of Marketing, BBC Audiobooks America; and Susan Lovley, Director of Sales and Marketing, HighBridge Audio. As the session moderator, I fielded a few question I thought might be of general interest, so here they are…

Q: Why are audio books so expensive?
The three main costs for an audiobook are the costs of the rights to record, the cost of the recording itself and the costs to recreate the artwork to match the book. There are also basic format costs such as packaging and components (CDs). Just like film production involves a lot of talented people, so does audio production and there is always a cost for quality! At BBC Audiobooks America we’ve kept our CD costs the same since we began producing them more than a decade ago and we have over 2200 titles available that are less than $50 before you take into account any discount. Lots of affordable products for budgets of all sizes! (Answer from Michele Cobb)

Q: What recommendations do you have for young adults?
Check out my June “Voices in My Head” column in Booklist, “Summer Family Listening.” Bonus! The BooklistOnline edition of the column <http://bit.ly/bOom4D> has eight titles that didn’t fit in the print edition Plus, you might like this printable PDF <http://bit.ly/dnbo1z> of bookmarks with two family listening audiobook lists I created for Book Links Magazine: “Girl Talk” & “Guys & Spies.” Plus, don’t forget the recommended lists posted in response to a similar question below.  MB

(Answer from Michele Cobb)
During the webinar I mentioned a number of wonderful crossover titles from BBC Audiobooks America – Slumdog Millionaire, Lord of the Rings, Jaws, The Lincoln Douglas Debates. We also carry a wide range of authors such as P.C. and Kristin Cast, Alyson Noel and Orson Scott Card. Check out our recommended Young Adult List.

Q: What is the difference between a library edition and a retail unabridged edition, besides price?
A: Library editions are packaged in heavy-duty cases, to withstand long-term library circulation. Often library processing and MARC records are avaialable. Plus, most companies offer replacement of media or cases, some with 100% lifetime guarantees. Check individual publisher’s website for details (see my blog’s homepage sidebar for web links). MB

Q: What are some of the b