French presenters – Authors' Booking Service

Grant, Vicki – (Halifax, Nova Scotia)

Member – Writers Union of Canada, Writers Federation of Nova Scotia, CCBC and CANSCAIP.

Middle-Grade and YA fiction.

Grades 4-12. $300 plus HST for 1 session, $500 for 2, $750 for 3 and $1000 for 4, + travel (.68 cents per kilometer, round-trip for SW ON).

Virtual Visits: $300 plus HST, for one session, 20-60 minutes, $200 for each additional session on the same day.

Winner: Red Maple Award, Arthur Ellis Award winner for juvenile crime fiction, CBC Young Canada Reads winner.

Nominated for Edgar Allan Poe Award, CLA Children’s Book of the Year, Young Canada Reads, New Jersey Library Association’s Garden State Teen Book Award, Ann Connor-Brimer Award x3, Red Cedar, Silver Birch x 2, Arthur Ellis x3, Red Maple, Golden Oak, BC Stellar, Saskatchewan Snow Willow x 3, and Hackmatack. Multiple awards for children’s television scripts and advertising work.

Television screenwriter, advertising copywriter and multi-award-winning author of eighteen middle-grade and young adult novels, Vicki brings her trademark humour to the classroom in her fun and informative school visits. Geared to the interests of the class, her presentations will delight Grades Four through Twelve. “The best presentation we ever had!” Ian Forsyth Elementary. “A wonderful rapport with students of any age!” Ellenvale Junior High. “She entranced our Grade 12 writing class!” St. Paul Catholic High School.

Vicki loves being a writer but that doesn’t mean she always loves to write. Illustrated with humorous slides and personal examples, her presentations focus on the tricks she’s learned to keep herself inspired and productive. She engages the class with hilarious read-alouds, lively Q & As, and easy exercises geared to their interest and age-group. She’s also happy to give presentations about writing humour, plotting mystery novels, character development and, for older kids, the business of writing.

Here’s a selection of her books:

Quid Pro Quo: A comic high-action legal thriller for 10 to 14-year olds

Also available in French

“A very, very funny book. I couldn’t put it down!” CBC’s Children’s Book Panel

“The kind of timing, pacing, deadpan one-liners and punchy humour that a seasoned stand-up would envy…but real and funny.” Quill & Quire starred review.

Winner of the Arthur Ellis Award for Best Juvenile Crime Novel, CBC Young Canada Reads. A Silver Birch Honour Book. Nominated for the Edgar Allan Poe Award, CLA Children’s Book of the Year, Young Canada Reads, New Jersey Library Association’s Garden State Teen Book Award, Ann Connor-Brimer Award, Red Cedar Award. A New York Public Library Best Book for Teens. Bank Street College List of Best Books

A Green Velvet Secret: A Middle-Grade mystery about love, grief and fabulous vintage clothes

“Upbeat and heartwarming. Stock up on tissues and settle in for a wholly satisfying read. Highly recommended.” CM: CANADIAN REVIEW OF MATERIALS

“Quirky, fully fleshed characters and a tender third-person narration accompany themes of grieving…in this winning novel.” PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY

Short for Chameleon: A Middle-Grade mystery about a boy, his Dad, and their rented family.

Red Maple nominee. Also available in French

“Short for Chameleon is a near perfect book. It bursts with a unique voice and a delightfully surprising plot.” Quill & Quire

“A delightful, quirky, and engaging read. 4 out of 4 stars.” CM

“Original, hilarious and evocative.” — Resource Links

Pigboy: A comic high-low adventure novel for 10 to 14 year-olds

ALA Quick Pick 2008, Silver Birch Honour Book

Also available in French

“Grant hits the nail on the head…A compelling story with lots of suspense, but it’s the journey to Dan’s personal redemption that is most enjoyable to read. Highly recommended.” CM Magazine

“Grant has done a fantastic job of developing the voice of an adolescent who is the class bully’s whipping boy. Dan’s wry sense of humor catches readers’ attention and has them rooting for him practically from the first page. Pigboy is a great quick read for boys who may be reluctant readers but others will enjoy it as well.” School Library Journal

36 Questions That Changed My Mind About You: A YA romcom based on a real psychological study

Also available in French

White Pine Honour Book. Chosen by the Toronto Public Library for THE LIST – 100 top books for teens

Foreign rights sold to 20 territories worldwide.

“Lots of laughs and a message about looking past appearances to make a connection” Publishers Weekly

Tell Me When You Feel Something: A YA medical thriller

Ann Connor Brimer nominee, CCBC’s Best Books for Kids and Teens, Fall 2021 — Starred Pick

“An important representation of the pressure that teenagers can feel and the damaging coping habits that they can use to maintain a semblance of normalcy.” —CM: Canadian Review of Materials

Maximum group sizes for presentations: 100+ for everyone else.

