Reading Children’s Book Aloud on Video

Posted on By csoundar

Youtube seems to have an amazing collection of books read by their authors. I went looking and found several great ones.


While some are simple videos of the author reading, others are voice-overs like an audio-book. Some videos are created and published by the publishers and many are the authors’ own efforts at creating publicity. 


I have grown as an author, in the shadows of some great authors who promote their books and themselves as a brand so well – names that pop-up (pun entirely intended) – Candy Gourlay and Sarah McIntyre from SCBWI British Isles. I cannot match their creativity or their energy.  And I am not really a stage kind of person. But perhaps I could record using my webcam and the mike without stepping out of my house. There might not be any audience for it – perhaps someone will find it and then find the book.


So here are some picture books on YouTube, read by their authors. 


Brown Bear, Brown Bear  – Bill Martin
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdHCYgO9zh8


There Are Cats In This Book
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEEZfVfvuBg

Mr. Gloomingdale’s Downpour
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ncU1EMBwUuY



Mike Artell reading his book LEGS
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nanFfJGfoJY
The Whale Who Ate Everything: Children’s Audio Books
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFq441el_ls

ONLY COWS ALLOWED! Lynn Plourde
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hkyaGH2_YTU


Llama Llama Misses Mama – Anna Dewdney
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xB6i1ReuT8

Anna Dewdney and Penguin have posted videos of all of the books in the Llama Llama series too. 


Find out about Chitra Soundar’s books at www.chitrasoundar.com. 

www.chitrasoundar.com

Reading Time

Posted on By csoundar

When do writers get to read?

They have to write, live and be a parent, spouse, teacher, sister, daughter and more. They have to buy birthday cards, clean the house, wash the car, take the kids to music lessons and cook dinner too. When festivals arrive writers have to throw parties, cook cocktail food, buy tons of beer for their friends and somehow find the time to finish writing projects.
But in the meantime, the literary world has been busy. Editors have been beavering away at books written a year ago, designers making new covers, journalists writing articles about digital publishing and critics reviewing books before they turn into books.
There are blogs, magazines, books and websites to read. There are Facebook pages that lead to wonderful articles, interviews, podcasts and publicity contests.

Where is the time to read so much content? When do you find the time to sit down, put up your feet and switch on the laptop or the tablet and say “Don’t speak until spoken to! I am going to read.”
I am single, work full time and write in all my free time. I still have to find the time during a busy commute, long day at work, tired night back home to write. When do I read? Some days when I spend ages reading, I feel guilty. Writers write, but don’t they need to read too?
But how much can they read? They love books written by their friends, friends of friends, big writers, up and coming writers. They love blog posts and interviews. They love a funny podcast. They want to read the library petition. They want to read the Bookseller magazine and the Carousel. They want to read all the twitter messages about new books, hot books, bad books and other writers.
How do others manage? I struggle. Some days, I don’t read at all. Some days I don’t write at all. Some days, I just click buttons on the tablet, reading a twitter message at a time. Sometimes the twitter message takes me to a wonderful blog or an article or a review. Some days, I am just happy watching TV, without reminding me about my writerly and readerly commitments.
It’s hard to be a working writer. This industry is prolific. A big industry but shrinking all at the same time. The technology is evolving – so reading about the digital age and the e-books is as important as word structure and voice.
But I know one thing from experience – there is no substitute for writing and there is no substitute for reading good literature that will inform me as a reader and a writer. Everything else is secondary to that.
So from next week, I am not only going to track my writing time as usual, but also my reading time. I am going to write down the books and articles that inspired me. I am going to write down the books I skimmed in the library and the bookshops.
Reading is the mirror-image of writing and as a writer, I have no choice but to find the time for it. But I know there is a time and place for everything and I just have to find the right balance.
www.chitrasoundar.com