Here’s An Idea – Make Every Day World Book Day!
An author is for life, not just for two weeks in March, says writer Gareth P Jones…
This year, World Book Day was bigger than ever. More schools got involved, there was greater media coverage and an astonishing 15 million £1 book tokens were distributed.
Pupils and teachers all over the country dressed up as their favourite book character for the day. Hundreds of schools celebrated by inviting authors to visit their pupils during the week. Some of these schools got me.
Visiting schools is an enjoyable part of my job and an important part of my income. It’s also something I love doing. I get to play the songs that I write about my books. I get to jump around, tell jokes and show off. Best of all, I get to share my passion for literature and stories.
Save your visits
In previous years I have been booked solidly for the first two weeks of March – that’s around 30 performances over a fortnight. I love the challenge. I love the craziness. I love the long train journeys with a suitcase full of books, a ukulele on my back and a manuscript in my bag (I always have a deadline looming).
However, this year I noticed that although I was booked solidly for the first week of March, the following week was much quieter then previous years. I wondered what was going on. When I enquired with my booking agency, I was told that many of the schools wanted authors on World Book Day itself or, if not then, during that week. As the day itself gets bigger, so the booking time has got narrower. The various agencies that specialise in booking authors into schools tell me that March makes up between 20 to 40 per cent of their business.
That’s a lot, right?
I’m not saying schools shouldn’t celebrate World Book Day. Definitely not. As a passionate believer in the power of literature, I think it’s great to have a day dedicated to books. I’m all for celebrating the day.
All I’m suggesting is that you save your author visit for a different time of year. Doing so would give you at least two big hits during the year that will spark interest and excitement about books. Also, being flexible about timing will mean you stand a better chance of getting the author that best suits your needs.
‘Tis the season
With this in mind, here are some more reasons for booking an author at times other than March:
Autumn Term Oh no! The dreaded Autumn term! The longest, bleakest and darkest term of all. Why not liven things up with an author visit? After all, it’s the beginning of a new academic year, so kick-start even your most reluctant readers’ interest in books.
You could find an author with books to match the topics you’ll be covering, and get your class to understand the importance of editing and checking their work from someone who does it for a living. If you want something to tag it onto, in September you have International Literacy Day; in October there’s National Poetry Day and National Tell a Story Day.
Spring Term Yes, so this is the term with World Book Day, but why wait until then? You could book an author in January when you’re still recovering from Christmas. In February an author could help you celebrate National Storytelling Week. Or start getting the pupils excited about World Book Day by hiring the author you want before they’re booked up.
March has some other good book hooks too in the form of World Storytelling Day. Then, in April, there is International Children’s Book Day.
Summer Term In May you have both National Share a Story Month and Children’s Book Week.
Then, as the summer creeps closer and things start to wind down, why not get an author in to encourage kids to keep reading over the summer holidays? They could come in and remind your school about The Summer Reading Challenge. I suppose what I am really saying is that an author isn’t just for World Book Day. An author can be for any time of the year. #MakeEveryDayWBD.
Gareth P Jones is the author of Death or Ice Cream?, the Steampunk Pirates series and more.
If you would like to book Gareth P Jones (and his ukulele) to visit your school at ANY time of the year, contact info@authorsaloud.co.uk; you can also find him at garethwrites.co.uk and tweeting as @jonesgarethp
