Workshops for children
It’s quite lonely being a writer so I love visiting schools. I offer readings, talks, workshops and question and answer sessions. I prefer to keep things informal, to work with groups of no more than 30, and to talk to the class teacher beforehand so I know a little about the children’s capabilities/interests and what the school wants to achieve from the event.
All of my talks are designed to inspire children to write, and to make them more aware of the creative tools they already have.
For pre-school/reception I offer readings from my books and a game with sock puppets based on my story One More Sheep – lots of opportunities for fun and counting.
For KS1–2 I offer a brief introduction to me and my work (perhaps with a reading from a forthcoming title or a work-in-progress), followed by an interactive session about where stories come from, using a flip chart to record the children’s input and demonstrate to them how active their imaginations already are – and how important this is for story telling. If there’s time, I can also offer either:
- an automatic writing exercise focusing on translating feelings into words, followed by some (rather ruthless!) editing exercises to demonstrate the importance of drafting, revising and proof-reading, and to show that the more economical you are with your words, the more power you can squeeze out of them
- or an interactive session and a game to clarify aspects of story structure and show what people mean when they say that all stories have a “beginning, middle and an end”.
Workshops for adults
I offer sessions and short courses on writing for children. My aim is to demystify the processes involved in writing and getting published – and to guide unpublished children’s writers as they develop their ideas and their own individual writing style.
The most important lesson I’ve learnt as a writer is that there are no right or wrong approaches. We all bring our own experiences, knowledge and unique imaginations to the creative act. What I can offer is a good deal of technical advice, a comprehensive knowledge of the support materials available to people interested in writing for children, and years of experience in the publishing industry.
Travel and fees
I’m based in York and I don’t drive – but as long as there’s public transport available and my expenses are covered I’m willing to travel just about anywhere. My fee depends on the event, but is usually about £200 for a full day (3 or 4 sessions), £100 for a half day (2 sessions) and £50 for a single session – plus travel expenses. You can contact me by email using the link on the left or by telephone on 01904 646112.
If you’re planning an author visit, two useful resources are NAWE‘s Our Thoughts Are Bees and Word Pool’s Guide to Organising an Author Visit (Word doc).