Writing Workshops 10 to 20 participants

Writing Workshop Topics:

Funny Pages: Tips on writing humour

Whodunnit?: How to plot a satisfying mystery

Making friends (or enemies!): Developing realistic and engaging characters

Contact Vicki to book a visit:

Campbell, Duncan (Toronto, ON)

Bilingual (English with some Spanish words) early elementary picture book in rhyming verse for all ages.

In-Person Workshops: $200 plus HST for 1 session of 20-60 minutes, $350 for 2, $500 for 3 and $650 for 4, + travel (60 cents per kilometer for SW Ontario).

Virtual Workshops: $150 plus HST for one session of 20-60 minutes, $125 for each additional session on the same day.

Books

Duncan admits that he’s always alert
For words he can use for a rhyme
Putting them into relatable verses
That hopefully you think sound fine
Sometimes it all comes out awesome
Sometimes it’s almost divine
And you can be sure that the best ones
Will cost you much more than a dime!

… But if you should find that your wallet
Is currently looking quite thin
He’ll do it for less than what’s written
So we can all have a big win!

Duncan has been playing with words all his life, is a terminal rhyming addict, and all three of his children have nominated him for the “Lethal Punster Award.” He is a writer of prose, poetry, and songs, an experienced speaker, and skilled in doing workshops with audiences of all ages on diverse subjects, including how to do rhyming poetry. He has travelled the world, working with a broad array of cultures and people groups, especially in Africa and Latin America. His areas of expertise include international relief and development, travel and adventure, cross-cultural experiences, and, of course, rhyming! Duncan is an experienced children’s worker, with over 30-years of teaching short, appealing lessons to children ages 4 and up, singing songs with actions, and organising fun games. He tailors his talks to each group, and is available to do multiple talks or workshops over the course of the day. He can share from his 30 years of international experiences, and from his life-long writing journey to finally becoming a published author. Duncan would be especially happy to do joint talks, presentations, and workshops with Ashlee Campbell, the main author of Señora Sanasana. (See Ashlee’s profile for more details.)

Examples of workshop options:

All presentations available in English, Spanish, French, or a combination of language of instruction.

JK- Gr. 2:

Duncan only: 30–60-minute workshop, reading Señora Sanasana out loud, discussion about some of the verses and how they rhyme, definition of a rhyme, how to find rhymes and make rhyming verses, use of a Thesaurus, exercises to write one rhyming verse couplet and volunteers to share. Includes speaker-led, multilingual “brain breaks” for children such as fun games and action songs.
With Ashlee: 60–75-minute workshop, Ashlee leading with study of character creation or learning the Spanish words, including exercises and sharing. (See Ashlee Campbell’s profile for more details.) Duncan would follow with the rhyming component and help with breaks throughout.

Gr. 3-6:

Duncan only: 30–60-minute workshop, study more rhymes from Señora Sanasana, deeper dive into concept of rhyming and Thesaurus usage, longer exercise in writing rhyming verses.
With Ashlee: 60–75-minute workshop, Ashlee leading, deeper dive into character creation based on common nursery rhymes, sayings and idiomatic expressions, longer writing activity, group discussions, and more sharing by students. (See Ashlee Campbell’s profile for more details.) Duncan intervening for rhyming components integrated throughout the workshop, and assisting with brain break games and action songs.

Highschool and Adult:

Duncan only: 45–90-minute workshop, deeper and longer dive into the concept and practice of rhyming, creating rhyming verse, Thesaurus usage, increased content creation time to write a full poem or story in rhyming verse, and everyone sharing and critiquing each other.
With Ashlee: 60-90-minute workshop, or two sessions for increased content creation time. Character creation as above, with discussion of “own voice” stories and introduction to constructive writing critique groups. (See Ashlee Campbell’s profile for details.) Duncan adding rhyming analysis, exercises, and critique throughout.

Duncan and Ashlee also take workshops on request.

All Venues. All Group Sizes. Equipment required: A table or podium. A microphone for larger groups and when room acoustics require it. A screen and projector for power-point and videos.

Contact Duncan to book a visit:

Campbell, Ashlee (Toronto, Ontario)

Bilingual early elementary picture book (Spanish/English). All ages.

$200 plus HST for 1 session, $350 for 2, $500 for 3 and $650 for 4, + travel (50 cents per kilometer, round-trip for SW ON). Virtual Visits: $150 plus HST, for one session, 20-60 minutes, $125 for each additional session on the same day.

