Helaine Becker is the bestselling author of more than 90 books for children and young adults, including the “enduring Canadian Christmas classic,” A Porcupine in a Pine Tree, (more than 300,000 copies sold) and the award-winning biography, Counting on Katherine: How Katherine Johnson Saved Apollo 13. She’s a multi-time winner of the Silver Birch Award and a two-time winner of the Lane Anderson Award for Science Writing for Children; she has received the Sydney Taylor Notable Book award for Gottika and has had her most recent science/ nonfiction titles recognized by the Junior Library Guild.  Her latest books  include Sloth at the Zoom, Stress Less, Alice and Gert: An Ant and Grasshopper Story; Pirate Queen: A Story of Zheng Yi Sao ; Emmy Noether: The Most Important Mathematician You Never Heard Of, and An Equal Shot: The Story of Title IX, The Law That Changed America Forever.Helaine is in high demand as a presenter and performer at schools across North America. She has been selected three times for the Canadian Children’s Book Week Cross Country tour, travelling to Yukon, Nunavut and Manitoba to present to school children. She has been a featured speaker at the Frye Festival in New Brunswick, Aloud International Children’s Festival in Ontario, Weaving Words Conference in Alberta, Literacy for Life Conference in Saskatchewan, and the Red Cedar Awards in British Columbia. She was also a featured speaker at the 2009 Orange County Children’s Book Festival in Costa Mesa, California and the 2010 Women’s Writers’ Festival in Irvine, California.  In 2014/2015 Helaine is scheduled to appear at Word on the Street Toronto, Telling Tales (Rockton), Toronto Book Fair, Vancouver Writers Festival, and Tucson Book Festival. Helaine is also a highly motivational speaker and instructor for writers. She was the keynote speaker at the 2016 SCBWI Canada East conference and has taught seminars for the SCBWI San Diego, Calif. School Librarians Associ., Canadian Children's Book Centre, CANSCAIP's annual Packaging Your Imagination Conference in Toronto and Calgary's When Words Collide Conference Workshops and seminar topics include: >Basic Business Skills for Writers. ROI. B2B. Profit Centre. Supply Chain. Qualifying the Customer. If these and other business-related phrases strike fear in your heart, this workshop is for you. Learn the business basics you really need to jumpstart your writing career. Note: This class is not about the publishing business. It focuses on the skills you will need as a sole proprietor of a freelance writing business. > The 17 Celestial Secrets of Writing Nonfiction. The Common Core Curriculum specifically mandates nonfiction books for kids. What makes nonfiction work? How do you pitch and present a nonfiction idea to agents or editors? This all-true workshop gives you the info you need to make the sale. Helaine's published 20+ books of nonfiction for children, many of them multi-award-winning.  >Writing Picture Books - Picture Books are Opera on the page. Your books needs all of the elements an opera has - compelling character, great plot, action and drama, set design, costumes, music and dance - even if features a Pigeon. Learn the basics of how to create a compelling Carmen, a terrific Tosca, and a powerful Pigeon in 32 perfect pages. Helaine has published 12+ picture books including the Canadian #1 national bestseller, A Porcupine in a Pine Tree. > Poetry Primer. You've all heard it - no one buys poetry. It's not true. What they won't buy is BAD poetry. And chances are your poetry isn't up to scratch. In this workshop, you'll learn the common faults most beginners make when writing rhyming verse, and how to make your verse sparkle like a brand new espresso machine (and pack the same punch!) Helaine has published 8 books written in rhyming verse, including the #1 Canadian national bestseller, A Porcupine in a Pine Tree and the brand new You Can Read. Helaine volunteers  for several literacy organizations and charities including First Book, ABC Literacy, and Librarians without Borders. She is also a certified pyrotechnician, so expect fireworks at any time.