How to fund your author visit
Author visits are paid bookings, and those fees are part of how children's authors make a living and keep writing. The good news: there's more money for author visits than most schools realize. Here's where to look, how to apply, and how to raise the rest.
Funds your school may already have
Many schools can pay for an author visit with federal money they already receive. The person who decides is usually your district's Title I or federal programs coordinator, so talk to them before you book.
Title I (schoolwide programs)
If your school runs a Title I schoolwide program, an author visit can be funded when it supports a literacy or writing goal in your school plan, such as a writing workshop series.
Title I family engagement funds
Districts with larger Title I budgets set aside money for parent and family engagement. A Family Literacy Night where the author shows families how to read and write together at home is a strong fit.
Title IV-A (well-rounded education)
This flexible grant covers reading, writing, and arts enrichment. Ask whether author visits can be included in your district's Title IV-A plan.
Title II-A (teacher learning)
Can cover only the teacher-training part of a visit, like an author-led session for teachers on teaching the writing process. Useful for splitting costs.
21st Century Community Learning Centers
If your school has a federally funded afterschool or summer program, its budget can include literacy activities like a young-authors workshop.
What to say to your Title I coordinator
“We'd like to bring a published children's author to lead a writing workshop series tied to our school plan's goal of improving student writing. Students will read the author's book beforehand, attend grade-level workshops, and we'll host a family literacy night where the author models reading strategies families can use at home. Can this be funded through our Title I schoolwide funds or our family engagement allocation?”
Key rule: federal funds can pay for instruction and family literacy, but not entertainment. Describe the visit as workshops with learning goals, keep the agenda and sign-in sheets, and save student work to show results. Learn more: Title I, Part A · 21st Century Community Learning Centers
Grants that can help pay for an author visit
These national programs fund author visits directly or fund literacy projects an author visit fits into. Amounts and deadlines change, so always check the funder's website before applying.
ALSC Maureen Hayes Author/Illustrator Visit Award
Built for exactly this: it pays a children's author or illustrator's honorarium and travel for children who otherwise wouldn't get to meet one. Applicants must work together with other libraries and bookstores on the event. The host covers the author's local lodging and hospitality.
ALA National Day of Racial Healing Grants
Author visits are listed as an allowable activity, and high-poverty schools get extra consideration. The event must take place between January 15 and February 1, around the National Day of Racial Healing. Pair it with a book about belonging, identity, or community.
AASL Innovative Reading Grant
Funds a new reading-motivation program for grades K-9. An author visit can be one piece of a larger program.
ALSC / Candlewick "Light the Way" Grant
Supports library outreach to underserved children, such as English learners. A bilingual author program is a natural fit.
Joann Sweetland Lum Memorial Grant (ALSC/YALSA)
For a creative literacy project, such as an author-led writing workshop in grades 5-8. It can't pay travel, so a local author works best.
NEA Foundation Student Success Grants
Funds learning experiences for students. Frame the visit as an author residency or writing project.
NEA Foundation Envision Equity Grants
Supports family-school partnerships and culturally sustaining teaching, so an own-voices author paired with a family literacy night fits well.
DKG Educational Project Award
From the Delta Kappa Gamma society of women educators. A literacy project built around author visits can qualify.
Voya Unsung Heroes
Rewards innovative classroom projects. An author residency with student writing outcomes is a stronger pitch than a single assembly.
National PTA Grants
Each grant is tied to a specific National PTA program, and these change every year. The Reflections Arts Enhancement grant is usually the closest fit for an arts and culture event like an author visit, but your PTA must also run that year's Reflections program, and 2026-27 activities must take place between January 1 and May 14, 2027.
Walmart Spark Good Local Grants
Awarded by your local store. Frame the visit as a community or youth enrichment event.
Target Community Engagement Funds
Awarded by local stores. Youth development and creative programming are the best fit.
DonorsChoose
Teachers can raise money for a virtual author visit (in-person visitors aren't currently allowed). Keep the request modest for the best results.
SCBWI Amber Brown Grant
One school receives an all-expenses-paid visit from a children's author or illustrator, plus books and a small event stipend.
