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The lack of posting around here should not be construed as a lack of activity. This has turned out to be a week with high demands from other aspects of my bookish life: Emerging Leaders, McNally Jackson (we -- by which I mean me -- are on Facebook AND Twitter now), a new blogging project (info TK), and mostly, working on Greenlight Bookstore. I've tidied up that other blog of mine (and Rebecca's) to reflect the evolving reality of our project, and in hopes that we'll be seeing some more traffic soon. We've also got a real estate lead that involves so many unknowns I can't even explain it right now, but it's potentially really exciting. So I've been kinda distracted.

I do, however, have a pile of recently read graphic novels I want to write about, and not one but TWO thrilling not-yet-published books in my bag: the new Kate Christensen, Trouble (out in June) and the new Jonathan Lethem, Chronic City (out so long from now I don't even know the date -- the book is still in manuscript form). So as soon as I'm done frantically tearing through those two I'll be posting frenzied fangirl reports. I'm also meeting one of my contemporary author heroes Jim Lynch, author of The Highest Tide and Border Songs, tomorrow afternoon, so I hope to report on that as well.

So with renewed promises I beg your forgiveness, and hope you can be satisfied with more to come. Happy reading!

The New York trip = fun, productive, tiring.

My daffodils = blooming.

My desk = buried in work.

2008 = much too short.

While I try to catch up on stuff, explore the following:


One of the best English professors I know is celebrated.

Central New York is holding a conference for teen cancer survivors. Very cool.

The best sushi ever. You should take a trip to New York just to eat here.

Children's author Kim Norman has put together a super resource for teachers and librarians:

An excerpt from a fifth grader's biography of her father. (I want to live in this house!)

At home, work is done. Jack washes dishes, washes the clothes, and more. At his home, arguing is not a problem because no one argues in Jack’s home.

I have to admit, I was ignorant. I had no idea Chattanooga was so lovely and filled with exciting things and sweet people. This place needs to go on the Roadtrip Vacation List!

Yesterday I talked to students at Chattanooga School for the Arts and Sciences and Tyner High. (Yes, yes, I know I am technically on hiatus from school visits, but this trip were arranged through the A Tale for One City program, so it's different.)

Do they look like Monday morning, or what? They were actually much more lively than this picture looks. It was really nice to hang out with kids again. (Special thanks to the kids who came over from Howard!)



CSAS is in a historic building and some of the lockers are wooden. Gives the expression "old school" new meaning.

After CSAS, my wonderful host, Fran Bender, took me to the Art District for lunch at a coffee shop and quick walk through the museum neighborhood. Then it was on to Tyner.

The students at Tyner were some of the friendliest I have ever had the good fortune to run across.

Some of the guys instantly freeze into GQ cover model positions whenever they feel a camera on them.

The girl on the left wins the "most thoughtful and insightful questions of the decade" award.

Thank you everyone for making the day so much fun!!

Long day today - more schools and my public presentation tonight.

I leave you with John Scalzi's article about the financial realities of the writing life, not to discourage any of you from becoming writers, but so you know what you're getting into. If you are seriously contemplating writing as a career, you owe it to yourself to read the entire article. Thank you, Stef, for the link.

Finally, thank you, mares for the heads-up about the extremely nice review of TWISTED in the Drew University Campus newspaper, The Acorn.

Oh - one last thing. Dinner last night? Shrimp and grits. Heaven - just heaven.

Whew, this week sets a new standard for busy-ness. Debriefing and follow-up work on TitleWave is consuming at BookStream; there's a full slate of events at the bookstore; and biggest of all, Tuesday through Thursday I'll be taking part in the ABA Focus Group Meetings here in New York.

The funniest part: the meetings will be taking place for three straight days at the New York Marriott at the Brooklyn Bridge Hotel. So I'll be spending two nights in a hotel that's 15 minutes walk from my house. Ah well -- kind of a treat at that.

So that's where I'll be this week. Hope y'all have a good one -- I'll try to pipe up on Friday.

Yesterday, I did three school visits, which puts me well over two-dozen in the last year. I know some authors have done dozens and dozens, and some have done none.

