Our Presenters – Page 5 – Authors' Booking Service

Bailey, Jen Lynn (Ottawa, ON)

Jen Lynn Bailey is an award-winning children’s author and certified Ontario elementary teacher. She is the recipient of the 2023 Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Children’s Book Award, picture book category, for her debut picture book This is the Boat that Ben Built (illustrated by Maggie Zeng, published by Pajama Press 2022).

Member of The Writers’ Union of Canada, the Ontario College of Teachers, the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY) Canada, the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), and the Canadian Society of Children’s Authors, Illustrators and Performers (CANSCAIP). English language presentations and workshops for grades K-6; all ages on request.

In-person rates for a classroom visit (40- to 60-minute sessions): $275 for one, $400 for two, $530 for three, $680 for a full day (4 sessions). For larger presentations with up to 100 students in the same or adjacent grade level(s): $375 for a 45- to 60-minute presentation. Published fees are for schools; fees for other settings are subject to change. Venues over 25 km from Ottawa centre will be charged a travel fee for artist’s transportation costs.

Virtual visit fees are $150 for one 45-minute session (or two 25-minute sessions for kindergarten students); $125 for each additional session the same day.

Jen is an experienced teacher, workshop leader, and presenter who loves introducing kids to the animals of the northern river ecosystem through fun, interactive sessions. She also enjoys teaching about writing and about how picture books are made. She will gladly collaborate with teachers and/or librarians to customize visits to meet the children’s interests and the teachers’ curriculum requirements. Students and staff have the option to order personalized, signed books which will be delivered to their school. Jen will provide ordering instructions.

Here are some sample presentations, which each include an author intro and Q&A:

This is the Boat that Ben Built – Participatory Reading & Activities Age level: K – grade 1; Duration: two 25-minute sessions. Appropriate for up to 30 students for optimal engagement.

The first 25-minute session introduces kids to the northern river ecosystem in a fun participatory reading session of This is the Boat that Ben Built. Jen also discusses idea generation and the inspiration for the story. The second 25-minute session includes a generative alliteration activity and an animal size classification activity.

Key concepts: ecology, species diversity, food webs, STEM, poetry

Key themes: curiosity, natural world, exploration

Explore a Book! Explore an Ecosystem! Age level: Grades 2-6; Duration: 45-60 minutes. Appropriate for classroom visits or larger venues.

Students will explore the picture book This is the Boat that Ben Built through the lens of a reader, writer, scientist, and artist. They’ll discover how the author and illustrator work together to create a picture book, and how the animals of the northern river ecosystem are interconnected in the story and real world.

Key concepts: ecology, species diversity, food webs, STEM, picture book creation, writing process, cumulative stories, science

Key themes: curiosity, natural world, exploration

Levels: primary, junior, grade 2, grade 3, grade 4, grade 5, grade 6

Writer’s Workshops Age level: K – grade 6; Duration: 45-60 minutes (shorter for kindergarten). Appropriate for visits with up to 30 students.

Animals as Story Starters: Story ideas come from our real-world experiences with people, places, and things. One great source of inspiration is animals in their natural environments. In this workshop, we’ll use animal behaviours, habitats, and adaptations to generate story characters, settings, and conflicts.

Witty Words, Awesome Animals: A Poetry Workshop: Kids will use their “poetry toolkits” to uncover meaning and music in a variety of animal poems, then generate their own. For K-4, the emphasis will be on descriptive words, comparisons and repeated letter sounds; in grades 5-6 more specific poetic techniques will be identified and explored (e.g., similes and metaphors, alliteration, consonance, assonance, onomatopoeia)

If you are interested in writing workshops for students in grades 7 – 8, secondary school, or college, or in workshops for adults, please contact Jen about your group’s needs. Jen offers picture book manuscript critiques as well.

Library Storytime Age level: preschool – grade 1; duration 30-45 minutes

Following a participatory reading of This is the Boat that Ben Built, Jen will lead kids in a simple craft about the animals in the northern river ecosystem. Digital templates will be provided in advance; craft supplies to be provided by the library.

