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In this blog, I share with you my journey from traditional children’s author to creator of an innovative digital content brand for kids using book apps and a website.

Curriculum Linked with Apps a Winner in the Classroom

 

Students make quicksandquicksand brainstorm Treasure Kai book appkids with Treasure Kai

First- and third-graders at Jessieville Elementary School in Arkansas recently participated in a pilot program by a National Board Certified Teacher to use apps in the classroom with accompanying custom-designed curriculum. Lessons plans and activities were paired with apps that students used on class iPads. Teachers and students applauded language arts and science activities created for story book app, “Treasure Kai and the Lost Gold of Shark Island,” and language arts activities created for Penelope the Purple Pirate.

Retired teacher Cyndie Sebourn teamed with Jessieville Elementary School to correlate children’s storybook apps with Common Core State Standards. Sebourn designed “Smarty Activities” – lessons plans and activities – to pair with the apps that students were reading on class iPads.

“Technology in education is an exciting new era for students. It is not enough, however, that educators have iPads and storybook apps; they need custom-designed curriculum to accompany the apps,” said Sebourn. “Their prep time is limited, and standards aligned activities promote an atmosphere of Edutainment: education that is entertaining.”

On May 10, Sebourn visited Katie Moore Wainscott’s third-grade language arts classes to present activities to be used with Treasure Kai and the Lost Gold of Shark Island, an award-winning book app by Karen Robertson. The activities included:

* Clue Poems, which challenged students to create their own poems about a mystery object, using the free app “Draw Free for iPad.” Students labeled rhyme schemes and practiced fluency by recording their poems, using the free app “Audio Memos Free – The Voice Record.”

* Researching Quicksand, in which students used the Internet to learn about quicksand and report what they had learned using the free app, “iBrainstorm.”

* Making Quicksand, in which students used instructions from a Treasure Kai video to make their own quicksand.

After the activities, students participated in a Skype chat with Treasure Kai author Karen Robertson, who lives in Sydney, Australia.

“I feel that iPad apps are a necessary tool in today’s digital world to engage my students in learning. App activities make their learning highly interactive and allow them to work independently and project based,” teacher Katie Moore Wainscott said. “iPad storybook apps like Treasure Kai combined with free technology apps like iBrainstorm, ShowMe, and others, encourage enhancement of my students’ learning and make daily activities fun and exciting in the classroom.”

Karen Robertson skypes with teacher, Katie Wainscott

To see the video of Katie Wainscott discussing the activities with Karen Robertson visit http://youtu.be/9zM4I0S_bpk

To see all six curriculum activities developed for Treasure Kai, visit http://www.sascynpublishing.com/treasurekai

On May 14, Jessieville first-grade teacher Amanda Bean taught the Smarty Activity “My Naptime Day Dream,” which aligned with Penelope the Purple Pirate, a storybook app by Melissa Northway.

Students wrote, illustrated, and published their own adventure story using the free app, Scribble Press. The day concluded with a Skype with Northway, who lives in California. Northway spoke with the students about her characters who represent that we do not all have to be the same; it’s ok to be different.

Sebourn works as an educational consultant for app developers and is publishing a case study titled Apps with Curriculum in Education, which will address educators’ use of apps in the classroom and their needs for custom-designed activities for apps. Her blog, SmartyAppAttack.com, discusses developing storybook apps and aligning them to education’s needs. Sebourn’s own educational app, Smarty Britches: Nouns, about a boy in Hot Springs Village, Arkansas who learns about nouns through a magical pair of britches, will be released this summer. www.sascynpublishing.com

Treasure Kai and the Lost Gold of Shark Island – http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/treasure-kai-lost-gold-shark/id418289114?mt=8
Penelope and the Purple Pilot – http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/penelope-the-purple-pirate/id413515760?mt=8

Categories Digital Author
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Posted by: Karen
19/05/2012

Curriculum Activities Created for Treasure Kai a Winner in the Classroom!

 

Arkansas 3rd-grade teacher, Katie Wainscott, recently piloted a number of curriculum based educational activities inspired by Treasure Kai and the Lost Gold of Shark Island in her classes. The activities were created by National Board Certified Teacher, Cyndie Sebourn, who has a special interest in technology in education. I had the thrill of having a virtual author visit with some of the students via Skype.

To see a short video of teacher, Katie Wainscott, providing feedback on the activities, visit: http://youtu.be/9zM4I0S_bpk

To see the virtual author visit (3 parts), click the links below.

Skype author visit part 1 of 3 http://youtu.be/38dYnJA3TKU
Skype author visit part 2 of 3 http://youtu.be/joPVjdzzrno
Skype author visit part 3 of 3 http://youtu.be/gbZl9_zuf60

To read Cyndie Sebourn’s blog post about Apps with Curriculum in the Classroom, visit: http://sascynpublishing.com/apps-with-curriculum-in-the-classroom/

To see all six activities Cyndie developed for Treasure Kai, visit http://www.sascynpublishing.com/treasurekai

And here are a few thoughts from Cyndie and Katie:

On May 10, Sebourn visited Katie Moore Wainscott’s third-grade language arts classes to present activities to be used with Treasure Kai and the Lost Gold of Shark Island, an award-winning book app by Karen Robertson. The activities included -
Clue Poems, which challenged students to create their own poems about a mystery object, using the free app “Draw Free for iPad.” Students labeled rhyme schemes and practiced fluency by recording their poems, using the free app “Audio Memos Free – The Voice Record.”
Researching Quicksand, in which students used the Internet to learn about quicksand and report what they had learned using the free app, “iBrainstorm.”

