The DIY, Virtual-Virtual Author Visit Part of the Writing Life

I've mentioned many times that one of my favorite parts of author life is connecting directly with young readers. 

I love all kinds of author visits: in person, one-on-one virtual visits, and also special occasions such as World Read Aloud Day, aka, WRAD. Sometimes schools and classrooms aren't able to host me for an in-person or virtual visit (or students are absent for scheduled author events), and for these folks,  I offer a Self-Guided Virtual Author Visit (aka, DIY Virtual-Virtual Author Visit), using a comprehensive collection of free remote resources that I've compiled. here . It's not quite the same as a personalized virtual visit (or an in-person visit), but these resources do allow young readers to connect with an author in some fashion. 

And...one of the most fantastic things about connecting with young readers is sometimes they send written notes, and sometimes they ask more questions in those notes. 

Letters from Young Readers are THE BEST

Whenever students write to me after an author visit, I do my best to write back to them, and DIY visits are no exception. Here is the letter I recently wrote to the students in Mrs. Fallon's class that had to miss out on their originally planned WRAD visit: 

*****

May 13, 2025

Dear Mrs. Fallon’s Class, 

Thank you for reading my book, LUCY’S BLOOMS, and for taking the time to write to me to share your comments and questions. My responses are below:

1. Abigail said my story reminded her of summer and spring! That’s exactly what I was thinking about when I wrote it! 

2. Claire mentioned that her grandma and grandpa on her mom’s side have a gigantic garden! My grandma on my mom’s side had a very small garden, but I very much enjoyed the flowers she planted in that garden when I was a young child.

3. Natasha encouraged me to make a new book, and I’m currently doing just that! My next book is called MAMA’S HOME!, and it will be available next year! 

4. Alex X. encouraged me to keep writing books. I will do that for sure! (I hope you will, too!)

5. Nguyen mentioned liking the title of the book. I’m so glad to hear that. I like the title, too. Here’s something most people don’t know: The title for my first draft of this book was, BEST BLOOM WINS (I like that title, too, but I prefer the title, LUCY’S BLOOMS).

6. Clara pointed out that weeds can become beautiful dandelions. Lucy and I agree completely!

7. Teddy shared that the story shows how much you can love a plant, no matter what the plant is. I’m so glad that message came through for you. I also think the same is true for people! 

8. Jackson said that he liked that Lucy worked so hard. I like that about Lucy, too! 

9. Owen suggested I should write a story that goes even further, where Lucy finds a flower that harms the weeds, so she has to choose to give up the weeds or give up the flowers. That is quite an idea. I think you should write that story! When you create new stories that incorporate characters and/or expand on plots from other book(s) that you like, you are writing something that is called fan fiction. Lucy and her blooms would LOVE to be the subject of some fan fiction! 

10. Sareena asked if I like HELLO KITTY books. I do! (And, I’m actually working on a new book of my own with a cat character named Kitty – not Hello, Kitty, just Kitty ;)

11. Oliver said I was a good writer. Thank you very much! Here is a tip: The easiest way to become a strong writer is to read and read and read some more! Of course, you have to practice writing, too, but reading is the best way I know of to become a better writer! 

12. Angel asked about my favorite thing to do. I have many favorite things that I like to do! I love to read (and write!), and I also enjoy bicycle riding, hiking, paddle boarding, gardening, laughing, teaching, and traveling!  

13. Krishan (and someone else who didn’t sign their name!) said they thought LUCY’S BLOOMS was amazing. Thank you both very much!

14.  Lexi, Calvin, Charlotte, and Miles thanked me for the story. You are all very welcome. Thank you for reading it and for writing back to me! 

15. Lulia said she would like to know more about me. Here are some fun facts about me:                                              

Favorite Author as a Child: Judy Blume                    Now: Anne Lamott

Favorite Animal as a Child: Horses                           Now: Cats

Favorite Music as a Child: The Beatles                     Now: Paula Cole

Most Amazing Places I’ve Visited: Greece and the Netherlands

Can’t Wait to Visit: Thailand 

And here are the answers to some questions I am asked frequently: 

What got me interested in making books?

I first started writing books with a goal of becoming a published author because I wanted to share my love of American Sign Language with more people than I could directly teach in the sign language workshops I taught for young families. Eventually I branched out into writing other types of books for young readers. Here is a blog post where I talk about my path to publication for my very first books in the Story Time with Signs & Rhymes series: https://www.dawnprochovnic.com/2012/02/my-path-to-publication.html

And here is a blog post where I talk about my inspiration for Lucy’s Blooms: 

https://www.dawnprochovnic.com/2021/04/the-inspiration-part-of-writing-life.html 

Why do I like making books?

