A Flashback and Perhaps a Reveal

Where has this year gone?  It seems like mere weeks have passed since the Insecure Writer's Support Group announced the winners of the 2019 Anthology Contest, not a year ago.

Credit: wescreenplay.com

Flashback to December 4, 2019: 

Coming May 5, 2020 - Voyagers: The Third Ghost 

Middle grade historical/adventure

Featuring these stories and authors:

The Third Ghost – Yvonne Ventresca

Winter Days - Katharina Gerlach

Feathered Fire – Roland Clarke

The Ghosts of Pompeii – Sherry Ellis

Dare Double Dare – Louise MacBeath Barbour

The Blind Ship – Bish Denham

A World of Trouble – Rebecca M. Douglass

The Orchard - Beth Anderson Schuck

Return to Cahokia – L.T. Ward

Simon Grey and the Yamamba - Charles Kowalski

That was certainly a thrilling day for each of us ten authors featured in Voyagers: The Third Ghost!

I hope that the winners of the 2020 Anthology Contest will be revealed tomorrow on IWSG Day.  But like everyone else, I'll have to wait and see.

I'm out of the loop this year.

If the winners of the 2020 Anthology Contest are announced tomorrow, 

I'll come back and add them to this post.

Meanwhile, as blog coordinator for the 2019 winners, I'm giving my fellow authors a last twirl or leap in the spotlight.  They are a wonderfully diverse and talented group, and I am honored to be included among them.

Credit: cheezburger.com

One of the pleasures I have enjoyed most during this past year has been reading books published by the Voyagers authors.  If you, as a reader, have not treated yourself to the Voyagers stories or published books by these authors, you are missing out.

Here for a final bow are the ten authors who showcased their talents in the 2020 Insecure Writer's Support Group anthology Voyagers:  The Third Ghost.  Their juvenile fiction stories that earned them a place in the anthology are exciting, suspenseful, and surprising, and they range throughout time and place from from Hoboken to Pompeii, Port Royal, and Cahokia.

Yvonne Ventresca
"The Third Ghost"













Yvonne Ventresca is the author of the award-winning young adult novels Pandemic and Black Flowers, White Lies. In addition, Yvonne has written two nonfiction books and several stories selected for collections, including the previous IWSG anthology, Hero Lost: Mysteries of Death and Life. She is currently pursuing an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults at Vermont College of Fine Arts. You can learn more at YvonneVentresca.com, where she features resources for writers.

Katharina Gerlach
"Winter Days"













Although Katharina Gerlach was born in the late sixties, she’s still a child at heart. She inherited her love of fairy tales and words from her mother, an ex-secretary and avid reader, and her love of all things nature and science from her father, an ex-forester. Memories of her rather interesting life in Germany flow back at the smallest trigger, even though she tends to merge her three brothers into one when she tells stories about their childhood adventures. And more often than not, she recalls events truthfully. Supported by her husband and her three children and distracted by her dog and grandchild, she currently writes stories of varying length in fantastical and historical genres. She runs the Indie Authors’ Advent Calendar each year, a free for all story feast.  Learn more about Katharina at katharinagerlach.com.

Roland Clarke
"Feathered Fire"








After diverse careers, Roland Clarke was an equestrian journalist and green activist when chronic illness hastened retirement. But he hasn’t stopped exploring rabbit holes and writing - mainly mysteries and alternative history. Roland and his wife – both avid gamers - now live in Idaho (USA) with their four fur-babies, although their hearts are in North Wales (UK).  His equestrian thriller Spiral of Hooves is an engaging mystery.  Learn more about Roland  at roland clarke.com.

Sherry Ellis
"The Ghosts of Pompeii"













Sherry Ellis is an award-winning author and professional musician who plays and teaches the violin, viola, and piano. when she is not writing or engaged in musical activities, she can be found doing household chores, hiking, or exploring the world.

Ellis' books include  Don't Feed the Elephant; Ten Zany Birds; That Mama is a Grouch; That Baby Woke Me Up, AGAIN; Bubba and Squirt's Big Dig to China; and Bubba and Squirt's Mayan Adventure.

She lives in Atlanta, Georgia. For more information about her work, she invites you to visit her website at www.sherryellis.org.

