The School Program - Pre-Pub Panic, Part 2 ~ by Patricia Toht

As I mentioned in a February post, next year is publication year for two of my picture books. That means that 2016 is officially my year of Pre-Pub Panic!

My panic got off to a mild start. The first thing I thought about was the launch party, which was fun to consider - after all, it's a PARTY!

But more recently, I've been thinking about school programs. YIKES! What the heck do I have to offer???

Luckily, I spent a few years working for a literary events company that placed authors in schools for visits. I've seen some of the best in action - Brain Selznick, Jack Gantos, Megan McDonald, Carolyn Crimi, Kristy Dempsey.

I also peeked at my fellow authors' websites - critique buddies like Eileen Meyer, Heidi Bee Roemer, Darcy Day Zoells, Nancy J Cavanaugh, and Ruth Vanderzee, and authors whose dynamite presentations I have seen or heard about, like Aaron Reynolds and Miranda Paul.

Nancy J Cavanaugh at a school presentation.

Even more research helped. In my notes, I compiled a general list of topics for authors:

• THE publishing journey, 

or how a book gets published

• Your OWN journey, 

or the specifics of 

your path to publication

• THE process of writing 

a picture book or novel, 

fiction or nonfiction

• Your OWN process, 

or the unique way that you work

• A specific area of CRAFT 

(voice, character, world-building, etc.)

Image by www.GotCredit.com.

• Your WRITING AREA of expertise 

(poetry, humor, etc.)

• Your SUBJECT AREA of expertise 

(animals, medieval times, etc.)

• BOOK-SPECIFIC topics

A book about bugs? The presentation 

can be all about creepy crawly things.

• INSPIRING KIDS' WRITING, 
which often focuses on where ideas 
come from or revisions. 

Of course, choosing a topic depends quite a bit on the age level of the group you will be seeing, so it's best to have more than one presentation in your repertoire. 

What makes for a good presentation? Tips are multitudinous! I love this collection of advice from Book Moot, including:

* Stick to 30 minutes for younger kids, and 45 minutes for older.

* Have water on hand to refresh your throat.

* Know where the toilets are (and turn off your microphone while you're using them!)

* Make eye contact. Acknowledge and involve your audience. See Janie Reinart's recent post about ways to make your school visit interactive.

* To maintain order, YOU, the author, can tell kids to sit, ask them to quiet down, etc.

* Do NOT start signing autographs at the end of the session or you will be mobbed. Arrange for book signing time and supply a signed bookmark to be copied for all.

I urge you to visit Book Moot and read all of the wonderful tips.

Now, wonderful GROG readers, you help educate me, too. 

What presentation topics have worked for you? 

What tips do you have to pass along? 

I'm always thankful for your advice!

** Thanks to GROG fans chiming in, I have two dynamite websites for school program advice -- Alexis O'Neill and Kim Norman.

(And a shout out to Tammi Sauer, a school program dazzler!)

Library to Libratory: Reflections on Presenting Your Passions

I recently was invited to present at TechCon 15; a gathering of educators at Northern Illinois University.  

I pitched, in early June, the idea of sharing the transformation that was taking place in my library.  We were growing from a traditional library to one that included a 'makerspace' and more.  

The pre-publicity touted the six presentations given in the morning as 'TED-Like' talks that would lead to six break out sessions in the afternoon.  Now, I'm sure you are familiar with HUGELY popular TED talks.  I was intrigued, terrified and excited to be invited and sought about thinking about how I could best share the journey that my school and district have begun with developing STEAM workshops.

Because I'm a huge nerd, I started with books.  I knew there had to be books out there about how to deliver a 'TED-Like" talk.  I came up with two and immediately ordered them both.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0071831592?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o07_s00

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1507503008?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o07_s00

True to form, I started reading these incredibly short books and petered out about three quarters of the way through.  What I did take away from them, however, was that you need to speak to your passions and tell a compelling story.  That was the easy part.  Figuring out how to make 'my' story compelling to others, however, was not so easy.  

My next step was to collect and study the photographs of my library before I began as the director.  Thankfully I had the forethought to take photos of the entire place before began to overhaul it.  My desire to begin was so strong that I nearly forgot this critical step.

After gathering all of my photos, I pulled together the presentations I had made to the Parent Teacher Organization and School Board.  I put them all in a folder and did what I usually do when I have something really important:  I procrastinated.  Well, on the outside it probably looked like that, but to me it was me letting my thoughts and ideas marinate.  Turns out that's how I do my best thinking.  In fact, I tend to do that sort of thinking subconsciously.  It happens when I drive to work (an hour each way) and when I sleep. 

After a month or so of marinating, I needed to put the presentation together.  Much like drafting a manuscript, I dug in and started with the one sentence I wanted people to walk away with:  "Libraries are changing to meet the needs of their patrons: we are becoming Libratories!"  

From there I let my images speak to me.  I laid out the images in a logical order and started thinking about how to pair my ideas down to the ten minute time limit we were given.

After dozens of drafts, I printed it all out and started reading it aloud.  I tweaked and teased the text.  Finally, I cut and pasted it all onto notecards and practice reading aloud many more times.  I was as ready as I could be.  

After so much focus on the ten minute presentation, I had a minor panic attack  when I remembered I had to also create an hour long break out session on the same topic.  I decided on an active workshop using design thinking.  I would have each participant 're-imagine' their spaces to meet the needs of the 21st Century learners.

When the day arrived, I learned that I was going to be the first presentation.  I think I was relieved.  I would be able to get it over with and then begin thinking about my breakout session.  

Curious as to how it went?  I hope you may find it useful:

EdTechCon15 Presentation 480p from Todd Burleson on Vimeo.

The organizers of the conference did something really cool in between each presentations, they set up a 'back channel' that allowed everyone to contribute to key questions the presenters posed.  Mine was:  "How does the evolution of a library to a 'libratory' impact teachers in their classrooms?"  Folks responded in 'Tweet-like' responses that all of us were able to view and react to.  I thought it was a neat way to interact with a large group; especially for those, like me,  who tend to be rather quiet in this setting.  The best feedback tweet I got:  "It's like HGTV for libraries!"

I have several more presentations coming up in the next few months.  All of them on a similar theme.  I'm sure to use what I learned in this talk and breakout session to tweak how I deliver the message next time.  It's always humbling and exciting to speak from your heart.  I hope folks took something valuable away from my sessions because I sure did!