Speakers’ Bureau

Balkin Buddies
14105 Roller Ln.
Hudson, FL 34667
Telephone: (727) 378-4191
Contact: Catherine Balkin
Email: BalkinBuddies@aol.com
http://www.BalkinBuddies.com

This site features 70-100 authors, providing author photos, author bios, honorariums, information on their presentations, equipment needs, references, information about their books including awards, details about how to order their books, and comments from teachers where the authors have visited. Information on author tours is provided for schools or libraries who wish to arrange tie-in visits and thus cut down on expenses. Authors are also organized by states of residence and grade levels of their books. Tips for organizing a successful author event, and details about the cost involved in arranging an author appearance are included. On every author’s book ordering page, there is a link showing which publisher owns which publisher to help with the book ordering process. There is also information on authors and artist available for online chats, as well as tips on how to host successful chats.

The Booking Biz
Carmen Oliver
Austin, TX
telephone 512-657-5052
http://www.thebookingbiz.com/contact/ 
http://www.thebookingbiz.com

Carmen Oliver, former assistant regional advisor for the Austin SCBWI chapter, launched the Booking Biz in 2014. The Booking Biz so far represents about 9 or 10 authors and illustrators for school visits, library visits, conferences, festivals and special events.

Connecting Authors
Susan B. Katz
telephone 866-528-9269
susan@connectingauthors.org
http://connectingauthors.org

The goal of Connecting Authors is to inspire at-risk youth to become lifelong readers and writers by mentoring them through the book publication process. Connecting Authors connects diverse children’s authors with schools and publishers, promoting literary arts and representing over 80 authors.

Dave Greenberg’s Authors and Illustrators who Visit Schools (AIVS)
Telephone: 360-560-7766
Fax: 360-232-8218
Email: authilus@teleport.com
http://www.authorsillustrators.com

The Authors and Illustrators who Visit Schools (AIVS) website represents twenty authors-illustrators who are devoted to dual arts: writing/illustrating and presenting programs to kids. This site provides information on each author’s books, awards, honorariums, presentation information, equipment needs, biographical data, references, and author contact information, including a link to each author’s website, if available.

McBookwords
Sharron L. McElmeel
3000 N. Center Point Rd.
Cedar Rapids, IA 52411-9548
Telephone: 319 393 2562
Email: sharron@mcbookwords.com

http://www.mcbookwords.com

Sharron McElmeel’s McBookworks web page features links to about a dozen authors/illustrators whose author appearances are handled by McBookwords. The site provides information about the programs, sometimes very detailed information, links to the authors’ websites, and provides contact information for booking the authors.

Paul Oughton
Author Illustrator Source
1220 Gainesway Dr.
Lexington, KY 40517
Telephone: (859) 272-9828
Email: wpauloughton@embarqmail.com
http://www.author-illustr-source.com
This site features an alphabetical list of authors and artists in various national, international, and regional sections. The regional sections include the Northeast, the Mid-Atlantic, the South, the Midwest, the West, the Pacific, and the Virgin Islands. The list provides biographical information, published books, descriptions of author presentations, number of presentations preferred, audio-visual equipment required, and honorariums, and links to author websites or other information on how to contact them.

SchoolBookings.com, a division of Five Star Publications, Inc. 
PO Box 6698
Chandler, AZ 85246-6698
(480) 940-8182
Fax: (480) 940-8787

Contact: Linda F. Radke
Email: info@SchoolBookings.com
www.SchoolBookings.com
Persuading great authors to visit their schools has always been a challenge for educators, yet there are many excellent authors who’d love to speak to schoolchildren if given the opportunity. We bridge that gap, providing educators a database of authors eager to do book signings and presentations.

Janet Zade
Zade Educational Partners
Hingham, MA 02043
Telephone: 781.749.2733
Fax: 781-749-5507
Email: news4jaz@aol.com
http://www.authors4kids.com

This site features seven to ten authors, providing links to author websites, tips for organizing a successful author event, and comments from teachers where the authors have visited.