Making Quicksand, in which students used instructions from a Treasure Kai video to make their own quicksand.

After the activities, students participated in a Skype chat with Treasure Kai author Karen Robertson, who lives in Sydney, Australia.

“I feel that iPad apps are a necessary tool in today’s digital world to engage my students in learning.  App activities make their learning highly interactive and allow them to work independently and project based,” teacher Katie Moore Wainscott said. “iPad storybook apps like Treasure Kai combined with free technology apps like iBrainstorm, ShowMe, and others, encourage enhancement of my students’ learning and make daily activities fun and exciting in the classroom.”

 

 

Categories Digital Author, Our Experience
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Posted by: Karen
18/05/2012

Author Interview: Heidi Berthiaume, Bud the Bunny (Demibooks Composer)

Author Interview: Heidi Berthiaume

Q. Tell us about yourself.
My day job is as an information architect and my evening/weekend job
is working on my “projects” – writing fiction, editing fan music
videos, helping promote the works of authors and artists I admire,
making artist trading cards – different things to be creative and tell
stories.

Q. Why did you decide to create a book app?
Bud the Bunny was one of my projects in 2006 – a self-published book
that is available via an online print-on-demand service. My boyfriend
had bought me a plush bunny for my birthday, and every time I walked
by him another piece of Bud’s story became clear. Turning that story
into a children’s picture book seemed like the next obvious step (I
know, my concept of obvious sometimes isn’t). I hired a student from a
local university to do the art and sent the file to Lulu.com and that
was about it at the time. In early 2011, a friend had a son and I sent
a copy of the Bud book over as a gift. I got an IM a few days later
asking if wanted to make Bud into an app, and that started the
process.

Q. What’s unique about your book app?
Bud the Bunny has simple sentences that introduce new B-words that
build to a huge, tongue-twister ending with Bud the Bunny and his
friend Bee surrounded by  a bunch of B-word stuff. Clare Kramer, the
actress who played Glory in the TV show Buffy the Vampire Slayer and
who is well known for her roll in the cheerleader movie Bring It On,
did the reading for the Bud the Bunny app.  And one aspect of the app
that was very important to me is that part of every sale is donated to
the children’s literacy non-profit, Kids Need To Read.

Q. How did you get your app developed?
I initially worked with some developers on a revenue-share agreement,
but when they wouldn’t sign a contract committing to the deadline I
wanted, I started looking for a way to create the app myself, since I
couldn’t afford to hire a developer outright, and I had promised Clare
and Kids Need To Read that this project would happen. I also had the
criteria that I didn’t want to have to learn how to program Xcode.
I’ve written code before and it’s not something I enjoy and I didn’t
want to end up hating myself and the Bud app in order to get it done.
That was the beginning of January 2012. I went down a few paths that
didn’t work out, either because the program didn’t have the
functionality I wanted, or I wasn’t willing to accept their Terms and
Conditions.  At the end of January, I bought the Author’s Guide to
Book Apps and the last section, the Developer Notes, saved me and made
the Bud the Bunny app possible, because it was there I found Demibooks
and their Composer app – I was Kermit flail and Snoopy dance happy.
Composer let me do 98% of what I wanted to do with the Bud app, and I
didn’t have to learn a new programming language because the
interactions are created by choosing from a menu of commands and
setting up basic logic sets (if this happens, then do this). The
online support forum is excellent, with people from Demibooks and
authors of apps that were created with Composer answering questions
and providing examples of how to do things within a few days at the
most, sometimes within hours. The Composer app is free to use, then
you pay Demibooks through their Printshop to have the app submitted to
the Apple App Store. That was a cost I could handle. 333 hours and 95
days after downloading Demibooks Composer, the Bud the Bunny app was
live in to the world.

Q. When and where did you launch?
The Bud the Bunny app launched on May 9, 2012 in the App Store. It is
currently iPad only.

Q. What has been your most effective marketing strategy?
I started Bud’s website and Facebook page in June of 2011, so having
all of that up and going months before the app launched was great as I
had a venue to talk to people about developing the app, submitting it
to the App Store, waiting for review, and then surprising myself and
everyone else when it went live 7 days after being uploaded. Specific
app marking is still taking baby steps right now, so I don’t know
what’s “most effective” just yet.

Q. What’s been your least effective marketing strategies?
Not sure about that right now, although there are some reviews coming
up, so it will be interesting to see what happens as each of those go
live.

Q. Did you use “How to Market a Book App?” If so, how was it useful?
I have not, but will be reading through it soon. I know it will be helpful.

