Innovative publishing company calls on Nannies to share the magic of its books
Maverick Publishing Ltd was launched in 2009 by Steve Bicknell and has been gradually gaining momentum over the last six years.
Now, with more than 30 books in print and another 25 due to be published in the coming year, Maverick is seeing its growth curve steepen, and has delved into the educational market with its early-years readers.
The company believes that even though everyone leads such busy lifestyles, it remains crucial for young children’s development to spend time with adults, sharing and engaging over a picture book. Maverick also has a strong ethos of championing new authors and emerging illustrators, with a big emphasis on supporting them once their book is published.
Steve Bicknell says: “Our big aim is to publish a first rate picture book that parents will enjoy reading to their children, who will be captivated by the strong story and fantastic illustrations. So far it seems to be working well.”
Storytellers
On the back of its expansion, Maverick has launched a new initiative to enable adults to get involved in promoting literacy to children. Maverick Storytellers is available to “enterprising and proactive individuals” with a keen interest in books. It was inspired by Lorna Gill, a storyteller and entrepreneur local to Maverick’s Horsham studio. Lorna runs her own book workshops for parents and toddlers and when she approached Maverick asking to sell her their books at her groups the Maverick Storytellers scheme was born.
“Lorna approached us just at the right time “, say Steve. “We had been looking for a creative, innovative way that our books could be used in a pre-school situation for both children and parents. We organised an open day session at our studio to introduce Lorna to some of our Maverick authors and to brainstorm ideas. It was very productive and great fun.”
The Storytellers scheme is a new approach to selling Maverick’s books directly to the customer. It has a flexible structure that can be moulded to suit the storyteller and the goals that they wish to achieve. They are encouraged to host storytelling sessions which allow parents to share the magic of a book with their child in a way that they can’t at home, through sensory play, craft activities and song, showing them the wealth of learning opportunities a picture book can offer.
Storytellers also share and sell the books in other ways, for example at book fairs, festivals, fetes, in mobile book carts visiting offices, schools and cafes and other ways.
The project is at its trial stage, but Maverick has its first three Storytellers signed up and proactive. “We have Louise White based in Reading, Lorna in Brighton and Sandra Brouet, based in London,” says Steve. “We are now ready to launch fully and would like to hear from any Nannies who feel this would be a good addition to their lives”.
Black and White
Lorna explains her decision to go down the Storyteller route: “There are lots of things happening in Brighton and lots of different sessions for parents and children to go to. I wanted to do something a little different, which is why I decided to have a storybook focus.”
Recently Lorna did a session on Alice Hemming’s first book The Black and White Club. This is the story about George the Giraffe who is not allowed to join the penguin’s new club because he is not Black and White. He tries to paint himself black and white to get in but it doesn’t work. In the end, he forms his own club with a more inclusive theme.
Lorna explains how the session went: “This storytelling session was based on the colours black and white. The children sang a song about George using a parachute where lots of zoo animals were involved,” she says. “They then made black and white prints using giraffe templates or they decorated a giraffe mask with black and white decorations. The sensory play activity was a “small world in a box”. A plastic box was filled with rice and different black and white animals, which enthralled the children. They loved playing with the rice and playing with animals. They also had a chance to get messy and play with black paint and make different animal prints”.
They storytelling sessions give children the chance to experience a story in a different way. It lets them immerse themselves in the story’s world They get to make something crafty, which they are allowed to take home or they get to take part in a very messy sensory play activity, something that they perhaps wouldn’t be able to do at home. Because the sessions are quite calm and keep to a reasonable size, the children also get the chance to play and interact independently of their parents or carers.
“A storytelling session can be suitable for a wide range of ages from 1-9” says Lorna. “The picture books are aimed at the age range 3-7, but because the session can include a variety of activities it is easy for storytellers to accommodate a range of ages and provide suitable games and activities for different age groups”.
The scheme encourages storytellers to include a sensory play activity as not many parents are able to do this at home, due to the space it requires and the mess it creates. They are encouraged to theme the sensory play around the story being read. This activity can take a variety of forms, from ‘small worlds in a box’ to smelly play dough capturing the scents imaged in the story.
Maverick provides resource sheets with ideas for activities for each book. There is also a private online forum for storytellers to share ideas with one another.
Get involved
So, how could you get involved and what would being a Maverick Storyteller entail? The storytelling sessions can be flexible and you can discuss this with your Storyteller, but Maverick provides a template to use or adapt which is based on Lorna’s successful storytelling sessions. This template is as follows:
The story is first. The storyteller engages the children from the beginning by asking questions or pointing out pictures and different themes.
Fun and games come next – the storyteller leads the children in a game or activity based on the story’s theme.
Then it’s time to get messy – children can participate in either a craft activity or a sensory play activity also based on the book’s theme. They can take home something special to remember the book or get stuck in to a sensory activity which they wouldn’t necessarily do at home
To end the session, the storyteller will either read another story on the same theme or sing a song to calm the children down and get them ready to go home. The book the session is based on and other Maverick titles will be available to buy.
“It’s easy to get involved,” says Steve. “You can apply to us directly or to a Maverick Storyteller. You will need a reference from a teacher, librarian or carer who can vouch for your commitment to the programme. You will also need to be prepared to purchase public liability insurance and get DBS checked.
“Once your application has been approved, you will be able to purchase a Storyteller starter pack of 16 books. You will have access to the storyteller account with Maverick’s distributor, allowing you to buy any of the Maverick titles for a discount.
“As a Storyteller, you will be running your own business. You can set your own prices and there is no limit to the amount of books you can sell. If you run regular workshops , you can also charge for the sessions,” says Steve.
If you would like to apply as a potential Maverick Storyteller, email your details to storytellers@maverickbooks.co.uk and you will be forwarded an application form. Once approved and signed up, Storytellers have access to a secure area on the Maverick books website to be able to download resources, order books, and join the storyteller/author Facebook social media site. If you own, or run or work for a childcare setting, nursery school etc…. and can host a Maverick Storyteller at your facility, contact Maverick to find out if there is a storyteller in your area and then contact the Storyteller directly to arrange a workshop.
Tel: 0207 0601213 www.totalnannies.com