If you’re in Denver, CO or the surrounding area, I’d love to come to your book fair and do a reading and/or autograph books.

Free Author Visit in Conjunction with Your Book Fair

My experience has shown that a visit to the school prior to a book fair results in significant sales–which means more for your school so everyone wins! Here’s how it works: If you’re in Denver, CO or the surrounding area, invite me to appear at your Fair. I can read, autograph books, or both. Once I’m scheduled at your Fair, we can set up your FREE 10-15 minute school presentation–preferably the same day or the day before your book fair. I will do up to three consecutive presentations in one day. For older readers, the presentation will be an excerpt from a book and it can, if students are willing, be performed “reader’s theater-style” using scripts and pre-selected students from your school to present along with me! For younger readers, I do a reading of the book. If you wish to do one of my longer presentations in conjunction with your book fair, fees will apply but will be discounted. See my 1-page brochure for more information.

Does Your Book Fair Conflict with My Calendar?

I’m happy to come after your Fair for those who purchased my book(s)! Set up a free post-Fair “meet and greet” and/or a book signing!

If you’re reading one of my books for a book club, I’m happy to come chat with the group before, during or after your discussion. If you’re in Denver, CO or the surrounding area we could set up an in-person time. If you’re far away, we can have a virtual chat.

Would you just like me to pop in to autograph books at your bookstore, school, or library? Great! Let’s set a date.

I would love to provide a 20-30 minute presentation for your school Family Literacy Night! A typical presentation may include:

• a brief talk about what reading and writing means to me as well as literacy in general
• Reading from one or more of my books (sometimes with the help of brave audience members!)

Cost: Round-trip mileage reimbursement and the opportunity to sell books after my presentation.* *If you are more than 10 miles one-way from Denver and/or you prefer not to have me sell books, I may ask for a small honorarium.

I would love to provide a 20-30 minute presentation to jumpstart your Read-a-Thon fundraiser! A typical presentation may include:

• a brief talk about what reading and writing means to me
• Reading from one or more of my books (often with the help of brave audience members!);
• A talk about my process and/or Interactive activities

Cost: Round-trip mileage reimbursement and the opportunity to sell books after my presentation.* *If you are more than 10 miles one-way from Denver and/or you prefer not to have me sell books, I may ask for a small honorarium.  

I am happy to provide a 30-45 minute talk on my career as an author. A typical talk includes:

• what reading and writing means to me
• how I became a writer
• what I love about it
• what’s hard about it
• my education and work that helped inform my writing and career

Depending on time, I also walk students through the publication process, assigning roles to students such as agent, publishers, editor, copyeditor, illustrator, book designer, printer, etc. Cost: Round-trip mileage reimbursement and the opportunity to sell books after my talk.* *If you are more than 10 miles one-way from Denver and/or you prefer not to have me sell books, I will may for a small honorarium.

I always enjoy speaking to (hopefully) inspire and entertain and am happy to talk to you about being a keynote or featured speaker at your event! Fees for this type of speaking arrangement vary, so once you fill out the form we can discuss that.

I’d love to come speak to your group! I have spoken at conferences and meetings for writers, book clubs, teachers, local IRA chapters, and at libraries for the general community. I have also given writing workshops to teen writing groups at libraries, in addition to groups of adults. I love to teach others some of the things I’ve learned along the way. We can work with writing, revising, and other topics. A sampling of the classes and workshops I’ve taught can be found on my Classes and Workshops page.

You may be across the country but that doesn’t mean we can’t visit! If you have video conferencing available via Skype or another means, I can visit your students or group virtually. Most of my in-person sessions – including writing and revising workshops – can be tailored for a virtual visit so check out my brochure for session topics and descriptions. Some sessions designed exclusively for virtual visits are:

• Tour de Office (including a sneak peek into my snack drawer)
• My writing and revising process
• Confessions of a Procrastinating Writer

I will send autographed copies of books  to schools, libraries, and groups who set up and complete a paid Skype visit. Fees vary depending on type and length of session.

Free 10-15 Minute Meet ‘N Greet!

I offer a free 10-15 minute meet ‘n greet/Q&A Skype session. The only requirement is that your group or class has read at least one of my books before the visit. For more information, check out my Skype Author page. My Skype address is denise-vega I hope to see you virtually very soon!  

Author Visits are a key part of how many authors earn a living and we thank you for recognizing that. 🙂 That said, they don’t have to break your budget. Here are some ways to pay for an author visit:

• It’s a field trip that comes to you! Have each student pay a small amount to pay for or offset the cost of the fee.
• Apply for a Grant. Check local arts councils for grants.
• Apply for the Amber Brown Grant. Provided through the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI). Funds provided to bring an author or illustrator to your school. “…this grant is primarily focused on bringing an author or illustrator to a school that cannot or has not been able to afford this privilege.” Selects two schools each year to receive an all expense paid visit by a well respected children’s author or illustrator. Additionally, one runner up school will be selected and rewarded with books valued at $250.00.
• Team with a Local Library or Bookstore. You can share costs with another entity and both of you will an opportunity to visit with the author.

Download the Pay for a Visit document for more creative ideas. Making sure your author visit is a success! Check out these Author Visit Tips.