YA – Authors' Booking Service

Marion, Kirsten (Victoria, BC)

Member: The Writer’s Union of Canada, SCWBI (West)

$250 for one session, $450 for two, $675 for three, $900 for a full day (four sessions). Plus a travel fee of $0.50/km for short trips outside Victoria. Longer trips can be negotiated.

Virtual visit fees range from $100 – $200.

Kirsten has had two upper middle grade fantasy novels published and a third book in the series is underway. She has travelled extensively over six continents and uses the experiences she has had in her writing. When not travelling, she can be found buried in a book or working on her publishing company, Common Deer Press which publishes books for children and teens.

She is an experienced and enthusiastic speaker who tailors each presentation to the needs of the group. She can do up to two presentations or workshops in the same school or area in the same day. As the author of middle grade and YA novels she is very comfortable with grades 4 through 12.

Presentations are unique as every group is unique. She prefers to have conversations with the audience rather than lecturing to them.

For most presentations she works in why she fell in love with books and libraries as a child and why she is particularly drawn to fantasy adventure novels. Kirsten talks about why her books include universal issues faced by children such as bullying, friendship, problem solving, decision making, navigating difficult relationship experiences and other thorny bit of growing up and just being human.

She also talks about the joy of research and how she does it plus the intricacies of worldbuilding.

Kirsten prefers to work with groups of 40 or fewer for maximum audience participation but will present to up to 100. She loves doing workshops! Small groups of 15 or less preferred for workshops.

Tech requirements – a blackboard or whiteboard, materials to write on it, a glass and a jug of water, a comfortable place to sit.

Contact Kirsten to book a visit:

Goerzen, Christy (Vancouver, BC)

White Pine Award nominee. Recipient of Canada Council of the Arts and BC Arts Council grants.

Workshops for ages 12 to 17. $250.00 for one 60-minute session. $450 for two sessions. $675 for three sessions and $900 for 4 sessions, plus travel (50 cents per kilometer, round-trip for the Metro Vancouver area).

Virtual Visits: $150 for one 60-minute session, $100 for each additional session on the same day, up to four sessions in one day.

Christy Goerzen writes young adult novels about artists and underdogs finding their way in the world. Her past novels include RIVER MERMAID (Crwth Press, 2021), as well as EXPLORE (2009), FARMED OUT (2011), and The BIG APPLE EFFECT (2014), all from Orca Book Publishers. Her books have been nominated for awards, appeared on several “best of” lists, and have been translated into several other languages.

After a decade working in the arts industry for countless festivals, artists, musicians, dance companies and more, Christy became an award-winning university instructor in arts and entertainment management, a career that she loves dearly. Plus, she gets to talk about movies, music and art all day – what could be better? Currently working toward her PhD in Education, she has a BA in English Literature, an MA Children’s Literature. Originally from Maple Ridge, BC, Christy lives in Vancouver with her two lovely kids and a majestic one-eyed cat. In her spare time she likes to read, draw (badly), lift heavy things, listen to podcasts, and have random dance parties.

In her workshops and presentations, Christy loves to bring authenticity and humour as she talks about her creative inspirations, the writing process, developing characters that come alive, writing great dialogue, poetry and freewriting as a creative “spark,” the publishing industry, and everything in between!

Presentations/workshops – Age group: 12 – 17 (Grades 7 – 12)

Christy likes to keep her presentations informal, interactive and chatty! Presentations/workshops will include:

Author introduction and background/biography
Introduction on writing/inspiration for the book
Her writing process
Where she gets her ideas
How it got published/process
Q & A

Christy is happy to create workshops on the topic of poetry writing, freewriting/jamming on ideas, plot structure, character development, dialogue, and more for this age group. Just ask and she can tailor something for your group!

All venues; library or classroom preferred. General Equipment needs: Christy likes to keep it low-tech and chat with the students! For in-person visits, just a chair is all that’s needed. For virtual visits, school Zoom account (or similar). Student supplies depend on chosen session and will be discussed prior to visit.

Contact Christy to book a visit:

Kamal, Sheena

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:

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…

Grant, Joyce (Toronto, ON)

Writers’ Union of Canada member; journalism, fiction, picture books. Rainforest of Reading Award winner, Top 10 Best Books (Ontario Library Association) and Best Books (Canadian Children’s Book Centre). All ages.

$350 for an engaging, high-energy customized one-hour presentation (in-person or online), $250 for a Q&A session only.

