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The Chicken Dance Hallway at Maize South Elementary got me so excited I couldn't help but shake my tail feathers.

Chicken Dance Hallway:


Diarama of Marge and Lola on stage at the talent show:


Diarama of the chickens up close:


Barn entrance:


Another barn entrance:


Some of the hundreds of animals in the barnyard extravaganza:


Oh. And let's not forget THIS guy:


Thanks, Maize South Elementary. You bawk and roll!

1. Woke up to the smells of breakfast courtesy of little man. Every day should start with OJ and cherry turnovers.

2. Yesterday, right before I gave my first ever luncheon keynote, the electricity gave out. But I was with the perfect crowd. LIBRARIANS. They worked some tech magic and saved the day. More importantly, they laughed in all the right spots during my talk.

3. Chicken Dance won the 2011 Donna Norvell Award which is an award that is given by Oklahoma librarians.

4. The only thing on today's schedule is attending my daughter's 8:30pm basketball game. Yes.

5. My mom is coming in a few days!!!!!!!!!!!

6. One of this week's highlights...when I was teaching the second and third graders at Marlow Elementary some barnyard dance moves, the principal joined in. Wearing a chicken suit.

Hey, everyone.

Dan Santat is currently working on Bawk and Roll. He asked if I could come up with about 30 song titles that'd tie in with the book.

These are the titles found on the back cover of Chicken Dance:
A Chicken Little Less Conversation
Jailhouse Bawk
Heartbreak Henhouse
The First Time Ever I Saw Your Wattle
I Don’t Crow if the Sun Don’t Shine
Good Squawkin’ Tonight
Can’t Help Falling in Feed
Are You Ruffled Tonight?
That’s All Right, Mother Hen
(Keep Away from the) Hound Dog
My Wing Around Your Neck
Ghost Riders in the Coop

These are some additional Elvis Poultry titles:
Are You Lonesome in Flight?
Flying in the Chapel
Love Me Tofu Tender
Hatch it Up, Baby
Viva Los Graneros
When the Chickens Go Marching In
Kentucky Grain
Rubber Chicken
Peace in the Poultry
(Let Me Stuff Your) Teddy Bear

Anyone have additional suggestions??? I'd love to hear them. :)

Also, it's possible he may include titles from other artists. These are some of the ones I came up with:

Barnyard Boys
(I Wish They All Could Be) Rhode Island Red Hens

Chickie Lauper
She Bawk
Chicks Just Wanna Have Fun

Bruce Springchicken
Born in the C.O.O.P.

Kelly Cluckson
Behind These Beady Eyes

Tweetles
Love Me Doodle Doo

Birdie Joel
Uptown Bird
It’s Still Bawk and Roll to Me

Any and all suggestions are welcome!

http://www.scbwiflorida.com/details.htm

Presenters:
Frances Gilbert--editor of Chicken Dance
Tammi Sauer--author of Chicken Dance
Dan Santat--illustrator of Chicken Dance

PICTURE BOOK TRACK SCHEDULE
June 5, 2010

9:00-9:30
General Assembly/Introductions

9:30-10:15
Frances Gilbert: Scoop from the Coop—Secrets to Getting Out of the Slush Pile

10:15-11:00
Tammi Sauer: Ruffle Some Feathers—Writing Slice of Life Grandma Stories Picture Books that Sell!

11:00-11:15
Break (or Dan challenges Tammi to a hot dog eating contest…we haven’t decided)

11:15-11:45
Dan Santat: Not Just Chicken Scratch—An Illustrator’s Process REVEALED

11:45-12:00
Writing Exercise or Intense Physical Exercise (attendee’s choice)

12:00-1:00
Lunch: Out of respect for Marge and Lola, we ask that you please refrain from eating anything of the poultry variety. Thankyou.Thankyouverymuch.

1:00-1:45
Frances, Tammi, and Dan: Two Chicks and a Rock Star—The Making of Chicken Dance (brainstorming, writing, acquiring, editing, searching, illustrating, marketing, bawking, flapping, and shaking)

1:45-2:15
First Page Critiques

2:15-2:30
Break (or Dan finds out what really makes Frances tick…we haven’t decided)

2:30-3:00
Dan Santat: Fun with Chicken Feed—Creating Trailers on a Shoestring Budget

3:00-3:15
Writing Exercise or Intense Physical Exercise (attendee’s choice)

3:15-4:15
Panel: Don’t Be Chicken—Ask Your Burning Questions

4:15-4:30
Loose Ends

Who are we?

FRANCES GILBERT:


TAMMI SAUER:


DAN SANTAT:

On April 17, cynthea and I got gussied up to attend the Oklahoma Book Awards Banquet. Please note my new red shoes.


Upon departure, my daughter J said, "If Chicken Dance wins, we're gonna have a party. And if Paris Pan wins, we're gonna have a party. And if neither book wins, we're gonna have a party."

cynthea and I drove to the beautiful Oklahoma Heritage Museum then took a brisk run through the rain. Which is exactly what a girl wants to do in her new red shoes.