I love making books, and I love being an author. I think it’s one of the best jobs in the world. One reason is I like words. They are powerful. They get things done. They help people understand one another. Words give people a voice. I like when my voice is heard. I have written an entire blog post with some of the other reasons I like to write. You can find it here: https://www.dawnprochovnic.com/2012/04/why-do-i-like-to-write.html

 I will also say that I love reading books, I have written a couple of blog posts about why I like reading. You can read those here: https://www.dawnprochovnic.com/2018/09/the-reading-part-of-writing-life.html

and here: https://www.dawnprochovnic.com/2019/03/the-reading-part-of-writing-life-part-2.html

I also credit my fifth-grade teacher, Mr. Snook, for inspiring my love of reading, which greatly contributed to my love of writing. (And as I already mentioned above, in my experience, reading books is one of the easiest ways to become a better writer!)

A couple of years ago I was honored with a literary award and mentioned Mr. Snook in my award acceptance speech. You can read all about that (and also find link to a video of my acceptance speech) here: 

https://www.dawnprochovnic.com/2023/04/the-literary-legacy-part-of-writing-life.html 

How old was I when I wrote my first book?

The first book I ever made was a poetry book that I hand-wrote as a Mother’s Day gift for my mom back when I was in middle school. 

The first book I had published, See the Colors, came out in 2009. (I’m currently 57, so you can do the math to find out how old I was when that book was published!) The most recent book I’ve had published was Lucy’s Blooms, which came out in 2021. I also had two humorous books that were published in 2019: Where Does a Pirate Go Potty? and Where Does a Cowgirl Go Potty?

Image of author Dawn Babb Prochovnic holding her three most recent books.

How many books have I written? 

I have written 20 stories that have been published into books. You can learn about all of my different books here: https://www.dawnprochovnic.com/p/blog-page.html

You should be able to find all (or most) of my books in your local library. Here is a link to help: https://search.worldcat.org/search?q=dawn+prochovnic&offset=1 .  If you can’t find my books in your library, you can find videos of me reading them (and songs to go along with my most recent books, including Lucy’s Blooms) on my YouTube channel:  https://www.youtube.com/user/dprochovnic/featured

Thank you again for reading LUCY’S BLOOMS and for writing to me. If you’d like to read more about my life as a writer, you can visit this section of my blog where I talk about my writing life: 

http://www.dawnprochovnic.com/2018/04/the-writing-life-summary-post.html

Write On! 

Sincerely, 

Dawn Babb Prochovnic

*****

Please get in touch if you'd like to schedule your own personalized in-person or virtual author visit, or please feel encouraged to utilize the comprehensive collection of free remote resources for Self-Guided Virtual Author Visits that I've compiled here: https://www.dawnprochovnic.com/2025/02/the-wrad-part-of-writing-life-2025.html . (And you do utilize the DIY Author Visit materials, I'd love to hear from you and your students, and I'll do my very best to write you back!) 

Write On!   

The Author Q and A Part of the Writing Life, a Follow-Up to WRAD 2025

As I've said before, one of my favorite parts of author life is connecting directly with young readers. Last week, I had the pleasure of participating in World Read Aloud Day, aka, WRAD. 

Here is the "office" I set up in the bathroom from which I made my WRAD 2025 visits!

Dawn's WRAD 2025 "Office"

One of the most fantastic things about connecting with young readers is sometimes they send written notes, and sometimes they ask more questions in those notes.

Whenever students write to me after an author visit, I do my best to write back to them, and WRAD is no exception. Here is the letter I recently wrote to the students in Ms. Raffin's 4th/5th grade class from Lapeer Community Schools, Metamora, Michigan:

*****

February 12, 2025

Dear Ms. Raffin’s Class, 

I enjoyed reading with you on World Read Aloud Day. Thank you for taking the time to write and for asking such great questions! Your questions and my responses are below:

1. Is it easy to make a book?  And how many steps does it take?

I wouldn't say it's easy, but I would say it's fun! There are many steps in the book-making process. It all begins with writing (and/or illustrating) a story, and then revising it until it is exactly how you want it to be. Then, you research literary agents and/or publishers that might like your story. You send your story to agents and/or publishers until you find one that likes your story enough to help you turn it into a book. 

I have a series on my blog where I interview other authors to learn about their path to publication. You can find all of those interviews here. 

I also have a series of blog posts about a project I worked on with a group of 5th grade students to help them create their own picture books. You can learn a lot about the picture book making process by reading about that project.

Lastly, one of my author-friends, Josh Funk, has a great website with information about how to write picture books. You might enjoy reading what he has to share. You can find it here.  

2. What got you interested in making books?

I first started writing books with a goal of becoming a published author because I wanted to share my love of American Sign Language with more people than I could directly teach in the sign language workshops I taught for young families. Eventually I branched out into writing other types of books for young readers. Here is a blog post where I talk about my path to publication for my very first books in the Story Time with Signs & Rhymes series.

