Grateful Writer

School Visits & Presentations - Part 3 - Your Published Work

2011-08-15T08:00:00.001-04:00

In the previous posts we've discussed questions to incorporate into author/illustrator presentations. Part 1 covered Your Own Personal Story and Part 2 talked about How you work. Today, we'll discuss Your Published Work.

Here are some questions & answers to consider incorporating in your next presentation:

Your Published Work
What was your first book?
How many books have you written/illustrated?
How did you get the job? And/or find the publisher?
How did it feel when you were told it would be published?
How did it feel when you saw your book for the first time?
How did you work with the illustrator (if appropriate)?
Where did you get your idea for the book?
How many times did you have to rewrite it before it was published?
How long did it take to write the story?
Where you told what the characters should be or did you decide for yourself?
How did you decide what the characters would look like?
How do you decide what else to put in the picture?
Do you have the original drawings for the book?
Do you like the way the finished book looks?
Did you have to change anything about the story?
Are you writing a sequal?
What will your next book be?
When will it come out?

Incorporate some of the answers to these question into your presentations and you'll have enhanced your presention to gold star status.

Now you know the 3 things audiences expect from an author or illustrator presentation: Part 1 - Your Personal Story, Part 2 - How You Work and Part 3 Your Published Work/s

Hopefully, these suggestion have inspired you to beef up your presentation.

School Visits & Presentations - Part 2 - How You Work

2011-08-12T08:00:00.007-04:00

In a previous post - Part 1 - Your Personal Story, I shared questions to answer for dynamic school visits and presentations.

Today we'll discuss Part 2 - How You Work

I can pretty much guarantee that your audience, whether senior citizens, PTA parents or children in schools, will all want to know how you as an author or illustrator work. So here are some questions to consider answering to beef up the quality of your presentation:

Part 2 - How You Work As A Writer or Illustrator:

Writer:
Where do your ideas come from?
Do you outline first?
Do you have anyone check your story before you send it to a publisher?
How do you know you're idea is good enough to publish?
How do you decide what kind of book to write?
Do you work in a quite atmosphere or do you need music in the background? a crowd in a coffee shop?
What do you use for inspiration?
Have you ever had writer's block? If so, how did you get out of it?
Do you write every day?
How many hours a day do you write?
Have you ever had a story rejected?
How does it feel to get rejected?
How many rejections have you received?
Have you ever won any awards?
What is the hardest part about writing for you?
What is the easiest?
How many books have you had published?
How do you/did you find a publisher?
Did you have to choose your own illustrator?
What advice can you give to an inspiring writer?

Illustrator:
Where do your ideas come from?
What medium do you use most often?
What is your favorite medium to use?
Do you sketch things first in pencil or marker?
What size drawing do you do to illustrate a book?
How many sketches do you do before you decide which one will be in the book?
What kind of research do you have to do to illustrate a book?
Do you work with the author when you illustrate a book?
How do you know how many illustrations are needed for a book?
Do you get to choose how many illustrations to do or does someone tell you how many?
What medium do you use with a finished illustration?
Do you get to keep the illustrations after they are put in a book?
Where do you work?
What does your office look like?
Do you work in a quiet atmosphere or do you have music playing in the background?
If you listen to music at work, what kind of music inspires your images?
Have your illustrations ever won any awards?
What happens if the author doesn't like your illustrations?
Has that ever happend to you?

Answers to all or some of these questions mixed with anecdotes and personal stories will enhance your presentation immensely.

Stay tuned for Part 3 - Your Published Work - on Monday

School Visits & Presentations- Part 1 - Your Personal Story

2011-08-10T08:00:00.013-04:00

One of the perks, at least in my mind, of being a published author, is sharing the work you love with others. You don't have to be a children's author or illustrator to do it. So don't panic when the call comes. You've lots to share.

I believe that audiences in general as well as educators and students are looking for 3 basic things from a visiting author or illustrator. They want to know about 1) Your personal story 2) Your published work, and 3) Your process or How you work.

Incorporate these three elements into your presentation to give your audience a dynamic experience.

Part 1 - Your Personal Story
Did you always want to be a writer/illustrator?
How old were you when you knew you wanted to write/illustrate?
Did you go to college or take extra classes to learn how to write/illustrate?
Does anyone else in your family write/illustrate?
Where do you write?
What does your office look like?
When do you write? How many hours a day?
What is the best part about being a writer/illustrator?
Who is your favorite author/illustrator?
Who encouraged you to be a writer?
What do you like to do when you're not writing?
Why do you write?
Does writing/illustrating come easy to you?
Do you write/illustrate in more than one field?