Ashlee is an experienced speaker and Creative Writing teacher at the highschool and elementary levels. Ashlee tailors her talks to each group and is available to present in English, Spanish and French or a combination of languages of instruction. Ashlee is available to do multiple talks or workshops over the course of the day with groups ranging from kindergarten to high school. As a homeschool co-op organizer Ashlee also prepares talks and workshops for mixed-age groups. Ashlee has also given talks on writing, publishing and the author’s journey for adult groups.

Sample pre-recorded workshops available upon request. Ashlee also takes workshop requests.

Examples of workshop options:

All presentations available in English, French and Spanish or a combination of language of instruction.

JK- Gr. 2 – 45 – 60 mins (including speaker-led multilingual “brain breaks” for children)

Reading of “Senora Sanasana” followed by a character creation workshop including a LA tie-in worksheet for Gr. 2 and a drawing activity for younger ages.

Reading of “Senora Sanasana” followed by learning Spanish words and class discussion about languages spoken and heard in the children’s home and communities and creation of a classroom word cloud of words in other languages the children know.

Gr. 3-6 – 45 – 60 mins

Character creation workshop based on common nursery rhymes, sayings and idiomatic expressions, including worksheet and writing activity and group discussion about the rhymes and sayings from their diverse backgrounds. Workshop includes time for students to share their characters.

Highschool – 45 – 60 mins or two sessions for increased content creation time

Introduction to critique circle practices and character creation workshop (see above). Workshop includes discussion of “own voice” stories and how to create supportive, compassionate and constructive writing critique groups.

Adults – 45 – 60 mins

“Abundance versus scarcity for artists” – this is a talk on having an “abundance” mentality as an artist, basing our creative practices on the belief that there is enough space and enough audience in the world for everyone’s art and writing. This talk also delves into how we define success and takes an anti-capitalist approach to redefining both “success” and “audience” in order for artists to thrive.

All Venues. All Group Sizes. Equipment required: A table or podium. A microphone for larger groups or in the gym, or if the room acoustics require it. A screen and projector for power-point.

Contact Ashlee to book a visit:

Beddia, Lea (Joliette, Quebec)

CANSCAIP and SCBWI member, two-time recipient of Canada Council of the Arts grants. Member of Quebec Writers’ Federation and selected mentee for Young Adult fiction in 2020.

Workshops are best for ages 9 to 17. $250.00 for one sixty-minute session. $450 for two sessions. $675 for three sessions and $900 for 4 sessions. + travel (50 cents per kilometer, round-trip for Lanaudière, Laurentides, Montreal, Laval, Mauricie regions.

Virtual Visits: $200 for one 60-minute session, $100 for each additional session on the same day, up to four sessions in one day.

Lea is an experienced English Language Arts teacher who loves to talk about books and writing. As a writer of books for striving readers, she is passionate about bringing accessible literature to all readers and second language learners. Lea believes anyone can be a writer and all it takes is the right tools, some hard work, and the right encouragement. She wants to bring the power of writing to all types of learners. She is experienced working with students will learning difficulties, and can offer flexible workshops to accommodate all learners. She provides graphic organizers and worksheets, including editable digital copies for learners using assistive technologies. She has also been known to bring tasty snacks!

Writing Workshop Topics for ages 9 to 17

Workshops are conducted in English, but Lea is comfortable speaking French to second language learners. She can answer questions/provide translation and communicate fluently in French. Participants who speak languages other than English or French are encouraged to teach Lea some new words!

All workshops use a combination of large and/or small group discussion, group activity/game, writing, revising, and sharing.

Writing Makes Sense: Showing vs. Telling

Lea will use a combination of discussion, group activity and writing to create strong sentences using sensory details.

Words for Humanity: Using Conflict to Write About Emotions

Based on the “Cards Against Humanity” or “Cards Against Maturity” game, with an age-appropriate and positive twist, we will create solutions to problems for our characters.

From Memory to Fiction

Based on the game “Clue,” students will use detective work to piece together memories to create a setting, a character and/or a conflict as a stepping stone for their own creative writing.

Dialogue that doesn’t drag: using dialogue to build character.

Using video clips of well-known characters, students will predict what/how characters will speak. We will use character charts, to create personalities and with them, a way to let characters speak that is dynamic and exciting.

Words, Words, Words: Beyond the Thesaurus.

Based on the game “Taboo,” and incorporating improvisation/acting students will explore their vocabulary by acting out adverbs, describing movements and using action words instead, to create a scene.

These workshops are ideal for groups between 10 and 20 participants. Lea prefers small settings for workshops such as a classroom, library or other space large enough to move around, but not so large that she cannot connect with each participant.

Tech requirements include a blackboard/whiteboard and a screen for the dialogue workshop with internet access, speakers, etc. Participants will require writing materials, including assistive technologies for students who use them in the classroom on a regular basis.

Contact Lea to book a visit:

Camlot, Heather (Toronto, ON)

The Writers’ Union of Canada member. Fiction and nonfiction writer.