General Equipment needs: For in-person visits, laptop with PowerPoint or Google Slides (Jen will bring her own laptop if it can be connected to school projector, otherwise she will bring a USB stick), digital projector and screen for presentation, microphone if the space is larger than a classroom, chair or stool. For virtual visits, school Zoom account (or similar). Student supplies depend on chosen session and will be discussed prior to visit. Teacher or librarian must be present for all presentations, virtual or in-person.

Jen offers picture book manuscript critiques as well.

Contact Jen:

Sadler, Judy-Ann (London, Ontario)

Judy-Ann Sadler (London, Ontario) is a member of The Writers’ Union of Canada, CANSCAIP, and Canadian Children’s Book Centre (CCBC). She presents (in English) to students in JK to grade 5 and beyond.

Rates:

1 session: $300
2 sessions: $525
3 sessions: $675
4 sessions: $800

These rates include craft supplies for 50 students per 1-hour session. Travel costs are extra. No HST. Rates for virtual visits are negotiable.

Judy-Ann Sadler is the bestselling author of over 25 books for children that have sold over a million copies in various languages around the world.

Ever since Judy-Ann can remember, she has loved to read, write and make things. She feels passionate about sharing stories and crafts with children. She knows that using your imagination and working with your hands encourages creativity, curiosity, resourcefulness, patience, passion and generosity. She feels that these are all qualities our children will need to help make the world a better place!

Judy-Ann has presented to, and made crafts with, tens of thousands of children at schools, libraries and festivals. Here are a few examples of what she does during a presentation, but she always tailors her presentations to the needs of the students. She loves to keep her audience engaged and excited about books, crafts and stories!

JK- grade 1: Read a picture book, show other books, show crafts from some of her books, take questions, make a craft.

Grade 2-3: Read one of her picture books, show other books, show lots of crafts and chat about the joy of making things, answer questions, make a craft.

Grade 4-5: Talk about and show samples of the many steps involved in putting together a good book, read a story, show her books and crafts, answer questions and hear about the creative activities and writing projects of the students. Make a craft!

For presentation set-up, Judy-Ann requires a couple of tables at the front of the room, and tables with chairs for the students. She will present to a maximum of 50 students/two classes per session.

Contact Judy-Ann to book a visit:

Gentile, Leslie (Brentwood Bay, BC)

Virtual and local in person visit rates: $300 for 45-60 minutes.

Leslie’s debut middle grade novel Elvis, Me and The Lemonade Stand Summer won the Victoria Children’s Book Prize, The Jean Little First-Novel Award, and has been shortlisted for ten other awards, including The Washington State Library Award 2025.

Her second novel, Shamus The Urban Rez Dog, P.I. was released in September 2023, and has been shortlisted for the Victoria Children’s Book Prize 2024, The Chocolate Lily Award 2025, and the Langley School District Book of the Year 2025.

Her third book, Elvis, Me & The Postcard Winter, is available as of November 2024.

Leslie is an engaging speaker who very comfortable working with children of all ages. As a musician, she has written songs to accompany each of her books and performs these songs with her readings, which makes for a fun & dynamic visit.

The Elvis series is an excellent choice for Pink Shirt Day, as themes touch on bullying, racism, and family.

With Lemonade Stand, Leslie will lead students through an exercise on kindness and unkindness, and empowering choices we can make.

With Postcard Winter, Truly’s story continues. Leslie will lead students through an exercise on bullying, and what each of us can do in small ways to be allies and good friends.

And always, there’s music!

Shamus the Urban Rez Dog, P.I. is a fun-filled detective story with a twist – it’s told by an urban rez dog, trying desperately to fit into townhouse life while helping his kids solve a mystery to get their mom out of trouble. We learn Shamus’ views on racism and the world around him, and readings and songs such as “It’s a Dog’s Life’ and “Bad Dog Blues”.

Leslie also offers a workshop on writing and getting published for young writers and adults called “Weird Things I Do To Write That Work!” This includes road-tested tricks for developing strong characters, overcoming writer’s block, and some great tips for getting published.

All of these presentations and visits work equally well virtually and in person, and the larger the group the better! Leslie’s record is 420 students so far…

Leslie lives in Brentwood Bay with her husband Dan and her German Shepherd who is convinced he’s a lap dog. Though not connected with a specific nation, Leslie is of Salish, Tuscarora and Scottish heritage and lives on Vancouver Island the traditional territory of the W̱SÁNEĆ people.

