APPEARANCES

Deborah is available for schools, writers groups, and conference appearances.

“An amazing retreat. On a scale of 1-5, Deborah scored GREATER than 5! Many participants said they’d like to have Deborah back, saying it was the best writing event they’d ever attended.” —Pat Trattles, Revision Retreat Organizer, SCBWI Michigan

“Deborah wowed participants at our SCBWI Revision Intensive with her workshops on setting, picture books, and the 10 tests a novel must pass to prove it’s ready for submission to editors. Beginning writers and published authors alike found Deborah to be friendly, approachable, organized, and full of helpful tips and techniques. An added plus was her ability to wear two hats: editor and fellow writer. A guaranteed homerun for your next event!” —Patricia Newman & Erin Dealey, Co-Regional Advisors, SCBWI California North/Central

“Thanks so much for taking time to be with us. My kids and I loved you. It was perfect. When you hit ‘show don’t tell’ and ‘voice,’ I wanted to run up front and hug you. Again, thank you so much for taking the time to change lives…and you did!”—Sheila Weiner, 6th Grade Teacher

TO BOOK A VISIT: If you are interested in having Deborah speak to your class or group, or to contribute to or run a retreat, workshop, or conference session, please email her at Deborah@DeborahHalverson.com. Let her know briefly what you are looking for and the prospective dates you have in mind, and she’ll get back to you as quickly as possible regarding availability.  She’s happy to provide you with a list of presentations for consideration, or create a presentation customized for your group’s needs and interests.

ANSWERS TO FAQS ABOUT HER PRESENTATIONS:
Deborah’s home town: San Diego, CA
Suggested audiences: Grades 6-12, teachers and librarians, writers groups, conferences
Deborah’s honorarium: All travel expenses, plus honorarium (amount negotiable)
Maximum number of presentations per day: 3, plus a book signing
Critiques: Will critique individual projects at events (10 pages of a novel, or full picture book text) for an additional fee per critique. Written-only, or written plus face-to-face meeting of 10 minutes each at the event.
Presentations: Deborah has created many workshops, 1-hour sessions, and speeches, covering a range of topics and levels of experience, a list of which is available upon request. Deborah is open to creating presentations customized to group needs and interests.
Contact for rates and dates: Deborah@DeborahHalverson.com

 

SCHOOL & LIBRARY PRESENTATIONS:
Deborah’s standard school & library presentation is approximately 1 hour, including Q&A. The session will detail the creation of a book from idea to bookstore shelves, and it is peppered with “behind-the-scenes” anecdotes about publishing houses and how books are acquired, edited, produced, and marketed. Using her teen novels HONK IF YOU HATE ME and BIG MOUTH, and her picture book LETTERS TO SANTA, Deborah’s presentation emphasizes creativity and the ins and outs of editing and revising, and it inspires writers and readers alike through funny anecdotes about how her stories developed, how she balances the demands of writing and raising triplets, and how writers can develop their own ideas and clever “hooks.”

 

 

CONFERENCES, WORKSHOPS, & SMALL GROUPS:
Deborah also works with small groups for special purposes—writers groups, student writer workshops, book clubs, etc.—and does presentations and key note addresses for large audiences at writers conferences. Let Deborah know what your group’s needs are and she can tailor her presentations. Thanks to her years as an editor with a major publisher, a university writing instructor, and a published author, Deborah can talk informatively and entertainingly on just about any aspect of writing/publishing for children or adults. Her presentation “The Ultimate Checklist for Submitting to Editors: 10 Tests a Novel Must pass to Prove It’s Really Ready for Submission” is especially popular with fiction writers.