Incorporate the answers to all or part of these questions in your presentation and you'll be on your way to a dynamite school visit experience.

Writing Can Be DANGEROUS to Your Health!

2011-08-07T21:05:00.000-04:00

"Have you been sitting for unusually long periods of time?" the doctor asked.

Well, yeah! I'm doing a complete rewrite of a novel and I can't do that standing. That's not the way I explained myself to him. I was more polite than that. The fact is, I have been sitting and sitting and sitting. Now, I have what's called, "I.T. Band Friction Syndrome" which means that my right leg hurts like H### and I can hardly walk.

The cure? Don't sit for long periods, do a series of painful stretching exercises and even more painful, roll a hard foam roller up and down your leg several times a day. Try that without screaming.

Well, since I refuse to give up progress on my novel rewrite, I had to come up with a less stressful, less painful way of sitting. So, guess what I did? I got on the ball...literally! I chased the dust bunnies off the 26" exercise ball that was wedged in between my StairMaster and Total Gym, pumped it up and began using it as a chair. Surprisingly, it worked! Not only has it helped my leg problem, it's also strengthened my stomach muscles which in turn helped my aching back. The bonus is ideas now roll around or bounce around my brain in unison with my body. (Bounce--get it? You can bounce while you think.)

So, if you have trouble putting your BUTT IN CHAIR to get projects done, try BUTT ON BALL instead. You just might find it as therapeutic I did. Caution: Just don't nod off to sleep on it. You'll be launched across the room so fast you won't know what hit you.

Has writing been hazardous to your health? Please share.

Pay Yourself First!

2011-04-11T11:19:00.000-04:00

When budgets get tight, financial advisors will tell you to "pay yourself first," by putting any amount of money, even as little as five dollars, into a savings account. It occurred to me this morning that the idea of "paying yourself first" with money could also be applied to writing by "paying yourself first" with time.

Time in front of the computer is GOLDEN for writers. It used to be that when you sat down to your typewriter all you had to do was process your wonderful thoughts and creative ideas to the page. Now, when you finally find the time to turn your computer on, up pops email messages, twitter tweets, facebook posts and blog comments. Pay attention to them first and your day flies by with nary a new word or sentence applied to your manuscript.

Theresa, one of my critique partners, vowed to get up each morning and work on her manuscript for 3 hours no matter what. I think of her each morning when I sit in front of my computer. When I "pay myself first" that 3 hours often turns into 4 or 5 and strangely, I still find the time to email and facebook, twitter and blog.

Come on. "Pay yourself first" with time. You'll be glad you did.

When Students Have Questions

2011-01-31T14:25:00.000-05:00

I don't know about you but when I give presentations I pack all the information I can into the alloted time frame with little left over for student's questions. Consequently, students bombard me at the end only to be whisked off to their classrooms before I can answer. This always bothered me. I felt something had to be done. Here is my secret to solving this problem.

I no longer take questions during my presentation/s but instead build in a "Student Press Conference." It is one of the components of the package I offer schools, i.e. two large group sessions, one small and a "Student Press Conference." I have to admit, teacher's LOVE it!

Here's how it works:

Prior to the visit, each teacher is asked to hold a brainstorming session in their classroom. They challenge their students to come up with a list of questions to ask me, the visiting author. This enhances the visit for students by expanding their questioning techniques as well as learning what might or might not be an appropriate question.

Each classroom teacher selects TWO Student Reporters. These Reporters will bring the questions from their classmates to the Press Conference

This small group of Student Reporters, 2/classroom, will meet with me at the end of the day to ask their questions in a press conference format.

It is the Student Reporter's responsibility to report my answers back to their respective classrooms.

During the Press Conference, I will sit with the small group (two/classroom) and go from student to student answering their questions one at a time. We will go around and around the room until all questions are asked or time runs out.

The "Student Press Conference" is held at the END of the day in whatever time frame is available. I've had anywhere from 20-minutes to 50-minutes. I stress the end of the day for good reason. If you have it in the middle of the day, students will be asking questions that you will be addressing in your presentation.