Contact Leslie to book a visit:

Hughes, Susan (Toronto, ON)

Writers Union Member. Canscaip. SCBWI. Fiction & NF, multiple Forest of Reading nominations. Multi awards. Mainly grades K to 6.

Virtual visit: $200 (plus hst) for one session of 40-50 mins; and $150 for each additional session on the same day. Also, $220 (plus hst) for two back-to-back 30 min sessions with Kinders.

Walking for Water: How One Boy Stood Up For Gender Equality is shortlisted for the Hackmatack English Non-Fiction Award.

Susan is an award-winning author of over 30 children’s books (fiction and non-fiction), including picture books, chapter books, middle-grade novels, and YA novels—and even some graphic narratives (picture books and middle-grade). She runs through the local cemetery, where she glimpses coyotes and foxes; was dog- and horse-crazy as a kid; and no matter what’s she’s doing, would usually rather be reading.

Susan’s books have won and been shortlisted for several awards, including the Silver Birch Express, Silver Birch Non-fiction, Red Maple, Red Cedar Information Book, Hackmatack, Prix des Libraires du Quebec (Jeunesse), Bank Street Best Children’s Books of the Year, TD Canadian Children’s Literature, Diamond Willow). Her books have received starred and recommended reviews from Kirkus, CCBC, CBC Books, Quill & Quire, School Library Journal, Resource Links, The Globe & Mail, CanLit for Little Canadians and CM Magazine.

Susan loves chatting with young readers about her books, the writing and publishing process, and their own writing projects. Susan will read from one or more of her books, discuss the inspiration for her book and the writing, research, and publishing process, and engage in a lively Q and A with young students.

Readings from her book(s), plus Q&A’s with audience (20-30 mins for kinders; 30-50 mins for gr 1 and up)

Suggestions of picture books for presentations:

Same Here: The Differences We Share (gr 2 – 5)

This MG informational picture book introduces readers to kids from around the world, the lives they lead, and the common needs that unite them. The child-centered narrative and evocative illustrations explore how education, family, free time, and other aspects of daily life look different depending on who you are and where you live.

Themes: common needs, global connections, equality/equity, diversity, education, communication, socio-economic realities, social studies

Walking for Water: How One Boy Stood Up for Gender Equality (gr 2 – 5)

In this inspiring picture book story of individual activism (based on a real boy), Victor recognizes gender inequality when his sister must stop attending school — and decides to do something about it.

Themes: equality, gender, children taking action, Malawi, fiction/ non-fiction, graphic novel, family, diversity, authenticity, experts, Citizen Kids, global connections

Carmen and the House That Gaudi Built (gr 1 – 6)

Carmen Batlló must move to the city, leaving behind her imaginary salamander—but then meets architect Antoni Gaudí. This picture book is inspired by the real Batlló family and the house Gaudí designed for them.

Themes: fiction versus non-fiction, based on, imaginary friends, architecture, home, nature, moving, Antoni Gaudi, change

What Happens Next (gr 2 -6)

This picture book story is told by an unnamed protagonist who, when bullied by a girl at school, confronts the bully in a unique way— helping the bully see the world with a new perspective.

Themes: bullying, emotions, empathy, non-gendered character, point-of-view, differences and similarities, courage

Walking in the City with Jane: A Story of Jane Jacobs (gr 3 – 7)

A fictionalized story of the life of Jane Jacobs, one of the world’s greatest urban thinkers and activists, this picture book is a terrific resource for exploring civic engagement, urban life, and the role of city planning.

Themes: urban activist, ecosystem, grassroots, observer, perseverance, courage, citizenship, initiative, prison, biography, annual Jane Walks

Up! How Families Around the World Carry their Little Ones (K to gr 2)

A celebration of diversity, this non-fiction picture book depicts children being carried in many different ways by various family members in 10 places around the world.

Themes: family, emotions, empathy, rural/urban, diversity, global connections

Off to Class: Incredible and Unusual Schools Around the World (gr 4 to 7)

In this middle-grade non-fiction book, you’ll travel around the globe to visit some of the world’s most incredible schools (on boats, on train platforms, mobile schools, etc.) and meet the students who attend them.