Louise MacBeath Barbour
"Dare Double Dare"












Born in Nova Scotia and raised throughout eastern Canada, Louise is a writer and blogger who now lives in Colorado.  She writes fiction and nonfiction with the encouragement of her supportive husband.  A passion for reading, photography, geology, and travel round out her enthusiastic embrace of life.  "Dare Double Dare" is her first published middle grade story.  Learn more about Louise at her blog Standing Into Danger.

Charles Kowalski
"Simon Grey and the Yamamba"












Charles Kowalski invites you to read the full story of Simon, Oyuki, and their adventures through haunted Japan in Simon Grey and the March of a Hundred Ghosts (Tokyo: Excalibur Books, 2019), and keep an eye out for sequels. In addition to middle-grade fantasy, Charles' thrillers for adults, Mind Virus and The Devil's Son, have won prizes and nominations including the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers' Colorado Gold Award, the Killer Nashville Silver Falchion Award, and the Adventure Writers Grandmaster Award. Charles lives in Japan with his wife and two young Muses.  He invites you to his website simongreybooks.com.

Bish Denham
"The Blind Ship"













Bish Denham is from the U.S. Virgin Islands, where her family has lived for over a hundred years. The author of two middle grade novels and a collection of retold Jamaican Anansi stories, she says, “Growing up in the islands was like living inside a history book.”  Learn more about Bish at her blog bish-randomthoughts.blogspot.

Rebecca M. Douglass
"A World of Trouble"













Rebecca Douglass grew up in Idaho, Arizona, and Washington states, and now lives and writes in California. Her imagination resides where it pleases, in and out of this world. Her passions include backpacking, hiking, books, swimming, biking, and moderately adventurous travel. Rebecca has two grown sons and a husband with whom she travels. Rebecca is the author of the delightful Ninja Librarian books, as well as a picture book for outdoor families, a mystery series for the parents, and her middle-grade fantasy, Halitor the Hero. After more than seventeen years working at the library, she has retired still without learning all the secrets of the Ninja Librarian.  Learn more about Rebecca at her blog ninjalibrarian.com

       

Beth Anderson Schuck

"The Orchard"

Beth Anderson Schuck is a retired librarian who believes reading can take you anywhere. She writes historical fiction featuring willful female characters. Being in nature whether hiking, birdwatching or gardening makes her whole.  Visit Beth at twitter.com.

L.T. Ward
"Return to Cahokia"













LT hails from the Land of Corn, otherwise known as Central Illinois, where weather inspires her literary works. When not writing speculative fiction shorts and novels, she spends her days raising a brood of plague monsters (a.k.a. her children) as well as satisfying her never-ending thirst for knowledge through reading, meeting people, and first-hand life experiences.  Visit LT at Twitter: @Ltward

Till next time ~
Fundy Blue 

* * * * * * * * * *

Check out the holiday special of free books from our publisher 

Dancing Lemur Press, L.L.C.  You can buy a copy of Voyagers and get another book free:  http://www.dancinglemurpressllc.com/press-room

Buy 1 print book, get 1 print book free

Buy 1 eBook, get 1 eBook free

Buy 1 audio book, get 1 audio book free

Print & eBooks – must be purchased directly from Dancing Lemur Press’ website; free book must be same price or lower; when paying, note your desired free book in the comments section; free swag provided with print orders

Audio books – purchase from Audible, iTunes, or Amazon and send us your receipt stating your desired free audio book and we will send you a code for a free audio book; free audio book must be same price or lower

Inquiries AT dancinglemurpressllc DOT com

Offer good through December 10, 2020

Visit Dancing Lemur Press and explore our titles.

You can also order a copy of
VOYAGERS: The Third Ghost 

at the links below.

