Funding
grant resources
It can be difficult to find the funding for author visits, so here is a list of some resources from grants and organizations that may cover the cost. This is by no means a complete list, so should these resources still not cover it, there are other sources out there. These are also mostly national-level resources, so look into more local resources as well, such as state and city resources.
Academic Grants
Visit-Specific Grants
at-school funding ideas
Grants aren’t the only way to raise funds; there are also ways to raise money right from school.
In-School Field Trip
An author visit is, in essence, a reverse field trip–instead of bringing the students to the experience, it brings the experience to the students. A small field trip fee per student would cover some to all of the cost of a visit.
PTA Assistance
The PTA is an excellent resource for raising funds, along with planning fundraisers and helping to organize the visit. In short, PTAs can be a real gift!
Spare Change Drive
Raising spare change can add up quickly, and also gives the students a chance to participate.
Book Sales
Work with a bookstore to obtain the books at a discount, then sell the books at a regular price, with the profit going to fund the visit.
Read-a-thon
Set aside a day–or some other amount of time–to allow the kids to read and send out a pledge form in advance.
Raffle
Raffle off signed copies of the author’s books, or a visit/lunch with the author, to raise funds.