Joyce is a subject-matter expert on “fake news” and journalism. She is a freelance journalist and owner of internationally award-winning TeachingKidsNews.com.

BOOKS:

* Can You Believe It? How to Spot Fake News and Find the Facts, 2022, illustrated by Kathleen Marcotte. Illustrated non-fiction. Themes: Fake news, critical thinking, journalism.
* Gabby picture books: Gabby, Gabby: Wonder Girl, Gabby: Drama Queen. Themes: text to concrete things, friendship, creativity, phonics
* Middle-grade baseball novels for reluctant readers: Tagged Out and Sliding Home. Themes: bullying, diversity, teamwork, empathy

Joyce delivers high-energy, interactive, engaging presentations and workshops for all ages. She has written picture books with a literacy angle, and middle-grade baseball novels that deliver baseball action with underlying social themes (immigration, bullying, diversity, teamwork).

Joyce is also co-founder of TeachingKidsNews.com: free, kid-friendly news plus curriculum connections. She is a freelance journalist and her popular “How to Avoid Fake News” presentations can be tailored for students or teachers.

“We were honoured to have Joyce Grant as a keynote speaker and workshop presenter. Our audience of about 200 people (was) captivated by her content … students were incredibly engaged and just ate up what she had to tell us.”
—Laura Alopaeus-Gomes, Literacy Lead K-6, Algoma District School Board, 2018

NOVELS:
SLIDING HOME
This middle-grade baseball novel focuses on Miguel, who is holding down part-time jobs so he can bring his father to Canada from El Salvador. Set in Toronto's Christie Pits baseball field.
(Sequel to Tagged Out.) Themes: immigration, teamwork, diversity, empathy, baseball.

TAGGED OUT
Fast-paced middle-grade baseball novel for reluctant readers. Includes a strong secondary character who is gay. Themes: diversity, tolerance, empathy, teamwork, baseball.
A teaching guide is available free.

PICTURE BOOKS:
GABBY
When Gabby drops her magic book, all its letters fall out. Whatever she spells with those letters
comes to life! Includes two pages of literacy activities. (Illustrator: Jan Dolby)
A teaching guide is available free.

Also in the series:
GABBY: WONDER GIRL (Includes question words.)
GABBY: DRAMA QUEEN (Includes words with consonant blends.)

PRESENTATIONS—GENERAL INFO:
Joyce customizes her high-energy, interactive presentations to suit your students and support their learning. She can speak to most ages, but asks that they’re grouped (ie, K-1, 2-3, 4-6, 5+).

Groups can be small (one to two classes) or larger, depending on how hands-on you want the presentation to be. Presentations for younger students are 40 minutes; for older students, 45 minutes to an hour. All presentations include Q&A.

HOW TO AVOID FAKE NEWS
Gr. 4-7
Identify and avoid fake news—and find the good stuff online. Includes how to think more critically.
“Practical and engaging. The students are still talking about it, and the teachers have been using your ideas in their classrooms!”

WORD SCRAMBLE
K-3
Super energetic, interactive presentations using scrambled letters. Includes a behind-the- scenes look at how picture books are made.
“Interactive and fun!”

CHARACTER, SETTING, PROBLEM, MAGIC!
Gr. 2-3
Together, we build an exciting story and then we act it out.
“The kids loved it—we went back to the classroom and built more stories!”

WRITING WORKSHOPS
Gr. 4-9
Journalism (writing headlines, interviewing, the 5 Ws) and picture book workshops.
“Real-world, hands-on learning.”

GETTING KIDS READING
Parents
Parent/literacy night coming up? My popular, practical session for parents will help you get your kid reading.

HOW TO TEACH KIDS TO AVOID FAKE NEWS
Teachers
Practical, popular presentations for teachers and teacher-candidates.

KEYNOTES AND SKYPE VISITS
Students or Adults
Memorable keynotes for conferences and meetings (price to be discussed), and Skype visits
($250/45 mins).

EQUIPMENT REQUIRED:
I use PowerPoint, so I’ll need a projector and screen. Oh! And a bottle of water, please. My voice projects well (a-hem!), but if you think your space requires a microphone, I’ll need you to supply that—preferably hand-held.
I’m fine with small groups (one or two classes) or larger auditoriums. The bigger the group, the less hands-on the session, so workshops are best with a smaller group. I have great presentations for nearly every age group. Here are the preferred grade groupings: K to 1, grades 2 to 3, grades 4 to 6, grades 5 and up. I also present to teachers and teacher-candidates and to parents (ie, literacy night).