Print 9781939844729 $13.95

EBook 9781939844736 $4.99

Juvenile Fiction - Historical / Action & Adventure /
Fantasy & Magic

Amazon - Print https://www.amazon.com/dp/193984472X/  - Kindle https://www.amazon.com/Voyagers-Third-Ghost-Yvonne-Ventresca-ebook/dp/B083C4WPR5/

Barnes & Noble - https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/voyagers-yvonne-ventresca/1135912991?ean=2940163430857

ITunes - https://books.apple.com/ca/book/voyagers-the-third-ghost/id1493413956

Kobo - https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/voyagers-the-third-ghost

Published Books, New Releases, and WIPs by the "Voyagers" Authors: This Week ~ Louise MacBeath Barbour

Over the coming weeks, the IWSG Anthology blog will be featuring posts from our winning authors in Voyagers:  The Third Ghost.  They'll be sharing their current works-in-progress (WIPs) along with other things they would like to share.  As blog coordinator for our Voyagers authors, I thought I should volunteer to go first.

First and foremost, I'm kicking myself.  Today is the deadline for the 2020 Anthology Contest, and I do not have an entry.  I didn't need a dramatic bolt from the black to get started like last year.  I was well underway.  I have a protagonist (Abby), a storyline (dark, existential matters), and a setting (a settlement by an underground lake in Planum Australe), and I've done a lot of research on Mars and the challenges of establishing a permanent human colony there.  But life intervened in July and into August, and I ran out of time. I'm still going to write my story:  It's a WIP.

Setting Near the South Pole Region of Mars, Planum Australe

Radar evidence at the site suggests the presence of an underground lake.

Wikipedia

My problem is not so much WIPs as Works Finished.  I have a lot of irons in the fire, but I need to pull one out and hammer it into shape!  I've made some huge leaps forward this year, and it's all thanks to winning a spot in the Voyagers anthology.  I've moved from regarding myself as a writer to seeing myself as an author.  Right now I'm working on my author's website, and it needs more than a short story to showcase!

I'm moving forward with optimism and with goals.  This year I'm going to participate in November's NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) and finish a project.  I've always hesitated to take NaNoWriMo on because November is such a busy month, but I figure I'll never have a better chance to do this than when stranded at home by Covid-19.  Furthermore, I've learned so much this year through the publication of Voyagers, that my confidence and belief in myself has soared.

My biggest WIP in my memoir of my family's time in Lansdowne House inland of James Bay in Northern Ontario, Canada.  I am currently taking a course from the University of Alberta, Indigenous Canada, because I want a better understanding of the First Nations peoples experience of that time.  Working on this memoir is certainly one of the most challenging things I have ever done, and I am determined to finish it.

My Brother Roy and I Canoeing on Lake Attawapskat

Lansdowne House, Northern Ontario, Canada

Spring 1961

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue

All Rights Reserved

Another WIP of mine is a novel set in Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, and Kansas. It is a multigenerational story of tragedy and perseverance connected to the Truxtun-Pollux naval disaster off Lawn on the Burin Peninsula in Newfoundland on February 18, 1942.  I learned about this heartrending story when I worked as a field geologist in nearby St. Lawrence in the summer of 1972.  The grandson of a man who helped in the rescue of drowning sailors told me the story of the wrecks of the Truxtun and the Pollux while we lying at the top of the Pinnacles looking down into Chambers Cove where the disaster occurred.  I was too scared to stand at the top of this cliff, and I had crawled on my belly to look down.  (The Pinnacles is the highest point in the photo below).

Chambers Cove, Burin Peninsula, Newfoundland

illrantandillroar

A third WIP of mine is a picture book tentatively called Along Piney Creek.  I have been photographing and studying the animals and plants in this open space for a decade.  Really, I have enough material now!

Mama Red-winged Blackbird

Along Piney Creek, Aurora, Colorado

April 7, 2020

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue

All Rights Reserved

And I have more, but I won't embarrass myself further by detailing them.  What has been holding me back is a lack of confidence and a fear of failure.  But Voyagers and the journey it has taken me through this year has given me a huge boost, and I'm already hammering.

If you haven't read Voyagers:  The Third Ghost yet, I hope that you will.  Here's a blurb for my story which turned me from a writer into an author.  And there are nine other wonderful stories to go along with mine!

Blurb
Who can resist a dare to enter a forbidden room?  Sara and her brother Kelsey find themselves in dire circumstances a long way from home after a rash "Dare" and "Double Dare."

Bio
Born in Nova Scotia and raised throughout eastern Canada, Louise is a writer and blogger who lives with her supportive husband in Colorado.  She writes fiction and nonfiction. Her love of reading, photography, geology, and travel rounds out her enthusiastic embrace of life.