Q. Estimated budget?
Overall, including having the illustrations done for the book back in
2006, less than $2500, a lot of sweat equity and a few 10-12 hours
days.

Q. How are sales going?
Slow, and I’m fine with that, as Bud and I are in this for the long
haul. What did take me completely by surprise were the international
sales. In the first five days, the Bud app was purchased by people in
the UK, Ireland, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, and Israel.
Demibooks also has a reader app called Storytime where they have a
partnership with EDC’s direct sales team, Usborne Books and More,
which will bring in additional sales once the Bud app becomes part of
that program. Since part of each app sale is always donated to Kids
Need To Read, I don’t plan to offer the app for free, although there
may be promotions where all money from sales during a specific time
period will go to Kids Need To Read.

Q. Any advice for other book app makers?
If you are working with a developer, get a signed contract of exactly
what you both are agreeing to do, and when it is going to get done. If
you are using a third-party program, read their Terms and Conditions,
because that is the contract and you need to understand which
intellectual property rights you are keeping and which ones you are
giving up, and check out their support community – how quickly do they
answer people’s questions, are the folks friendly and helpful, are
people excited about using the program? You can pay someone to create
your app, or you can create it yourself – either choice has a cost
(money and/or time) and either choice can be right for you.

Q. Can you give us links to your website, etc.?

Bud the Bunny iPad app -
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/bud-the-bunny/id524306896?mt=8

Bud the Bunny website - http://www.budthebunny.net/bud/

Bud the Bunny on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/BudTheBunny

Bud the Bunny book -
http://www.lulu.com/shop/kirean-lloyd-quinn/bud-the-bunny/paperback/product-710697.html

Demibooks Composer - http://demibooks.com/composer/

Demibooks Storytime - http://demibooks.com/storytime/

Clare Kramer on Twitter -http://twitter.com/#!/ClareKramer

Kids Need To Read - http://www.kidsneedtoread.org/

 

Categories Author Interviews, Digital Author
Comments (0)
Posted by: Karen
17/05/2012

Author Interview: Julie Landry Laviolette, Brush of Truth

 

Julie is a parenting journalist who founded Story Bayou to create  interactive book apps for kids 8-12. She released her first book app, Brush of  Truth, in Feb. 2012.

Q. Tell us about yourself.

I am a mom of two kids, 9 and 11, and I’ve been a journalist for
almost 20 years. I specialize in parenting issues and contribute to regional
parenting magazines around the U.S. and Canada. As a writer, I decided to
create a series of book apps to get kids into reading using all the technology
they love. I started my company, Story Bayou, in August 2011, and we released
our first book app, Brush of Truth, in February 2012. Brush of Truth is my
first work of fiction.

Q. Why did you decide to create a book app?

I can see that digital learning is clearly the path today’s
children will follow. Technology is being incorporated more into classrooms,
and as high-tech gadgets become cheaper, they’re becoming more of a household
staple. I liked the idea of book apps, because kids interact with the story. It
keeps them more engaged, so they’re reading more.

Q. What’s unique about your book app?

Brush of Truth is a choose-your-own-path adventure, where kids get
to have a say in what happens next. It’s written in second person, “your”
voice, so the reader is cast as the main character. Brush of Truth is about two
tweens who find an enchanted paintbrush while playing on a beach. They begin to
discover its powers as they go on different adventures. Brush of Truth has 65 decision
points and 20 possible endings, and is equivalent in length to a 125-page book.

Q. How did you get your app developed?

I partnered with Linxter, Inc. to create the app. Linxter’s CEO,
Jason Milgram, and I live in the same small town in Florida. Our kids go to
school together. Linxter handles all the tech issues: coding, creating the
website, updates, etc. I handle all the writing: the text of the book app,
press releases, website copy, etc. I also have worked as a publicist and
marketing director in the past, so I handled promotion and marketing.

Q. When and where did you launch?

We launched in February 2012 on iTunes, Android and Windows 7. We
entered the Kindle Fire market in March 2012.

Q. What has been your most effective marketing strategy?

We’ve only been out two months, so I’m still trying to figure that
out. We did notice a bump in sales with my initial launch announcement on
Facebook, and after a Fox affiliate did a segment on the app. I would like to
try some price reductions and code giveaways. I also would like to participate
in Moms With Apps and other group promotions.

Q. What’s been your least effective marketing strategies?

We have gotten good local press coverage, but it didn’t really
translate into sales. I’m thinking the coverage is more valuable in terms of
building awareness of the brand.

Q. Did you use “How to Market a Book App?” If so, how was it
useful?

I wish I had heard of the book about six months ago. It would have
saved me a hundred hours of research on my own. The book is packed with useful
tips for book app makers.

Q. Estimated budget?

My developer and I have a revenue share program, and we each
absorbed our own costs. I put in about $3,000 out of pocket, and work about
25-30 hours a week on Story Bayou.

Q. What’s next for Story Bayou?

I’m working on my next book app, Brush of Secrets, which is a
sequel to Brush of Truth. The kids travel to New Orleans to visit an aunt, and
have some crazy adventures in the French Quarter with the brush. I’m originally
from New Orleans, so I’m having a lot of fun writing it. I’m also working on
revised graphics for Brush of Truth’s cover and app icon.

