Writers’ Union Member. Also SCBWI, CANSCAIP, TWUC, CAA, QWF.
Rates: $150 for one classroom session (grades 4-8), $350 for half-day workshop (grades 9-12, CEGEP). Plus a travel fee of $0.50/km. For Ontario, $0.50/km if outside Toronto. Book Club visit fee $150
Travel from Toronto (though author lives in Quebec). All activities can be offered online.
Located in Quebec, Jane is a former teacher, personal trainer and coach with BPE, BEd and an MFA in Creative Writing. She’s published short fiction and poetry and has been featured on CBC radio. Her debut children’s novel HOW TO BE A GOLDFISH deals with themes of family, relationships and bullying can expand to offer a gentle introduction to discussions about alternative families, homosexuality, feminism, forced adoptions and social justice. (Grades 4-7)
Writing workshops
Grades 4-8
No Shaggy Dogs Here! A fun, hands-on workshop where students learn that a good story is not just a collection of events; characters matter! Working together we will develop a collective story outline. Students choose and develop their own protagonist then, armed with our story roadmap, they are free to navigate as their imaginations allow. Suitable for a class.
Grades 9-12 (and CEGEP)
Workshops are geared to the writer wanting to hone their craft and who may be considering continuing in the field of creative writing either at university or independently. These half-day workshops focus on the student’s own writing and work best when limited in size (10-15 participants).
Book Club: Grades 4-7
Jane is available for student book clubs/ classrooms wanting to discuss HOW TO BE A GOLDFISH. Discussions can follow the Study Guide (Scholastic Canada) or can be adapted as needed.
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.
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.
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.
Joann lives in Saint John, New Brunswick and is a member of the Writer’s Federation of New Brunswick. Joann loves presenting to students from grades 3 to 8. Rates for 45-60 minutes are $250 for one session, $450 for two, $675 for three and $900 for a full day of four sessions. Joann loves to travel and would welcome the chance to visit your school or library. Travel fee of $0.50/km applies, if more than 100km from Saint John, NB. Virtual visits using Zoom are $125 for a 45-60 minute presentation.
Joann is a book lover and enjoys sharing her love of reading and learning. She began her career as a teacher and then headed back to university to become a children’s librarian. For nearly 20 years she spent her days developing and delivering fun, book-related library programs. She has delivered more than 75 presentations as an author.
Joann has written four non-fiction books that appeal to all ages. Her books have received multiple award nominations and she won the Hackmatack Children’s Book Award in 2020 for There Be Pirates! Swashbucklers & Rogues of the Atlantic.
Joann’s illustrated presentations about the North Atlantic right whale, pirates, or Oak Island feature images and information from her books. Sessions include time to see and touch (in person visits) some of the things mentioned in the books: fishing ropes and buoys that entangle whales, samples of pirate crafts, or coconut fibres that are similar to what has been connected to the Oak Island treasure. Joann begins each session with little known facts to catch the interest of even the most reluctant audience member. She explains how she does her research and that the local library is the best source for reliable information. Joann shows images from the books and her research trips, reads short sections from the book, and answers audience questions. The goal for each presentation is to get the students excited about reading, learning and the treasure waiting to be found in books. Joann provides a word search puzzle sheet that she created to match the book being presented. Each reading is tailored to the grade level(s) of the audience.
Joann is comfortable presenting to audiences large and small, (grades 3-8) as long as everyone can hear her and see your screen or smartboard. The optimal audience size is a single classroom, so that everyone has a chance to ask their question, two classes together can also work well. Equipment requirements: Joann’s session will take the audience through a tour of her book(s) with info and images projected for all to see. She will bring a computer loaded with her presentation(s) and will connect to your monitor, data projector and screen, or smartboard. She will also need a surface to display items from her books: a buoy, a snarl of plastic found while doing a beach clean up, a bowl made from discarded fishing rope, an eye patch, a quill, and/or coconut – depending on which book she is presenting. Joann has presented in gyms and cafeterias, and is happy to speak to large groups, if you provide a sound system with a microphone and ensure that everyone can see the monitor or screen.
Awards and nominations include: Hackmatack, Rocky Mountain Book Award, Writer’s Federation of New Brunswick, Best Books for Kids and Teens, Our Choice selection, Canadian Children’s Book Centre, etc…
Loretta Garbutt is based in Toronto, ON and developed a passion for children’s books while working at a local bookstore where she was a storyteller, bookseller and reviewer. In this magical world, Loretta was also thrilled to be putting books into the hands of tomorrow’s big readers.
