On behalf of PETAA and Copyright Agency which jointly funded the 2008 Writers In School Project, we would like to acknowledge and thank the many people who contributed in various ways to the production of the original manual from which this guide has been drawn, and who have an interest in ensuring that the literacy development of primary students is considerably enhanced by their contact with inspiring writers for children. The guide was reviewed and updated in 2013 and 2014 to continue PETAA’s support of authors working in and with schools.
We are grateful to the project’s focus group of authors: James Roy, Deborah Abela, Christopher Cheng, Ursula Dubosarsky and Jeni Mawter and practising teachers and teacher-librarians: Lindy Cracknell, Anne Vermeesch, Jenny Ralph and Viv Nicholl- Hatton, for providing the original impetus for this manual. James Roy and Deborah Abela made major contributions. Other invaluable contributions were made by authors Jeni Mawter, Sue Whiting, Krista Bell, Anna Ciddor and Josie Montano. Deborah Abela has made a further contribution, in reviewing the manual for updates and publication here as the Authors in schools guide. Thanks also to Christopher Cheng for an updated authors' websites list.
It is also important to acknowledge the assistance of those who participated in the original 2008 Writers In Schools professional development activities: Beryl Ayers, Claire Craig, Tony Davis, Liz Deep-Jones, Sandy Fussell, Diana Harley, Jocelyn Hedley, Carmel Liddell, Susan Mansfield, Alison Peters, Jane Scott, Sue Walker and Peter Whitfield. Through their feedback, comments, questions and suggestions they contributed significantly to this guide’s creation.