How do free virtual author visits work?
A free virtual author visit is usually a short question-and-answer session over video for a class that has read one of the author's books. The author joins on Zoom, Google Meet, or Teams, talks briefly about the book, and answers students' questions.
The free version is short on purpose: Kate Messner's long-running list of authors who do them describes free Q&As of 15 to 20 minutes, with longer, more in-depth virtual visits for a fee. Education Week reported the same pattern: short video chats are "generally free if the students have read the author's book."
One thing has changed: many authors have had to limit or stop free sessions since 2020, so check each author's website or ask before you plan around one.
How do you book a free virtual author visit?
Booking takes one email and a little planning. Plan on asking two to six weeks ahead.
- Read the book as a class first. Free Q&As are almost always for classes that have finished one of the author's books.
- Check the author's website for a school visits page. It usually says what's free, what costs a fee, and how to ask.
- Send one clear email with your school, grade, number of students, two or three possible dates and times (with your time zone), and the video platform your school allows.
- Confirm the details in writing: date, time, length, platform, and who sends the link.
- Test the link the day before from the computer and room you'll actually use.
What should students prepare for an author visit?
Students should come with questions written ahead of time, and one or two students should be ready to ask them. A short visit goes fast, so plan for eight to ten questions and pick the best ones in advance.
Questions that get the best answers are about how the book was made, not about the author's age or money. These starters work well:
- Where did the idea for this book come from?
- Which character is the most like you?
- What part was the hardest to write?
- Did anything change between the first draft and the final book?
- How do you make something scary without making it too scary?
- What do you do when you get stuck?
- Who reads your books before anyone else does?
- What are you writing now?
What technology do you need?
You need a computer with a camera and microphone, a projector or big screen, and speakers loud enough for the back row. Join from the room you'll use, a few minutes early.
A few things prevent most problems: use the platform your school allows, sit students where the camera can see them, and keep a phone number handy so you can reach the author if the video drops.
How much do author visits cost?
Short virtual Q&As are often free, longer virtual presentations usually cost a few hundred dollars, and in-person visits cost the most. Education Week noted that once fees and travel are included, in-person visits "can cost a school as much as a couple thousand dollars."
Schools often pay for visits with PTA funds, library budgets, or book fair profits. Some authors also offer reduced fees for Title I schools, so it's worth asking.
Free book talks with T.L. Griffith
Scaremoor author T.L. Griffith offers a free 20-minute virtual book talk for any class or book club, grades 3 to 6, that has read a Scaremoor book or used one of the free teacher packs. Students bring their questions; she answers as many as she can.
For a longer visit, she offers a 45-minute virtual presentation or writing workshop for $150, and in-person visits within about 60 miles of Bassett, Virginia, for $400 a half day or $700 a full day. Her Build-a-Monster writing workshop teaches students how scary stories work. See Author Visits for details, and Teaching With Scary Stories in Grades 3 to 6 for ways to build a unit around a visit.