Blog|Facebook

Coming on Wednesday, September 16, 2020 . . .
Next up is Sherry Ellis who shares her new book Bubba and Squirt's Mayan Adventure which will be released on September 15th.

* * * * * * * * * *

You can order VOYAGERS: The Third Ghost here: 

Print 9781939844729 $13.95
EBook 9781939844736 $4.99
Juvenile Fiction - Historical / Action & Adventure / Fantasy & Magic
Dancing Lemur Press/Freedom Fox Press





Amazon - Print https://www.amazon.com/dp/193984472X/ Kindle https://www.amazon.com/Voyagers-Third-Ghost-Yvonne-Ventresca-ebook/dp/B083C4WPR5/

Barnes & Noble - https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/voyagers-yvonne-ventresca/1135912991?ean=2940163430857

ITunes - https://books.apple.com/ca/book/voyagers-the-third-ghost/id1493413956

Kobo - https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/voyagers-the-third-ghost

"Voyagers: The Third Ghost" ~ A Great Book for the Middle-Grade Classroom!

If you cannot read fluently and with comprehension, you will have a tough time succeeding in today's world.  This fact drove me as a teacher throughout my twenty-five-year career in the classroom.  My constant goal was to improve the reading skills of each student I taught.  To accomplish this, I knew I had to hook each of them on reading, and my best lure was great books.

If I were not retired, I would choose Voyagers:  The third Ghost for my classroom with enthusiasm!  Please put aside the fact that I wrote one of the stories in this anthology.  I am wearing my teacher's hat and looking at the book objectively. 

I always filled my classroom with the best books I could find, every genre, every reading level, every subject.  I hunted for appealing books that supplemented the content of our curriculum.  I chose books to read aloud to the class, for the class to read together, for small group instruction, for buddy reading, and for silent reading.  I searched for books that matched the interests of my students; and if I found one that piqued the curiosity of a reluctant reader, I was thrilled.

                     The Anthology Containing My Short Story

                     "Dare Double Dare"

                         The IWSG on Instagram 

                         Background Photo by Louise MacBeath Barbour

                                     

Voyagers checks off each item on my list of criteria.  This collection of ten middle-grade stories is so varied!  Written for kids between the ages of eight and twelve (Grades 3-6), each story in the collection centers on a voyage that leads to a historical adventure.  Some stories will fill your heart, others will make you laugh, some will give you a chill, and some may introduce you to an unfamiliar place or time.

  

The stories crisscross the globe, cultures, and time.  There is something for everyone, and the possibilities for connecting to middle-grade subjects are numerous.  More importantly, the stories tackle some difficult topics with sensitivity and have an emotional impact.

As a teacher I could use this book so many ways.  I would chose a story to read aloud to the class, select other stories for small reading groups, pick another one or two to tie into curriculum subjects, and choose another for classroom discussion.  I could team my class up with a class at a different grade level, share a story, and do some fun activities together.  There is rich material in this book for lively discussion and debate, and the stories can be a jumping off point for all kinds of writing.  

Zharptica, the Mythical Firebird

in "Feathered Fire" by Roland Clarke

(The Second Sun by llifi-kei  Deviant Art)

To give you an idea of the variety and the richness of the stories in Voyagers: The Third Ghost, here is a list of the stories, with a brief description of their characters and historical settings.

"The Third Ghost" by Yvonne Ventresca:

Among the darkened, arson-damaged streets of Hoboken, New Jersey in 1981, Lewis stops to help two ghosts until he realizes his own family is in grave danger.

"The Ghosts of Pompeii" by Sherry Ellis:

Mount Vesuvius is about to erupt in 1944, and it's up to Bubba and Squirt to warn everyone, so they don't end up like the Ghosts of Pompeii.

"The Blind Ship" by Bish Denham:

Twelve-year-old Jacques experiences the impact of a highly contagious eye disease on a slave ship's cargo and crew as they sail from France to the Caribbean in 1819.

A Source of Inspiration for "The Blind Ship" by Bish Denham

"Dare Double Dare" by Louise MacBeath Barbour:

Sara and her brother Kelsey find themselves in dire circumstances at the Habitation in Port-Royal, Nova Scotia in 1605 after a rash "Dare" and "Double Dare."

