Appearances

Programs for Children

Interactive discussion, projects, and/or readings.
Length—30 minutes for younger audiences to 50-60 minutes for older children.

Size of Audiences—can address assemblies, but smaller groups (up to 50) usually work better for discussion and workshop activities.

Letter Writing Workshop

We discuss and experiment with various kinds of letters--queries to Miss Perfect (pretending to be an animal); invitations, thank you notes, post cards, get well cards, and we make our own stationery. 

What Goes into a Picture Book?

Using slides and discussion, I show the research that went into writing and illustrating The Cinnamon Hen’s Autumn Day. I show students the original picture book dummy and how to construct one by folding 8 ½” x 14” sheets of paper.

Where Do You Get Your Ideas?

Using slides and discussion, I show places in my hometown that appear in Capp Street Carnival and Tales of Belva Jean Copenhagen. We discuss how ideas develop from memories, images, and snippets of speech.

Make Your Own Picture Book

Students write stories/poems of their own and illustrate a 4-8 page picture book.

Works in Progress

I show dummies and rough art of not-yet-published work. We discuss how an idea—writing or illustration—grows.

Programs for Adults

Formerly a professor of English at New York Institute of Technology, Dutton taught creative writing and literature courses, as well as a “writing for children” course for NYIT’s Continuing Education Department.

She was awarded three American Association of University Professors grants and the Award for Academic Excellence by the school’s honor society.

I Eat My Peas With Honey

A workshop for beginners on writing and/or illustrating the picture book and middle grade novel.  Plot, character, getting ideas, and how to submit work are covered.  Participants also do writing exercises. This is a “whet-the-appetite” workshop, pointing writers and/or illustrators in the direction they need to go to develop their own projects.  (3-4 hours)

How to Make a Picture Book

Using poems in the public domain, or the participants’ own poems/stories, create a storyboard, then begin construction of a dummy. Types of picture books, rhythms, page turns, and types of illustration are discussed. (3 hours)

Novel Workshop

Best for those with a draft under way—a sharing of the participants’ own sample chapters, discussion of processes, and what to do when
you get stuck. (a weekend workshop)

Fees

$500 per school day within Maine
$1000 per school day outside Maine
Plus travel expenses, if more than 75 miles from Boothbay Harbor
Workshops for adults, $300-$1000
Sandra Dutton shows illustrations at Longwood Public Library,
Long Island, New York