A note from Christine
I enjoy sharing my passion for books and writing with readers. My interactive presentations and workshops work well as virtual or live events.
What teachers and librarians are saying…
“It was a genuine delight to have Christine Kendall visit our school through Zoom. Her book “Riding Chance” gave our students a valuable opportunity to learn more about the struggle we all are currently facing with racism through stellar writing and authentic characters. Ms. Kendall’s virtual visit also provided our students a chance to participate in a personalized writer’s workshop that informed our young writers about the importance of creating a nuanced and memorable voice for their characters.”
“First as a librarian, you brought joy to my heart by saying that the way to being a good writer is through reading. And then with your personal story, plus so many interesting writing prompts, you put it all in such a middle school friendly format. Not an easy task.”
“Christine Kendall inspired our aspiring 7th grade writers by sharing her personal story about how she found inspiration for her books. Engaging, charismatic, and 100% authentic, her author visit was a lot of fun and left us all with a positive message.”
Workshops
I enjoy assemblies and writing workshops with students. These sessions involve structured lessons that work well in auditoriums, libraries, or bookstores. Each presentation is tailored to meet the specific needs and interests of your group.
Contact Danielle Yadao at AuthorVisit@Scholastic.com or use the form below to schedule a visit.
Please include some info about your school, the grades you'd like me to meet with, and possible dates.
Where Do Ideas Come From? Creating Voice
Format: Adaptable for a 30 minute classroom presentation followed by Q&A or a 45 minute workshop
Suggested audiences: Grades 3 through 7
Program length: 45 minutes
Story ideas are everywhere. In this engaging session, I discuss how I create characters and give them a voice. The talk is highly interactive as the students walk with me through my creative process, from the point of inspiration to the final draft, pausing along the way to create their own characters. We explore the elements of voice and how to identify and create strong voices. By the end of the talk students understand that writing is a combination of inspiration and perspiration, not necessarily in equal measure.
Show, Don’t Tell Bringing Scenes to Life
Format: 30 minute classroom presentation followed by Q&A
Suggested audiences: Grades 5 through 7
Program length: 45 minutes
When I was a little girl, I wrote a very short story entitled A Cat Named Kitty. Although the story came straight from my nine-year-old heart, I did far more reporting of facts, telling, instead of bringing the story to life through showing; a combination of description, action, and dialogue. In this fun and interactive session students learn the difference between showing and telling and how to strike a balance between the two in their writing. And, yes, we revise A Cat Named Kitty.
Say What? Writing Authentic Dialogue
Format: Workshop
Suggested audiences: Grades 5 through 7
Program length: 45 minutes
Writing authentic dialogue can be a challenge for emerging writers. That's because, in storytelling, good dialogue must do several things at once including developing character, advancing plot, and conveying information dramatically. In this workshop, students will analyze dialogue and learn the keys to drafting verbal as well as non-verbal dialogue that's authentic to their characters.
More from teachers and librarians…
“All of us enjoyed Christine’s presentation at Upper Merion. She gave an interesting talk which stimulated some thoughtful questions. I especially loved the writing exercises she invited the kids to try. With our annual book contest we are always looking for ways to stimulate the kids’ creativity. What Christine did stimulated a fun, helpful discussion for our group that may have given some kids a way of getting a writing project started. Afterwards one of the moms made a point of telling me how much she enjoyed Christine’s presentation In the past her children have come infrequently to library programming but have become more regular since that evening.”
“Christine was a wonderful speaker! She engaged with our teen patrons with their hobbies and writing abilities. Her story captured the whole room’s interest. I waited toward the end to ask questions in order to avoid spoilers for those who many not have read the whole book. It turned out that the remaining teens had indeed read it and had questions of their own. Some even wanted a sequel about their favorite characters. It just goes to show you how her characters’ voices resonated with her readers. We look forward to her next book!”
“Thank you for visiting the 5th and 6th grade students at Barclay Elementary School. The students very much enjoyed participating in your voice activity, where you shared different photos and then asked the students to think about and give examples of what was happening, what the person might be saying and how they might sound. I was impressed with the way you held their attention, and got them thinking about writing. Later in the day, a teacher stopped me to let me know that she planned to do a version of the voice activity. She thought it was a great way for students to really think about how a character might sound, not just thinking about whey they would say.”