Finding grants in your state and community
Some of the best funding is local, and it's often less competitive than national grants. Start with these four places in your state.
Your state arts agency
Most run arts-education or artist-in-residence grants that pay artist fees. Authors and writing residencies often count.
Your state humanities council
Many offer small grants for public programs, like a community author talk. Some programs were paused by 2025-26 federal cuts, so check yours.
Your state library agency
State libraries distribute federal library (LSTA) grants. Partnering with your public library is often the way in.
Your community foundation
Nearly every region has one, and many fund education and literacy. Ask about small grants for schools.
Search tips
- Search phrases like “[your state] arts council arts education grant”, “[your county] community foundation education grant”, “[your city] education foundation teacher grant”, and “[your city] credit union teacher grant”.
- Look for artist-in-residence or teaching artist programs. Authors and writing residencies often count as “artists.”
- Check whether your district has an education foundation. Many give small classroom grants every year.
- Ask your public library about partnering. Libraries can apply for grants that schools can't, and can co-host an evening author event for families.
- Ask local banks, credit unions, and utility companies. Many have small community or teacher grants that aren't widely advertised.
- Choose a local author when you can. Some state grants only pay in-state artists, and local authors keep travel costs down.
Examples of state and regional programs
Michigan Arts and Culture Council
Michigan: schools apply directly through the Experience Support program. Artist fees and residencies are allowable, but out-of-state travel is not, so a Michigan author is the best fit. Requires a 25% cash match, and the program must be open to every student at the school. FY27 applications are due October 22, 2026.
Michigan Humanities Arts and Humanities Touring Grants
Michigan: Michigan nonprofits (check whether your school qualifies) can get up to half of a presenter's fee and travel covered, up to $2,500. Closed for 2026, so check for the next round.
Equity in Arts Learning (Colorado)
Colorado: $10,000 to $25,000 for multi-week residencies with professional artists, including writers, rather than one-day visits. Letters of intent due November 20, 2026.
California Humanities Connecting California
California: schools can apply for public events, like a family author night open to the whole community. $1,000 to $5,000 with a 1:1 match from non-federal money or in-kind support (so Title I funds can't be the match); future deadlines will be announced.
Maine School Author Visit Grants (Maine Literacy Fund)
Maine: $500 to $1,000 grants made specifically for author and illustrator visits, reviewed on a rolling basis through October 31.
Texas Book Festival Reading Rock Stars
Texas: brings authors to Title I elementary schools in select Texas metro areas at no cost. 2026-27 applications are closed.
Local service clubs
Service clubs love funding literacy, but money usually flows through the local chapter, not a national application. Find your nearest club, ask to speak at a meeting, and propose a reading event the club can sponsor or co-host.
Rotary
Basic education and literacy is one of Rotary's core causes. Local clubs fund school projects from club funds or district grants.
Kiwanis
Focused on children, with grants available to local clubs for literacy. Many already sponsor K-Kids clubs in elementary schools.
Elks
Every lodge can apply each year for Elks National Foundation grants, including Beacon Grants for community projects the lodge leads. Propose an event the lodge leads or co-hosts.
Altrusa
Literacy is Altrusa's signature cause. Local clubs run and fund literacy projects.
Optimist
The Optimist OWLS program partners clubs with elementary schools for learning support.
GFWC women's clubs
Local clubs run thousands of Education & Libraries projects that promote reading.
Help with the books
These programs pay for books, not author fees, but they make a visit much more powerful. Students who own the author's book before the visit get the most out of it.
First Book
Free membership for Title I-eligible schools, with deeply discounted new books. The cheapest way to put the author's book in every student's hands.
Laura Bush Foundation for America's Libraries
About $5,000 for Title I school library collections. Stock up on the visiting author's titles.
Reading Is Fundamental (RIF) Matching Grant
Matching funds for books students keep, celebrated with a reading event. Books come from RIF's own catalog and students choose their own, so it's best for building excitement rather than buying one title for everyone. The 2026 round ran in February and March. The school's match can come from Title I funds.
