Radiation: Friend or Foe?

That’s the controversial question asked in the fall edition of Talking Story, an e-newsletter for educators. Talking story is published by authors Carol Baldwin and Joyce Moyer Hostetter. Most of their readers are teachers, media specialists, or homeschool parents.  They stuff every issue with links, books, learning activities, GIVEAWAYS, and people related to a particular theme. 

I’m radiating with happiness to announce that one of the people featured in their newsletter’s fall edition on radiation is Andrew Handley!  Andrew is the talented, young graphic designer who illustrated my children’s book, Nuclear Power: How A Nuclear Power Plant Really Works! 

According to Joyce, the goal of Talking Story is not to promote one opinion or another about radiation, but rather to encourage students to take a look at the use of radiation in medicine, energy production, warfare, etc.  They hope to stimulate students to thoughtfully consider the various ways radiation is used in our society and to connect them to literature and writing activities on the topic.

This is what I love about writers and authors like Joyce and Carol who are also educators.  Whether they agree with a topic or not, they understand the importance of allowing a child to learn about it. 

After all, one way to learn about, understand, and give an educated opinion on a topic is to study both sides of an issue, right? Who wouldn’t want a child to do that?

As I have discovered during my career as a children’s book author: Plenty of people!

So many that when Joyce contacted me regarding using the illustration featured in her newsletter, I ran a google search on both her and Carol before replying.

I wasn’t always so jaded, but then a children’s book about nuclear power plants wasn’t always so controversial.

In fact, when I first started marketing my book about nuclear power plants, its topic was perceived as so lackluster the book almost didn’t get published. Not even the nuclear industry, due in part to the United States post- Three Mile Island safety record, was all that thrilled about a children’s book about nuclear power plants.

Community relations and educational school programs on nuclear power plants like the one I had created and administered in the 1980’s were no longer deemed necessary. 

In the 80's our  school program was front page news.

This came as a surprise to me.  Elementary education was well funded back in the days I worked in the nuclear industry. We fielded requests not only from schools, but all types of civic groups who were interested in learning how the local nuclear plant worked.  

In 1983, that's me
 presenting to a class of sixth graders.

Back then nuclear power was a hot topic, (pun intended) but this didn’t make the information I was required to teach any less yawn-provoking.  The book I eventually wrote—and Andrew so brilliantly illustrated—is a creative spin on a brochure I used to hand out to my students. 

Nuclear Power: How a Nuclear Power Plant Really Works! is the type of book I had wished for back when I was doing my school programs about nuclear power plants.  I wanted to pique the interest of children who didn’t always grasp the technical, but responded to art or stories.  (Kids like me.)

One of the illustrations that sold me
on Andrew, but is not pictured in the book.

I had forgotten all about this book idea, until 2002 when my family moved from Minnesota to North Carolina where not too far from our home was a nuclear power plant.  While other children spent summers at the beach, mine got visits to the nuclear plant.  (This is where my children would insert what they call “my evil laugh.”)

The book had been work-in-progress for years by the time I hired Andrew to illustrate it, and started to seriously market it.  What most laypersons do not realize about publishing a book is that sales, marketing, industry reviews, and a host of other things begin years before the book is actually published.

It was during this time that I decided there just wasn’t enough interest in my book to justify publishing it.  I told my husband I was going to pay Andrew for his work, and just forget about it, until the “nuclear renaissance” that was often mentioned in the media actually happened.  Maybe then there would be more interest.

A young boy I spied reading my book,
while I was at the Dentist. 

The words were hardly out of my mouth when Japan was hit by a tsunami, and the Fukushima nuclear accident occurred. If ever there was a time children might need, and parents might want an explanation about how a nuclear power plant worked, I thought that might be it.

I soon discovered not everyone felt the way I did.  I can laugh about it now, but try to imagine spending years on a story you wrote for good intentions, and then being publicly bullied for it on social media.  Most of my critics had never even read the book. I know this because at the time they commented the book had not been released to the public yet.  The only way to obtain a copy was via its author …that would be me.