Loretta has been a writer and voice performer for over 30 years and worked on many wonderful animated shows including Babar, Julius Jr. and the unforgettable Max and Ruby and her interaction with groups of children is one of her favourite things to do.
Loretta has been enjoying class visits since her first picture book, A Stopwatch from Grampa was published in 2020.
She loves the one on one discussions with students and the questions and surprises that follow. Loretta likes to keep her presentations fresh and full of interaction with writing prompts, a little drama and simple games.
MEMBERSHIPS
CANSCAIP, CCBC, SCBWI, TWUC, Author’s Booking Service & ACTRA
PRESENTS TO…
English
JK-GR 4
30-min presentation rate – $150
PRESENTATIONS
Diaper Kid
An energetic three-year-old is reluctant to make the big switch from diapers to underwear
Dash is always on the move, and he likes that his diaper lets him (quite literally) go on the go–no pit stops needed! Who needs underwear when his diaper has great crash padding and keeps his bum nice and warm?
This relatable story will resonate with both children and adults and encourage tackling a common transition with humour and lightness.
Wake Up, Little Pin! The Story of A Sleepy Sapling
A story about a mother hub tree who calls for all the elements of
the forest to help wake her sleepy sapling. From Kirkus: An intimate and accurate picture of a natural cycle.
At Mother Pin’s request, Red Squirrel asks Vole to loosen the ground by digging tunnels and enlists Porcupine to poop out a “nutritious breakfast” at Little Pin’s base. Mother Pin also asks the underground filaments of fungal mycelia to send some of her own nourishing sugars to the seedling’s roots.
Jeffrey Loves Blue
A Sheila Barry Honour Book Award
Jeffrey often gets hyper focused on things, especially the colour blue.
What happens when Jeffrey is asked to choose a new colour?
Kirkus review: Proof that adapting to change is not only possible, but also genuinely enjoyable.
The text is presented as dialogue in two voices: That of the unseen narrator—likely Jeffrey’s parent—is rendered in a black font, while Jeffrey’s voice is set in a different, blue font. This reassuring story will help children who, like Jeffrey, find comfort in structure and routine to understand that change is not only possible, but that overcoming a big hurdle can also be rewarding. The childlike illustrations are appealing and, like the book’s conversational approach, will help children sympathize with Jeffrey’s plight; readers will applaud his success.
A Stopwatch from Grampa was given a starred review from Kirkus and The School Library Journal. The book was also named one of Kirkus’ Best Books of 2020. Kirkus: “An excellent and understated portrayal of grief from a children’s perspective.”
From Canadian Review of materials: A Stopwatch from Grampa would make a strong choice for parents, teachers, and librarians to read with young children who have experienced loss. The picture book may provoke discussion about dealing with grief as well as the memories and mementos from loved ones who have passed. Highly Recommended.
Class presentations for this title focus on how the objects we have, like a stopwatch, can remind us of those we love. Her presentation includes the fun of timing games, family memories we love to share and the illustrator’s (Carmen Mok) influence on the story.
And J.J. Slept is a story about family and what makes a house a home.
From the Canadian Review of Materials:
Garbutt only mentions in the beginning that J.J. is adopted when he is brought to his new family by the adoption worker. Otherwise, adoption is not necessarily the focus of this book, but rather it’s the meaning of home and family, whether adopted or not. For some people, that could be a quiet home in the countryside or an energetic life in the city. In the case of And J.J. Slept, home for J.J. becomes a lively and busy household full of the sounds and love of his siblings and parents.
Class presentations for this title include discussion around what it means to be a part of a family and the different types of families.
What are some of your fun traditions, sleep rituals and the games you play together?
Farida is a Canadian-South Asian Writer and illustrator of picture books and other works. She is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, and the Canadian Society of Authors, Illustrators and Performers.
Rates are as follows: Virtual Visits: $150 School visits: $250 plus travel expenses outside GTA.
For school visits Farida can provide an introductory slideshow showing what Farida does and how Farida works as an author and illustrator, adapting it to the age of the audience.