Additional tidbits:

1. The small gathering of Reporters might range in grade level from K to 5th or even 6th grade. All grade levels meet with me at the same time. This age/grade span has never posed a problem for me. In fact, some of the younger students ask more in-depth questions than the older students. And often older students will help the younger ones record my answers.

2. Some questions will be duplicates so you have to caution the students to listen carefully and ask a different question.

3. I've done this session on closed-circuit TV and/or allowed for it to be taped for selective viewing later. (Some teachers aren't interested in the Q&A session.) I've even had a class of gifted students record the session as part of their video/film making class.

4. On a few occasions, interested classroom teachers requested to have their students return to the auditorium to LISTEN IN on the press conference. In this case I sit on stage with the Reporters as they ask their questions. What is really great about this situation is that if you run out of questions, you can turn to the audience and take additional questions. This has happened on several occasions, much to everyones delight.

The "Student Press Conference" idea evolved out of a need to allow students to have all their questions answered, questions that go beyond the, "what is it like to be an author?" ones. You never know who you will touch in the audience. Something you say might just be the motivation that produces a Putlizer Prize winner or Newbury recipient down the road.

I just felt there had to be a more educational way of giving more to the students. "My Student Press Conference" fills the bill.

And as I said earlier, Teachers/Administrators/Parents LOVE my "Student Press Conferences." And I must admit, it's the best part of the day for me also.

If you try this, let me know how a "Student Press Conference" works for you.

Be Thankful for Helpful Rejection Letters!

2011-01-15T15:25:00.001-05:00

Can it really be that many months since I "finished" my novel? Finish is in quotes because we all know that a novel is never finished until the editor signs off and sends it to print. I thought I was until an agent said otherwise and kindly - no, that's not the word, bluntly is more like it - turned it down. But, lucky for me, within the body of that, "no thanks," were several clear, concise suggestions for a rewrite.

The rewrite has begun and as I re-read that detailed rejection letter, I can only think how grateful I am for agents who take the time to make constructive suggestions, even when they plan to say, "no."

Tell me about a rejection that movitated and helped you.

Be Thankful for Delays!

2011-01-10T17:48:00.000-05:00

Late last fall, I heard from two agents about a novel manuscript I'm trying to place. One loved it and the other had a lot to suggest. After much introspection, I decided that revision was in order. But since that time, life intervened. Family traumas and professional obligations, not to mention the holidays, jumped in to delay physical work on the project. I had spent countless hours mentally contemplating how to approach the revision and had settled on a new beginning, but I just hadn't had the time to do the work. The delay had been frustrating until yesterday when I opened a blog on revision that stopped me in my tracks.

The blog post was titled, Five Questions to Ask Yourself Before You Start Revising, an interview with Kendra Levin, an associate editor at Viking. Within the body of the post was a plot diagram. I've seen similar diagrams multiple times and am aware of the importance of the way your story builds, but this time, for some reason, it hit me smack dab in the face. My new attention-grabbing beginning just wasn't going to work. Starting with the definitive event that turns the character on his heels and begins his healing, is not the way to begin.

So, I'm grateful for delays. Had I been physically working on the revision over the last two months, I would have worked in vane. Now, when I open the computer and begin the process, I'll be on the right track.

I'm learning to appreciate delays.

Have you ever had a delay that changed your story for the better?

Rejections: How many is too many?

2010-10-27T22:41:00.000-04:00

Does anyone get used to receiving a rejection letter? On the road to becoming published, we all face those dreaded rejection letters that arrive in our mailboxes or our email accounts more often than not. Each time one arrives it pounces on the old ego and shatters belief in the work just a little bit, until you can regroup, reanalyze and revise, if necessary, before sending it out again.

Last week, I listened to a teleseminar with Jack Canfield, one of the co-authors of the Chicken Soup for the Soul series which now number over 200 titles, and was shocked to hear that he and Mark Victor Hansen's great idea was turned down by 144 companies before Health Communications took a chance on it. One hundred and forty four rejection letters! Wow! That takes guts and fortitude and belief in the work and in themselves to keep sending it out again and again.

I was fortunate to have received only four rejections before my first book was picked up. I know I could have handled a few more but not one hundred and forty-four. Somewhere along the way I would have given up and I'm not the "giving up," kind of person.

We would do well to remember what Barbara Kingsolver, The Poisonwood Bible, said about rejection. She said, "Rejection doesn't mean your book is bad, it just means that the editor that will love your book doesn't live at that address." I love that!

