Sturdy for Common Things

How to Host a Virtual Author Talk

How can you take the joy of reading one step further for kids?

Introduce them to the brains behind the magical worlds of children’s literature! The authors and illustrators!

What if you don’t have the budget to bring authors to your public library?

Host a virtual author talk!

I’m a huge fan of hosting virtual author talks at the library. It’s low cost, low maintenance programming that’s inspiring, promotes interest in reading, and is SO MUCH FUN! Some of my favorite things about reading are the connections that occur between the reader and the book, between readers, and between the reader and the author. It is an intimate connection. I’ve hosted author talks as a highlight of large programs like Read Across Lawrence for Kids, and I’ve also hosted them as one-off fun events during the summertime.

The preparation consists of reaching out to the author, a test call, and the actual event. That’s it!

I’ve put together a simple step-by-step of how to host a virtual author talk at your library, with a few tips along the way:

1. Pick an Author 

Take note of what books kids are checking out. Take note of what books are coming out around the time you would like to schedule a virtual author talk. If an author has a book coming out, there is extra motivation to promote their new title. Even if they don’t have a new title out, schedule permitting they’re usually down with talking books with young people. Children’s authors are cool like that. Instilling the joy of reading with kids? They’re all about it! We librarians and kid lit people are a team!

2. Contact the Author or Publisher

I’ve found that more often than not it is easier to reach out to the the author directly. That has been my experience at least.  They’re usually quicker to respond than the publisher, too. You can find an author’s contact information on their blog or author website. If you would like to reach out to the publisher, visit the publisher’s website. There is usually a contact for the point person that handles school visits and author talks.  The ‘big time’ kid lit authors usually have a fee attached when it comes to virtual author talks, and you will have to go through the publisher to book that event. If you can afford it, GREAT! If you are purchasing their books in bulk to give away for say a One Book, One Community program like Read Across Lawrence for Kids, they may waive the fee. If you have no $$ and aren’t purchasing books, fear not. Many authors do not require a fee at all. Email and ask! They will be delighted to hear from you. If they come back and say there is a fee attached, kindly thank them and say you will keep them in mind when you have the budget. No harm, no foul. And if they agree to the event for free? Yippee!

3. Event Format

After you have an author that is interested in participating, figure out what the format of the event will be. The author might have a presentation they would prefer to use or you can do an interview style program where you ask questions that the author answers. If you choose the later route, send the questions the week before so they can be prepared. I like to keep the questions more about the author and the type(s) of books they write rather than the actual stories, in case audience members haven’t read the books. In the programs I host, the kids are in no way obligated to have read books by the author. A few examples of these types of questions include:

“What books did you like to read when you were a kid?”

“When did you know you wanted to be an author?”

“Where do you get your ideas for the books you write?”

“What advice to you give to kids that want to become writers?”

“What is your favorite trick off the diving board?”

I’m happy to send a list of questions I’ve used if you’re interested. Also, VERY, VERY, VERY important–> Budget time for Q&A with the kids! This is by far the best part of virtual author talks. I usually propose 20-30 minutes (depending on the audience age) of presentation/interview followed by at least 15 minutes of Q&A. Whether you went through the publisher or the author, don’t hesitate to ask if they have any books or swag they would be willing to give to the kids. At the end of the virtual author talk, I usually raffle away free goodies. Everyone loves FREE.

4. Promote the Event

Hang up fliers in the library, add the event to your web and paper calendar, post on social media, do whatever you do to get the word out.

Optional step: Hook up with your local bookstore! They might be willing to throw in a few books to give away to the kids. Let them know you are hosting an author talk, because they will want to purchase a few extra copies of the books the featured author wrote. They might even want to hang up a flier for the event (if you have one) so they can stir up interest in their customers.

5. Test Call

Make sure you have a quick test call with the author a day or two before the event. Do the call at the same time and in the same room as the event to make sure there isn’t connectivity issues. And if there are issues, this will give you time to resolve them.

6. The Big Day!

Set up the room. Display books by the author for patrons to checkout afterwards. I usually call the author 5-10 minutes before the event and then turn the audience screen off. When It’s time to start, I turn the screen on, introduce the author, and start. I like to leave lots of room for Q&A and also a minute or two to raffle away goodies. Seeing an author or illustrator in their own environment is unforgettable. The library kids have met an author’s kids and they’ve taken a tour of where an author works. Meeting an author’s pet is also a very popular perk.

This last part is mandatory. Be sure to send the author a big THANK YOU email afterwards. More often then not, kids will talk about these types of events well after they have happened. They check out the books the author mentions, and they devour books that the author has written. For the few hours it takes to pull a virtual author talk together, the impact it has on kids lingers for days, weeks, months, years…

If you have any questions about hosting a virtual author talk at your public library, please feel free to email me at sturdyforcommonthings (at) gmail (dot) com.