Here's what I've learned so far:
- That looking pointedly at a kid who is talking or passing notes will usually get them to stop.
- That sometimes it's okay to ignore the kid who mutters "gay" every time you pause, or who can't sit still or keep quiet.
- That sometimes the kids who mutter "gay" or who can't sit still ask the best questions.
- That some kids can reach the age of 17 without having read a book to the end (I gave one girl a book yesterday as a thank you for asking such a good question, and she looked at it and said maybe she would actually read it in a wondering tone)
- That a lot of teachers dream of getting published, or have husbands or kids who do.
- That you can make a screen by taping pieces of butcher paper on the wall.
- That the kids you least suspect are the ones who will come up afterward and shyly ask you to read their peom or story.
- That some kids, to paraphrase someone on the YALSA digest, are living lives we wouldn't let them read about. One of the kids yesterday at one of the two alternative high schools I visited was homeless. In Texas, I met a girl whose mom was in prison for drug dealing, and another whose step father was in prison for molesting her. They told me these stories without blinking.
- That middle school students are not quite as "cool" as high school students. They will ask you to sign pieces of paper or the back of their hands.

Here's what I haven't learned:
- A really good answer to "How much money do you make?"
- How not to get lost at least once when driving someplace more than two miles away.

If you do presentations, what have you learned and what have you yet to learn? [Full disclosure: And if you are a librarian or teacher, I would love to come to your school.]

Here is the ending of a 5th grader's biography of her 76-year-old grandmother:

Some of Doris's best qualities are her patience, her consideration of others, her kindness, and most of all she is loving (she is also very pretty!)

Doris’ bad habit is talking on the telephone.

Yet another great drawing sent in by a student from Mrs. Wilson's class at Abraham Lincoln Elementary. Thank you Juan! In this case, the artist has taken Percy, my original polar pal and given him a little POLAR POLKA style!

Of added interest, I too have been playing around with some ball point pen illustrations of late. Mysterious vibes afoot... Read the rest of this post

I follow the blog of Dan Santat just because I love his drawing (the other artist I subscribe to is Sarah Macintyre. Love her stuff!) Dan does the Disney cartoon The Replacements (I haven't seen it here in the UK but then I don't get the Disney Channel).

Anyway, this is not just about how wonderful Dan is (which he is) but about School Visits. Now I did a little piece on school visits featuring Doomspell author Cliff McNish a while back - school visits are a big deal for children's authors because it's a cool way of getting in touch with one's readers etc etc. Of course, it doesn't hurt either that you could make a little bit of money to supplement your non JK Rowling advance.

So here's Dan's truly super cool video about a week long visit to a school for gifted children in Virginia. We can all learn a thing or two about marketing ourselves here.

- Read the complete results of the latest ABACUS Survey from the ABA -- those stats from indie bookstores nationwide were a big factor in my business plan

- Read bookseller Tova Beiser's account of WI3

- Catch up with my Brooklyn blog reading! I just met Myka of MotherSister Brooklyn this weekend (look for a chronicle of meeting with the amazingly wonderful Fort Greene Association soon), and I think I have a lot of back posts to read. There's always Louise Crawfords indispensible Only the Blog Knows Brooklyn, which will also lead you to almost every other Brooklyn blog worth reading (and she also had a supernice congrats on my PowerUp win). And I've recently discovered Brooklynometry, and specifically the write-up of a new Brooklyn bookstore practically in my backyard that I didn't know existed: Babbo's Books on Prospect Park West. Exciting news!

- Post book reviews! Here's what I read in January but haven't yet found time to write about (and they're all GREAT, in different ways):
THE AMAZING ADVENTURES OF KAVALIER AND CLAY by Michael Chabon
THE A.B.C. MURDERS and A MURDER IS ANNOUNCED by Agatha Christie
THE BOOK OF OTHER PEOPLE, edited by Zadie Smith
A GOLDEN AGE by Tahmima Anam
THE SIZE OF THE WORLD by Joan Silber
THE ESCAPISTS by Brian K. Vaughan
LAIKA by Nick Abadzis
and currently reading MUDBOUND by Hillary Jordan, which has now officially made me miss a subway stop -- the sign of an irresistibly great read.