So when Joyce contacted me regarding permission to use one of Andrew’s illustrations from my book, and said their next issue was going to be titled Radiation: Friend or Foe?  I ran a quick “friend or foe” google search, and immediately (before they could change their mind) responded that I was more than grateful to her for addressing the topic without prejudice. Then I gave myself permission to glow… with happiness. 

Nuking the Easter Egg!

If you haven't planned your Easter egg hunt or purchased your Easter basket goodies yet, there's still time!

Nothing makes an Easter basket glow like a children's book about Nuclear Power! 

It goes without saying; Go Nuclear and Environmentalist for Nuclear did not bring me on board due to my engineering expertise, but rather as an advisor for public relations/marketing and education as it pertains to nuclear power.  The technicalities and politics of nuclear power can leave me feeling overwhelmed and under qualified, but I have noticed some people feel the same way about PR and marketing. 

At STPNG 1980's

Over the years I’ve implemented marketing events of all types and scope, in venues as diverse as the causes and organizations I represented.  One thing they all had in common was that they were an opportunity to educate and inform about my cause while providing my target audience with a good time.

Since Easter is approaching, I thought I would share one of my favorite, least expensive, and- because most Americans are familiar with the concept- easiest, marketing events to implement: the Easter Egg Hunt. 

It can be adapted for any age group, used to raise funds, or promote a cause; but there’s a big difference between holding an Easter egg hunt and nuking that Easter egg into a marketing event that promotes your objective! It calls for careful planning, hard work, and CREATIVITY!

Get ready to brainstorm; success hinges on your marketing pitch.  The marketing pitch is what can take an ordinary Easter egg Hunt and what in some circles is the yawn-provoking topic of nuclear power or any other yawn-provoking topic, and turn it into a Nuclear Powered Glow Party. 

When Nuclear Power:How a Nuclear Power Plant Really Works! was published my daughter, Tabitha came up with the bright idea (all my puns are intentional) of  making our annual neighborhood Easter party a glow-in-the-dark Easter Egg Hunt to celebrate my book’s release.

That year the Easter Bunny got his eggs from Nukie Nuclear Power Plant!

When we held our first nuclear powered Easter egg hunt we made our eggs glow using dollar store glow-in-the-dark wrist bands. They looked fantastic, but it is not always easy squeezing them into plastic Easter eggs. Recently I saw on Pinterest where someone used flameless battery operated tealights.  This may be a quicker alternative, but which ever method you use, make sure you test it out before the Easter egg hunt.

I know my colleagues in the nuclear industry are rolling their eyes at the cliche regarding  Easter eggs or anything else obtained at a nuclear power plant would glow in the dark. 

This observation and an invitation to attend a glow-in-the dark Easter egg hunt is just the sort of marketing pitch that can be used to shine some light on a topic like nuclear energy! 

Here’s ten ways to radiate a Nuclear Powered Easter Egg Hunt:

              

1.      Create your Pitch

The pitch, either written or verbal,  is the invitation/advertisement you use to capture your "target markets" attention to convince them that they want what you've got! Competition is fierce in today's social media savvy world. Your objective is to come up with an idea that will tie your event to your product or message in a creative way that gets noticed!


The moment  your pitch leaves your real or virtual mail box you are setting the mood for your event.



Here we took a  plastic hard hat resembling the ones worn at a nuclear power plant and turned it into an Easter Basket! My book's cover is adhered to the front, and I  included a character from the book!  You could easily insert your invitation into an egg. This would be a great way to invite a classroom or civic organization to your event.

I usually pitch the media via e-mail.  If possible I always include a visual with my pitch. You have about 15 seconds to grasp their attention!

To set the mood for our nuclear Easter egg event, I used an illustration from Nuclear Power: How a Nuclear Power Plant Really Works! and the following verse in my invitation:

This year the Easter Bunny had some help from:

A Pretty Blue Bird , a White Lab Rat, and Red-furred Cat

who got their Easter eggs from Nukie Nuclear Power Plant.

Nutcracker Publishing invites you to:  Hop on Over!

We are Cracking Open Easter eggs that Glow in the Dark.

Join us for a Nuclear Powered Easter Egg Hunt that Radiates Brilliance!

2.      Target your Market

What is it that you really want to do?