Q. How are sales going?

They’re trickling, but I find they’re on a slow, upward movement
as I continue to market and find review sites. I have not yet done any free or
reduced-price offerings yet, though, which seems to be key.

Q. Any advice for other book app makers?

Research the industry, and reach out to other book app makers.
Everyone (including Karen Robertson) has been gracious and generous in sharing
tips and resources. We’re our own community. We should support each other.
Please connect with me!

Q. Can you give us links to your website, etc.?

Website
with links to marketplaces: www.storybayou.com

Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/StoryBayou

Twitter:
https://twitter.com/#!/StoryBayou

Linked
In: http://www.linkedin.com/in/julielaviolette

 

Press
release:  http://www.prweb.com/releases/2012/3/prweb9348725.htm

Categories Author Interviews, Digital Author
Comments (0)
Posted by: Karen
12/05/2012

Author Interview: Roxie Munro, Roxie’s Doors and Roxies A-MAZE-ING Adventures (OMG Studios)

 

I’m thrilled to introduce you to an accomplished, traditionally-published author and illustrator who has created a couple of terrific book apps. Roxie and I have corresponded via Linked In and email for several months now as we both strive to share the possibility that book apps bring to story and art.

Q: Tell us a bit about yourself and your work.

I’m the author illustrator of more than 35 published children’s books, mainly nonfiction. Many are concept books – mazes, counting/finding/naming, guessing games, inside-outside,lift-the-flap paper-engineered.  Most of my books are considered “interactive.”

Q: Why did you decide to turn some of your work into book apps?

About 6-7 years ago I got a “fan” letter from a fellow in the Netherlands named Omar Curiere, on behalf of his then-5-year-old son, who loved mazes. In Oct 2010 he contacted me again. He owned a graphics company, and wanted to start doing apps and thought my maze books would be great for it. I was delighted.

Q: Are you creating any new work just for the book app format?

“Roxie’s a-MAZE-ing Vacation Adventure” is original work, but is developed out of and based on 5 published maze books. Another app, “Roxie’sDoors,” is a direct book-to-app conversion (the rights and scans from Chronicle reverted to me when the book went out of print).

Q: What’s unique about your book apps?

They are very interactive – mazes, naming/finding/counting/guessing games, lift-the-flap paper-engineered books – all lend themselves particularly well to the app format. Not all children’s books, wonderful though they may be in print, work well as apps. And they are educational as well as fun…well-reviewed by special needs groups, educational sites, school and library venues.

Q: How did you get your apps developed? How did the development process go?

OCG Studios approached me, as mentioned. We made an agreement, and worked together. The process went beautifully – we had the same vision: we wanted beauty, a logical and stylish concept, super high quality, educational and fun. They are in the Netherlands and I’m in New York, but it was no problem. We communicated very well via email. Uploaded art asset scans, did the VO here in NYC with a professional producer, OCG Studios commissioned original music and bought sounds for the apps. They put them in the App Store, and do the necessary periodic updates.

Q: When did they launch?

“Roxie’s a-MAZE-ing Vacation Adventure” launched spring 2011 and“Roxie’s Doors,” late summer 2011.

Q: What have been your most effective marketing strategies?

We hired a business graduate student 4 days a week for 6 months to compile reviewers, contact and deal with them, do press releases, etc. In the last few months, some sites (not the major respectable book venues) have been requesting small payments for reviews, which we do not do. However, we did pay a fee to Crazy Mike who did a great review and a YouTube video, which went a bit viral, and was picked up by a lot of other reviewers.

Q: What’s been your least effective marketing strategies?

Surprisingly, the classic and important book review sites, like the School Library Journal, Horn Book, Kirkus, etc didn’t have much of an impact on downloads (these are very influential in the children’s book publishing world, however). Nor did a national interview on NPR’s Weekend “All Things Considered.” They enhanced my “brand,” but did not seem to directly result in sales.

Q: Have you ever made any of your apps free? What happened?

We made the iPhone/iTouch version of “Roxie’s a-MAZE-ing VacationAdventure” free for 24 hours and about 23,000 were downloaded.  That app also has a LITE version which isalways free. We also made “Roxie’s Doors” $.99 for a day. (As Karen has noted, in the App Store we then went from 5 stars to 4 – when people get something for free or cheap, I guess they don’t respect it enough.)

Q: Did you use “Author’s Guide to Book Apps” and if so, what was most useful about it?

I have read most of it – VERY helpful. It reinforces a lot of what I learned about marketing, in particular. Highly recommended.

Q: Estimated budget

Deals vary, and are all over the place. To make a good interactive app,I have heard from various sources that you need to pay a developer $20,000 to $50,000 or more, depending upon what you want and how complex and truly interactive (not just animated) it is. There are DIY programs out there, and lots of folks around who can make an app for you, but those apps will never get the critical respect, the on-going service, and the cutting edge technology and superior qualityof a professional developer.

Q: How are your sales going?

