DVDs galore

The Peru trip is long over, summer reading programs in the libraries have had their final celebrations and now it's time for me to turn my attention to the new DVD, The Itsy Bitsy Tiger and Other Ridiculous Stories and Songs.

Did I mention that I ordered 1000 of these and that they're in my puppet room?

Thank goodness that picture is an optical illusion, with the mirrored closet door behind the boxes. Still, those eleven boxes are daunting. Add to that the other CDs and DVDs in the storage space above the closet and some upstairs in my office, and you start to think that this little piggy could build a house out of recordings.

I still have cassettes of The Ghost With the One Black Eye and Chickens, too, hiding inside the closet (anybody want these? let me know, they're going for cheap, cheap, cheap).

At the risk of giving away all my trade secrets, here's what I've done so far:

• Sent DVDs to my family. They're a huge support to me, whether they're close by or far away.
• Set up an account at Filmbaby.com, similar to the one at CDbaby.com.
• Sent DVDs to various review sources, such as storyteller.net, School Library Journal and Booklist.
• Sent it to friends who review storytelling recordings for newsletters or blogs, like Granny Sue and Linda Goodman.
• Taken them to the Raven Bookstore in Lawrence (they've already restocked once).
• Written about it on this blog.
• Posted about it on Facebook and Twitter.
• Taken it to various libraries this summer.
• Mentioned it to a few other librarians

What I haven't yet done:

• Told people plainly how much the DVDs are: $15 plus $2 s/h, $12 plus s/h if you're a library or are buying more than 3 (e-mail me if you're interested in ordering it).
• Made a real plan for marketing this new DVD. I'm still operating by SOTP (right, seat-of-the-pants).
• Probably a zillion other things that will occur to me at inconvenient times, like when I'm in the shower or driving in a rainstorm or floating on a lake.

Floating on a lake. Ahh, that sounds like the best idea of all.

The Itsy Bitsy Tiger is here!

The UPS delivery man stopped by yesterday with over a thousand copies of my new DVD, The Itsy Bitsy Tiger and Other Ridiculous Stories and Songs. It looks great!

I've had a huge amount of help on this since beginning the project last spring. Christie, Jeff and Kevin Dobson of Stormdoor Productions filmed it live at the Union Pacific Depot in Lawrence (you can hear the train go by twice--this required a certain amount of vamping on my part) on May 8, 2010. The proceeds of the performance itself went to the Lawrence Schools Foundation. The audience rocked!

Thom Alexander of Americana Music Academy wrote the song Gary's Gone Fishin' for the intro. Graphic designer Annie Tichenor, who worked on my last project, did an incredible job on the packaging. I love the tiger stripes! Countless family members and friends previewed the video.

Since I'm about to go on tour, I'm not quite ready for orders. While you wait, here's the first cut:

I'm not yet sure where the DVD release event(s) will be. Maybe one in KC, one in Lawrence. I'll let you know.

Oh, and for those of you who gave an opinion on the packaging, I did go with the eco-friendly digipak. Much less plastic than the ordinary packaging.

Paper or plastic?

I'm faced with a dilemma. I'm getting my new DVD ready, once again using OasisCD to manufacture it. In this world where there's WAY too much plastic I cringe at the idea of 1000 plastic DVD cases. However, many of my DVD and CD sales are to libraries, either directly or through companies like Follett Library Services, the AV Cafe and Midwest Tape. As a former librarian, I'm well aware of how annoying non-standard packaging is.

Oasis has something called a Digipak, which they describe this way:

"...we use only 100% Green Forestry Practices Certified board stock and high-quality vegetable based ink on both the board and the discs. We also protect your package with poly wrap and your choice of a sultry, high-gloss UV finish or a subtle matte finish."

The cost is a little more than the plastic cases, but I'd pay.

I'm leaning toward the Digipak. Will I be shooting myself in the foot if I use those? What do you think I should do?

The next DVD

I'm planning my next DVD. The first, The Bully Billy Goat and Other Stories, was filmed in the library at Sunset Hill Elementary. So far it has had good reviews, including a comment from one of the videographers the other day, who said, "If it was possible to wear out a DVD, my daughter would have done it with yours."

The next one will be in a larger venue. When I've sent the BBG to prospective bookers, they have sometimes thought that I only tell in small venues. I need to show that I'm comfortable with groups of 250-300 kids. I can do more, though in school settings, that's about as many as makes sense. My largest family audience was 1400, when I told stories to Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts and 4-H kids at the Lied Center of Lawrence in 1993. In one of the stories, an old woman character offered apple to a deer, and the entire audience held their breaths.

Back to the planning process. I like to do recordings live. Having the kids' reactions adds to the whole experience. I've got a school in mind, and they're looking forward to a free performance. I'll get release forms for the kids to be on the video. Those who don't bring the form back will be allowed to attend the performance but will sit out of view of the cameras.

This DVD will be more focused than the last (animal stories from around the world). I'm planning to tell funny-scary stories, and I'll include all four stories about the baby from The ghost with the one black eye and Chickens! I've got two or three more funny-scary stories to add to the mix. The baby puppet will come out at one point for some hilarity. Trixie may show off her Halloween costume. I'm hoping this will be a 40-minute video. We'll see if I get it done by October.

Good DVD review

A while ago I had a cryptic phone message from School Library Journal, asking for a high-resolution photo of the cover of The Bully Billy Goat and Other Stories. I sent one and asked if this meant I would be getting a review. No answer--until today, when my letter carrier handed me a big white envelope from SLJ.

They didn't use the picture (darn!) and they didn't mention the bonus track, The ghost with the one black eye, but I'm not complaining:

Priscilla Howe is a skillful storyteller who has the ability to capture the attention and imagination of the audience. She captivates a group of children using the school library as a backdrop as she tells them seven stories from around the world. Among the tales are "The Bully Billy Goat" (Poland), "The Pancake" (the Netherlands), "The Bellybutton Bird" (Japan), "Drakestail" (France), and "The Village of No Cats" (Bulgaria). She incorporates fun, interactive moments into "The Poor Little Bug on the Wall" (United States), which helps keep the children engaged. She also uses delightful puppets in telling some of the stories and as an interlude between the tales. A wonderful addition to all collections.--Veronica Schwartz, Des Plaines Public Library, IL.

I think this is the best published review I've ever had. This isn't just vanity on my part: when I was a children's librarian, the reviews in SLJ, Booklist and Kirkus made all the difference in what we ordered. If the review called something "slight" or "an additional purchase," we didn't usually buy it. "A wonderful addition to all collections" would get at least one librarian's initials for purchase.