Abrams
115 West 18th Street
New York, NY 10011
Jason M. Wells, Exec. Dir., Publicity & Marketing
(p) 212.229.8826
(c) 646.456.5446
(f) 212.366.0809
(e) Jwells@abramsbooks.com
www.abramsbooks.com

Albert Whitman & Company
250 S. Northwest Highway, Suite 320
Park Ridge, IL 60068
Michelle F. Bayuk, Director of Marketing
(p) direct 847-232-2811
847-581-0039 fax
Mbayuk@albertwhitman.com

Boyds Mills Press
815 Church Street
Honesdale, PA 18431
Elizabeth Knight
Marketing Coordinator, Book Publishing
(f) 570-251-4554
(f) 570-253-0179
(e) elizabeth.knight@boydsmillspress.com

Bloomsbury/Walker Books
175 Fifth Ave.
New York, NY 10010
Linette Kim
linette.kim@bloomsbury.com

Candlewick Press
99 Dover St.
Somerville, MA 02144
Anne Irza-Leggat
(p) 617/588-4466
(f) 617/575-4466
(e) anne.irza-leggat@candlewick.com

Charlesbridge

85 Main Street
Watertown, MA  02472
Donna Spurlock
(p) 617/926-0329
(f) 617/926-5720
(e) dspurlock@charlesbridge.com

Clarion Books
an imprint of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
215 Park Avenue South
New York, NY 10003
Author appearances are handled out of Boston, so please see the Houghton Mifflin/Harcourt Children’s Book Group contact information shown below.

Chronicle Books
Children’s Events
680 Second St.
San Francisco, CA 94107
415-537-4296
Lea_Yancey@chroniclebooks.com

Disney-Hyperion
44 South Broadway
White Plains, NY 10601
914-288-4100 general telephone
614-312-1230 Lisa McClatchy (call her first)
HyperionVisits@aol.com

Eerdmans Books for Young Readers
2140 Oak Industrial Dr NE
Grand Rapids MI 49505
Lara Sissell, Publicist
Direct line: 616-234-0548
Toll free: 800-253-7521
publicity@eerdmans.com

Egmont
443 Park Ave South
Room 806
New York, NY 10075
Katie Halata
(p) 646-430-7385 (direct line)
katiehalata@egmont.com

HarperCollins
10 East 53 Street
New York, NY 10022
Email: authorvisits@harpercollins.com

Holiday House
425 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10017
Tel 212-688-0085
Fax 212-421-6134
Hayley Gonnason
hgonnason@holidayhouse.com

Houghton Mifflin/Harcourt Children’s Book Group
222 Berkeley Street
Boston, MA 02116
Caroline Litwack
Publicity Assistant
(p) 617-351-5968
caroline.litwack@hmhpub.com

Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group
175 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10010
www.mackids.com

Macmillan Children’s includes the following imprints:
-Farrar, Straus & Giroux Books for Young Readers
-Feiwel and Friends
-First Second Books
-Henry Holt Books for Young Readers
-Priddy Books
-Roaring Brook Press
-Square Fish

Authors and artists for any and all these imprints may be reached directly by googling their individual websites or checking with author appearance coordinators/booking agents with whom many of them are associated (see Section One above).

Marshall Cavendish Children’s Books
99 White Plains Rd.
Tarrytown, NY 10591-9001
(p) 914-332-8888, ext. 309
Contact: Brian Buerkle
Email: bbuerkle@marshallcavendish.com

Maupin House Publishing, Inc.
2416 NW 71st Place
Gainesville, FL 32653
(p) (800) 524-0634
(c ) 352-283-9353
(f) (352) 373-5546
Contact: Rebecca Lukowski
Email: rlukowski@maupinhouse.com

namelos

133 Main Avenue
South Hampton, NH 03827
Nancy Hogan
Marketing Coordinator
(c) 828-337-8460
(o) 828-252-8545
Email: hogan@namelos.com

Peachtree Publishers
1700 Chattahoochee Ave.
Atlanta, GA 30318
Emily Rivet
(p) 404-876-8761, ext. 111
(f) 404-875-2578
(e) rivet@peachtree-online.com

Penguin Group
345 Hudson St.
New York, NY 10014
Sara Ortiz
Author Appearance Coordinator
(P) 212 414 3708
Sara.ortiz@us.penguingroup.com or Authorvisits@us.penguingroup.com

Random House Children’s Books
1745 Broadway
New York, NY 10019
Lisa McClatchy
(p) 212-782-9369
liske@aol.com

Scholastic Inc.
557 Broadway
New York, NY 10012-3999
Antonio Gonzalez
Associate Marketing Manager for Author Visits
(p) 212-389-3772
(e) hagonzalez@scholastic.com

McBookwords: Authors and Illustrators on the Web
http://www.mcbookwords.com – Email sharron@mcbookwords.com. Links to a number of author and illustrator sites that are generated by the author/illustrator him or herself or in some cases by an individual fan of the author/illustrator’s work are provided, as is a great deal of other information on children’s book authors, illustrators, and their work.