Very nicely – unlike books, which often peak a month or two after publication,the apps sell quite steadily week after week, month after month. “Roxie’s a-MAZE-ingVacation Adventure” (which is wordless, so English is not an issue), sells in 60 countries, a year after coming out. “Roxie’s Doors” (in English) hovers around selling in 25-30 countries a week. We made back our investment and are showing weekly profits.

Q: Anything else you’d like to add?

Just that it’s a lot of fun to make apps! And a lot of work (besides creatingthe giant 42 inch x 60 inch maze, I did almost 400 animation spots for the Maze app, and another 50-75 for the Doors app). I particularly like the collaborative part – usually I work alone on my books, with an editor and art director periodically stepping in, but making the apps, with a smart, engaged,technically advanced, and very creative developer like OCG Studios, was a wonderful experience.

Q: Links to your app, social media, website, etc.

Apptrailers:

Roxie’sDoors   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BPyztKVCaw

Roxie’sa-MAZE-ing Vacation Adventure http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yj43npwXbRc

Artist/authormain website: http://www.roxiemunro.com/

Developer’swebsite: http://www.ocgstudios.com/

AppStore:

iPadmaze app: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/roxies-maze-ing-vacation-adventure/id427167249?mt=8&ls=1#

iPhone/iTouchmaze app: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/roxies-maze-ing-vacation-adventures/id480108843?mt=8

iPadDoors app:http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/roxies-maze-ing-vacation-adventures/id480108843?mt=8

Otherwebsites for Roxie Munro:

http://www.publishersmarketplace.com/members/roxiemunro/

https://twitter.com/#!/roxiemunro

https://www.facebook.com/roxiemunro

https://www.facebook.com/RoxieMunroStudio

http://www.amazon.com/Roxie-Munro/e/B001HD05HW

Categories Author Interviews, Digital Author
Comments (0)
Posted by: Karen
07/05/2012

Radio Interview: Secrets to Creating Children’s Book Apps

 

On February 7th 2012 I talked with Paula Krapf and Penny Sansevieri about turning children’s stories into book apps.

Following are links to resources I mention on the call:

Link to the radio interview replay:  http://www.blogtalkradio.com/thepublishinginsiders/2012/02/08/secrets-to-creating-childrens-book-apps

“Treasure Kai and the Lost Gold of Shark Island” book app

“Author’s Guide to Book Apps” 120+ page eBook and Resource Manual 

Digital Storytime – your one-stop guide to terrific children’s book apps. Be sure to check out Carisa Kluver’s blog as well linked to from the top of the page.

Freelance websites:

www.elance.com

www.freelancer.com

www.odesk.com

Narration

www.voices.com

Sound Effects and Music

www.stockmusic.net

www.freesound.org

www.royaltyfreemusic.com

A Few Developers

www.demibooks.com

www.dragonpencil.com

www.talespring.com

www.interactivetouchbooks.com

www.interactbooks.com

www.zebraminds.com

www.ripplfx.com

 

Editing

Laura Backes at Children’s Book Insider – www.cbiclubhouse.com/get-a-personalized-critique

Children’s Writing

Children’s Book Insider - This is a super site for children’s writers. Be sure to check out their CBI Clubhouse. For less than  a cup of coffee a month, have access to numerous experts, articles and resources about children’s writing and publishing.

Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators -  www.scbwi.org

Self Publishing

Independent Book Publishers Association – www.ibpa-online.org

Author Marketing Experts – another super site on everything an author needs to know about getting word out about their work and more!

Blog about Apps and US Core Standards and Education

Cyndie Seaborne is a retired teacher and dynamo who is creating educational book apps for kids. She is writing about matching apps with the core standards established by the US education system.  One of the things she’s done is create a lesson plan around Treasure Kai to use as an example.
Smartyappattack.com

Categories Digital Author, How to
Comments (4)
Posted by: Karen
05/05/2012

Author Interview: Bruce Batchelor, It’s Cool to be Clever

 

I wanted to interview Bruce because his app, “It’s Cool to be Clever,” is such a great example of expanding the experience of a non fiction story. Prepare to be inspired!

Q: Tell us a bit about yourself and how you came to write “It’s Cool to be Clever.”