  

"Return to Cahokia" by L.T. Ward:

Tonalli, a young Warm Weather God, embarks on a spring journey with her mother and siblings back to Cahokia in Pre-Columbian America.

"Feathered Fire" by Roland Clarke:

Two brave sisters Vasy and Kalyna, with the help of the mythical firebird, fight the Germans invading their Soviet motherland during WWII.

"The Orchard" by Beth Anderson Schuck:

Can Nels, with her magical connections to nature, and Della help each other survive in a remote area of Utah over a century ago?

Fruita Schoolhouse

 Capitol Reef National Park, Wayne County, Utah, United States.

Photo by Beth Schuck

"Simon Grey and the Yamamba" by Charles Kowalski:

Simon and his friend Oyuki try to escape a famous yokai monster on a mountain during their journey to Hirado in seventeenth century feudal Japan. 

"A World of Trouble" by Rebecca M. Douglass

Mattie and her friend Gordon get into serious trouble when they sneak off to the fair in Conconully, Washington to see an aeroplane fly in the early twentieth century. 

"Winter Days" by Katharina Gerlach:

On a Christmas visit in 1979, twelve-year-old Katie, whose father fled the German Democratic Republic 20 years earlier, fears her family’s arrest when a blizzard hits.

Border controls at the East German checkpoint Marienborn on December 1989

 Wikimedia Photo by Günter Mach ~ License

If you are looking for a great book for your middle-grade classroom or for a middle-grade reader in your life, check out Voyagers:  The Third Ghost.  You won't be disappointed!

Our next post will be on Wednesday, August 26, 2020. 

Stay healthy and well until then!

Till next time ~
Fundy Blue

"If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales.  If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales."

                                                 Albert Einstein

* * * * * * * * * *

Reviews of Voyagers: The Third Ghost:

1. Check out lots of reviews and ratings at Goodreads.

2. Excerpts from Amazon reviews:

"It's been a long time since I've read a collection of various genre stories that had me so overwhelmed with emotion at the end, and the fact that it's a middle-grade collection still boggles my mind."

"What do slave ships, ghosts, time travel, Pompeii, WWII, aeroplanes, and the Iron Curtain have in common? They all appear in this absolutely fantastic collection of short stories by the Insecure Writer's Support Group."

"The amazing thing about themed anthologies is that, while there's a single theme, the stories are incredibly varied. In the case of Voyagers: The Third Ghost, not only are the stories varied, but each is well-crafted and engaging... All take the reader on a short, but rewarding journey."

You can order a copy of
VOYAGERS: The Third Ghost 

at the links below.

Print 9781939844729 $13.95

EBook 9781939844736 $4.99

Juvenile Fiction - Historical / Action & Adventure /
Fantasy & Magic

Amazon - Print https://www.amazon.com/dp/193984472X/  - Kindle https://www.amazon.com/Voyagers-Third-Ghost-Yvonne-Ventresca-ebook/dp/B083C4WPR5/

Barnes & Noble - https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/voyagers-yvonne-ventresca/1135912991?ean=2940163430857

ITunes - https://books.apple.com/ca/book/voyagers-the-third-ghost/id1493413956

Kobo - https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/voyagers-the-third-ghost

Promote Your Children's Book by Creating a Teacher's Guide

Congratulations, you have written and published a children's book!

Now comes the hard part, promoting and selling your book.

          "My" Book ~ The Anthology Containing My Short Story

                                        "Dare Double Dare"

                                        The IWSG on Instagram 

                       Background Photo by Louise MacBeath Barbour

                                           

One way to do this is to create a user-friendly teacher's guide 

that you can use during school and library visits, in presentations

at conferences, or as an exhibiter at industry events.

Yes, it's fun to share your book with children, 

but make your book user-friendly for teachers  

and they will buy copies to use in their classrooms.

Also, parents who homeschool their children

will appreciate a good book with an easy-to-use guide.

I know.  I taught elementary students for twenty-five years,

and I bought hundreds and hundreds of children's books

to use for reading aloud, small groups, and whole class instruction.