Heather’s rates are $300 for one session, $550 for two, $800 for three. For virtual presentations: $300 for one session, $500 for two. HST applies to all sessions. No travel costs within Toronto or if I am in your city (I travel to Montreal several times a year). Able to present in English and French.

HEATHER CAMLOT is an award-winning author of a dozen books for young readers.

Her middle-grade nonfiction include What If Soldiers Fought with Pillows? True Stories of Imagination and Determination, The Prisoner and the Writer, and One Goal: How Soccer Can Help Save the Planet. Heather is also an accomplished fiction writer. Her two middle-grade novels are Clutch and The Other Side.

Fall 2026 will see two new nonfiction books, Have a Bite! How Food Connects Us and Beyond Words: The Meaning and Impact of Signs and Symbols. Two more books are slated for 2027 Champions for Change: How Athletes are Making a Difference and Poster Child: The Story of Artist Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, her first picture book.

Heather’s books have been honoured as a Best Book pick from Kirkus Reviews, a Canadian Jewish Literary Awards winner (juvenile category), Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selections, an Outstanding Science Trade Book (NSTA/CBC) and Skipping Stones Honor Awards. They have also been shortlisted for provincial, national, and international awards, including Forest of Reading, CCBC Book Awards, and Prix littéraire FETKANN – Maryse Condé.

PRESENTATIONS (60 minutes, grades 3+)

Heather aims to entertain and educate, engaging students with a fun and interactive presentation, lively discussion and themed activities. We’ll talk about a specific book (choose from the list below), inspiration, challenges, themes and of course writing.

Heather is happy to collaborate to create a customized presentation.

Books and themes:

Clutch: Baseball, family, tradition, 1940s, Montreal, Jackie Robinson, Judaism, World War II, Holocaust, Canada, government of Canada, historical fiction, sports, courage, injustice
The Other Side: Mystery,family secrets, illness, soccer, 2014 World Cup,World War II, Germany, Canada, inter-generational, injustice, courage, history, present
What If Soldiers Fought with Pillows?: Social justice, human rights, imagination, real-world crises, asking big questions, courage, change, peace, reconciliation, bravery, injustice, leadership, history, present
Secret Schools: School, underground, hiding, current, history, present, education, learning, courage, perseverance, resilience, determination, change, injustice
I Can’t Do What?: Laws, rules, human rights, sports, art, entertainment, injustice, technology, family, crime and punishment, weird, governance, social justice
Becoming Bionic: STEM, science, biology, technology, superheroes, comics, cartoons, science fiction, technological innovations, medicine, pop culture, history, present
The Prisoner and the Writer: Dreyfus Affair, antisemitism, Judaism, advocacy, racism 19^th century, France, media literacy, bias, fake news, treason, betrayal, courage, true story, justice, equality, prejudice, scandal, misinformation
One Goal: Soccer, climate change, World Cup, Olympics, sports, social justice, human rights, sustainability, environment, reduce, reuse, recycle
Beyond Words: Symbols, hate, peace, support, protest, social justice, human rights, history, racism, 2SLGBTQI+, sexism, physical and mental health, marginalized
Have a Bite: Food, food history, social justice, family, tradition, climate change, history, culture, trade, geography, connection, politics, food safety, food waste

WORKSHOPS (60 minutes, grades 3+)

Where do ideas come from?: In this idea-generating workshop, we’ll discuss where to look for fiction and/or nonfiction book ideas – starting in our own lives. Students will get writing with two exercises to jumpstart the creative process. Based on ONE GOAL: HOW SOCCER CAN HELP SAVE THE PLANET.
What’s news?: Bias in the media is difficult to spot. In this media-literacy workshop, we’ll look into how to determine if what you’re reading is fact…or fiction. I’ll test students’ knowledge of news fact vs news fiction through a fun game and we’ll create a reference guide to better judge whether what they are reading, seeing, and hearing is objective, biased or completely fake. Based on THE PRISONER AND THE WRITER.

You can find more presentation and workshop descriptions available on Heathercamlot.com.

Maximum presentation size: 100 (flexible) / maximum workshop size: 30 (flexible)
Teacher and/or librarian must be present.

Heather offers the services of professional editing, copyediting, proofreading, and translating. She also provides manuscript evaluations – fiction and nonfiction.

Contact Heather to book a visit:

Hohn, Nadia (Toronto)

The Writers Union member. Picture book. All ages. $350 for 1 session (60 min) $ 600 for 2 sessions of 60 minutes (1/2 day)$ 400 for 2 x 30 minute sessions (great for JK to 1). Full day (4 sessions) $ 1000. + kilometrage. Can present in English and French.

Malaika’s Costume (2016) and Malaika’s Winter Carnival (2017).