Farida likes to get children involved, asking them questions and getting them doing hands-on activities as much as possible. Farida is an Ontario based presenter and a member of Writers Union. Farida does virtual and school visits. Teachers guide PDFs available by email request
Samina Goes to a Wedding
Written and illustrated by Farida Zaman
A young girl travels to Bangladesh and experiences vibrant Bangladeshi marriage customs
Samina travels from North America all the way to Bangladesh to attend her first traditional Bangladeshi wedding. Anticipation for the big day builds as she meets family she’s only ever seen on video calls and participates in various wedding traditions—like the family gift exchanges, the holud ceremony, and henna painting. A sidebar on each spread provides additional context for the depicted custom.
Sensory writing and colorful, detailed illustrations invite readers to be a guest alongside Samina in this informational picture book about the tastes and traditions of a Bangladeshi marriage.
Description of the book reading and workshop for Samina Foes to a Wedding
This interactive workshop combines a picture book reading of Samina Goes to a Wedding with a hands-on collage art activity inspired by the book’s illustrations, patterns, and cultural details. Designed for children and families, the session introduces young readers to visual storytelling, textile patterns, and collage as a creative art form.
The program is especially well suited for South Asian Heritage Month in May, offering an engaging way to celebrate South Asian culture through story, art, clothing, and design. Through reading, discussion, and art-making, participants will explore how stories are told not only through words, but through clothing, color, texture, and repeated visual details.
Aliya’s Secret- A Ramadan Secret
Written and illustrated by Farida Zaman
Ramadan is coming, and as Abba and Ammi prepare for their month-long fast, Aliya hugs a secret to her chest: she’s going to fast too! Ammi says she’s still too young to fast, but Aliya is determined. At school, she refuses her snack, her lunch—even the cupcakes Sanjay’s mom drops off for his birthday. But when she gets home, she can’t resist Ammi’s sweet, syrupy baklava. Before Aliya can stop herself, she reaches out and takes a big bite. Aliya is disappointed in herself, but Ammi explains that there are many other ways to celebrate Ramadan besides fasting, like performing acts of kindness! Together, Aliya and her parents spend the month preparing and delivering meals to people in need. This joyful look at Ramadan is based on the author’s own childhood experiences and is rich with facts and details about the holiday. Readers familiar and unfamiliar with the holiest month in the Islamic calendar will get swept up in the festivities, and perhaps be inspired to share a meal with their community.
Recently Farida wrote and illustrated her first picture book called “I Want to Be” A Gutsy Girls ABC. She has worked with a variety of mediums on the project – watercolour, gouache, acrylics, and Procreate.
Mary Jennifer’s rate is $300 plus HST per session, plus travel from Toronto. For multiple visits within the same day (maximum of 4), each session is $250 plus HST. Virtual visits via Zoom are $200 plus HST. Each session is 60 minutes long. Author readings with a Q&A and/or writing workshops are available for booking.
Jennifer Payne is an internationally published writer who’s widely known for her YA fiction, including her contributions to the award-winning Boldprint and Timelines series and her Daughters of Light trilogy. Her novels often centre around the themes of gentrification, poverty, climate change, prejudice, marginalization, resilience, etc. and feature strong, female protagonists. Mary Jennifer’s YA hi-lo novel, Enough, was praised by CM magazine as a book that, “In trying to address issues of poverty, race, and gender, the author creates a thought-provoking tale that would be useful for opening up reflection and/or discussion around inclusivity and social struggle.”
Mary Jennifer Payne is an internationally published writer who’s widely known for her YA fiction, including her contributions to the award-winning Boldprint and Timelines series and her Daughters of Light trilogy. Her novels often centre around the themes of gentrification, poverty, climate change, prejudice, marginalization, resilience, etc. and feature strong, female protagonists. Mary Jennifer’s YA hi-lo novel, Enough, was praised by CM magazine as a book that, “In trying to address issues of poverty, race, and gender, the author creates a thought-provoking tale that would be useful for opening up reflection and/or discussion around inclusivity and social struggle.”
Sample Writing Workshops (These can be tailored to relate more directly to my novel and the characters/themes therein):
There Are Two Sides to Every Story…. You’ve heard the phrase, “There’s always two sides to a story,” right? In this workshop, I’ll unlock your imagination and allow you to give voice to those characters that didn’t get their fair shake at the spotlight in their original narrative. From Voldemort to Cinderella’s stepsisters to Anansi the Spider, the sky’s the limit in terms of who you can bring to life. Step into your character’s shoes and tell the story from his/her point of view. The workshop leads into discussions around marginalization and the inclusiveness (or lack thereof) within different narratives. This workshop will incorporate fun improvisation to get us warmed up. Suitable for ages 10 and up.