- tell you lots of details about the TitleWave event I've beeen working on putting together that BookStream is hosting on February 27, with Richard Price, Steve Toltz, Hillary Jordan, and sales rep extraordinaire Ken Abramson. If you haven't heard the details in Publishers Weekly, Shelf Awareness, Bookselling This Week, the NAIBA and NEIBA newsletters, or the blogs, then email me or Carolyn Bennett and we'll tell you all about it. Remember, it's free, but you DO have to RSVP!

- find out if I can vote in the primary on Tuesday even though I'm registered as an independent... when my sweet mom, who's a Republican from California, and New York City bookish type like me can agree on a candidate, it's clearly a good time to vote.

What's hanging over your head, dear readers? There are always too many books to read -- but that means we'll never run out!

In addition to doing one-day-get-in-and-get-out presentations, I also do writing workshops of two or more days.

Here, then, is some advice on conducting writing workshops (learned from my time in the trenches):

• Send a written information sheet to the contact person prior to the workshop. On the sheet, clearly outline what you will be doing and if there will be any homework assignments. This gives teachers a chance to prepare for the day, especially the homework load.

• Let the kids know very clearly what they can expect from the workshop. (Today we will be talking about blah blah. ...You will have some homework tonight....Tomorrow when I come, you should have finished blah blah, etc.)

• I always announce from the get-go: "I don't expect that everyone in this class loves to write. Maybe you do, but I bet there's someone in here who doesn't love to write. But that's okay. For this workshop, I'll be with you every step of the way. I won't leave anyone in the dust...and hopefully, you will enjoy it. But no matter what, you can say goodbye to your worries about writing." You'd be surprised how many kids have a look of utter relief on their faces at this permission to not like writing. (And I'm proud to say I've had kids tell me that they thought they didn't like to write - but they really had fun in the workshop. The ultimate!)

• Most teachers will beat you to this, but if not, have the kids clear everything off their desks except what they will need for the workshop. This alleviates distractions.

• Before asking a student to help hand out any worksheets, paper, etc., check with the teacher. Often the class has designated helpers for the day and there may already be an official paper-giver-outer. Kids take those things seriously, you know.
  

• Before you say the word "highlighter" - tell the kids to sit on their hands. Trust me, the mere mention of the word sends 25 kids diving into their desks immediately.

• When orally brainstorming examples of writing exercises, be prepared to hear dirty underwear and dog poop. In fact, be mentally prepared to hear anything. I once asked a class of 4th graders what was the one thing that all writers needed before they could start a book and one student answered, "A joint." (For those of you who think that is the correct answer, you are wrong. The correct answer is an idea.)

• When it's time to orally share student writing, ask the teacher to help you call on students to share. This gets the teacher involved in the workshop. But the best reason for doing this is that the teacher knows the students and knows which ones may need to be drawn out.

• When sharing work out loud, make sure the students know you probably won't have time for everyone to share, but you will do your best.

• Announce, "This is the last one" when you are calling on the last student. This saves 25 kids from continuing to wave their hands wildly.

If you read blogs, writing magazines, or publishing industry newsletters, one aspect of publishing in the twenty-first century becomes crystal clear—to be successful today, a writer needs to self-promote. Yikes!

For many of us, that’s a problem: we’re by and large bookish introverts who happily hole up in our offices for hours on end. Bookstore signings? School visits? Conference presentations? When you’re just beginning to publish, your knees probably knock together when you think about stepping in front of an audience to promote your books. If only you had an expert to guide you as you take those first feeble steps out of your writing cubby and into the world!

Now you can. This March, the Highlights Foundation is proud to present Life in the Spotlight: The Path to Successful School and Library Visits, Self-Promotion, and Press Interviews with Peter Jacobi.

Peter is an award-winning journalism professor, a former on-air reporter for radio and television (including ABC and NBC News), a magazine consultant, and a specialist in speech training and media training. Best of all, this acclaimed journalist, writer, and renowned public speaker is willing to hold your hand as you take your first steps toward building your writing career through self-promotion.

As a participant in Life in the Spotlight, you will learn the publicity techniques needed to promote your books, gain practice in public speaking and presentation skills, and participate in a real-life school experience—with an expert to guide you each step of the way.