Jack added that "rejection does not exist but in your mind. It is just a step along the way."

Here's to the process and the many steps we have to climb to reach our goals.

What do you tell yourself when another rejection arrives?

What Do I Work On Today?

2010-10-20T15:46:00.002-04:00

Deciding which project to focus on today, is a constant challenge. When I'm at my creative peak, multiple ideas for stories other than the one I'm working on, pop in to stop the flow. I've tried grabbing a pad and jotting down the new idea, starting a whole new page to capture the thoughts, or just ignoring it. Nothing seems to work. Once the new idea was so strong, it forced me to set aside the manuscript I was working on and write an entire new story on an unrelated topic. It's as if my muse isn't happy unless I'm writing several things at once. Sometimes it's exhilarating but most often it's down right annoying.

This seems to be my problem today.

Three picture books were critiqued this morning generating great suggestions for change. And although all three are just about ready to send, they need further tweaking. Ideas for all three are rolling around in my head. But, there's also the novel manuscript that I've decided to completely revise and the next chapter from one of my critique partners. What to do? What to do?

Logic tells me to setup a schedule and complete them according to deadline even if that deadline is an artificial one. But that's the easy answer. It won't, however, stop the flow of ideas. Things could be worse. I could be hopelessly stuck in writer's block.

Am I alone? Does this happen to you? If it does, how do you handle it?

Critique Group or Collaborator Group? Crossing the line

2010-10-04T18:34:00.000-04:00

When does a critique become a collaboration?

The wonderful critique group, of which I am a member, has been struggling with this question ever since a prospective member, who chose to go elsewhere, announced that we were too much of a collaboration group for her. Her comment shocked us into considering the possibility. Had we crossed the line?

According to Webster's Dictionary, critique is listed as "a critical analysis or evaluation of a subject, situation, literary work, etc." Collaborate, on the other hand, means to "work together, especially in some literary, artistic or scientific manner."

In the broadest sense of the word, to collaborate would mean that we actively work together to produce each other's manuscripts. Our critique group does not do that. However, by very nature of being a critique group are we not working together, sharing opinion/s to make our manuscripts better?

What our group does do for each other includes looking for grammatical errors, confusion in plot and pacing, inconsistencies in the use of tense and POV, overuse of similar words, character description and growth, genre formatting if appropriate, story arc, endings that satisfy and I'm sure several other things I'm forgetting. And yes, we occasionally do this by showing and/or giving examples so that the writer has a reference for deciding to accept or reject the advice given. If this can be misconstrued as collaborating then so be it.

I've come to the conclusion that we haven't crossed the line. A good critique group utilizes a little bit of both.

What do you think?

Super Sensitive/Tough as Nails

2010-09-21T08:57:00.002-04:00

I've done this before -- had manuscripts rejected -- so why did this one hit me so hard? I'm still trying to figure that out. I guess I just wasn't in the mood to be rejected.

Once a letter arrived, actually more like a manuscript box, from an agent to whom I had submitted a novel. It sat on my desk for four days unopened. When my husband asked why I hadn't opened it yet, I replied, "It's just a rejection and I'm not in the mood yet." You see, I need to be in a very positive state, feeling on top of the world to accept rejection intellectually with a send-it-out-again, no nonsense mentality. That didn't happen with this one. This time, I felt sucker-punched in the gut.

Maybe it was because it came so rapidly, via email; no time to sit and contemplate whether to open it or not or wait for the right moment. Maybe it was because it came on top of a flurry of emails back and forth about not having received it earlier when it had supposedly been sent. And maybe it had more to do with other stuff going on in my life at the moment.

It was one of those "super sensitive/tough as nails" moments that I always tell kids about at school visits. "Writer's need to be super sensitive to write great stories yet tough as nails to survive the getting it published process." This is not a profession for the weak.

When those "no thank you, not interested" letters pile up, they make you wonder what you're doing in this profession of rejection. And then the "yes, we love it and we want it" comes your way and you know. You were meant to write.

So how did I handle it? I shed a few tears, boo hooed to my awesome critique buddies and went for a long drive. Today the emotion is out of it and I'm ready to write again.

What's your secret for handling rejection/s?

BTW - That box that sat on my desk for four days wasn't a rejection!

Old Friends/College Roommates

2010-09-12T10:21:00.000-04:00

I'm headed to the airport to pick up three of my six college roommates. One is already here. Tomorrow we head for SC and the home of the sixth. Five years ago we got the idea that our shared past was important. We've been meeting ever since.

