Hi All -
This is an idea that came from my conversations with a few schools who wanted to bring me in, in conjunction with their school book fair. I'm doing YouTube mini-commercials for them.
So I came up with the idea below. I'm hoping to get a full list of authors on the list before I actually go LIVE with it on my blog.
I'm talking simple, simple, simple here. And you wouldn't need to record anything until a school requests you. For now, you'd just be on the list. I also know that in our area, Scholastic isn't the only game in town. Several Indies sponsor school book fairs as well. So even if you're not a Scholastic author, you can still participate. So here we go:
Here's one more great way to connect children's authors and readers, and it's a WIN-WIN-WIN for authors, schools and school book fairs everywhere!
AUTHOR SPOTS FOR SCHOOLS!
Author Spots are
FREE mini-commercials created by children's authors that schools can broadcast to promote their book fair to kids and parents.
I'm not talking about anything fancy here - just a 30 second to 1 minute webcam, YouTube video of a children's author giving a shout-out about his/her books along with a personalized promotion for a school book fair. It could be wildly creative or it might be something as simple as:
"Hi, I'm Jean Reidy, children's author! I'm super excited that TOO PURPLEY! is coming to the Abraham Lincoln Elementary book fair. (MAYBE ADD MORE ABOUT YOUR BOOK HERE) Don't forget to stop by and check out all the awesome books on sale. GO LIONS!"Author Spots could be shown in morning video announcements, during library time, in the classrooms, at PTO meetings, at the school entrance, or loaded on the school's website ... the possibilities are endless.It's simple! Here's how it works:
Children's Authors and Illustrators: If you're interested in participating in Author Spots for Schools, e-mail me your name, whether you're an author or illustrator, most recent book titles, genres and your website link and I'll add you to the list. Send your information to reidy(dot)jean(at)gmail(dot)com. If you know that one or more of your books is offered specifically at Scholastic Book Fairs, please let me know, and I'll put an "S" after your name. Then, when a school contacts you, record your Author Spot, upload it to YouTube and send the link to the school. If you'd like to participate but you'd prefer to record only one generic book fair promotion video that ANY school can use, let me know. I'll start a separate list and link to your video.
Teachers, Principals, and Book Fair Volunteers: Review the authors and their books listed here and decide who might be a good fit for your school book fair. Authors who have books specifically at Scholastic Book Fairs are noted with an "S" after their name. Choose a few options because not every author will be available at all times. Then contact one or more -- can you imagine a whole week of AuthorSpots? -- of the authors below requesting a FREE AuthorSpot. If the author agrees, tell the author how you'd like it personalized - school name, school mascot, etc. And when the video is posted, the author will send you the link. It's as simple as that.
If we get enough authors participating, I'll even host a website specifically for Author Spots.
The following authors are interested in promoting your book fair:AND HERE'S WHERE I LIST THE AUTHORS BY GENRE WITH UP TO 5 BOOK TITLES AND A LINK TO THE WEBSITE.
So guys, I'd love to have you on the list. Remember, even if your books aren't featured in a particular book fair, you never know when/how a school might want to use such a commercial. And even though I'll go LIVE later today, I'll be adding authors all the time. Please send me your info if you're interested.
Jean