Themes: education, equality/equity, tough decisions, diversity, initiative, interviews, citizenship, global connections

Virtual meetings can be on Zoom, Google meets, or Skype. Audience size: let’s discuss!

Connect with Susan to book a visit:

Kamal, Sheena

Sheena is currently unavailable for bookings/visits

Adult thrillers and bold, gritty YA fiction. Globe and Mail bestselling author, Strand Magazine Critics Award Winner, Macavity Award Winner, Kobo Emerging Writer Prize Winner, White Pine Nominee, Crime Writers of Canada Nominee. All ages. $400 plus HST for 1 session + travel. Virtual Visits: $300 plus HST per session.

Sheena is an internationally published, critically acclaimed author of adult thrillers and young adult fiction. She holds an HBA in Political Science from the University of Toronto and was awarded a TD Canada Trust scholarship for community leadership and activism around the issue of homelessness.

Her debut novel The Lost Ones (US)/Eyes Like Mine (UK) won the 2018 Kobo Emerging Writer Prize, a Strand Magazine Critics Award and Macavity Award for Best First Novel. It has been sold in fifteen countries and was a Globe and Mail Bestseller, a Time Magazine Recommended Read, an iBooks Best Book, a Bustle Best Book and a Powell’s Pick. Fight Like a Girl is her debut YA novel and is also published in the UK by Hot Key Books.

Additionally, her writing has been featured in The Guardian (U.K.), Bustle, The Irish Times (Ireland), Writers Digest, and Entertainment Weekly.

She enjoys giving workshops about the writing process, connecting with your creativity, and finding your voice.

Contact Sheena to book a visit:

Crawley, Oksanna (Kincardine, ON)

OKSANNA CRAWLEY writes in several genres for kids with humour and heart. Her debut chapter book is Katie Crumble and the Case of the Missing Underwear published by Plumleaf Press. Coming soon from Fitzhenry and Whiteside/Sutherland House is Tom Thomson’s Paintbrush, an informational text about one of Canada’s greatest painters. She co-wrote and co-illustrated the picture book, Pirate Glitterbeard, with her daughter, Larissa. Oksanna has also written and illustrated over 30 early readers—the Super Hammy series—from Blueberry Hill Books of Manitoba. She is a retired teacher and former radio journalist. Born in Val d’Or, Québec, Oksanna lives in Kincardine, Ontario with her family. SCBWI, TWUC, CANSCAIP

Virtual presentation (30 minutes or 1 hour) $100.00

In-person presentation (1- 2 hours) $250.00

Katie Crumble and the Case of the Missing Underwear is featured on the CBC Spring Reading List 2025, and on the Telling Tales 2025 Reading List.

Oksanna is a retired teacher and would be happy to tailor her presentation to the needs of your students. She loves to talk about how a book comes to life from idea to final product, how to approach illustrating a picture book from thumbnail sketch to final illustration, how to construct or plot a story, how to write a non-fiction book, etc.

School Visits:

School Presentations include a PowerPoint presentation

Contact Oksanna to book a visit:

McLellan, Stephanie Simpson (Newmarket, ON)

Writers Union Member. English. Fiction (Picture Book and Mid Grade), Mr. Christie Award winner, Ruth Schwartz Award Winner, 2022 Blue Spruce Award Honour Book. Grades K-4 and Grades 5-8.

In-Person Visits: $300 plus HST for 1 session, $500 for 2, $750 for 3 and $1000 for 4, + travel (50 cents per kilometre, round-trip for SW ON).

Stephanie is the award-winning author of six picture books books, a mid-grade novel and a unique picture book-first reader hybrid. She reviewed children’s books for twelve years for Today’s Parent magazine (for which she got to interview the legendary Maurice Sendak!), operated an online bookstore for a few years called Neverending Stories, and wrote several scripts for the gemini-nominated children’s television series Roll Play (on Treehouse).

Her books have won and been shortlisted for several awards (Mr. Christie Award, Ruth Schwartz Award, Chocolate Lily Award, CNIB Tiny Torgi Award, Crystal Kite Award and Blue Spruce Award) and have received starred and recommended reviews from Kirkus, CCBC, CBC Books, Quill & Quire, School Library Journal, Resource Links, TVO Kids, Chickadee Magazine, The Globe & Mail, Toronto Star, National Post, City Parent, CanLit for Little Canadians and CM Magazine.