I’m not the author of this story — I’m the editor and publisher of the print book and producer of the app edition. Leanne Jones wrote the story, and did it in the first person, so it appears that Edson Hendricks is talking to us. This proved very handy when we created the iPad app, and invited Edson to narrate the story himself.  Leanne was doing research for a novel and stumbled across the story of how the Internet was really invented, then decided to write it as a story for children.
Q: Why did you decide to create  “It’s Cool to be Clever” as a book app?
We first published IT’S COOL TO BE CLEVER as a hardcover print book. In the process of researching and then fact-checking, we uncovered so much fascinating material that we decided to create an app to make it all available to children and their parents. With an app we could include video interviews, musical score, academic articles (on bullying), family photos, audio interviews, old email threads between computer scientists in the late 1970s, internal IBM reports, etc., etc.
Q: What’s unique about your book app?
COOL TO BE CLEVER reveals a wonderful link between a young boy overcoming schoolyard bullying by retreating into an imaginary world where he only has machine parts and no biological internal organs. Machines don’t have emotions so they don’t feel shame or loneliness. Later in life, this same boy used his unique ability to “think like a machine” to create a new way for computers to communicate, an invention that soon came into use around the world in the 1970s and served as the network design for what is now known as the Internet. The app presents the full story, offering the reader entrance into this era and situation through many ways: reading the illustrated text, listening to the narrated story, watching video clips, listening to audio comments, reading PDFs, scrolling through a family album, consulting resource materials about bullying provided by the Red Cross and the Council for Exceptional Children, leafing through historic scientific documents and correspondence about the early days of computer networking…
Q: How did you get it developed?  How did the development process go?
My wife (she’s a graphic designer) and I decided what “assets” we wanted to include, and set about to record the narration and musical score, record the video and audio interviews and gathered all the other “backstory” materials. Then we hired Jim Roepke as our developer — he’d created apps for Motorola and other clients, so thoroughly understood the “how”. He was great to work with — he made many suggestions which expanding our ideas about what was possible in an app (our experience had been in print books). Once he showed us concepts, Marsha would re-design accordingly. It was a very creative learning experience.
Q: When did it launch?
November 2011
Q: What have been your most effective marketing strategies?
Possibly the word “effective” presumes having a single marketing goal, such as sales revenue. But I expect most app projects have multiple goals — we certainly did: learning/experimenting, building capability and credibility for future app projects, raising the profile for the author and/or developer, helping children (by providing inspiring learning materials) and their parents, etc., etc. In our case, we were not primarily focused on “making money” on this first app. We really did want to get this app into as many hands as possible. So our most effective marketing strategies were to solicit reviews from reviewers of children’s apps, and then to make the app free.
    I used Karen’s list of website to find potential reviewers and, where necessary, paid for “premium service” so a review would be done in a timely fashion. We were delighted to get near-universal praise for COOL TO BE CLEVER. Once we included COOL in various free app fridays and other alerts, we quickly had over a thousand people download the app from over 40 countries. We’ve decided to keep the pricing at free for the next month at least, happy that people are spreading the word now. Some schools have begun to include COOL as a resource for grade 7 and 8 levels, so that’s a thrill for us.
Q: What’s been your least  effective marketing strategies?
Many Canadian newspapers ran quite favourable feature stories about COOL in December (when the price was set to $6.99), yet this hardly generated any sales. We were puzzled by this, and don’t really have a solid understanding about why this publicity wasn’t effective.
Q: Have you ever made your app free? What happened?
Yes, we began by participating in free app Friday and similar notifications to potential customers. Then we saw how many downloads we got and were delighted. Revisiting our goals (see above) we decided to leave the pricing at free ever since.
Q: Did you use “Author’s Guide to Book Apps” and if so, what was most useful about it?
Yes, it was very helpful, especially the list of potential reviewers for children’s apps.
Q: What other apps did you use to inspire you?
Book-ish apps. THE WASTE LAND  by T.S. Eliot, OUR CHOICE by Al Gore, ON THE ROAD by Jack Kerouac, THE MAGIC OF REALITY by Richard Dawkins.
Q: Estimated budget (only ballpark or any insight you can give)
$30,000 with everyone getting paid at market rate.
Q: How are your sales going? (only say what you are comfortable saying)
Our “sales” are free downloads, and we are merrily adding about 100 per week at this point. Last month we had a few 100+ days
Q: Anything else you’d like to add?
We’ve thoroughly enjoyed this experience, and are now in discussion with people interested in presenting their “stories” in iPad apps. “Stories” is a rather loose term for “whatever they want to sell to people.” Apps allow such latitude in content, that we expect to be working with musicians who will have their performances for sale as apps, for example, and an author who wishes to have his meditations displayed with photos and optional narration or music tracks plus updates and links, as another example. We’ll also be using iBook Author to create two textbook apps (one on security and governance, the other on calculus). I’m delighted that iPad apps allow us to work on such a range of projects, and the distribution channel is easy and worldwide. It is my sense that we are entering a very creative and productive period for content creators everywhere.
Q: Links to your app, social media, website, etc.

 

Categories Author Interviews, Digital Author
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Posted by: Karen
01/05/2012

Author Interview – Nina Lim, Super Harry (Picpocket)

 

“It’s been a wonderful experience creating a storybook app and I’m so glad I’ve done it. I feel like there’s a little bit of me and my imagination out there in the world hopefully making kids laugh and smile. I’ve met so many fabulous, passionate, creative and talented people and I’m really grateful for the experience.” Nina Lim

 

Q: Tell us a bit about yourself and how you came to write Super Harry.

I am a former university teacher turned author and mother of three. I’ve always loved reading and writing and kids books have always held a special place in my heart. I had the idea for Super Harry one day when I was walking in the sun. An idea popped into my head about a boy who keeps on having rotten luck. And each day his rotten luck snowballs until he can’t take it anymore and he shouts, “That’s it! Things have got to change!” I thought it was a funny idea and I set to work on it.

Q: Why did you decide to create  Super Harry as a book app?