To book Joyce, please send us an email using the form below:

Can You Believe It? How to Spot Fake News and Find the Facts, 2022, illustrated by Kathleen Marcotte. Illustrated non-fiction. Themes: Fake news, critical thinking, journalism.
Gabby picture books: Gabby, Gabby: Wonder Girl, Gabby: Drama Queen. Themes: text to concrete things, friendship, creativity, phonics
Middle-grade baseball novels for reluctant readers: Tagged Out and Sliding Home. Themes: bullying, diversity, teamwork, empathy

Withers, Pam

Writers’ Union Member. Red Maple nominee 2013, 2019 and 2020. YA. Silver Nautilus Book Award 2012. Numerous other award nominations. $225 virtual visit with Pam, co-author Arooj Hayat*, or both; $300 for one session, $500 for two, $700 for three. No HST; includes all expenses. No maximum audience size. Occasional pickup/drop-off requested.

Silver Nautilus Book Award 2012

Silver Nautilus Book Award 2012 and 2020

Pam has written 21 best-selling YA sports and outdoor adventure books particularly popular with teen boys. A former journalist, editor and outdoor guide who has kayaked the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon, she’s a sought-after speaker for her high-energy, humorous presentations. She has presented extensively across North America for 30 years. The Parkour Club (written by Pam and co-author Arooj Hayat*), promotes cultural diversity and counters Islamophobia (while being a nail-biting sports and adventure story). One Egyptian YA book reviewer wrote, “a story for the whole world to read and learn from.”

Her lively one-hour presentation for grades 4-12 includes:
 Short readings
 Tales of her own adventures
 Humorous anecdotes of how she researches her material
 The patience & persistence it takes to achieve success
 Special encouragement to boys
 The importance of rewriting & accepting criticism
 Tips on writing & getting published
 Extreme-sports video clips
 Q & A time

Writing workshop: Pam also offers a fun, one-hour interactive workshop on doing research to make your writing more real.

Equipment required for in-person visits: Projector and laptop for my USB flash drive; table and water.

Contact Pam to book a visit:

Narsimhan, Mahtab (BC)

Mahtab Narsimhan- H20-209960 8x10 300 Writers’ Union Member. Silver Birch winning author available for school, public library, and conference visits. Member of The Writers’ Union of Canada. Continue reading “Narsimhan, Mahtab (BC)”

Younge-Ullman, Danielle (Toronto, ON)

Writers Union Member. White Pine Award Winner and two-time nominee, also nominated for Governor General’s award, Amy Mathers Teen Book award, Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz award, among others—a total of 18 nominations and Best-of lists. YA Author of HE MUST LIKE YOU, EVERYTHING BEAUTIFUL IS NOT RUINED, and LOLA CARLYE’S 12 STEP ROMANCE.

Danielle’s virtual visit fee is $200 per 50-60 minute session. In person visits are $300 for 1 hour presentation; $550 for 2, $800 for 3, plus travel for locations outside Toronto.

Danielle is a confident and dynamic presenter who loves talking about books with people of all ages. She attained a BA from McGill, worked for years as an actor before turning to writing, and has had a wild variety of jobs—everything from acting, to dubbing English voices for Japanese TV, to temping, to teaching Pilates, to freelance writing. Danielle lives Toronto with her husband and two daughters.

Presentations: Because of her background in theatre, Danielle is very comfortable in front of an audience and loves engaging with readers. Though she writes teen fiction, she can also adjust her presentations for groups as young as grade 5 and 6. Presentations can be geared toward each group, and can be done with more of a workshop emphasis if required. All presentations include time for questions!

Age range: grades 5 and up, but ideally grades 7-12. Danielle also loves presenting to and working with adult groups, and meeting with book clubs.

Topics:

Pantsters, Plotters & Making Soup: A discussion of the essential elements of fiction, and explanations of some of the different techniques used by writers to craft story and write fiction.

Turning Real Life Into Fiction: The process of using your own stories as inspiration for fiction is deeper, more layered, and much more detailed than it looks. In this session, Danielle will take you through the process of distilling the essence of your experiences, and using the most compelling themes and elements to create a work of fiction, using He Must Like You and Everything Beautiful Is Not Ruined as examples.