What that has to do with writing, I don't know right now. But through all the memories and shared laughs a story maybe lurking for kids or adults who knows?

The never knowing where the next story will come from is what makes this writer's life exciting. Books I've had published have been inspired by a newspaper article, two personal war stories, requests from teachers, a history book and an insect. So why not college roommates?

I'm looking forward to an exciting week.

What inspires you?

She's GONE! The spider that inspired me is gone!

2010-09-05T10:39:00.002-04:00

The spider that inspired me is gone! Truly gone! Disappeared. Vanished. Poof! Was it serendipitous? Coincidence? Who can say? That little bug hung around long enough to get my manuscript moving in the right direction and as soon as I revised my spider story, that darn eight-legged arthropod just plain disappeared.

My critique group agrees that the changes made pointed my story in the right direction and with a few more edits, it will be ready to send out.

But here's another weird thing. Two days ago a web appeared across the stairway leading from one outside deck to another. It was suspended by four strands of silvery silk and in the middle was a perfect web the size and shape of a 45-record! (I'll assume you're all old enough to know what that looks like.) Does this mean I should pull out my saddle shoes, poodle skirt and pony tail scarf and start writing about the 50's? I don't think so. But maybe.....

What inspires you? Anything as unusual as a spider?

An Insect Provides An "aha" Moment!

2010-08-30T12:13:00.000-04:00

Some days the old creativity tank is over flowing with ideas and other times it's empty, empty, empty. It was on one of those empty days that I first noticed the spider happily building her web across the patio door; not the stationary one but the one leading to our deck. Moonlight cast its beams illuminating each silky thread of the intricate web.

The next morning, just when I was wondering what to do about the web, I noticed the spider frantically taking it down, silky thread by silky thread. Soon, there was no indication that it had ever been. But up in the corner, the spider slept. The next night, the spider went to work again. And in the morning, she took it down again.

Meanwhile, stored in a file in my computer sat a PB manuscript about a spider who was having trouble spinning a regular web. The idea of spinning a web and removing it to do it all over again never occurred to me, until the spider began visiting my patio door.

Aha! Revision complete and better than ever...at least I think so.

Writer's beware, even that bug on the wall can be inspiration!

When it's done it's done...or is it?

2010-08-23T19:49:00.000-04:00

Are we as writers ever satisfied with our stories?

While waiting to hear from an agent who requested the entire manuscript, I'm contemplating adding to my already completed novel. Is it the wait that's triggered this insanity or unwillingness to let go of the daily hours and hours spent with my friends, the characters?

I know the next step will involve hours of editing even though I'd like to think that I'm that rare writer who writes the perfect piece, so why add more to it? What's compeling me to do this? Is it intuition or just a whim? I can ask myself the compeling questions about how it would enhance the story or is it necessary, but the question remains, do I leave it alone or start messing with it again?

I keep hoping that the agent will call saying "welcome to my client list." And then the question will be out of my hands.

Oh for the Good Old Days!

2010-08-19T10:56:00.002-04:00

Oh for the good old days when publishers did the marketing and all the writer had to do was write.

Yeah, I know books sell better when the author is willing to promote. I do a fare amount of that myself. But all this new-age technology -- twitter, facebook, blogs -- makes me wish I had a teenager in-residence who could help me navigate these faster "easier"entities.

I know, I know. When I get the hang of it I'll love it but in the meantime I have to wonder, "am I too old for all this?"

Waiting for THE Call

2010-08-17T12:32:00.002-04:00

Second only to rejection, the worst part of being an aspiring author is the wait. I'm waiting to hear from an agent who requested my complete 80,000 word manuscript. The first agent went out of his way to tell me that he read the entire story, loved the characters, thought they were engaging, the setting interesting, the background fascinating, but was confused about the audience. Written for adults, he pegged it a YA. Go figure! He doesn't represent YA so he passed.

Next I found an agent who represents both adult and YA. "That ought to cover it," I'm thinking. Response to my email query was returned within five minutes. "Send the entire manuscript," the response said.

"Wow!" Within a half hour of my email query, the second agent had the entire piece. It's been five weeks now with nary a word.

"Don't call us we'll call you if we're interested," the agent's agency information commands.

"Does that directive also apply to requested material?" I wonder.

I know these things take time but what's a writer to do without seeming amatureistic? For the moment the only thing she can...WAIT!

