P.J. Hoover author visits

Author Visits and Speaking Engagements

Watch a short message from me!

"P.J. Hoover was a huge hit with our 4th-8th grades. She made the classic Hero's Journey a metaphor for life that allowed her to talk about changing career paths, writing & revision, and mythology all in a consistent narrative that engaged the kids. Teachers were thrilled at the motivational aspects of her talk..."
-- Dorcas Hand, Director of Libraries, Annunciation Orthodox School, Houston TX

"P.J. talked about achieving her personal goals, but also emphasized risk-taking, handling failure and learning from it, being true to oneself, and having fun. Our students need real-life examples of resilience, and she delivered!"
-- Christine Margocs, Sommer Elementary School, Austin, TX

"PJ Hoover was wonderful! She's such a kind, genuine, fun person, and this aspect carries over in all her interactions. Our teachers were so appreciative of her message, and the students were excited to hear about her journey."
-- Ronda Murray, Librarian Walsh Middle School, Round Rock, TX

"Students and teachers both have stopped me to say thank you for inviting P. J. Hoover to our school. Her presentation was outstanding. She relates well to the middle school students. Her message about staying the course on your journey is something we all need to hear."
-- Renee DeHoyos, Taylor Middle School, Taylor, TX

I love to speak to kids and adults of all ages, and I look forward to the opportunity to partner with educators in supporting students' writing development. My presentation meets academic standards and offers substantive follow-up projects and topics for discussion.
I am also a polished public speaker and would love to present to your group or organization.

I have four main school presentations, each suitable for different ages and group sizes. Please read about them below to see which might be right for your group.

"All About the Writing Process"
"Things I've Learned on my Hero's Journey"
"Choose Your Own Author Visit"
"The Idea Generator"

Curriculum for my books and author presentation that is appropriate for Grades 3-12 can be found and downloaded here.

One of my school visit presentations is titled
"All About the Writing Process."

If you're really trying to motivate your kids to write (and enjoy doing it), then this presentation can help! Combined with a healthy dose of humor, I'll work through the actual process of how to write (and publish) a book, touching on all the various aspects, from how we generate ideas, the joy of writing the importance of revision, and the necessity of rejection.

One of my school visit presentations is titled
"Things I've Learned on my Hero's Journey."

Structured around mythology and The Hero's Journey, I talk about the importance of goal setting (and sticking to those goals!), facing fears, and getting back up after failure to try again and again until success is achieved. I also discuss the writing process, from ideas to revisions, from rejections to publication.

For kids who are interested in mythology or who are learning about The Hero's Journey, it is a great tie-in because they can relate.

PJ Hoover

A young student's picture of me presenting :)

My author visits are ideal for educators who are looking for a speaker to partner with who provides follow-up discussion and writing activities meeting academic standards.

I offer a fun, interactive presentation titled
"Choose Your Own Author Visit"

We start at the beginning of the story, but we come to a fork in the road. Which path should we take? Should we go left and talk about video games and story ideas? Or should we go right and talk about rejection and facing our fears? In this presentation, I let the kids decide. I offer a variety of topics, from revisions to my background to story ideas, and we take it from there. We'll even talk about how to get started if you want to write your own Choose Your Own Adventure style book.

Just like reading the Choose Your Own Adventure books, no two presentations will be the same :)

I also offer a customizable presentation or writing workshop titled
"The Idea Generator"

Where do we get ideas from? And how do we generate new ideas?
In this workshop I'll walk kids through their interests and pasts and mine their memories for crafting amazing stories that are uniquely them. Workshop exercises include (as time permits) idea and character brainstorming for stories that kid will be clamoring to write. Please plan on having attendees bring writing materials to be used during the workshop.

My Tut books and my Forgotten Worlds trilogy are aimed at 3rd grade and up, and my YA novel Solstice is aimed at 6th grade and up. Awards, honors, and reviews for my books can be found on the individual book pages.

For my current schedule, please check my schedule page.

Keynote Speeches
Living your Authentic Life - Great for any audience
10 Reasons to Never Give Up - Great for writing groups, librarians, educators
Following the Hero's Journey - Great for any audience
Things I Learned by Reading a Book - Great for any audience
Also customized based on group and time allotted

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Grades 4-12
All About the Writing Process
Group presentation
45 minutes

Grades 4-12
Things I've Learned on my Hero's Journey
Group presentation
45 minutes

Best for Grades 4-6
Choose Your Own Author Visit
Group presentation
45 minutes

Best for Grades 2-5
The Idea Generator
Group presentation
45 minutes

Best for Grades K-3
Fact or Fiction
Group presentation
30 minutes

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Coding Chat
Great for coding clubs or other classes with kids who are interested in programming
I'll talk more about my engineering background and how I made the video games to go along with my books.

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Writing Workshop
Time - customized based on age and time allotted

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Writing Classes/Intensives
Topics and Time customized based on age and time allotted
Classes I've taught in the past include Pitch Perfect Pacing, Story Structure and Character Arc, World Building

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Virtual visits!
30-45 minutes - I'd love to virtually drop into your classroom for a discussion about my path to writing and for Q&A. This is a great alternative for those looking to introduce kids to an author while still trying to stick to budget.

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I'm also happy to customize my speech for your group. Please contact me to discuss.

Fees: Please contact me to discuss.

CLICK HERE FOR TIPS FOR AN AWESOME AUTHOR VISIT!

"P.J. Hoover's author visit was a great hit with our students! Her presentation about her writing journey kept the students intrigued & laughing the whole way through! Her muscles were a big hit too!!"
-- Margie Longoria & Nallely Garza, Mission High School Librarians

"Thank you so much...Your words were inspirational...Many of them are ready to become authors!! Your dynamic personality made an impact on many of them."
-- Angie C. Hoard, Williamson County Juvenile Center

"Star Trek, Rubik's Cube, video games and mythology--they are all part of the recipe that PJ Hoover used to create her successful Forgotten World's Series. Her talk for our G&T students explained how all of those things helped to give her ideas for her stories. And if that wasn't enough, she gave a crash course on Odysseus as she explained The Hero's Journey and how she uses that as a roadmap for her main character's adventures. The students and their parents were equally mesmerized."
-- Christine Marciniak, President Gifted Child PTO, Woodbridge, NJ

If you're preparing for me to come visit your school, please check out my Author Website Scavenger Hunt! It's a great way to get kids excited about an upcoming author visit.

PJ Hoover

Delivering Keynote address at TBAWP Annual Fall Conference