Here’s what one former workshop attendee has to say about Life in the Spotlight:

“Peter Jacobi’s Life in the Spotlight gave me the jump start I needed to overcome my fear of public speaking and publicity. In a group setting, Peter warmly gave us one-to-one attention to help us build confidence through reading, interviewing, and performing on-site school presentations. The lectern has become a good friend.”

—Lori Ries, author of Aggie and Ben, Three Stories (an Oregon Book Award Finalist); Super Sam; Mrs. Fickle’s Pickles; and Fix It, Sam! Her latest release, Punk Wig, is due out this March. Lori now promotes her work through school visits, author signings, and conferences.

If you’re serious about your writing career and believe in your books, take advantage of the opportunity to learn from Peter Jacobi. Click here for more information.

The Highlights Foundation
814 Court Street
Honesdale, PA 18431
Phone: (570) 253-1192
E-mail: [email protected]

More advice on school visits:

• Announce at the beginning of your presentation that you will save the last ten minutes or so for questions and instruct the kids to save their questions until the then.

• During Q&A time, be sure to repeat the question that is asked so that everyone can hear. (I HATE it when people forget to do that....) If kids didn't hear the question, they won't care as much about the answer. If they don't care as much about the answer, they are more likely to squirm, fidget, poke the kid next to them, or fake a great burp.
  

• When you are asked "How much money do you make?" - turn it into a math problem (e.g., What is 10% of $16?) Trust me, that kid will never ask that question again and the next author to visit that school will thank you.

• The same goes for the "How old are you?" question. Give them the year and make them do the math.
  

• Be prepared for the occasional rudeness of teachers talking in the back of the room, teachers on computers, teachers leaving the room, teachers using the computer printer that is on the desk right next to you, etc. I'm not suggesting you need to do anything about this if you are not comfortable doing so - just prepare yourself mentally. Thankfully, this behavior doesn't happen often - but it does happen. I've learned to deal with it mentally and not let it distract me or irritate me to the point that it detracts from my presentation. Some authors have a wonderful ability to make a tactful comment. I am not one of those authors. I am a wimp.

• Let the kids know when you are approaching your last slide and nearing the Q&A period. This perks up the antsy kids and they will sit up and pay attention in anticipation of asking a question (or finally getting to go to recess).

• Include a few examples of your revised manuscripts with your visuals. Teachers will appreciate it and the kids will feel sorry for you.

• When you are finished with your presentation, tell the kids to please stay seated until they are dismissed by their teachers. Otherwise, you might have a chaotic stampede of sorts.
  

More advice on school visits:

• School visits are hard work. Make it easier on yourself by staying in your comfort zone when you need to. For instance, I hate eating lunch in the teachers' lounge. I'm tired of talking all morning and hate the thought of feeling pressure to make small talk. I need quiet down time. My solution is to tell them I'm going outside for some fresh air and a walk. That seems more polite than "Shut up and leave me alone." The walk really helps my energy level and the quiet time recharges me. But then, that's just me.
  

• If you go outside the building at lunch time, you may find yourself locked out. Many schools nowadays lock their buildings after the morning arrivals and require that you be buzzed back in. Don't panic. Ring the buzzer, which is usually located within plain site of the door. Someone from the office will do a quick fingerprint scan, run an FBI check, and buzz you back in (unless your morning presentation was particularly crappy or you failed the FBI check).
  

• Most schools are stretched for money, so they want to get as much out of an author visit as possible. "How I Became a Writer" isn't always enough. Try to add something to your presentation that teachers can use in the classroom - preferably some concrete writing tips for the kids.

• Since I do so many school visits, it would be too costly to take bookmark give-aways for each student. Instead, I take a template of a bookmark, personalized for each school and with my autograph. Teachers or volunteers can then make copies for the students. Many schools copy them on colored cardstock and even laminate them. The kids love them.

• The signed bookmarks also help ease your guilt when you turn down a request for an autograph. Trust me, if you say yes even once, you'll find yourself with a mad mass of kids shoving teeny weeny scraps of paper under your nose when you only have five minutes before your next presentation. And if you sign a few but say no to the others, you will feel like a schmuck.
  