Dollar General Literacy Foundation
Up to $5,000 for literacy programs serving K-12 students who read below grade level, within 15 miles of a Dollar General store. Use it for books, materials, and technology around the visit. Next cycle opens in spring.
How to write a winning grant application
- Lead with need, using numbers. Your Title I status, the percentage of students on free or reduced lunch, English learners, reading or writing scores, or the distance to the nearest bookstore. Specific numbers beat general statements.
- Make it a literacy project, not a one-day event. Funders want lasting impact. Show a before (every student reads the author's book), a during (assemblies plus small-group writing workshops), and an after (student writing shared, a library display, a family literacy night).
- Explain why this author. Name the author and their book, and connect them to your students: shared background or language, a topic tied to your curriculum, or a local author students can see as a role model.
- Promise outcomes you can measure. Library checkouts before and after, reading logs, writing samples, or a short student survey. Then report the results.
- Give a clear, real budget. Get a quote from the author for their fee, travel, and books. Show what's already committed (PTO money, book fair profits). Funders like seeing others invested.
- Show partners. A support letter from your principal, plus your public library, a local bookstore, or your PTA, makes the project look sturdy.
- Speak the funder's language. Reuse words from their guidelines, read descriptions of past winners, and email the program contact with a quick question. Follow every formatting rule.
- Put books in students' hands. Projects where every child keeps a copy of the book stand out.
- Describe what happens next. An annual author visit, a reading challenge, or a young-authors club shows the excitement will last.
- Close the loop. Send a thank-you, photos (with permission), student quotes, and your results. Funders remember schools that follow through.
Sample language you can adapt
“[School name] serves [number] students in grades [K-5], [percent]% of whom qualify for free or reduced-price meals. Only [percent]% of our third graders read on grade level, and many families don't have easy access to books. We request $[amount] to bring [author name], author of [book title], for a two-day literacy residency. Every student will receive a copy of [book title] to read in class beforehand. [Author] will lead grade-level assemblies and small-group writing workshops, and will host an evening family literacy night modeling read-aloud strategies families can use at home. We will measure impact through library checkouts and student writing samples before and after the visit. Our PTO has committed $[amount], and our public library will co-host the family night.”
Other ways to raise the money
Most schools combine a few sources. A grant plus PTO money plus book sales often covers the whole visit.
Your PTO or PTA
Ask to include an author visit in the annual budget. Many PTOs fund one big enrichment event each year, and it's an easy sell to parents.
Book fair profits
Time a book fair with the visit and choose the cash option where available (at Scholastic, fairs with $4,000 or more in sales can take 25% in cash under the 2026-27 rules). See Scholastic Book Fairs and Barnes & Noble Bookfairs.
Box Tops for Education
Earnings from Box Tops are paid to K-8 schools as unrestricted cash that can go toward an author's fee.
A read-a-thon
Students collect pledges for every minute or book they read, so the fundraiser builds excitement for the visit.
Local business sponsors
Invite a bank, dentist, real estate office, or restaurant to sponsor the visit, and thank them in your newsletter, on social media, and on a banner at the event.
Your education foundation
District and school education foundations often fund enrichment like author visits. A short proposal is usually all it takes.
Share costs with nearby schools
Book the same author for several schools in the same week and split the travel costs. District-wide bookings can bring the per-school cost way down.
Partner with a bookstore
A local independent bookstore can handle book sales for the visit, may donate a share of sales, and sometimes helps cover costs.
Signed book pre-orders
Let families pre-order signed copies before the visit. It puts books in homes and supports the author.
Restaurant spirit nights
Many restaurants donate a percentage of sales when families dine on a set night.
Crowdfunding
Teachers can raise funds for a virtual author visit on DonorsChoose, or share a school fundraising page with families and alumni.
If your school is Title I or severely under-resourced
Find an Author offers a small number of free volunteer visits each school year for schools that demonstrate need. These are very limited, so we encourage every school to pursue the funding options above first. Learn how volunteer visits work.
Ready to find your author?
Browse authors, then use their booking link to request a quote you can put in your grant budget.
Find an author →Funding programs change often. This page was last reviewed in October 2026. Know of a grant we should add? Email info@findanauthor.org.