"Just wanted you to know that your class was wonderful! You taught us things that no one else had previously, and pointed out important issues we needed to concentrate on, as children's book writers. Your evaluations of our writing were thoughtful, professional, in-depth, perceptive, and extremely helpful. You were gentle on us, but extremely effective."  —Camie Roper

Conferences

Alice has presented at a variety of conferences for writers, teachers, and librarians. As well as doing traditional author presentations, her conference presentations include:

The Psychological Connection: Emotional Power in Writing

The books we love best are the ones that touch something deep within us.  Why do these books move us?  Explore the elements which give writing depth and power by uncovering the psychological elements below the surface.  This program examines what psychologists have learned about human emotion and behavior and applies that knowledge to the art of children’s literature and writing.

Writers: Find a key to powerful writing.
Teachers and Librarians : Help connect your students with books.

Drawing in the Reader

Alice will share how she draws in readers with her writing by looking for points of connection though character, plot and structure, and language in both her fiction and nonfiction works.

Teachers and Librarians: New ways to foster connections between readers and books.
Writers: Develop points of connection in your writing.

Putting a Face to Science (for teachers)

Using biography, educators can bring science to life. This program will show you how, using discussion questions, graphic organizers, and activities to help!

Writing the Picture Book Biography (for writers)

Alice will discuss the process of writing her picture book biography, /Darwin/ (2009, Houghton Mifflin, 2010 Orbis Pictus Honor and Booklist 2009 Best Biographies of the Year) and explain how she finds “the story in a life” as she writes. She’ll also talk about the challenges with her current picture book biography works-in-progress, which are helping to take her writing to the next level.