A passionate promoter of literacy, Stephanie has toured twice for TD Canadian Children’s Book Week: to Labrador in 2014 and Northwest Territories in 2018. Surrounding the release of her 2017 picture book, The Christmas Wind, Stephanie worked with almost 1,700 primary students in every province and territory of Canada (plus one school in Australia) on a unique literacy initiative that resulted in over 13,000 student drawings of her characters Jo, Murdock and the wind. Widely profiled by CBC, The Christmas Wind Story Project involved the Canadian Children’s Book Centre in the spring of 2016 and was a top 10 finalist in the 2016 CST Inspired Minds Learning Project Contest.

Presentation Description

During Stephanie’s school presentations for grades K-4, she encourages children to look for and understand their own creativity by sharing the stories behind her stories, how these stories/ideas turn into books, and what it’s like to write for a living. Specifically, she has four goals with each school presentation:

To entertain students with a dramatic reading of her books so they will come to know and care about her characters and about the value of story
To stir the writer/creator inside each student by sharing the stories behind her stories, thus empowering them to see the connection between their own lives and their own potential works of art
To create a natural bridge to relevant, valuable and interesting learning (e.g.Hoogie in the Middle – a simile exercise; Leon’s Song – a mini science quiz on how frogs survive the winter)
To give students a sense of what goes into the creation of a book (the illustrator, the publisher, the ideas) and what it’s like to write for a living

For grades 5-8, Stephanie will focus on her mid grade novel Sully, Messed Up to explore themes of self-esteem, identity, life choices, social-emotional learning and bullying.

Ahead of each school visit Stephanie creates a school specific page on her website to help teachers and students prepare for her visit.

Maximum group size: 50-60 for optimum interaction

Equipment required: a table, an easel (for presentation boards), water, microphone for larger groups or in the gym.

Contact Stephanie to book a visit:

Cohen, Tziporah (Toronto, ON)

Tziporah Cohen. Toronto, Ontario. Writers’ Union Member. English. Grades SK-3 (picture book presentations), Grade 4-8 (novel presentations).

Virtual rates: $200 per session (45-60 min). In-person rates: $275 for one session (45-60 minutes), $200 each for additional visits up to four. Full day visits can include eating lunch with small group of interested older students. Kindergarten visits can be split into two 25 min visits with different classes. No travel costs within City of Toronto; GTA (excluding City of Toronto) $25 per 30 min car travel, rounded up.

Tziporah is the author of three picture books: ON THE CORNER OF CHOCOLATE AVENUE: HOW MILTON HERSHEY BROUGHT MILK CHOCOLATE TO AMERICA (December 2022), the award-winning wordless picture book AFIKOMEN (March 2023) and CITY BEET (March 2023). She is also the author of the award-winning middle grade novel, NO VACANCY, published in September 2020.

Middle Grade Novel Presentations

Author’s Journey: How do you go from writer to author? Learn the origin story of NO VACANCY and all the steps from beginning to publication: from idea to first draft and revisions, to acquisition, editing and copy editing, cover design and book-on-the-shelf! Includes photos from the entire process and reading of a chapter from the book. (60 minutes, Grades 4-7, in-person or virtual)

Revision, Revision, Revision! What are the steps in going from first draft to finished story? Get an inside view on the author’s revisions of NO VACANCY, both before and after acquisition by the publisher. Includes specific examples of revision strategies (using strong verbs; show, don’t tell; adding detail; use of outlines and calendars; eliminating writing quirks, etc) with photos of manuscript. Includes reading of a chapter of the book. This presentation works best if students have read the book, but not required. (60 minutes, Grades 4-7, in person or virtual)

Picture Book Presentations

Let’s Talk About Chocolate! Where does chocolate come from? Learn about where and how cacao beans grow and how they are turned into the chocolate we all love, followed by a reading ON THE CORNER OF CHOCOLATE AVENUE: HOW MILTON HERSHEY BROUGHT MILK CHOCOLATE TO AMERICA. (45 minutes, Grades JK-2, in person or virtual)

