School Visits

Alan is a former middle school, high school, and university instructor who knows how to keep things relevant and interesting.

Schools may schedule up to four events per day,
including any combination of the following:

- School assembly (30-50 minutes)
- Classroom/library presentation (30-50 minutes)
- Breakout sessions/workshops (30-50 minutes)

Suggested audience: Grades 7-12
Full day fee: $750 plus travel expenses

(Please remember, a school visit takes away
two or three days of my writing time!)

If you can't afford a full-day fee, consider splitting the cost with another school in your area. Alan is also available for online chats for $100 per hour.

Alan would love to have a pizza lunch with students who've read his books, or do an interview with your school newspaper. Book signings, casual breakfast, lunch or dinner get-togethers, and press interviews - student or professional - are not considered "events." Feel free to add these special events to your schedule, in addition to the official events.

School visits, particularly classroom presentations, work best when the students are familiar with Alan and his work. Teachers and librarians are encouraged to make copies of Samurai Shortstop and Something Rotten available to students in advance of any school visit.

Pre-event sales of Samurai Shortstop or Something Rotten can be arranged through a local bookstore or directly from Dial Books. Click here to read more on ordering books from Dial.

For a printable PDF school visit flier, click here.

Writing Workshops

As a full-time, professional writer, Alan has written radio and television scripts, plays, magazine articles, and now novels. He has a great deal of experience to share with writers of all levels, and would make a great addition to your workshop or conference.

Possible topics include . . .

Taming the Paper Tiger
A proven strategy for organizing historical fiction research

Breaking and Entering
Advice for escaping the slush pile and selling your book

Get the Word Out
An inexpensive, independent approach to book publicity

(Better suited for a half-day or full day, this is an in-depth
look at grass-roots, bottom-up marketing techniques
to help mid-list authors sell books, earn out their advances,
and build profitable careers in writing.)

For writers' groups, Alan is available for 30-50 minute classes, or longer workshop sessions. Please e-mail the address below to discuss honoraria and travel expenses. And please think of Alan when arranging panel discussions, too. He plays well with others!

To discuss scheduling Alan for your school, library or conference, please e-mail him at bigcheese@alangratz.com.