Ever wondered what an author visit is like from the author’s point of view? HVLA’s very own Kyle Lukoff, Librarian at Corlears School, and Stonewall Award-winning author of When Aidan Became a Brother, shares his insights.
I joined HVLA in the fall of 2012 when I was a brand-new librarian in my first year at the Corlears School in Chelsea. My school schedules author visits once a year, for our bookfair, and after a few years, I became responsible for coordinating those visits.
Then, in the fall of 2019, I took three months off from work to travel around the country with my second picture book, When Aidan Became a Brother. I made a lot of mistakes, and in doing so learned a lot about what goes into making a successful school visit. The HVLA board was generous enough to let me share some of what I learned with you! I’ve tried to include everything that I’ve discovered through trial and error, and also got two author friends (Michelle Knudsen and Traci Sorell) to look this over and add their thoughts. Of course, no one guide can account for every possible situation, and every individual author might have their own needs and preferences. But I hope this helps, especially when paired with clear and direct communication with the authors you’re working with.