While there, cynthea signed copies of Paris Pan Takes the Dare for many adoring fans and I signed copies of Chicken Dance. We chatted with old friends and made some new ones.

At last it was time to eat. Then everything became a blur because this happened:


And a certain book now has a certain sticker:


cynthea and I later returned home.

Lo and behold, there was a party going on.

On Tuesday morning, over two thousand people gathered at the OKC Zoo to celebrate books and reading at Read Across Oklahoma 2010. The theme was Reading Rocks! It was an amazing experience.

I mean who would have ever thought I'd have the opportunity to hang out with my main character and my muse for Dan Santat's and my book Chicken Dance?!
I was all shook up.


Elvis Presley in action.


Elvis Poultry in action.


Tammi Sauer's Capitol Hill High School Back-Up Dancers.


Tammi Sauer and the Capitol Hill High School Back-Up Dancers in action.


1,300 lunches from Target were donated to 1,300 rockin' little readers.


Every school had a designated Elvis cape color.

Confession: All of that chicken stuff made me a little hungry.....soooooo...

My apologies to Marge and Lola.

Many thanks to our wonderful sponsors who made Read Across Oklahoma 2010 possible. You rock!

Officical Chicken-y Announcement: Click here to bawk and roll with the winning entries to the Chicken Dance YouTube Video Contest!: http://www.sterlingpublishing.com/kids

Here's the grand prize winner:



Starring Baby Chick Liu as Herself

Wishing you all a bawktastic New Year.

Tammi Sauer's BAWK AND ROLL, in which razy chicken gals are ready to shake a tail feather with Elvis Poultry at McDoodle's Barn, but the ducks have other plans, to Frances Gilbert at Sterling, by Laura Rennert at Andrea Brown Literary Agency (World).

BAWK AND ROLL is the sequel to CHICKEN DANCE. I am over-the-moon thrilled to be working with Santat again. :)

Late breaking chicken news: Chicken Dance is one of the ten nominees for the 2011 Grand Canyon Reader Award in the picture book division. Thank you, Arizona!

English:


French:


English:


French:

Translation: The chickens have flown the coop!


(the French version of Chicken Dance)

Ooh. La. La.

http://www.amazon.fr/Coq-star-Tammi-Sauer/dp/2745942093/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1258435208&sr=1-6

P.S. It's pronounced COKE STAR, people. :)

http://www.nbclosangeles.com/around-town/shopping/Kids-Gifts-Ages-0-6-63712882.html

Last month I spent 2 days doing author presentations in Lawton, Oklahoma.

While there, I hung out with hundreds and hundreds of second graders. These are just a few of them:



Since I was the keynote speaker for the Lawton Area Reading Council's 30th Anniversary Banquet, I also hung out with dozens of teachers, library media specialists, and the oh-so-groovy Kim Everett, the president of L.A.R.C.


I also hung out on the front page of the town's newspaper Lawton Constitution. I was not holding up a book or looking particularly scholarly. Nope. I was doing "The Funky Chicken."

Rock on and peace out, LJ.

On October 26, I met the amazing Beth at Watermark Books in Wichita.

Beth and Tammi:



Beth treated me to a fine dining experience. Just look at some of my options!


She later had me sign my First Ever Author/Illustrator Wall with such names as Loren Long, Jan Brett, and Tomie dePaola. I was starstruck! I was also smart. I did not sign anywhere near the fancy illustator people.


And, btw, this is Michael. Michael is guilty of videotaping one of my Chicken Dance presentations FOR THE LOCAL TELEVISION STATION. Fortunately for me a miracle occurred and I did not pass out on anyone's gym shoes.


This is Michael in action filming me in action:


In case you missed my 5 minutes of fame, you are in luck. Click here. http://www.usd259.com/news/streaming/Wichita+School+News.htm

And, YES, Brad Pitt, I will co-star with you in your upcoming movie. Now stop calling me!

Want to know what happens when you show up for a school visit and then 3 seconds before you are supposed to do your thing, a man comes along and straps a second microphone on you and says, "Hi, I'm Michael. I'll be videotaping this for our local TV channel."?

This is what happens-->

Then you wind up acting like a rooster on television.

http://www.usd259.com/news/streaming/Wichita+School+News.htm

Want a FREE Elvis Poultry tattoo for the bicep? See Tammi at the Texas Book Festival in the Read Me a Story Tent, Nov. 1 @ 12:30. Tell her the king sent you.


(Objects are smaller than they actually appear.)

Elvis Poultry and Bobby hang out with The Very Hungry Caterpillar.......



Last week, Dan Santat was in NYC for the Original Art Show. While there, he paid a visit to the oh-so-awesome Betsy Bird and signed this book at the New York Public Library.

Yesterday this arrived in the mail:


Students from Wyoming sent the King of Bawk and Roll some great letters. These are a few of them:



The letters had me all shook up. (Especially this last one.) :)

Thankyouthankyouverymuch, Arvada Elementary!

Rock on, dragons.

Please enter and spread the word. Thankyouthankyouverymuch.