Believe in Me! How to Create Realistic Characters in Your Stories. Your protagonist and antagonist, as well as your entire cast of characters, need to come alive on the page in an authentic way. Like everyone, each of your characters is a mix of complex emotions and characteristics. And they have a backstory that motivates them to behave in particular ways in different situations. This workshop will help participants really develop their characters. From deciding your protagonist’s favourite food to his/her greatest fear, you’ll end this session with a character that is “fleshed out” and real enough to step off the page. This workshop will incorporate drama exercises such as hot-seating as the character being developed to help get the creative juices flowing. Suitable for ages 10 and up.
Create, Collaborate, Celebrate! Many modern workplaces are collaborative. In this fun and fast-paced workshop, participants will collaborate in groups of two to three to develop a story from a current news headline. Each story will be shared and celebrated at the end of the session. After briefly plotting some of the elements of your story, you and your partner will take turns writing sentences (or paragraphs, if you’re really daring!) to bring your narrative to life. During our sharing of work at the end of the workshop, there will be an opportunity to discuss what worked, what frustrated us, and what sparks of discovery were made along the way. Suitable for children aged 10 and up.
Book editing and coaching for writers is available as well.
Writers’ Union Member. SCBWI. CANSCAIP. Mary Beth’s rates are $300 for one session, $500 for two, $800 for three. HST applies to all sessions. No travel costs within Toronto or if I am in your city. www.marybethleatherdale.com
Mary Beth Leatherdale is the award-winning author and editor of many books for children and youth, including You Can Be an Activist, Terry Fox and Me, and Stormy Seas. Her books have received many starred reviews and have won or been shortlisted for awards including the Silver Birch Award, the Norma Fleck Award, the YALSA Excellence in Non-Fiction for Young Adults Award, the SCBWI Golden Kite Award, and have been selected for readers’ choice awards in Ontario, British Columbia, Illinois, Maine, Texas, and Bangkok. Mary Beth has presented at schools and libraries in Ontario, British Columbia, Missouri, Texas, and Turkey. Her work has been translated into several languages, including Italian, Korean, German, and Turkish.
2025 CCBC Sharon Fitzhenry Award for Canadian Children’s Non-Fiction Award nominee for You Can Be an Activist: How to Use Your Strengths & Passions to Make a Difference
Before becoming a freelance editor, Mary Beth was the editorial director at Owlkids and the editor of Chirp and OWL magazines. She has a Master of Education from the Ontario Institute of Studies in Education (OISE).
Ms. Leatherdale’s book, Stormy Seas, and the personal rapport she was able to develop with our students during her virtual visit have made a lasting impact on this next generation.
Alice McGoldrick, St. Rita’s School, Dallas, Texas
PRESENTATION STYLE SCHOOL VISITS:
JK- Gr. 3 – True Stories With a Twist Storytelling session with two of her picture books plus Q & A. For older children she shares a PowerPoint presentation, focusing on the challenges of finding a fresh take on a familiar story and showing how an idea turns into a book.
Gr. 4-8: – When the Water is Safer than the Land This social-justice-related presentation focuses on Mary Beth’s award-winning book STORMY SEAS. In an interactive presentation, students are invited to take on the roles of the young boat refugees featured in the book. Through discussion and PowerPoint resources, we explore the factors that force families to leave their home, the difficult choices asylum seekers must make, the challenges of adapting to and the contributions immigrants make in their a new home. Works best in a classroom or library space.
Gr. 4-8: You Can Be an Activist Want to make a positive impact on the world? But not sure how? Drawing from the You Can Be an Activist handbook, this interactive presentation leads students through a workshop on how they can use their own strengths, passions, and interests to create social change that benefits people and the planet in their community and beyond. Practical tips on choosing a cause, setting goals, making a plan and leading a team will be discussed. As well, there will be an opportunity for student-directed learning on human rights and social justice issues.
*ALL PRESENTATIONS ARE AVAILABLE FOR VIRTUAL VISITS.
Mary Beth is happy to adapt her presentations to meet the curriculum needs of teachers. Educator’s guides are available online.