I'm Thankful for Friends that Share

2010-08-04T17:11:00.000-04:00

I've been working on my blog, well, learning how to work on my blog, navigating the quagmire of technology, trying to get things right. Were it not for the generosity of friends, Beth Revis, especially, I'd still be in the dark ages. There is light at the end of the tunnel and I'm grasping at craggy edges moving forward gingerly, thankful for friends that share.

Sleep On It!

2010-04-08T09:15:00.000-04:00

Today, I awoke with an idea for a writer friend. Yes, I had recently had a discussion with her about a project she was working on but I didn't consciously decide to find a solution to her writing concerns. Even so, I awoke with an idea for her to consider. I don't know that it helped in anyway but I did pass it on.

Once again, I am reminded of how strange the mind works. Often, after struggling with something during the day, I'll awake the next morning with the solution. It makes me think the old adage, "sleep it off," is wrong. Maybe it should be "sleep it on" because it seems when the body is at rest, creativity, like the energizer bunny, keeps working on and on and on.

Now if I could just get my mind to work the keyboard while I sleep, I could write 24/7.

Amazing How The Mind Works!

2010-03-22T13:20:00.000-04:00

Creativity is an amazing animal flitting in and out of my brain. Why won't it just settle in and stay awhile so I can write from start to finish, no edits no problems? Instead, a story spills out at rapid speed and then sits, parts not quite right, waiting. Sometimes I'm charmed into thinking I'm finished; thinking it's ready to submit. My wonderful critique group has their way with it but still, something holds it back, holds me back from submission.

And then it hits! The aha arrives in the early morning hours. I jump out of bed knowing that the fixes for not just one but two stories have arrived, good and strong. The exact pieces I didn't know I needed slide seamlessly into place.

Now they are ready. No more excuses. Time to submit.

Charting New Waters

2010-03-15T13:59:00.000-04:00

This is my first foray into the world of blogging and I'm feeling like a fish out of water. Help! Were it not for my good friend Gretchen and the support of a blogging class taught by Beth Revis, I'd be a bottom feeder swimming along with the halibut, catfish and flounders.

When Duty Called: Even Grandma Had to Go

2009-08-19T12:13:00.000-04:00

By Dianah Kwiatkowski as told to Sandra Warren

In the fall of 1990, Dianah Kwiatkowski, a 47-year old intensive care nurse, wife, mother and grandmother, enlisted in the Army Reserve, not only to serve her country but to avail herself of the educational benefits offered by the military. Three months later she was deployed to serve in what became the Persian Gulf War.

In this compelling account, Dianah shares her extraordinary journey from middle-class America to service in a tented field hospital in the middle of the desert and the events that changed her life forever.

ISBN #1-92876734-6
Silk Label Inc./Royal Fireworks Press

To Order from Publisher
To Order From Author Sandra Warren

How To Publish Those GREAT Classroom Ideas

2009-08-17T11:20:00.001-04:00

Not just for educators, this book details the bare-bones basic process of taking your great ideas from concept to published book. Discussion follows manuscript preparation, finding a publisher, submitting manuscripts and what happens after acceptance. Self-publishing, epublishing and getting children published is also discussed. Loaded with helpful tips in workshop style, this book is the result of the very popular workshop of the same title.

Arlie Enterprises
ISBN #1-880175-00-2

TEMPORARILY UNAVAILABLE - CURRENTLY BEING REVISED

Enhancing Creativity Through Open Ended Missing Parts Stories

2009-08-05T13:20:00.002-04:00

Use open-ended stories, missing parts stories and brain teasers to surprise and inspire at all levels, but especially high-ability students, in this practical, no-nonsense guide. Based on the highly successful open-ended story books, If I Were A Road, If I Were A Table, The Great Bridge Lowering and Arlie the Alligator, by the author, this comprehensive guide features in-depth discussion of 4-types of open-ended stories, examples, multiple story starters and classroom activities.

A book full of ideas and guidance for teachers to stimulate creative thought and divergent thinking in the classroom.

Adaptable for K-12 students
Great for those home schooled

ISBN #978-89824-675-9
Royal Fireworks Press

To Order Through Publisher
To Order Through Author

Hidden Casualties: Battles On The Home Front

2009-08-05T08:32:00.002-04:00

AN ADULT BIOGRAPHY

When single parent, Army Reserve Sergeant Sara Raye was deployed to serve in the Persian Gulf, she thought her biggest battles would be on foreign soil. But while she was away, her ex-husband manipulated the court system in a different state and stole custody of her three children. When she returned home, seventeen lawyers told her she had lost her children and there was nothing she could do about it. It wasn't until she went public with her story that the military, in two unprecedented moves, stepped in to right a wrong.