For complete contest details: http://www.elvispoultrybooks.com/Chicken_Dance/CONTEST.html

Hi Tammi. Thanks for stopping by today! We appreciate you taking time out of your Chicken Dancing. :) Before we dive into your marketing advice, can you tell us a little about yourself?

I’m the author of the picture books Cowboy Camp and Chicken Dance as well as the forthcoming titles Mostly Monsterly, Mr. Duck Means Business, Princess-in-Training, and Oh, Nuts! There are two additional titles I’d love to add to the list, but I’m still waiting to sign The Official Paperwork.

Although I thoroughly enjoy what I do, I never planned on being a children’s book writer. I had always assumed I’d grow up to be a third grade teacher, but two sentences from my favorite college professor at Kansas State University—Dr. Marjorie Hancock--changed my life: “Tammi, you have a gift with words. You should pursue publication.” Knowing she believed in me made me believe in myself. Marge, one of the chickens in Chicken Dance, is named in her honor.


I this it's amazing how some of us writers never actually set out to be a writer. We just followed a whim and a passion. How have you gotten yourself out into the writing world?

Online presence has been important. I have two websites and a blog.

The first website is my author site. This site is managed by me which consequently means it’s very basic.

The second website is a site devoted to Chicken Dance. Dan Santat, the book’s illustrator, did a remarkable job putting it together. I sometimes come up with content for that site, but Dan holds the well-deserved title Webmaster. He merits a crown. And maybe a cape.

I also maintain a blog pretty regularly.


I can see you think having an online presence is a good thing :). Given that, what three marketing channels - would you say - are most important to an author or illustrator?

1. A web presence is crucial. At the very minimum authors should have a website. It’s an easy way to let people know who you are, what you write, and how to contact you.

2. The idea of promotions shouldn’t make people want to curl up under their desks with a Dr. Pepper and some frozen Milky Ways. Even the most introverted authors can find ways to promote that fit within their comfort zone. Shrinking Violets offers a goldmine of suggestions that can help the shyest of authors navigate their way into well-maybe-I-can-do-that promotion.

3. Don’t evolve into such a shameless self-promoter that you turn people off. Yes, it’s great to get the word out. Yes, it’s exciting to share your news/joy/every-written-word with the world. But do it in doses people can swallow.


How do you feel about social networking as part of a marketing plan?

I'm on Facebook, LiveJournal, Twitter, Kidlit Book Trailers, and the Verla Kay Blueboards and greatly value these social networks. I’m involved in these networks not because I feel I need to be a Super Serious Promoter but because I enjoy connecting with other readers and writers. Being a children’s book writer can, at times, get a little lonely. It’s wonderful to have these online water coolers. Have I sold copies of my books because of social networking? Yes--and I am grateful for it!--but that is icing. Interacting with others who 'get it'? That’s the cake.


Besides being online as well as involved in social networking, what other advice do you have for authors/writers regarding marketing?

Strive to do something unique. Put a new spin on what others are doing. Make yourself stand out.

Keep your online content fresh. Give your readers a reason to go back to your website, Facebook Fan Page, etc. An easy-to-do example: add a What’s New? section to your website and regularly update it.


What creative things have you done to promote Chicken Dance?

Let’s see…I’ve been known to wear a chicken hat on occasion.

The Chicken Dance website offers freebies, dance lessons, and much, much more. The dance lessons portion is one of my favorites. Dan came up with the idea to post brief videos of us teaching new moves. Currently, Dan’s move “The Bellyache” is available. Every so often, we’ll be adding a new move to keep our readers (and dancers!) coming back for more.

Dan and I have a Chicken Dance Video Contest that offers faaaaabulous prizes. The link to the page and the commercial.

We also have a Chicken Dance Fan Page on Facebook that offers occasional contests, fun videos, and an "On the Road with Elvis Poultry" photo album.

In addition to my own Twitter account, I twitter from the perspective of Elvis Poultry. Always wanted to know about the life and times of a rock and roll rooster? What does he read? What does he eat? What goes on behind the scenes of the Final Doodle Doo Tour? Then follow Elvis Poultry. It’ll have you all shook up.


Did you market yourself to agents/editors before you got published?

I didn’t market myself to agents/editors before I got published. I was so new, it never occurred to me to try. Instead, I studied the craft. I readreadreadreadread. I wrote a really awful manuscript about a grandma and banana bread. But I pushed myself to get better. And better.

I joined SCBWI and attended conferences. I researched publishing houses. I researched agents. And I tried to find the perfect matches for me and for my work. Eventually, those efforts paid off. Not only am I working with some wonderful houses--Sterling, Simon & Schuster, Houghton Mifflin/Harcourt, and Bloomsbury--but I have the amazing Laura Rennert for an agent.


Thanks for sharing your marketing advice with us today!

Thanks for having me, Shelli. Thanks, too, for this wonderful site. I've learned so much from my pit stops at Market My Words!

http://feeds.feedburner.com/Faeriality?alt=rss

Many, many thanks to everyone who has read Chicken Dance, reviewed Chicken Dance, or done the chicken dance.

Life has been crazy lately which has made your kindness all the more appreciated.