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Authors’ Booking Service is pleased to announce that children’s author Eric Zweig is now scheduling visits to Ontario schools for the coming school year.
Eric would love to plan a visit to your school or library. His rate is $250 for one session, $450 for two, or $650 for three, plus HST and travel from Owen Sound.
By the age of ten Eric Zweig was already a budding sports fanatic who was filling his school news books with game reports instead of current events. He has been writing professionally about sports and sports history since graduating from Trent University in 1985. Eric’s first book, Hockey Night in the Dominion of Canada, (Lester Publishing, 1992) was an historical novel set in the early days of professional hockey. He has been working with Dan Diamond and Associates (consulting publisher to the National Hockey League) since 1997 and has been writing for children since 1999.
Here’s what Hazel Lyder of the Downtown Bookstore in Owen Sound has to say about this author:
The Downtown Bookstore was delighted to host author Eric Zweig and Ms Kate Walsh’s Grade Seven class from Strathcona Senior Public School for a reading and discussion time. In his presentation Mr Zweig explained about the multi-faceted work of an author – part detective, part journalist, part entertainer. He also brought along some hockey memorabilia and showed some examples of his adult titles. Mr Zweig was a very engaging speaker and very patient and welcoming with all questions and comments from the children. The students had a great morning and wrote some wonderful letters of thanks to Mr Zweig and the staff here at the bookstore.
Eric is a member of The Writers' Union of Canada, and so schools wishing to invite him may be eligible for a travel and fee subsidy to off-set the cost of his visit. Contact us for details of this program.
Time slots are filled on a first-come, first-serve basis, so please respond early if you are interested in booking Eric.
Published Works
Children's/YA
Hockey
Trivia for Kids 3: Stanley Cup Edition
(Scholastic, 2011)
On
This Day In Hockey (Scholastic,
2009)
Tough
Guys: Hockey Rivals in Times of War and Disaster
(James Lorimer, 2009)
Fever
Season (Dundurn, 2009)
Hockey
Trivia for Kids 2 (Scholastic,
2008)
Hockey
Trivia for Kids (Scholastic,
2006)
Crazy
Canucks: The Uphill Battle of Canada’s Downhill Ski Team
(James Lorimer, 2008)
Star
Power: the Legend and Lore of Cyclone Taylor
(James Lorimer, 2007)
Long
Shot: How the Winnipeg Falcons won the First Olympic Hockey Gold
(Lorimer, 2007)
A
Century of Hockey Heroes
(Somerville House, 1999)
Goals
(Somerville House, 1999)
Saves
(Somerville House, 1999)
Adult
Non-Fiction
Twenty
Greatest Hockey Goals (Dundurn,
2010)
Ultimate
Prize: the Stanley Cup (Andrews
McMeel, 2003)
Glory
Days: Hockey in the 1950s and ’60s
(Andrews McMeel, 2003)
Ice
Q and A (Andrews McMeel, 2001)
Various NHL media publications since 1998
Adult Fiction
Hockey Night in the Dominion of Canada (Lester Publishing, 1992)
Sports
Quotebooks
Big
Guys Don’t Shrink (Firefly,
2008)
Par
for the Course (Firefly, 2007)
Drive
Like Hell (Firefly, 2007)
Home
Plate Don’t Move (Firefly,
2006)
Gentlemen
This is a Football (Firefly,
2006)
Presentation Details
Since 1999, when I began writing books for children, I have made many presentations in schools, libraries and bookstores. (I have also been a guest on many television and radio stations since my first book was published in 1992). My presentations tend to be somewhat informal. I think it gives my talks more energy when I don’t keep to a rigid script. However, I always have a general plan that I layout for myself before each presentation (which readings I’ll do, which topics I plan to emphasize). I do not have any multimedia props, though I often bring photographs and/or sports memorabilia that relate to my topics.
I like to begin by reading stories from a collection of my own Grade 5 current events books. There is a particular section where I read out several days worth of sports stories I had recorded, which end with a note from my teacher instructing me to bring in more newspapers clippings and not just report on the sports I’ve been watching! (The next day, I pasted into my current events book a newspaper clipping of Toronto mayor David Crombie … holding up the football that was going to be used in the Grey Cup Game that weekend.) Now, of course, I get to write about sports for a living.
I like to emphasize to schoolchildren that writing does not just meaning thinking up creative stories. You don’t have to have a wonderful imagination or a gift for clever phrases. For me, working mostly on historical non-fiction, writing can be like detective work. Often, I have to do a lot of research to find the truth behind the legends in sports. To me, this is the best part of what I get to do. I like to discover things that no one else knows. In talking about research, I always explain how the Internet can make this so much easier … but that a researcher always has to be careful about what type of online sources to use. Also, because I do editorial work as well, I like to talk about all the aspects that can go into making a book. Particularly, photo research, as I do a lot of that.
Hearing about what the students are interested in is always a lot of fun, and often very informative for me, so I like to leave a lot of room for questions. If there are a lot of questions, I hate to have to cut off any children. If there aren’t a lot of questions, I can pick up the talk again, or do more readings, with a better idea of what the children want to hear about.
My preference it to present to grades 4 to 6, but I’m comfortable with anything from grades 3 to 12.
I prefer to present in classrooms or libraries to groups ranging from 30 to 90, but I’m happy to present to larger groups … and though I’m a little leary of sound in gymnasiums, things usually turn out fine!
My presentation is pretty low tech. Depending on the size of the room, I need only a table or chair to sit on, or a lecturn to stand behind … and a table to display some of my books. A bottle of water is nice too.