This compeling story tells of a mother's love and determination to fight for her children no matter the odds has been optioned for a movie-of-the-week.

Sergeant Raye told her story to Sandra Warren

ISBN #1-928767-35-4
Silk Label, Inc/Royal Fireworks Press

To Order from Publisher
To Order from Author

Being Gifted: Because You're Special From The Rest

2009-08-03T16:46:00.007-04:00

Profound! Amazing! Delightful! Thought Provoking!

This collection of poems from gifted children ages 7-17 will astound you! Children learn what it means to be gifted through their own poetry. An EXCELLENT TOOL to turn all students, not just the gifted, onto poetry writing.

Through the poems, gifted children learn that they are not better, smarter or brighter than others. They learn that they have minds that work differently than the norm and that they are not alone.

"Sandra Warren's books help to provide useful and timely suggestions to help the gifted child reach his full potential. At this time when funding to gifted education is in jeopardy, these small books are gems tht may serve as a lifeline to those seeking answers." Janet Carlson, Ohioana Quarterly, Ohioana Library Association.

ISBN #0-89824-173-1
Royal Fireworks Press

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Teacher's Guide to Parents of the Gifted/Parents of the Gifted's Guide to Teachers

2009-08-03T16:38:00.008-04:00

This handy flip-book, done in a walk-in-my-shoes style with hilarious cartooons, presents the different yet important roles parents and teachers play in the lives of gifted children. With humor, both sides are challenged to work together in positive ways for the sake of gifted learners. The books covers myths, needs, problems and solutions. The premise of the book is that knowledge promotes understanding and cooperation.

"Sandra Warren's books help to provide useful and timely suggestions to help the gifted child reach his full potential. At this time when funding to gifted education is in jeopardy, these small books are gems tht may serve as a lifeline to those seeking answers." Janet Carlson, Ohioana Quarterly, Ohioana Library Association.

Although published in the late 1990's, this important book has wisdom about gifted children that spans all ages and times.

ISBN #89824-507-9
Royal Fireworks Press

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Arlie the Alligator Communication Activity Guide

2009-08-03T16:28:00.004-04:00

The definitive guide that brings the story-song picture book, Arlie the Alligator, to life in the classroom. The guide includes the full theatrical script with production suggestions, sheet music, a full Reader's Theatre script and multiple communication activities keyed to students in grades K-6th plus.

Kids of any age, even into their eighties, can enjoy putting on the production of that loveable, curious alligator who wasn't satisfied floating in the swamp.

Communication theme that can be expanded in multiple ways for all ages to enjoy!

ISBN #0-9623835-9-7
Pieces Of Learning

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The Great Bridge Lowering

2009-08-03T16:14:00.005-04:00

The Great Bridge Lowering is the third book in the popular open-ended If I Were...series designed to enhance creative thinking. When an earthquake divides a town, the Mayor challenges readers to "Help! Save the bridge!" Mulitple activities follow that enhance creative problem solving skills and encourage creative thinking.

"The most important standards and the most difficult to teach deal with critical thinking. The Great Bridge Lowering as well as the other books in the series, are effective teaching tools that provide a starting point for developing bettert thinking habits in students while at the same time, fulfilling several state standards." Nancy Johnson Farris, Educational Consultant, Marion IL.

Used in classrooms K-6+ A classroom favorite for over 30 years!
Great resouce for homeschoolers

ISBN #0-89824-175-8
Royal Fireworks Press

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If I Were A Table

2009-08-03T16:13:00.003-04:00

"As an education consultant, it has been my pleasure to use and recommend Sandra Warren's books. The two titles that are consistent favorites are, If I Were A Road and If I Were A Table. There is always a need for quality literature that motivates children to think. The words and illustrations in both books combine to challenge young readers to think creatively about tow seemingly ordinary things, a road and a table. They stimulate questions and a sense of wonder. In today's classrooms, teachers must teach to state standards. The most important standards and the most difficult to teach deal with critical thinking. If I Were A Road and If I Were A Table are effective teaching tools that provide a starting point for developing better thinking habits in students while, at the same time, fulfilling several state standards. That makes both books very "Teacher Friendly." Of course, the kids who read the books would just say they are really different and fun!" Nancy Johnson Farris, Educational Consultant, Marion, IL

If I Were A Table, is an open-ended story book designed to teach creative thinking. Read about four tables, each with a physical description, a job to do and a feeling about that job. Story models for the reader how to think like an inanimate object. Multiple activities follow the story.