I was constantly looking for good children's fiction and non-fiction

that I could use in all areas of my elementary curriculum.

When I found a good book, I would buy ten copies for small group use

or twenty-five books for a classroom set.  This was easier for me

than having a number of children share a book or assembling

a classroom set by borrowing copies from multiple libraries.

A teacher's most valuable

resource is time.

I quickly learned that a good teacher's

guide saved me lots of time

with its useful information 

and ready-to-use activities.

Google

Writing a teacher's guide need not be intimidating.

You can start small and go from there.

I'll start small by giving you the basic tools to create a reproducible handout

as a teacher's guide.  This is easier and more cost-effective than a 32-page teacher's guide for publication.  Once you have this handout, you can decide if you want to invest the time, effort, and money in publishing a teacher's guide. Meanwhile you have a guide you can use in the short-term while you go big and create a guide for publication. 

Authors have used such handouts during presentations at schools, libraries, bookstores, and conferences, and I found them useful as a teacher.  My sister Roberta and I have created these handouts and used them to promote her published books.  For this teacher utility beats gloss every time.

Bertie (left) and I Presenting at CCIRA

(Colorado Council of the International Reading Association)

Denver, Colorado

February 2011

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue

All Rights Reserved

Let's Get Started!

There are several steps to take before writing your teacher's guide:

1.  Check your publishing contract and with your publisher to verify what material you can use from your book and how.  For example, with Voyagers,

my fellow authors and I may quote an excerpt up to 1,000 words in length to use in social media and other places to promote the book.  We can also use photographs, images, and other materials provided by our publisher. Otherwise, we are free to create and promote as we choose.  Different publishers will have different requirements, so be sure to check.  Of course,

all publishers want you to promote your books!

                                             An Image for My Short Story

                                               Provided by My Publisher

                                                    to Promote Voyagers

                                                 Dancing Lemur Press L.L.C.

2.  Decide how much time, effort, and money you are willing to invest in creating a teacher's guide.  

a)  Jackpot:  If you land a publishing contract with a traditional publisher,

they may publish a teacher's guide for you or publish your written guide

and sell it with your book in bookstores and education stores.  Your publisher

may also publish an on-line teacher's guide for you.

Here's an on-line example:  Penguin 

(https://www.penguin.com/school-library/teaching-guides-activity-kits/) 

Additionally, another company may publish a teacher's guide for your book. Pictured below is a teacher's guide that I bought near the beginning of my career for Sylvester and the Magic Pebble by William Steig, a book I used

over and over along with the guide.

 

A Resource I Used Over and Over as a Teacher

 Photo by Louise MacBeath Barbour

b)  Farm It Out:  Let's face it.  Not all authors land a publishing contract

with a publisher who will publish a teacher's guide for their book.

Another option is to hire someone to write a teacher's guide for you.

Here's an example of such a service I found on-line:

(This is an example only, not a recommendation one way or another.)

Marcie Colleen  (http://www.thisismarciecolleen.com/teachers-guides.html)

c) Do It Yourself:  Many of us will choose this option.  If you do, keep reading. 

3.  Next, determine what grades your book is suitable for. 

There are several ways you can do this:  ask a teacher or librarian,

visit a bookstore or education store and compare your book with

grade-leveled books, or search on-line for grade-leveling applications.

One calculator I have used a lot is the Fry Graph Readability Formula

(https://readabilityformulas.com/fry-graph-readability-formula.php).

A source with additional ideas is Wiki How

(https://www.wikihow.com/Determine-the-Reading-Level-of-a-Book). 

As a teacher I know that many classrooms contain students with a wide

range of reading abilities, from students who are reading at grade level

to students who are gifted, have learning disabilities or other challenges,

and English language learners.  Your book may be suitable for a number

of grades depending upon how a teacher uses it.

4.  Check out the education standards for your book's grade levels.

Teachers throughout the United States are accountable for their students

meeting grade level standards.  Student performance is measured by

state-mandated assessments.  Preparing students to meet these standards

and take these assessments makes huge demands on a teacher's time.

Including the appropriate standards in your teacher's guide will save

teachers time and make it more user-friendly.

Most states have adopted the Common Core State Standards,

and the Common Core State Standards Initiative, CCSSI,

is a good source for information on the standards.

