Andrea Beck

Readings

Presentation 1, Grade JK – 3:
Featuring Elliot Moose and Pierre Le Poof

My primary sessions are a jam-packed interactive hour of stories, art, role play and inspiration. I start children off with tales of my childhood and early years at school so they begin to identify with me and my childhood challenges and see themselves as creators too. I speak of the important world of imagination and “playing pretend” and how authors play pretend to make their characters come to life in stories.

Next, I read an Elliot Moose story then using role play and props, we follow the story through each stage of production from first idea to a developed story. I also show them how the art must tell a story too and share storyboards to final art, explaining the stages as I go.

To keep things super engaging, I start and finish each session at the easel by showing the children how I develop a character from shapes and I leave the completed drawing at the school as a reminder of the visit. I always bring original art, storyboards and manuscripts with me for the children to examine.

Presentation 2, Grades 4 – 8 :
Inside the Writers Mind – or – Believe in Yourself and Dream Big

This is a motivational session aimed at helping the students see the exciting possibilities open to them in the world of stories and ideas. I am an author/illustrator, my husband was an inventor, my kids grew up to be film makers. I model for students how much FUN it is to live with a mind full of stories, images and ideas – and that if taken seriously, imagination leads us to wonderful accomplishments.

Using the principles of “go for your dreams”, “nothing ventured nothing gained”, and “believing in oneself”. I share with them the story of how I became a writer, including snippets of my childhood, my attachment to toys, and how it led to a career of toy making, then writing and illustration. I share the story of what I did to land my first series, Elliot Moose, including details of the submission process and how that series became a TV show. I explain how a writer’s imagination is always “on” and how random thoughts and questions can quickly become kernels for stories, providing examples from Pierre Le Poof and Elliot Moose.

I also explain how I encouraged my son to write down his ideas when he was in grade eight and how some of those ideas are being used in scripts today. I share how my kids’ first YouTube video landed almost three million hits and a big LA agent – and that they started it all by having fun making videos for school projects.

To end on a high note, I finish the session by showing them how I develop a character visually, drawing Elliot Moose or Pierre le Poof, starting with shapes and ending with a finished drawing. I leave all drawings behind as a reminder of the visit.

Special Equipment:

A television is good. I bring any other AV equipment that I need.

Book Sales:

Andrea will send an order form ahead of time, and bring the books pre-autographed for each child.

Workshops

PRIMARY WRITING WORKSHOP (60 minutes)
Simple Character and Plot Development
Age Range: Grade 1 - 2
Maximum number: 22 students, or one class.

This is a workshop aimed at making story writing a friendly process for primary students. Role play is part of the workshop to keep the kids engaged. I provide the children with an everyday scenario that puts them in touch with the kernel of a story and character. Using role play and a few props to make it fun, we begin with simple lists to help us flesh out a character, his name, his looks, his likes, his problems, his friends, his enemies, his favourite things, his family etc -- and we figure out what he wants and needs. Then we develop a very simple story, following a classic formula and paying special attention to the obstacles our character may face in getting to his or her goal. I show kids that all of the elements that they’ve been taught at school are exactly the ones I use when I write an Elliot Moose or Pierre Le Poof story, and that revising is as important as writing. As a special treat at the end of the session, I draw their character and send it back to the classroom with the children.

ILLUSTRATION WORKSHOP: Creating and Drawing Your Own Character (80 minutes)
Age Range: Grades 4-8
Maximum number: 30 students.

This workshop begins with a quick drawing demonstration followed by an explanation that I must know a character well before I can draw it. I model how I get to know the character and as a group, we create our character then the students can choose to use the group’s character or develop one of their own as we progress through the workshop.

Next I demonstrate how I develop a character visually from shapes, using Elliot Moose or Pierre Le Poof as an example. We then use those same scaffolding methods to draw the character that we created as a group. Using this technique each student draws their own version of the character, or if they prefer, may draw a character from one of their own stories.

• Students will need to bring a hard drawing surface, paper, pencil and eraser.

Special Equipment:

No AV, however kids should bring paper, pencils and a hard surface to work on.

Book Sales:

Andrea will send an order form ahead of time, and bring the books pre-autographed for each child.

Other Presentations

Andrea is available for other kinds of presentations (i.e., keynote addresses, professional development day sessions for teachers and librarians). Please speak to her about your needs.

Biography

As a little kid, Andrea Beck loved her toy monkey. She dragged him around by his rubber paws and felt he listened when she spoke. She still likes to believe that toys listen. “The idea for Elliot, my first character, was rooted in my years as a toymaker and in a childhood where my toys seemed truly alive,” states Beck. “I was a shy child and afraid of the whole idea of school and reading in grade one, but I did love the pictures. We didn’t have books at home and I remember ogling a copy of The Cat in the Hat at my friend’s house – I wished I could read it again and again. Other things that caught my eye were comic books and a secret copy of “Tales of the Crypt” which I kept well hidden! When I was old enough to read novels, I raided my grandmother’s book shelf.”

No great surprise that after training in fine art at Dawson College, and studying at OCAD, Andrea’s first career was in toy making. Then, after she sold her toy company and got her kids off to school it was a natural progression to begin writing and illustrating. “I dabbled with writing for a couple of years when my kids were small, and when the timing was right I sent in a submission for Elliot Moose.” Her first submission was snapped up by Kids Can Press. It skyrocketed into popularity and was quickly made into a book and television series, Elliot Moose, which still airs on TVO and QUBO. Andrea likes to work on series because she is never finished with a character after one book, in fact she has brought Elliot back out to play in an upcoming title, Elliot’s Fire Truck and has just launched Pierre Le Poof, a new series.

Andrea Beck was raised in Rosemere, Quebec, and moved to Toronto to go to OCAD, later she studied at York University and University of Toronto. She currently lives in Unionville, Ontario, with her children, filmmakers David and Ian Purchase.