The Importance of School Libraries in Publishing with Laura Caputo-Wickham

My name is Laura Caputo-Wickham. I am a part-time children’s writer and part-time school librarian. The job of a school librarian involves all sorts – but one of the many highlights of my job is running book clubs and get the children to really engage with a novel. I also have the privilege of liaising with authors, update our stock (book shopping, YAY!), and ensuring that our library remains vibrant and relevant to the evolving needs of our students. But most of all, my role is to foster a love for reading, and that is something I take extremely seriously. This job is giving me a fantastic opportunity to observe what kids enjoy and don’t enjoy reading (they’re very vocal about that). I get a first-hand experience of the process behind the choice of a book – what makes them pick one instead of another? What makes them keep reading? What makes them put that blinking phone away and get to the end? I’d love to share what I’ve learned with you, hoping to encourage you all as you write for these picky, selective, easily distracted, but absolutely wonderful little readers.