For everyone All Booked Out: finding the best speaker for your next student event
For many students, a highlight of their school year is meeting a favourite author or illustrator. They may learn something new about a much-loved book, discover how to improve their writing, or hear a creator speak about their journey to publication. If you have booked an author or illustrator to speak at your school, chances are you have used the services of Booked Out, the largest Victorian speaker’s agency for writers and illustrators.
Booked Out was started in 1994 by former English teacher Lauris Pandolfini, who saw the potential for sending local authors and illustrators into schools and kindergartens. What began as a small outfit with just 12 authors, has grown into an agency that currently represents more than 400 Australian creators, including some of the biggest names in children’s publishing, such as Andy Griffiths and current Children’s Laureate Sally Rippin, who have both been with Booked Out since the beginning.
Schools and kinders have different requirements when booking speakers. Some may want a one-off writing or illustration workshop for particular students, an artist-in-residence to work across an entire year level, or perhaps a visit from the writer of a studied text. Sometimes schools run mini-festivals and rely on Booked Out to suggest a range of speakers who can speak to different topics, genres and age-groups.
The agency handles a diverse range of speakers from creators of picture books for preschool and primary-aged students such as Davina Bell, Sher Rill Ng, and Zeno Sworder; writers of junior and middle-grade fiction, including Adrian Beck, Emily Gale, and Nat Amoore; to authors of fiction and non-fiction aimed at older students such as Leanne Hall, Alice Pung, and Gary Lonesborough.
For schools wanting to showcase the wide range of literature-related occupations, there are also performance poets, comics, podcasters, screenwriters, translators, historians, and audiobook narrators on Booked Out’s list.
With a team of book-lovers managing the office, Booked Out prides itself on finding the right speaker for the event or to meet the student cohort’s needs. Once booked, presenters contact the school or kinder directly to find out what their sessions should focus on.
“I can’t quite believe how lucky we are and how rich these experiences have been for us – such a wealth of talent, knowledge, and perspectives.”
Carmel Hyland
Some schools book several speakers in advance. At Westgarth Primary, teacher-librarian Stacey Pryor has already lined up author/illustrator visits for 2024 with Gabriel Bergmoser, Gus Gordon, Chris Kennett, Zanni Louise, Jess McGeachin, Heidi McKinnon, and Jess Racklyeft.
Glenn Richards, Year 6 teacher at Westgarth Primary, is a firm believer in the value of these visits. “Our students benefit hugely from the experiences and insights of the authors who visit,” he says.
“For instance, now, when they are writing narratives, students understand that they need to further develop their characters, so that the character then informs the narrative arc rather than the narrative arc dictating the journey of their character.”
Authors and illustrators are booked for many different purposes at Westgarth PS. “We use speakers to present to our younger students on what it’s like to be an author, through to discussions about specific texts with our middle-school students, to interactive writing workshops with our upper-primary students,” says Glenn.
For Merri Creek Primary teacher-librarian Carmel Hyland, “it is always a joy to be involved in arranging these visits. I know how much the children get from hearing firsthand what it’s like to be an author or illustrator, and to meet the person who conceptualised and created the stories and books they’ve read.
“I can’t quite believe how lucky we are and how rich these experiences have been for us – such a wealth of talent, knowledge, and perspectives.”
Sometimes, schools have a very specific author in mind but Booked Out is also happy to make suggestions. Carmel says the agency has tailored author visits to align with classroom learning at her school. “I often have an idea of who I would like to visit our school – sometimes through discussions with teachers to see what they’re doing in the classroom – but on occasion I’ve been a bit slow in organising the author and illustrator visits,” Carmel says. “Then I have a calm and reassuring voice on the end of the line from the Booked Out office, letting me know that things will be fine and that they will find someone great to visit!”
Find out more at bookedout.com.au