Used in Classrooms K-6+ A classroom favorite for over 30 years!
Great resource for those homeschooled

ISBN #0-89824-177-4
Royal Fireworks Press rfwp.com

To Order from Publisher
Order Autographed Copy from Author

If I Were A Road

2009-08-03T16:04:00.002-04:00

"As an education consultant, it has been my pleasure to use and recommend Sandra Warren's books. The two titles that are consistent favorites are, If I Were A Road and If I Were A Table. There is always a need for quality literature that motivates children to think. The words and illustrations in both books combine to challenge young readers to think creatively about tow seemingly ordinary things, a road and a table. They stimulate questions and a sense of wonder. In today's classrooms, teachers must teach to state standards. The most important standards and the most difficult to teach deal with critical thinking. If I Were A Road and If I Were A Table are effective teaching tools that provide a starting point for developing better thinking habits in students while, at the same time, fulfilling several state standards. That makes both books very "Teacher Friendly." Of course, the kids who read the books would just say they are really different and fun!"
Nancy Johnson Farris, Educational Consultant, Marion, IL

If I Were A Road, is an open-ended story book designed to teach creative thinking. Read about four roads, each with a physical description, a job to do and a feeling about that job. Story models for the reader how to think like an inanimate object. Multiple activities follow the story.

Used in Classrooms K-6+ A classroom favorite for over 30 years!
Great resource for those homeschooled

ISBN #0-89824-176-6
Royal Fireworks Press rfwp.com

To Order from Publisher
Order Autographed Copy from Author

Chicken Soup for the Kid's Soul

2009-07-31T23:29:00.001-04:00

Chicken Soup for the Kid's Soul
"Edna Mae: First Lesson in Prejudice"
Page 46
Written by Sandra Warren

Edna Mae invited her entire class to her six-year old birthday party. But when the time came, only one friend showed up. That day, the author learned a valuable lesson about prejudice.

ISBN# 1-55874-609-9
Health Communications

To order: http://www.amazon.com/

Arlie the Alligator

2009-07-29T11:50:00.012-04:00

"Arlie the Alligator is a source of pure delight and immediacy of appeal to children, parents and teachers. All can share in the adventures of this warm and affectionate character who reaches out to embrace the reader and hugs the child in all of us. The book and CD are a MUST READ/LISTEN for everyone who cherishes children and who shares the best with them." Joan Smutny, Director, The Center for Gifted, National-Louis University, Evanston, IL.

Unique! Creative! Educational! Enjoyable! All describe the delightful tale of "Arlie the Alligator," told in mini-musical style through story and song.

Arlie is a very curious, loveable, postive thinking alligator who wants to do what no other alligator has done before, communicate with the creatures (children) at the beach. Everything familiar becomes strange when told from an alligator's point-of-view. Children ages 2 to 9 enjoy thinking their way through this open-ended story while enhancing their creativity and their vocabulary.

Read, sing and follow along in word-for-word format with Arlie
Four delightful, catchy tunes
Open-ended to enhance creative thinking
Communication theme
Enlarges vocabulary
Enhances reading, listen and creative thinking skills
Great for ALL ages when presented as a theatrical performance
CD fully produced with actors, sound effects and music
DVD follows book in a non-animated Reading Rainbow style

Story-book/CD/DVD: Great for Pre-K through 9 years of age
Great for ALL ages when used as a theatrical production.
See Arlie the Alligator Communication Activity Guide.

"Aside from the thoughtful story and the contagious music, Arlie the Alligator was a catalyst for some very interesting classroom discussions. What better way to address the issues of determination and indivigual differences than through this delightful work!"

"Arlie the Alligator lent itself very easily to a staged musical performance. We made the inviting beach scenery as a class art project and everyone loved the "Arlie hats." The songs practically taught themselves." Laura Joss, Music Teacher, Drake Elementary School, Strongsville, OH

ISBN #1-880175-13-4 Story book (HB)
ISBN #1-880-175-15-0 CD

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