CCSSI (http://www.corestandards.org)

You can find the English Language Arts Standards here

(http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/)

and find your state standards by clicking on your state on the map here.

(http://www.corestandards.org/standards-in-your-state/).

States that have not adopted the Common Core State Standards

will have their standards posted on-line.  For example, google

"Texas State Education Standards" and you'll find the site. 

                                    Flickr ~ US Department of Education ~ Licence

 Writing Your Guide:

1.  Start Small:  As I suggested earlier, start small by creating a reproducible handout as a teacher's guide, especially if this is your first attempt.  You can always go big later.  

2.  What to Include:  Again, this is a starting point on which you can build.

As a minimum I would include:

a)  About the Author:  A biography outlining who you are, what you have published, and any other information that you would like to include.

b)  Copyright Information:

      i.   For a teacher's guide handout, state that the handout may be used free of charge for educational purposes and that a teacher may reproduce copies of information and activities to use in his or her classroom.  Write "Reproducible" on each page of the teacher's guide suitable for classroom use.

     ii.  For a published teacher's guide, include standard industry copyright protections.  Typically teachers may make copies for educational purposes only and may not use the information or activities for other purposes without written permission from the publisher.

c)  Table of Contents:  List each section of the teacher's guide with page numbers.

d)  Standards:  

      i.   List the English Language Arts Standards for the targeted grades that connect to the activities you have in your teacher's guide.  Include the text of the standard, so the purpose of your activity is clear.

     ii.  If your book can be used in other areas of the curriculum, such as

science, math, or social studies, list the standards for those subject too.

e)  Story Summary:  Include a brief synopsis of the book

or an introduction to the book that doesn't contain spoilers.

f)  Vocabulary List:  Include a list of unfamiliar or challenging words

and their definitions that the teacher can use as he or she chooses.

For example, some words that I would put in a vocabulary list for my

short story "Dare Double Dare" are glacial erratic, fleur-de-lis, and disorienting.  

g)  Pre-reading Activities:  Usually teachers will introduce a book with

pre-reading activities to engage students and to increase their background

knowledge about the book's content.  These activities should be fun and

motivate the students to read the book.  Create four or five activities

so the teacher will have some choices, and connect each activity to an

appropriate educational standard.

Here is a brief example of a pre-reading activity for my "Dare Double Dare."

Whole Class Discussion:  Ask the students if they have ever dared someone

to do something or if they have ever taken a dare.  Call on students

to share what happened and whether or not the dare was a good idea.  

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.3.1.B

Note:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.3.1.B describes a grade-specific common core standard.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.3.1.B means "Common Core State Standards.

English Language Arts-Literacy.  Speaking & Listening.  Grade 3.  Standard 1.  B."

The actual standard is "Follow agreed-upon rules for discussion (e.g., gaining the floor in respectful ways, listening to others with care, speaking one at a time about the topics and texts under discussion)."

CCSSI (http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/SL/3/)

This is what I would put in the standards section of my teacher's guide.  I would include the short form, CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.3.1.B, with the activity. 

Some authors don't like being as specific with standards when writing a teacher's guide.  However, a teacher would appreciate the connection of an activity with a standard.

h)  Reading Activities:  A teacher chooses a book to use in the classroom thoughtfully, considering the abilities and interests of the students, the quality, content, and length of the book, and the requirements of the curriculum and standards.  Then he or she plans lessons to meet instructional goals.  For example, "Dare Double Dare" is one story in Voyagers, a book with adventurous tales appealing to middle grade readers.  The stories span the globe, time, and cultures, giving a teacher the opportunity to differentiate instruction in small groups and to use it across the curriculum, especially in social studies and history.  As a teacher, I would choose a story to read aloud to the whole class to introduce the book and to provide the class with a common experience.  Then I would branch out from there with other stories and reading activities appropriate for the instructional goals for my individual students.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.3.10

i) Post-reading Activities:  Following up reading a text with post-reading activities helps students organize their ideas, summarize what they have learned, and check their understanding.  The scope of possible activities is huge and can encompass other subjects in the curriculum, such as writing, math, science, history, and social studies.

Here's an example of a post-reading writing activity for "Dare Double Dare."