How Do Picture Books Get Made? Using ON THE CORNER OF CHOCOLATE AVENUE or CITY BEET, we’ll talk about how a picture book gets made, from idea to research, first draft to revision, illustration to printing, plus the various people involved in the process, including the writer and illustrator, editor, book designer, publicist and more. Includes a reading of either book and Q&A time. (45 minutes, Grades 1-3, can be combined with Let’s Talk About Chocolate for total of 60 minutes, in-person or virtual)

Let’s Make a Picture Book Workshop! Why are picture books always 32 or 40 pages in length? What is the author’s job and what is the illustrator’s? Who decides if the characters will be people or animals? We’ll answer these questions and more and then, using one of the author’s manuscripts, the students will illustrate the words and put them together to make their own picture book for the classroom library. Includes a reading of any of author’s picture books. (45-60 minutes, Grades 3-4, in-person only)

Size limits: 100 for virtual presentations, 30 for in-person visits (60 for Reading/Q&A)

Equipment: For virtual visits, Skype or school Zoom account. For in-person visits, laptop with Powerpoint, (can bring own laptop if it can be connected to school projector, otherwise will bring USB stick), projector and screen for Power Point presentation, table, microphone if space larger than classroom, glass of water. Teacher or librarian must be present for all presentations, virtual or in-person.

Contact Tziporah to book a visit:

Cooke, Stephanie (Toronto, ON)

Stephanie Cooke. Toronto, ON. Writers’ Union of Canada Member. English. Fantasy, Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Middle-Grade, and Young Adult. Stephanie’s rates for school visits is $300 for one session (local schools only), $500 for two sessions or for a half-day, and $900 for a full school day (maximum four sessions), plus travel if applicable. Virtual visits are $250.

Stephanie Cooke is an author and editor based out of Toronto, Canada. She is the writer of ParaNorthern and the co-writer of Oh My Gods!

She loves to speak to people about comics, graphic novels, and writing and devotes a lot of time to helping educate people about creating, understanding, and appreciating the graphic novel medium.

CREATING A GRAPHIC NOVEL
Ever wonder how a comic book or graphic novel gets made? How many different people work on one book? What’s the process for creating a story and turning it into a graphic novel? Stephanie delves into all of this and more as she helps people explore the world of the comic book industry and sheds light on the process of writing a story from inception to completion.

Ages: Any

Group size: Any, but especially love working with smaller groups of 15-30 kids.
A/V needs: Projector or anything to present some images to go along with the presentation.

Collaboration is hands-down the best parts of creating a graphic novel. Working with someone to bring an idea to life is an incredible feeling. Having someone to bounce ideas around with is amazing and inspiring. And getting to see an artist bring what was in your head to life on the page is nothing short of magical! With her experience as a co-writer on Oh My Gods! and a co-creator on an unannounced series, Stephanie has created this presentation to help teach you about the process, what to expect, and provide exercises for you to learn from.

Ages: Any, but works especially well ages 6 and up (and for students and adults)
Group size: 15-30

Other topics are available upon request.

Contact Stephanie to book a visit…

Church, Dr. Dana L (Waterloo, ON)

Dana lives in Waterloo, Ontario, and is a member of the Writers’ Union of Canada. She presents in English to grades 1 though 6, and she also enjoys presenting to adult groups. In-person rates: $300 for one one-hour session, $550 for two on the same day, plus a travel fee of $0.70/km. Travel costs waived in Kitchener, Waterloo, Cambridge, Guelph, and the townships. Virtual visit rates: $250 for one one-hour session, $200 for two on the same day.

Dana writes middle grade nonfiction about animals. She has a PhD in animal cognition, which means she is very curious about how animals think, remember, learn, make decisions, and solve problems. Her books also explore habitats, conservation, and the impact of climate change. Dana is passionate about making science fun and accessible for everyone. Although she loves all animals, she gets particularly excited about bees.

2025 Paradigm Prize – Science Writers and Communicators of Canada

Dana used to teach outrageously large undergraduate classes so she really doesn’t have a size limit for her audience. She finds that her PowerPoint slides are handy for showing photos, so for in-person visits, if she could hook up her Mac laptop to a projector, that would be great. When presenting about Animal Minds, a large table will allow for demonstrations involving her gorilla and raccoon puppet sidekicks. For virtual visits, she can adapt to any platform, and if she can share her screen, even better.

Category: Our Presenters