How to Pursue a Career as a Novelist: A presentation that explains the process of becoming a professional writer, from beginning writing through searching for an agent, to going through the process of being published. This presentation is great for students who are interested in the arts, and in the process of making decisions about their futures.

How to Revise the Crap Out of Your Manuscript: Danielle is an in-depth and joyfully ruthless reviser. In this session she will go through the steps she takes to revise her manuscripts in a way that can also be applied to shorter works. Subjects will include character consistency, POV, tone, tightening and/or expanding, layering in new characters and plot lines, analyzing structure, and general troubleshooting of things that aren’t working.

Equipment: podium or desk, microphone for groups larger than 40. Maximum group size: 40-60 for optimum interaction, but Danielle is also comfortable in front of larger groups. 25 or fewer for workshops.

Contact Danielle Younge-Ullman:

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.

Nadia is fully booked for the remainder of the 2021/2022 school season. She is currently scheduling for the 2022/2023 school year.

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

Kress, Adrienne (Toronto, ON)

Writers’ Union Member. Winner of the Heart of Hawick Award (UK). Shortlisted for the Red Cedar (BC), MYRCA (Manitoba) and Audie Awards (USA). OLA Best Bet. Many of her books have been optioned for TV/Film.

Grade 4 – Adult

Genres: Fiction, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Historical, Friendship, Horror, Reluctant Reader

$300+HST for a single session; $500+HST for two sessions; $900+HST for a full day. Prices for larger groups, workshops, panels, etc., to be negotiated*. For outside the Toronto area, add kilometrage/accommodation. Virtual Visits $100 – $200

ABOUT:

Adrienne Kress is an enthusiastic and creative presenter with a background in acting that makes her engaging for audiences of all ages. She has toured with TD Children’s Book Week and presented at MASC in Ottawa. She is a Toronto-born actor and author who, so far, has twelve novels to her credit (with an upcoming graphic novel in 2025), as well as essays, plays, screenplays and short stories. She has spoken to children and adults in a large variety of circumstances, from school assemblies and classroom workshops to writers’ associations and conference panels. Her presentations have taken her across Canada, the United Kingdom and the US. Adrienne is a dynamic, skilful speaker, insightful, knowledgeable and fun to be with.

PRESENTATIONS/READINGS/WORKSHOPS

“Adrienne first visited our school for a book reading and discussion about her writing career. We were so impressed with her dynamic and engaging approach to children that we immediately looked for other opportunities to bring this very talented individual back to the school. The almost-instantaneous connection she has made with our students is a testament to her extraordinary ability to work with young people.”

– Jonathan Harris, Head of School, Fieldstone Day School

READINGS:

Readings based on middle grade books are geared towards children in grades 4, 5, 6 and 7. They are 45 minutes to 11⁄2 hours in length depending on needs. She is comfortable with any group size. She has spoken to small groups in a cozy huddle on the floor in a library and to large groups of a couple of hundred in gyms and auditoriums.

As a passionate author, professional actor and teacher, Adrienne brings a large array of skills to her readings. She starts with a short talk about “how a book gets published” and “working with your editors is like working with your teacher,” continues with a dramatic reading from one of the books and ends with a question period and a book signing opportunity. When her session arises from one of her more swashbuckling books, Adrienne is happy to add a fencing lesson (no swords required!).

PRESENTATIONS:

Presentations can be geared to any audience, for example, Writer’s Craft classes, writers’ groups, book clubs. The length of the presentation varies according to the needs of the group, but is most often 1 to 1 1⁄2 hours in length. The content can be individualized to suit the interests of the group, but usually covers topics like the trials and tribulations of getting published (including how to get a literary agent), the writing process, working with an editor, identifying your audience, trends in modern literature and the importance of studying past works and authors.

WORKSHOPS:

“It was all amazing, Adrienne Kress is a fantastic author and person, she is very engaging and super nice.”

“I really liked all the exercises, and how all the exercises really make you think. I think it really helped with my writing!”

— MASC Young Authors & Illustrators Student Participants

Workshops can be geared to any audience, for example, elementary school students, Writer’s Craft classes, writers’ groups, book clubs. The length of the presentation varies according to the needs of the group but is most often 1 1⁄2 hours to 3 hours in length, though it can be expanded. The content usually covers topics like honing your writing skills, creating your own voice, creating a “world” for your stories, the use of dialogue, humour – its types and where to use it – identifying your audience, etc.

Comfortable in all venues. Equipment required: A glass of water, a microphone for larger groups or in the gym, a screen and projector for power-point.