And here is a blog post where I talk about my inspiration for Lucy’s Blooms. 

3. Is the illustrator your friend?

It might surprise you to know that the author and illustrator of a picture book often never meet. I have only met one of the illustrators who has worked on my books: Stephanie Bauer. I was lucky enough to meet Stephanie at a writing conference, and we did become friends. I also had the opportunity to visit her art studio! I do admire and enjoy the work of Jacob Souva and Alice Brereton, the artists who illustrated my other published books, and I’d be happy for the opportunity to meet one or both of them some day!  

4. How old were you when you wrote your first book?

The first book I ever made was a poetry book that I hand-wrote as a Mother’s Day gift for my mom back when I was in middle school. 

The first book I had published, See the Colors, came out in 2009. (I’m currently 57, so you can do the math to find out how old I was when that book was published!) The most recent book I’ve had published was Lucy’s Blooms, which came out in 2021. I also had two humorous books that were published in 2019: Where Does a Pirate Go Potty? and Where Does a Cowgirl Go Potty?

Image of author Dawn Babb Prochovnic holding her three most recent books.

5. When is your next book coming out?

My next book, MAMA’S HOME!, is currently scheduled for publication in September of 2026. I wrote that book back when my 22-year-old son was in preschool! It was acquired by my publisher (Familius) back in 2021, with an original plan for publication in 2024, but it is not uncommon for books to be delayed for one reason or another. 

You can read about some of the revisions I needed to make for MAMA’S HOME! here. (NOTE: this is a very looooong blog post with many different authors contributing to it, so you can search on the keyword "Prochovnic" to find my part.)  

I just recently learned who will be illustrating MAMA’S HOME! Her name is Adèle Dafflon. You can see examples of her artwork here.

6. Do you like making books?

I love making books, and I love being an author. I think it’s one of the best jobs in the world. One reason is I like words. They are powerful. They get things done. They help people understand one another. Words give people a voice. I like when my voice is heard. I have written an entire blog post with some of the other reasons I like to write. You can find it here.

I will also say that I love reading books, I have written a couple of blog posts about why I like reading. You can read those here and here .

(Psst: In my experience, reading books is one of the easiest ways to become a better writer!)

7. How did you think of the book, Where Does a Cowgirl Go Potty?

I have written a whole blog post that answers that question! You can find it here. 

(Fun fact: This blog post was written for Tara Lazar’s blog (she is the author of Flat Cat and Absurd Words, two of the books I mentioned to you during our time together on World Read Aloud Day).  

8. What inspired you to make books?

I became inspired to write books because I had stories and important ideas in my head that I wanted to share with other people. 

I also credit my fifth-grade teacher, Mr. Snook, for inspiring my love of reading, which greatly contributed to my love of writing. 

A couple of years ago I was honored with a literary award and mentioned Mr. Snook in my award acceptance speech. You can read all about that (and also find link to a video of my acceptance speech) here. 

9. How many books did you make?

I have written 20 stories that have been published into books. You can learn about all of my different books here.

You should be able to find all (or most) of my books in your local library. Here is a link to help: https://search.worldcat.org/search?q=dawn+prochovnic&offset=1 .  If you can’t find my books in your library, you can find videos of me reading them (and songs to go along with my most recent books, including Lucy’s Blooms) on my YouTube channel:  https://www.youtube.com/user/dprochovnic/featured

Thank you again for sharing your World Read Aloud Day with me and for asking such great questions! I hope I get to visit your school again in the future. In the meantime, if you’d like to read more about my life as a writer, you can visit this section of my blog where I talk about my writing life. 

Write On!

Sincerely, 

Dawn Babb Prochovnic (and Pickle)

*****

If you missed World Read Aloud Day, but would still like to connect, I offer Virtual Author Visits year round anywhere in the world. I've also compiled a comprehensive collection of free remote resources for Self-Guided Virtual Author Visits here: https://www.dawnprochovnic.com/2025/02/the-wrad-part-of-writing-life-2025.html . It's not quite the same as a personalized virtual visit (or an in-person visit), but these resources do allow young readers to connect with an author in some fashion. And here's a fun fact: I also write back to classrooms of students who visit me virtually via a Self-Guided Virtual Author visit. 

Write On!   

The Reader Engagement Part of the Writing Life

Back in February, I had the pleasure of participating in World Read Aloud Day, aka, WRAD. As I've said before, one of my favorite parts of author life is connecting directly with young readers. 

One of the most fantastic things about connecting with young readers is sometimes they send written cards, letters, and pictures. Given the digital nature of book events these days, for the first time ever I received digital postcards from a classroom of readers I visited from a school in Japan. Here are some examples:

Artwork from Ms. Venn's Second Grade Class

Whenever students write to me after an author visit, I do my best to write back to them, and WRAD is no exception. Here is the letter I recently wrote to the students in Ms. Venn's second grade class at John O. Arnn Elementary School in Camp Zama, Japan:

*****

Dear Ms. Venn’s Class, 

Thank you for taking the time to write and illustrate beautiful digital postcards for me to enjoy. 