DR. RAYMOND W. BARBER 
Director of Libraries
The William Penn Charter School
3000 West School House Lane
Philadelphia, PA. 19144
Phone (office): 215-844-3460 x168
Phone (cell): 215-850-6678
Phone (home): 215-843-4024
Fax: 215-844-5537
Email: rbarber@penncharter.com

Honorarium: $100 plus expenses

Subjects of special interest:
-Best Books of the Year
-Newbery and Printz Committees

WAYNE BRINDA, Ed.D

University of Pittsburgh at Bradford
150 Swarts Hall, 300 Campus Drive
Bradford, PA 16701
Phone: 814-362-7532
Email: wjb27@pitt.edu
Honorarium:
90 minute workshop – $200 plus expenses
Half-day workshop – $400 plus expenses

Director of the Education Program at the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford, PA, Wayne is also Co-founder and Producing Artistic Director of Prime Stage Theatre in Pittsburgh – a nationally recognized theatre that addresses literacy for adolescents. The company presents a range of in-school programs and produces adaptions of literature drawn from middle and secondary reading lists that include premieres of The Devil’s Arithmetic, The Westing Game, and Walk Two Moons. As a Museum Teaching Fellow of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, DC, he uses theatre and literature to effectively teach the Holocaust.  His interactive presentations feature practical, fun, and easy to apply arts-based strategies that have helped teachers excite, engage, and enrich their students who struggle with reading.
Wayne is willing to travel throughout the U.S.
Audience Preference: Teachers and teens.

PATTY CAMPBELL
1842 Santa Margarita Drive
Fallbrook, CA 92028
760 723-6184
shorecam@aol.com

Will do up to four hours a day
Western U.S. only
Adults only
Honorarium: one-hour speech – $500 plus expenses
Half-day (four hour) workshop – $1000 plus expenses

MICHAEL CART
5980 Dandridge Lane, #228
San Diego, CA 92115
Phone: 619-286-1156
Email: mrmcart@sbcglobal.net

Honorarium: $1,000 to 1,500 per day, plus expenses, depending on how many presentations folks want. He can give up to but no more than three presentations a day (the visits should be close together). Normally he speaks to adult audiences but will consider high school classes as well. He is willing to travel throughout the U.S. and Canada.

KATHRYN ERSKINE
1016 Blackburn Bluff, Charlottesville, VA 22901
Phone: 434-973-9817
Email: kathy [at] quakinglion [dot] com
Website: http://www.kathrynerskine.com

Honorarium: $100 for 1 presentation / speech; up to $300 for the day

No. of Presentations: up to 4 per day (no more than 5 hours straight)
Audience: YA, adult, or both
Subjects: anything about writing. Her novel, QUAKING, is a “Top Ten” on the ALA’s 2008 List of “Quick Picks for Reluctant Readers.”
Travel: Up to 400 miles from Charlottesville but could be anywhere if she happens to be there on a trip.

BETH FEHLBAUM
1088 VZ County Road 2816, Mabank, TX 75147
Phone:903-880-0282 (home)/972-743-0266 (cell)
bethfehlbaum@gmail.com
Honorarium: $750 to $1,200 per day
Travel expenses of hotel/flight must be covered separately.
She’s happy to divide a day up among schools.

She can talk to every class period from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm. (A teacher, she is used to such a schedule.)
She requires that schools partner with a local bookseller and provide her books for sale on-site or in conjunction with her visit. Many times the sellers will donate a percentage of profits back to the school.

Program Descriptions: She offers a program that uses what she does: writing from real life to teaching students how to recognize the “material” they have in their own lives that inspires expository and narrative writing as well as poetry and drama. Her current program is called, “Writing: A Great Way to Work Out Your Stuff.” She writes edgy YA fiction; thus far, her four books have dealt with Childhood Sexual Abuse (CSA) and/or Binge Eating Disorder. However, her objective in presenting to students is to discuss the concept of writing from one’s own experiences in a way that supports the objective of writing improvement and brainstorming.

WENDY J. GLENN
Associate Professor of English Education Department of Curriculum and Instruction Neag School of Education
249 Glenbrook Road Storrs, CT 06269-2033
wendy.glenn@uconn.edu
Phone: (860) 486-0246

Honorarium: Generally $500-$1000 for a day.

Topics: Incorporating YA literature into diverse classrooms and settings; Defending YA literature against censors; Using YA literature to enhance writing instruction; Reading YA texts through multiple literary lenses; Bridging curriculum with YA texts; Learning about race and privilege through reading and discussion of YA titles

GWENDOLYN HEASLEY
666 Greenwich St.
Apt. 815
New York NY 10014
Phone: 917-969-1137

Email: gwendolyn.heasley@gmail.com
Website: gwendolynheasley.com

Honorarium: $100.00 dollars plus travel expenses. Willing to travel anywhere in US if travel expenses are provided.