Individual Writing:  Write the first draft of an opinion piece for the writing prompt "If you could travel in time, when and where would you like to go? Why?"  

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.3.1.B

j)  Bibliography with Notes:  A bibliography containing print and on-line resources for teachers is a user-friendly resource.  Adding notes can increase its usefulness.  My short story in Voyagers includes characters who are French explorers and others who are Miꞌkmaq, and its setting is the Habitation at Port-Royal in Nova Scotia in 1605.  I would list resources for teachers and students and add explanatory notes.  

k)  Information on How to Purchase Your Book:  See an example for Voyagers at the end of this post.

3.  Go Big:  After creating a teacher's guide handout, you may decide to write and publish a teacher's guide for your book, or perhaps you would rather skip the handout and go straight to publishing a teacher's guide.  Either way, I recommend that you visit bookstores and education stores or search on-line for teacher's guides to review.  This process will give you a sense of the range of possibilities and inspire you to create a teacher's guide that works best for your book.   

If you live in the Denver area, as I do, I suggest that you visit the Tattered Cover and the Bookies bookstores.  If not, as authors, I bet you know all the great bookstores in your area!

Here are some good on-line resources to help you get started:

Carol Hurst's Children's Literature Site 

(https://carolhurst.com)

  

Chris Van Allsburg, Children's Author 

(https://www.hmhbooks.com/chrisvanallsburg/index.html)

Mary Pope Osborne, Children's Author 

(https://www.mthclassroomadventures.org)

Now Go Write That Teacher's Guide!

Pixabay

What to Do in the Time of Covid:

Currently we don't know when and how our schools will open.  One thing for sure is they won't operate as they have in the past.  Also, some libraries and bookstores are closed, and conferences and industry events are canceled or postponed.  What's an author to do? 

I see this Time of Covid as an opportunity.  Like many authors, I am preparing for the time I can physically go to these places again.  I am writing a teacher's guide for my short story "Dare Double Dare."  As a newly-published author, I am planning a website for my current and future publications.  On my website I will have an on-line, downloadable version of my teacher's guide and other resources for educators.  And, of course, I am writing!  In some ways, I am grateful for this time.  Other writers will have different goals, but we can all make the best use of this time and its opportunities.     

Coming on Wednesday, August 5, 2020, on Insecure Writer's Support Day: 

Chrys Fey will share her newly-released writing craft book Keep Writing with Fey: Sparks to Defeat Writer's Block, Depression, and Burnout.  Chrys is the author of the Disaster Crimes Series and an editor for Dancing Lemur Press. She is also a moderator for  The Insecure Writer's Support Group Book Club on Goodreads.  

Till next time ~
Fundy Blue 

* * * * * * * * * *

A Basic Outline for Writing a Teacher's Guide:

Pre-Writing:

1.  Check your publishing contract and with your publisher.

2.  Decide how much time, money, and effort you will invest in the project.

3.  Determine what grades your book is suitable for.

4.  Check out the education standards for your book's grade levels.

Write Your Guide:

1.  About the Author

2.  Copyright Information

3.  Table of Contents

4.  Standards

5.  Story Summary

6.  Vocabulary List

7.  Pre-reading Activities

8.  Reading Activities

9.  Post-Reading Activities

10.  Bibliography with Notes

11.  Information on How to Purchase Your Book

* * * * * * * * * *

                                                          

  

Reviews of Voyagers: The Third Ghost:

1. Check out lots of reviews and ratings at Goodreads.

You can order a copy of
VOYAGERS: The Third Ghost 

at the links below.

Print 9781939844729 $13.95

EBook 9781939844736 $4.99

Juvenile Fiction - Historical / Action & Adventure /
Fantasy & Magic

Amazon - Print https://www.amazon.com/dp/193984472X/  - Kindle https://www.amazon.com/Voyagers-Third-Ghost-Yvonne-Ventresca-ebook/dp/B083C4WPR5/

Barnes & Noble - https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/voyagers-yvonne-ventresca/1135912991?ean=2940163430857

ITunes - https://books.apple.com/ca/book/voyagers-the-third-ghost/id1493413956

Kobo - https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/voyagers-the-third-ghost