Simon Rose's Blog, page 253

Children's Parties Need The Write Stuff!

[image error] I am available for company children's Christmas parties, Halloween, summer and many other varieties of seasonal events with larger audiences. Employing inspiration, imagination and invention, children invent a one of a kind action packed story during a fast paced session where laughter is compulsory. Children will also learn about the writing process, where ideas come from and how authors turn them into stories.

Personally inscribed and autographed books are available for prize draws and all...

Courses for writers this fall with Chinook Learning Services in Calgary

[image error] The Calgary Board of Education provides adult and continuing education through Chinook Learning Services. This fall I am pleased to be offering the following courses.
Forming Fictional Characters - November 21Characters are the heart of every story - their actions drive the plot. Their individuality is what readers or audiences most remember. This workshop explores where writers get ideas for characters, and how to use descriptive language to build them. Participants will invent their own...

The Children's Fiction Writing Award

The Calgary Children's Book Fair and Conference is proud to announce the first Children's Fiction Writing Award. Children in two age categories, eight to twelve and twelve to fifteen, will unleash their own incredible imaginations to create a truly unique story, which will then be published in an anthology.

The designated genres for this year's award are science fiction, fantasy and mystery. The winning stories in each age group will be professionally edited, then collected into an anthology.

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Author in Residence Program for Schools

For my Author in Residence program, I can be at your school for a week or longer. This allows me to cover certain topics in much more depth than would be possible during a regular author visit. We can also look at working with the students on a specific project.

A week in residence can be designed however you would like, to best meet the needs of the students. Here's what a week could look like, based on a school where I spent five days working with students from grade one through seven...

Author Visits, Presentations and Workshops

Throughout the school year, I offer presentations, readings, author in residence programs and conduct workshops for children at schools and libraries all across Canada, the United States and around the world.

An author visit can be highly inspirational, inviting children to unlock their own creative potential, whatever form that may take, and encouraging them in their own writing. Younger students especially are almost always thrilled to meet a published author, particularly if they have read...

An Interview with Mary Cunningham

[image error] My guest today is Mary Cunningham, author of Cynthia's Attic: The Magician's Castle.First things first, tell us all about your books. Tell us what the cover blurb doesn't say.

Something the cover blurb doesn't say, huh? Okay. Here goes. A recurring dream I'd had for over twenty years about a mysterious attic gave me the idea for the stories. I was re-telling the dream, and about halfway through I realized that the attic that had haunted me for two decades was in the home of my childhood...

Writing and Publishing Your Children's Novel - Workshops in Calgary

Tuesday, September 29, 2009 - 7 pm to 9 pmInspiration, Imagination and Invention
We examine the writing process from initial concept through to the finished manuscript, including how to turn ideas into stories, the creation of outlines, story structure, character development, the role of research and the importance of editing and revision. Cost: $50.00

Thursday, October 1, 2009 - 7 pm to 9 pmMarketing and Promotion
This workshop explores websites for authors and writers, online marketing, media...

Magic in Stories for Children - Familiar Faces

Some characters are common to many magical stories – the evil witch or wizard, the aged wise counselor, the reluctant hero, the noble ruler, the evil advisor. Young readers certainly always need to be able to identify with the chief protagonist, but the story's other major characters must also be believable, even if they are not strictly human. Characters with recognizable traits, quirks and mannerisms who seem to almost leap off the page are always going to be popular with readers and are...

Book Signing at Indigo Books in Calgary, Sunday, September 20

[image error] This weekend I will be signing copies of The Doomsday Mask at the new Indigo Books location in SE Calgary at the Shepard Regional Centre, #170 - 4916 130th Ave SE. I will also be signing copies of The Heretic's Tomb, The Emerald Curse, The Clone Conspiracy, The Sorcerer's Letterbox and The Alchemist's Portrait. Hope to see you there.

Magic in Stories for Children - Characters from Fairy Tales

Traditional fairy tales of course are filled with magic with witches and wizards often featuring in the stories associated with the Brothers Grimm, Hans Christian Anderson and others. It's no coincidence that the most well known and best loved stories for children, often classic tales of the battle between good and evil, are fantasy based and involve magic. These range from the myths and legends prevalent in ancient cultures through classic tales like Beauty and the Beast, Snow White and...