A bit about me:
I write and illustrate picture books for children, and have over 50 titles to my name, many of which have been published around the world. I had the honour of being chosen as one of the WORLD BOOK DAY 2019 authors, and have created TEN LITTLE BOOKWORMS with Simon Rickerty specially for the occasion.
The 'Ten Little' books have become extremely popular best sellers. 'TEN LITTLE PIRATES' was the first one Simon and I produced together, (I write the books and Simon illustrates them.) With the publication of 'TEN LITTLE PENGUINS' in 2022, the series total has reached twelve titles. We have topped the Waterstone's Best Selling Picture Books list on several occasions.
'LITTLE ROBOTS' was one of the first books I both wrote and illustrated, and was made into a 65 episode, animated TV series for the BBC, shown in over 70 countries. I helped to develop and design the series, and wrote several of the shows.
School Visits:
As both a writer and an illustrator, my talks include live drawing. School visits can contain any of the following: lively, interactive book readings with audience participation, drawing sessions such as how to draw a particular character and how to draw different facial expressions, craft sessions, a Powerpoint/Keynote talk about how a book can develop from a simple doodle to a book and a TV series, developing your own characters and writing your own picture books.
Talks can be for individual classes or whole year groups, mainly aimed at Key Stage 1 (including Nursery and Reception ages), though I sometimes give talks for Key Stage 2 students as well.
I will need:
A flipchart.
An empty table near the flipchart for the display of artwork and other objects to show the children.
For the Powerpoint element, I'll bring a memory-stick, but will need you to provide the usual Audio/Visual equipment.
Book signings:
It's nice to do book signings (complete with individual drawings!) at the end of sessions, but this is not obligatory. I can provide instructions on how to involve local, independent bookshops and template letters to inform parents of the event. Provided I can drive to your school I could alternatively bring my own supply of books to sell if that would be easier.
Fees:
I live in Somerset, but am happy to travel to other parts of the country. I usually adhere to the Society of Authors guidelines on pricing -- £250 for a half day and £350 for a full day, plus travel expenses and accommodation where necessary.
We had the most amazing session with Mike. The children learnt to draw robots and penguins and we had a world premiere of '10 Little Unicorns.' The children absolutely loved it and the staff were so grateful for his creative ideas and inspiration. We can't thank him enough for his time and his effort putting this all together.