Each of you, including Ayce, Bobby, Kathryn, (and one additional student who did not sign their name :) thanked me for reading Lucy’s Blooms to you. You are very welcome. I’m so glad you enjoyed the story. In case you’d like to read the story again, many of my books, including Lucy’s Blooms, should be available at your local library. And, if you’d like to watch a video of me reading Lucy’s Blooms (maybe with your family at home), you can find it here.

Some of you had additional questions.  My responses are below: 

Zoey: You asked what inspired me to write books, and what made me like being an author and love writing? One reason is I like words. They are powerful. They get things done. They help people understand one another. Words give people a voice. I like when my voice is heard. I have written an entire blog post with some of the other reasons I like to write. You can find it here.

Addison: You asked how many books I have made. I have written 20 stories that have been published into books. You can learn about all of my different books here. You also asked how many books I have read to people. I haven’t kept count of that—I’ll have to start doing that! (You also shared a cute picture of a cat! I showed the picture to Pickle the Cat! Pickle says, “Meow!”)

Kalib: You asked if I enjoy reading to students. I do! It’s one of my favorite parts of being an author. You also shared a picture of a rainbow baby turtle. I hope you will write a story about that some day! 

Alek: You asked how to publish a book. There are a lot of steps in that process. It all begins with writing (and/or illustrating) a story, and then revising it until it is exactly how you want it to be. Then, you research publishers that might like your story. You send your story to publishers until you find one that likes your story enough to turn it into a book. One of my author-friends, Josh Funk, has a great website with information about how to write picture books. You might enjoy reading what he has to share. You can find it here.

Aurora: You asked what was the first book I ever made. The first book I ever made was a poetry book that I hand-wrote as a Mother’s Day gift for my mom back when I was in middle school. You also asked why I became an author. I became an author because I had stories and important ideas in my head that I wanted to share with other people. You asked what year my books came out. The first book I had published, See the Colors, came out in 2009. The most recent book I had published was Lucy’s Blooms, which came out in 2021. I also had two humorous books that were published in 2019: Where Does a Pirate Go Potty? and Where Does a Cowgirl Go Potty? You should be able to find all (or most) of my books in your local library. If you can’t find my books in your library, you can find videos of me reading them (and songs to go along with my most recent books) on the internet, here. You also asked if I ever write fairy tale books. I haven’t yet, but I have a friend who does. Lastly, you asked why I like books. I like books for many different reasons, but one reason is because reading books is one of the best ways to become a better writer. I have also written some blog posts about why I like reading. You can read about that here and here.

Eliana: You asked what is my favorite flower? I like LOTS of different kinds of flowers. I of course like dandelions, and I also especially like tulips, daffodils and nasturtiums. You can find an article I wrote that includes a photograph of some of the nasturtiums in my yard and some stories about my favorite gardening memories with my own Gram on my publisher’s website.

Holden: You asked why I like the weed. I like it because it is cheerful and beautiful and makes me smile. I wrote more about this in a blog post, here.

Thank you again for all of your notes and pictures, and thank you to Ms. Carter for inviting me to visit your school.  I hope I get to visit your school again in the future. In the meantime, if you’d like to read more about my life as a writer, you can visit this section of my blog where I talk about my writing life.

Write On!

Sincerely, 

Dawn Babb Prochovnic (and Pickle) 

*****

If you missed World Read Aloud Day, but would still like to connect, I offer Virtual Author Visits year round anywhere in the world. I've also compiled a comprehensive collection of free remote resources for Self-Guided Virtual Author Visits here. It's not quite the same as a personalized virtual visit (or an in-person visit), but these resources do allow young readers to connect with an author in some fashion. And here's a fun fact: I also write back to classrooms of students who visit me virtually via a Self-Guided Virtual Author visit. 

Write On!  

The "Engaging Young Readers" Part of the Writing Life

One of my favorite parts of being an author is engaging with young readers. Some of the ways I do this include participating in author visits and book readings (virtual, in-person, and through events such as World Read Aloud Day), joining special occasions such the Book Song Challenge, and collaborating with other makers to create materials and resources that support and enrich learning. 

The 2021 Book Song Challenge hosted by the team at Way Past Books has just begun. There is still time for young readers to create and share a song for their favorite book. You can read all the details on Way Past Books' Instagram Account. 

The song for Lucy's Blooms was featured today. 

You can listen to the full song on musician Maiah Wynne's YouTube channel (and if you visit today, you'll have a chance to enter to win a signed copy of Lucy's Blooms (U.S. Addresses only, please.)

Enjoy!