Speaker Booking Info

Where to find an author or illustrator

CWILL BC is an organization of professional children's writers and illustrators located in British Columbia. You can find us and our speaker's list located in the top menu under our speakers/presenters or you can narrow down the choices to fit your specific needs by using the search page

What will a visit cost?

Authors and illustrators set their own presentation fees, so be sure to clarify costs with the presenter you're hosting ahead of time. Typically, it's $200 to $300 for a one-hour presentation. Fees vary per author/illustrator.

Why $200 to $300?

Time spent presenting is time spent not meeting book deadlines. Authors and illustrators are celebrities, and are typically less expensive than other school entertainers. Most importantly, they promote what's at the core of education: a love of books.

Things to consider before the visit:

Age or grade level of the audience.

Audience size.

Appropriate venue (class/gym/etc.)

Equipment required (VCR/projector/etc.)

What is expected in terms of number of presentations and length?

Accurate directions for getting to the school.

Contact names in case something comes up last minute.

On the day of the visit

Have someone available to greet the author/illustrator and show him/her where to set up, the location of staff washrooms, etc.

Have drinking water available during the presentation.

Remain on-hand to supervise your students during the presentation.

Have copies of the presenter's books in the library on display, ready to be borrowed after the visit. You may be able to arrange to have books sold at the school either through the author or a local book store.

Don't forget to have the school camera on hand for photos of the event.

Invite parents, school board trustees, or other officials.

Download this information as a brochure [pdf]

AIE Component 1 for classroom visits
Did you know that your district already receives government funding for author and illustrator classroom workshops and presentations? All grants are available through ArtStarts.

A district can apply for a CWILL BC author or illustrator to give an hour-long workshop or presentation in the school classroom and be eligible for funding to cover up to 60% of the CWILL BC member's fee!

The District Superintendent decides on how big your grant is and how to administer it. As a teacher, all you need to do is send a request for Artstarts funding along with the CWILL BC member's curriculum vitae to your district contact.

You can find more information here: www.artstarts.ca/funding/aie.html

You can find your district contact's name here: www.artstarts.ca/resources/guide.html

AIE Component 2 for long-term residency
There's no need to go through your district; there are grants available to teachers!

As a teacher, you can apply for a CWILL BC author or illustrator to come into your school for a long-term residency (a week or more). That residency could be three hours a day, from Monday to Friday, for one or more specific classes of students. The funding your school would then be eligible for would be 60% of the CWILL BC member's fee.

To apply, fill out the application here: www.artstarts.ca/funding/aie2.html and submit it to Artstarts (see link for specific instructions). Along with the application, you must include the CWILL BC member's curriculum vitae.

Download this funding information [pdf]