I originally sent Harry out to all the major publishers as a manuscript. Astonishingly, Walker Books (home of Paddington Bear) picked it up off the slush pile and I got an email from an editor indicating they were interested and were going to bring it into an editorial meeting. Before I could break out the champagne however, I received another email saying sorry they were no longer interested. One of the other editors put the kibosh on it. And that was that. Instead of falling down into a heap though, I decided to take it as an enormous confidence booster. The story had merit and originality and I was going to bring it to the world! After that I read Karen’s ebooks and I realized that creating a storybook app was the perfect thing for me to do.

Q: What’s unique about your book app?

One of the nice things about Super Harry is that it has a positive and empowering message for young kids. That with determination and the right attitude you can turn even the worst of days around. It is your attitude and your actions that influences how you meet the world and how the world meets you.

Q: How did you get it developed?  How did the development process go?

I worked with a developer called PicPocket Books. They specialize in bringing children’s books to mobile devices. I had already downloaded quite a number of their books and I liked their style. I was thrilled to join their stable of authors.

Q: When did it launch?

 It launched in the beginning of March 2012. So at the time of writing it has been live on the App Store for about 6 weeks.

Q: What have been your most effective marketing strategies?

It’s still very early days for me but I have felt the most immediate positive response from social media channels. Super Harry has a Facebook page and that has been a wonderful way to meet other developers, authors, reviewers and readers.

Q: What’s been your least  effective marketing strategies? 

This remains to be seen. My  feeling is that the best methods are relationship building and word-of-mouth. Personally, I can’t stand it when someone gives me “the hard sell”. I always prefer to buy from someone who gives back to the community and helps others. There is a beautiful saying, “A candle loses nothing by lighting another.”

Q: Did you use “Author’s Guide to Book Apps” and if so, what was most useful about it?

Oh, this was essential for me! To be honest, apart from the loads of practical information it provides, one of the best things about the ebook is that it got me off my butt and into action (metaphorically speaking!).

Q: What other apps did you use to inspire you?

 There are so many brilliant story apps that I love. And many are by small and independent publishers. I (and my kids) love Maid Marion Muffins, The Monster at the End of this Book, Mabel and
LuLu, Charlie Brown’s Christmas, Treasure Kai, The Edible Suit, Penelope the Purple Pirate, The Little Book of Feelings. The list goes on and on.

Q: Estimated budget

 When it comes to budget I would say you need to allow yourself more than you originally think. Before you know
it everything starts to add up. Once you factor in preproduction, production, and then website and marketing costs you need to be prepared to invest some
serious money to make a quality product.         

Q: How are your sales going?

In the short time Super Harry has been on the market it has already sold in a number of countries which is an amazing feeling!

Q: Anything else you’d like to add?

It’s been a wonderful experience creating a storybook app and I’m so glad I’ve done it. I feel like there’s a little bit of me and my imagination out there in the world hopefully making kids laugh and smile. I’ve met so many fabulous, passionate, creative and talented people and I’m really grateful for the experience.

You can  see a short video of Super Harry here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4NLiSPme7Xw

And here is a link to Super Harry in iTunes http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/super-harry-hd/id504334647?mt=8

If you would like to contact Nina please see her website www.ninalim.com or visit Super Harry’s FB page https://www.facebook.com/SuperHarrysRottenLuck

 

Categories Author Interviews, Digital Author
Comments (0)
Posted by: Karen
29/04/2012

5 Terrific Australian Book Apps

Karen Robertson speaking at CBCA

On April 3rd, I had the thrill of speaking to about 100 teacher librarians, authors and publishers about book app.

I put together a lit of 5 Terrific Australian book apps and other resources for them.

Here it is.

 

 

 

5 of the Best Australian Book Apps

Categories Apps Worth Looking At, Digital Author
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Posted by: Karen
16/04/2012

Author Interview – Melissa C Northway

 

In this blog post, I talk with Melissa C Northway, author of the ”Penelope the Purple Pirate” book app for kids. Melissa is a very active marketer of her app and here she shares her experience creating her first app and marketing it, achieving over 10,000 downloads.

Q: Tell us a bit about yourself and how you came to write Penelope Purple Pirate.

A: My background is in health and marketing.  I grew up with two entrepreneurial parents who started their own Nursing Agency while I was in middle school – so that type of spirit has been instilled in me since I was fairly young.

When my daughter was around one years of age we started to frequent our local bookstore and I would sit there for hours reading her books.  I feel in love with the whole idea of writing a children’s book and wanted to create something that I could pass down to her.  The idea to write Penelope came about one night as I was listening to my husband tell our daughter a bedtime story about Pirate RedBeard and his adventures across the high seas.  At that moment I had a vision of a little redheaded girl pirate who likes to take adventures.  I wrote the story that week and it took me about a year to revise and edit it to my liking, as well as find an illustrator to help create the story. I also joined the Society for Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, attended several of their functions and had editors and agents review my story.

Q: Why did you decide to create Penelope as a book app?

