How does a brand new author get experience? Ten years ago, I was petrified at the thought of doing school visits. I had the notion that a visit was supposed to be a reading. Ie — standing up in front of kids and actually reading. This works with picture books, and ten years ago, I only had two picture books published — no novels.
Then Barbara Haworth Attard suggested that I sit in on one of her school presentations. What an eye-opener that was! She interacted with the students and shared samples of various drafts of her work. She told them about how she did her research and where she got her ideas. I think she may have done a very brief reading. The kids were enthralled and so was I.
I totally revamped the way that I did presentations. They became more fun for me and they also were more entertaining for the students. The change came just in time too, because my first novel, The Hunger, came out the next year. Between 1999 and 2003, I had three YA novels published, so all at once I began doing a lot of presentations to older elementary students and high school students. I absolutely love presenting to this age group.
When writing a story, the author must help the reader step into the shoes of the main character. When doing a school presentation, the author must step into the shoes of each person in the audience. It takes practice and it takes honing, but boy is it worth it.
I will do a brief reading from one of my books if requested. I have a favourite scene from each of my older three YAs. I’m hoping to find the perfect scene from Daughter of War. If you’ve read it and have an opinion about this, let me know.
Thanks for the presentation tips. I love watching authors present to students (as a librarian I’ve had lots of opportunities) and seeing how each one approaches it differently. That doesn’t change that I’m a little nervous at the prospect of my first presentation. Must start thinking about it.
I don’t have it yet but am looking forward to reading Daughter of War.
Hi Karen,
You’re fortunate to have seen many authors present! Your first novel will be out any day now, won’t it?
Here are some other tips —
Speak carefully and clearly. We naturally speed up when nervous, but less is definitely more when it comes to public speaking.
If there is whispering in the audience, stop talking and look at the whisperers patiently until they realize that they are holding up the whole talk.
Leave lots of time for questions from the audience, and have a few questions for them as well.
Yes, I should be getting my copies in the mail on Tuesday. It’s almost like waiting for a baby to arrive — but without the pain. 🙂
And thanks for sharing your wisdom. It’s so great to be able to learn from others through LJ and other sources; it makes the process a little less scary.
This is a very exciting time for you! Yes, every book is like having a child. And each book has a life of its own. Once you get it in your hands, then you’ll wait for the first review, which is like finding out if your child is popular in school.
Actually, I got an advanced review (mostly good) and will be posting a link tomorrow. Right now I’m in weekend mode — and hide-from-the-snow-by-watching-movies-set-in-warm-places mode.