• I also take templates of worksheets that reinforce one of the writing techniques I brainstorm with the kids. I know, I know...some folks shudder at the word "worksheet." But I personally like them (I'm anal like that). They give teachers something useful for their classrooms and adds another layer to a program that might otherwise be your usual "how-I-became-a-writer-and-how-I-get-my-ideas" kind of presentation.

I've done a lot of school visits over the years. Like anything else, I've learned some things the hard way. For anyone new to school visits - or anticipating doing them - I thought I'd pass along some of the more nitty-gritty advice from the voice of experience:

• Always follow up with your contact person one last time just prior to the day of the visit to remind her of arrival time and equipment needs.

• Ask about any parking problems you might anticipate. (Some schools have funky parking lots with sections reserved just for teachers or with gates that lock after a certain hour. Urban schools sometimes have limited parking and nightmarish street parking.)
  

• When you see the sign that says Buses Only 2:30 to 3:00 - do not park there if you are doing an all-day visit - unless you want to be waiting for thirty minutes while 25 school buses load 1248 kids before you can leave.

• Keep an energy bar, trail mix, Snickers, apple, Twinkies - whatever - in your bag. You never know what you can expect for lunch. I've had everything from potluck lunches prepared by parents to a pear and brie panini to nothing.

• Bring your own water - but don't store it with your laptop unless you have really good insurance.
  

• Always check in at the office first. Sign the visitor book. If there is a visitor's badge or sticker, be sure to wear one.

• Don't be surprised if the receptionist in the office doesn't know who you are or why you are there. That information isn't always related to others. Make sure you have your school contact name with you so you can tell the receptionist who is in charge.

• Leave plenty of time to set up any technical equipment in case something goes wrong - but make sure your contact person knows you will be arriving early so someone will be there to meet you. (Trust me on this one. It's a bummer to arrive 30 minutes early and there is no one there to help you get started setting up.) It's also a good idea to request that your contact person alert the office receptionist that you are coming early.
  

• Bring your own extension cords and power strips (with your name on them), batteries, adaptors, etc.

• Have Backup Plans A, B, C, and D in case something goes wrong with technical equipment. I bring my own laptop and projector, but I also have the presentation on flashdrives and CDs. I even have transparencies tucked in my bag in case I have to resort to an overhead projector.

• Bring duct tape to tape down cords. Trust me on this one - you will have 200 kids walking over your cords and the odds are one of them is going send your computer or projector crashing to the floor (and you'll need that really good insurance that you wish you had).

• Some schools prefer that you not use the students' restrooms and that you use one designated specifically for adults. Ask.

Visiting schools you never get to answer ALL of the great questions and inquiries. Here are a few of those "unaddressed" from a recent visit:

(William's Class)

Q: Are you always busy writing and illustrating?
A: I try to be - I could be ALWAYS busy writing and illustrating, but sometimes I visit schools and bookstores too. I also like to take a break now and again by skiing (not so much in summer), going for a run (not so much in winter), or playing with my wife, daughter and dog (all year long).

Skiing with my brother Colby (right) just after Christmas '07

Unspoiled courderoy trails if you get out early! From a recent ski patrol...

Ok, so I still make snow forts now and again too!

Erik, Percy, and a young fan at Erik's very first book reading c. April 2000.

The New Year's season of school visits kicks off this week in Wentachee, WA. I'll be visiting for 3 days, sharing stuff, drawing with kids. Kickin' it!

1.17 Washington Elementary 8:30am - 2:45 pm

1.18 Lincoln Elementary (a full day)

1.19 Lewis & Clark Elementary 8:30am - 1:30pm

A few more in February. A few more in March. Just about right :)

Last night, members of the Children’s Writers’ Coaching Club were given the opportunity to take part in a live teleclass with children’s author Margot Finke, where she explained how and what authors need to do in order to plan and present visits to schools.

It was an excellent teleclass. And, as usual, Margot provided plenty of good information, as well as three pages of handouts. Thank you, Margot, for a wonderfully informative and fun class!

If you missed last night’s teleclass, you can still get the link to this recorded class, as well as the handouts, when you join the Children’s Writers’ Coaching Club. As a club member, you’ll also receive a CD of this recorded event later this month.