A: The idea to create an app came about from a conversation with a mom at my daughter’s preschool spring of 2010.  She and her husband had created an app for children with learning disabilities and she thought this would be a good avenue to publish Penelope.  This was a new market for me so I did some research into the industry and liked what I saw!

Q: What’s unique about your book app?

A: We have been fortunate in the response to Penelope the Purple Pirate!  As my little girl is a bit of a tomboy, I wanted to create a spunky female role model – much like how Pippi Longstocking was for me!

One of the things that sets Penelope apart is the fun facts about the sea creatures in the story, as well as discussion questions and activities for the home or classroom.  Some of the questions talk about how we should treat others as each of Penelope’s friends have some type of physical disability that the parent or educator can touch on if they choose to.

The App Review sites have been so wonderful and supportive!  Digital Storytime chose it as a Top 10 Educational iPad App, lilsugar of Popsugar.com chose it as a Top 10 Must-Have eBook, Technology in Education chose it as one of the Best Apps of 2011, and recently it was chosen to be part of the AppStar 250+ App most highly reviewed apps. We were listed in What’s Hot books for over four weeks in the iTunes store and a Top 25 iTunes book app. Not too bad for a first time author!  That is why I tell people who are interested in creating a children’s picture book story, to first make the story as good as they can, do their research and just go for it!

Q: How did you get it developed? Who did you work with?

A: After we had about half of the illustrations finished I sent it in to PicPocket Books after a lot of research on the various companies doing storybook apps.  Lynette Mattke, owner of PicPocket Books has been wonderful to work with and we continue to work on Penelope’s next adventure plus two more storybook apps coming out this year.  My company, Polka Dots Publishing, is now working with other authors to help promote their apps and eBooks.

Q: When did it launch?

A: It was launched around my birthday in January 2011.  It was a great birthday present!  Penelope next adventure, Penelope the Purple Pardner, takes her to the Wild West will be available sometime this summer.

Q: Tell us about the inspiration for the first joint venture marketing event, Talk Like a Pirate Day because you were one of the innovators.

A: Siva at Technology in Special Education contacted me the week of September 19th about Talk Like a Pirate Day .  I think he might have seen some of my postings on Facebook as I was making a big deal of the day – because really, who doesn’t enjoy the chance to speak like a pirate for a day?

Siva, Mich over at Pirate Doodle and I thought it might be fun to have a couple pirate-themed apps collaborate and have a Facebook Party.  We contacted some other developers (such as yourself) to see if they would like to join in the Talk Like a Pirate App Facebook Party where I co-hosted the party.   It was so much fun and successful for many of the developers, that it lead to other Appy Parties such as Halloween Appy Party, Thanksgiving Appy Party and a Christmas Appy Party.  We have another one scheduled for the beginning of April!

Q: What have been your most effective marketing strategies?

A: Working with App Review sites has been an important relationship and they have been wonderful in helping to provide information to their followers such as when an app is free or on sale.  Lorraine Akemann over at Moms With Apps (MWA) has also been a tremendous supporter of developers and I really recommend people become a member of this great group! Also, working with mommy bloggers and hosting giveaways are important strategies. I believe in giving back as much as I can and try to have fun giveaways on Penelope’s Facebook Page as well as supporting organizations such as A4cwsn, Technology in Special Education, and literacy groups.

Q: What’s been your least effective marketing strategies?

A: Some marketing works better than others, but I wouldn’t say any were ineffective as it is tough sometimes to know where things might lead.

Q: Have you ever gone free with your app and what were the results?

A:  We have only offered Penelope Free twice.  The results were great the first time as she reached #21 for the iPhone and #17 for the iPad.  And last month we offered her free and she reached the Top 50.

Q: How are your sales going?

A: Sales have been steady.  Usually around campaigns she makes it in the Top 200 but usually we are in the Top 1,000 Apps.  We have over 10,000 downloads and have been in the Top 50 in over 11 countries. I am happy to say we have broken even as far development costs and sales are steady. It is important to continue each month with marketing efforts and look to collaborate with other developers, mom sites, review sites, etc. That first month that Penelope was released, I must have sent out over 50 emails to review sites asking for a review, mom sites asking to host a giveaway and continue to do so!

Q: Anything else you’d like to add?

A: I would just like to add that if you have a dream to create a storybook app and/or book there is no better time to do it!  At our fingertips is a technology that allows your story to be available worldwide and enjoyed by children everywhere.  Do your research (I highly recommend Karen’s eBook on how best to market your app), figure out what route makes the most sense – whether you want to work with a big or small developer, or even do it yourself, and know that you can do it.

On a side note, I have been working with developers and authors to help promote their apps through social media channels.  One of my clients has seen a 5,000% increase to her Facebook Page Impressions numbers as well as over a 400% increase to the number of FB followers since we started to work together.  If you would like more information about the services I provide – please contact me at: mcube@sbcglobal.net and www.melissanorthway.com

Here is a link to Penelope the Purple Pirate: http://itunes.apple.com/au/app/penelope-the-purple-pirate/id413515760?mt=8

Categories Author Interviews, Digital Author
Comments (3)
Posted by: Karen
26/03/2012
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