Tag Archives: events

Last Monday I had the great pleasure of reading from my book and chatting with a small but well-read group of students from the Centre School on Saltspring Island. I was a little nervous, but they were kind and had some great questions and comments. We discussed weird words, different kinds of fantasy fiction and mythology, which plays a big part in Eldritch Manor. They were extremely interested in Greek mythology because right now they’re reading Percy Jackson: The Lightning Thief in class and are REALLY enjoying it.

One challenge involved in talking to students is pitching your comments to their age level. Whenever kids ask questions and contribute to the discussion it’s a huge help in discovering their interests and making the talk more interesting for them.

Thanks Centre School students! That was fun! And it was nice to meet in the gorgeous new library too.

(photos courtesy of Sheila Spence)

And with the spring – this year at least – come the school talks! This afternoon I’m heading to the Saltspring Public Library to read from my book and chat with grade 3-5’s from the Centre School. I have a knee-shaking terror of speaking to an adult audience, but talking to young readers is actually fun for me. Thank goodness!

I hope they don’t ask me anything too hard.

In other news, I’m hoping to do more with this blog… talk about writing, recommend books, maybe even invite young guest reviewers to write about their favourite fantasy books? Contests, maybe?