Join the Children’s Writers’ Coaching Club here.

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Members of the CWCC also receive weekly writing assignments every Monday morning. We try to make sure these are PRACTICAL assignments, and sometimes members are even able to sell a finished assignment to an appropriate market.

This was the case with club member, Sylvia C. Hall. She recently sold one of her weekly assignment to KC Parents magazine for their winter issue.

Congratulations, Sylvia!

Members of the Children’s Writers’ Coaching Club are in for a special treat tonight.

Children’s author Margot Finke will be our speaker for a special teleclass about planning and presenting at school author events.

CWCC members can attend this live event and ask questions, make comments, and have fun as they learn from Margot.

The teleclass starts at 8:00 central time tonight and lasts for 55 minutes. Every member of the CWCC will also receive a CD of this recorded event.

Members of the Children’s Writers’ Coaching Club are going to hit the ground running this month with a series of events early in the month.

First, tonight is our weekly manuscript critique telesession at 8:00 central time. It’s good to see at least a few club members are ready to refocus on their writing now after taking time out to enjoy the holidays.

Children’s Author and Speaker Margot Finke

Second, next Wednesday night, January 9th, at 8:00 central time, children’s author and presenter Margot Finke will present a special teleclass for members of the CWCC about how to design and present a super school presentation.

Join the Children’s Writers’ Coaching HERE to take advantage of these exciting events.

I just finished my last school visit of the year.

In 2007, I visited 31 schools.

I spoke to approximately 4500 students.

I gave 109 presentations.

I conducted 48 writing workshops.

I said the Pledge of Allegiance 27 times.

While brainstorming ways to show a messy room, I heard "dirty underwear" 73 times.

While brainstorming ways to show that someone feels sick, I heard fantastic barfing noises 84 times.

I waited in line behind 93 school buses.

I drank 17 teeny weeny cartons of milk.

I saw 18,432 chicken nuggets (but didn't eat 1.)

And I loved every minute of every day spent in a school.

ATTN: Authors and Illustrators - if you ever want to feel like a rock star, visit Holland Hall School in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I had never been to Oklahoma, but I would eagerly return after my visit with the kids at HH. Every teacher and parent volunteer just threw themselves into all things Punk Farm and my books. Everyone had homemade iron-on T-shirts (made from the downloads at my site), some actually wore wigs and crazy shoes and if you need any evidence - please take note of the school's librarian, Mr. Christian, book talking Punk Farm ahead of my visit:
And this is probably a record for any one school, but they sold 511 books! And I managed to sign them all throughout the day. Here's a pic of the gang who was crazy enough to volunteer to help with that effort:Every kid in the school made a cool punk something - farm animals, penguins, aliens.... and they were collected in one giant Punk Farm scene:

Yesterday I had the chance to go back to junior high, only now they call it a middle school, and next year they change it again to a K-8 configuration.

Levy. On Fellows Avenue in Syracuse.

This was not as traumatic as revisiting my high school was. For one thing, I went to Levy with a bunch of kids I grew up with, and we hadn't moved or gone through all the other trauma that made 8th-9th grade so ouchy for me. For another, I was an incredibly clueless kid in seventh grade. I'm sure there was all kinds of middle school drama going on around me, but it did not register. I remember feeling tall and awkward, I remember my art class, the gospel choir, and, vaguely, Social Studies. I remember being in a couple of fights and burning my arm on the radiator in the cafeteria. And I remember the long walk there in the winter darkness. Nothing horrible, nothing earth-shattering.

But yesterday was fun. I got to speak to a group of teachers (including one that I went to school with) and a larger group of students.

They were neither clueless nor awkward, though a couple of them were tall. Two of the girls were daughters of women I had grown up with, which was very cool. Syracuse really is a small town. I like that.

I've spent today deep, deep into pages. More tomorrow. We might sneak out for some of the local holiday festivities on Saturday. If you don't want to drive north to Mexico, drive to Syracuse instead to watch my almost-mater, Nottingham High School perform SPEAK on stage this weekend.

QUESTION: What is your strongest memory from seventh grade?