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School Visits Lauded as “a rollercoaster of a ride,” “captivating,” as well as “heartbreaking and heartwarming,” Foreverland is a modern classic for readers aged 9-12. Foreverland tells the story of Margaret, a shy, eccentric 12-year-old with trouble at home, who runs away to live in an amusement park. When she gets there, she meets Jaime, a charismatic and mysterious boy who, for reasons of his own, has done the exact same thing. Heavily inspired by Peter Pan, Foreverland joins a long and beloved tradition of coming-of-age stories, offering a modern take on a timeless tale about friendship, family and growing up. In her interactive, entertaining and empowering school visits, Nicole gives students in grades 4-6 a glimpse into the writing process, beginning with the beginning: inspiration. Using classic tales as a springboard can make for a great angle of approach into fiction-writing, especially for students who feel daunted by the prospect of generating ideas. Towards that end, Nicole explores the exciting process of paying homage to beloved source material. Once writers have a riveting idea at the ready, the next step is executing that concept. Nicole gives students a crash course in narrative-crafting, focusing on laying a sturdy foundation with strong characters and compelling conflict. Drawing on her experience creating the unique landscape of Foreverland, Nicole equips students with world-building tools, empowering them to add onto their foundations by constructing invented worlds of any genre. Employing the same humor and effervescence that infuses her books, Nicole, a professor of writing at Columbia University and NYU SPS, engages students on many levels, leaving them excited about reading, and energized to tell their own one-of-a-kind stories. |