The author of the YA novel WHERE I BELONG, a recessionary novel from HarperCollins (Feb. 2011), she talks about the recession, the writing and publishing process and the importance of YA literature in her life.

Audience Preference: both teens and adults.

BONNIE KUNZEL

Youth Services and Adolescent Literacy Consultant
8417 Wood Briar Dr.
Germantown, TN  38138
Phone: 901-752-0358
Cell: 901-481-6199

Email: bkunzel@aol.com
Website: www.bonniekunzel.com (Need working link)

Honorarium: $500 for a half-day w/two programs, $750 for a full day w/three programs, and $150 for an hour-long Skype chat.
A past president of YALSA, she presents seminars on classic young adult literature around the country for BER (the Bureau of Educational Research) and speaks at library, education, and science fiction conferences. Her topics include (but are not limited to) Best Books for Young Adults, Must-Read Young Adult Authors, Science Fiction and Fantasy, Books for Tweens, Historical Fiction, Pick of the Decade for K-Gr. 8 and Gr. 9-12, Books for Reluctant Readers and Boys.

GEORGIA McBRIDE
P.O. Box 1892
Fuquay-Varina, NC 27526
Phone: 646.360.0165
Email: Georgia@georgiamcbride.com
Website: http://georgiamcbridebooks.wordpress.com

Agented YA, MG and Adult novelist founded  literary non-profit, YALITCHAT.ORG and weekly online chat #yalitchat, public speaker on young adult lit., freelance editor, ghostwriter, consultant to literary agents.

Honorarium $700.00/day domestic + travel and lodging.  For School visits: 4 presentations per day. International travel available as author is known in international YA reader community. International rates vary.

Programs: (1) Interactive author chats w/students grade 2 thru’ college on the art of great storytelling.  (2) Interactive author chats w/students grade 4 thru’ college on either the making of a book or how a book become a film (3) Creative writing workshops for children grade 2 up. Adults welcome in library &/or bookstore settings. (4) Social media, platform building & marketing for the published author (5) Getting published in today’s market: real-life lesson for teens thru’ adults (6) Presentations and in-service workshop for teachers & librarians on using today’s MG and YA titles in class/schools (7) New media in the classroom: from eReaders to social media teaching tools—an instructional/interactive workshop for teachers & librarians.

JANETTE RALLISON
1082 E Canyon Way
Chandler, AZ 85249
Tel. 480-883-8766
Email: rallison1@cox.net
Website: JanetteRallison.com

Honorarium: Full day (four 45-60 min. sessions): Phoenix, AZ $500/elsewhere in AZ $750 + expenses/outside AZ $1,000 + expenses//Half day (two 45-60 min. sessions): Phoenix, AZ $250/elsewhere in AZ $400 + expenses/outside AZ $700 + expenses//For just one session (45-60 min.): Phoenix, AZ $200/elsewhere in AZ $300 + expenses/outside AZ $700 + expenses.

Programs: Plot Workshops: Children will understand what elements make up a plot and create one of their own. Creativity workshops: Teaches brainstorming techniques, and the children will work on creating a story. Becoming a Writer Program: (for older children and adults interested in writing): Learn common mistakes and how to avoid them.

DR. GRETCHEN SCHWARZ
Professor, Curriculum & Instruction
Baylor University, One Bear Place #97314, Waco, TX 76798-7314
(254) 710-6121
Email: Gretchen_Schwarz@baylor.edu
Honorarium $400.00 a day plus expenses
Negotiable depending on location, time, needs.

Topics:  graphic novels in the secondary classroom; graphic novels for teaching multiple literacies; graphic novels and the new rhetorics; adolescents, YA novels,  and media literacy education, etc.

Co-editor and author of Media Literacy: Transforming Curriculum and Teaching (2005); NSSE Yearbook, Part I. Malden, MA: Blackwell; and numerous articles on graphic novels (ALAN Review, English Journal, JAAL)

DEB VANASSE
PO Box 222451
Anchorage, AK 99522
(907) 388-9303
www.debvanasse.com

School visits:  $500 per day for up to five hours per day, plus travel expenses.

Award-winning, twenty-year former teacher and author of ten books for children, young adults and adults.  Available for single or multi-day workshops, classroom presentations, book talks, and speeches.  Topics include Jumpstart Your Writing, Finding Your Voice, Revision Bootcamp, Teacher as Writer, and Writing from Life; will also design custom workshops and programs.  High marks from participants for enthusiastic, meaningful presentations.