Educate your Community

Let people know your company/product exists

Raise Awareness

Raise Money

  

Who do you want to do it to?

Pro Nuke Colleagues

Anti-Nuke Neighbors

People on the Fence

Media…who will reach all of the above.

Parents at 1980 STPNG Easter hunt

Inviting children to your Easter Egg Hunt does not necessarily mean you’re targeting children.  One of the first things I observed while working in the nuclear industry is that parents would use their children as an excuse to educate themselves about nuclear energy.  The elementary school program I created was frequently requested and presented to community civic clubs.

An Easter Egg Hunt that begins after dark can easily be adapted into an adult party.

If your objective is to raise awareness go ahead and invite your anti- nuclear neighbor!  BUT if you are trying to raise money DO NOT invite or ask for a donation from anyone who does not support your cause! 

If you are targeting the local media, find out if they have children or grandchildren.  When you contact them with details about your event invite their children to participate in the egg hunt.

If you had to work weekends wouldn’t you appreciate an assignment where you could bring along the kids?

3.      Figure out your Budget

Only you know what you can afford, but the thing I love about an Easter Egg Hunt is it does not have to cost a fortune.  Plastic eggs along with glow-in-the-dark sticks can be obtained at the Dollar Stores.  You can ask volunteers or even the people you invite to bring cupcakes/cookies/plastic eggs etc. 

It’s been my experience that when you’re hosting a neighborhood or community event open to everyone that people are grateful that someone is doing all the planning and legwork.  They are happy to donate eggs YOU can stuff and hide.   

Seek out a sponsor who supports your cause and ask them for donations.  Easter supplies are not expensive, and it is easier to ask for and receive Easter eggs or bunnies than money. 

If asked, local businesses will often donate their products or service in exchange for advertising.  

Your goal is to be Memorable not Expensive.

4.      Recruit Volunteers

Talk to the local school/college/church.  In today’s competitive world I’ve found that high-school or college students are often happy to do a volunteer gig that earns them a letter of recommendation that can be listed on a college application or resume. Don't overlook younger children. They complain less than adults! As you can see from the photo above they enjoy helping. 

Make the big decisions BEFORE you recruit anyone to help you.

There will be plenty of opportunity for disagreements on the smaller decisions- like cupcake flavor.

The more planned out your event is before you recruit your volunteers the smoother it will go.  This will make your job look easy, fun, and glamorous to anyone on the outside, who is wondering how you managed to work yourself up to such an enviable position.   With luck, next year you will be able to congratulate them on their promotion as chairperson and let them head up your Easter Egg Hunt.

5.      Pick your Date/Time/Venue and  Pick your Rain Date/Time Venue

Notice I placed this after recruit. 

Easter often coincides with Spring Break so it’s a good idea to make sure the majority of your volunteers will be able to make the date/time/ venue of your event, and are not in a condo on the beach somewhere.

Once the arguing has subsided and your date, time and venue has been programmed into everyone’s smart phone, you need to come up with a rain date.  Perhaps it will make you feel better to know that despite always doing this, I have never had to use a rain date for an Easter event.

Snow is not a deterrent for a nuclear powered glow-in-the- dark Easter Egg Hunt!  It might even be an advantage.  You will not need to wait until dark to hide your Easter eggs!   If you do not bury them too deep, they will radiate that nuclear glow right through the snow.

6.      Props, Prizes, Food, Entertainment

Get ready to spend your budget money.  

Props

You will want as many plastic Easter eggs filled with glow in the dark items that you have the funds, time, and energy to stuff and hide.

Here is how we “nuked” our eggs.   We purchased glow-in-the dark bracelets, activated a bracelet and then inserted it into a plastic Easter egg.  I got eggs and glow sticks from the dollar stores.  Making the eggs glow was not expensive…

 OR EASY! 

The glow will not last forever, so we had to wait until just hours before our hunt to activate the bracelets and stuff our eggs.  Also the bracelets were a tight fit inside the egg.  So nuking (stuffing) our eggs took longer than expected.  So find the largest eggs and smallest glow item you can, and  check out the tealight alternative I mentioned earlier.

I have noticed that today you can purchase glow-in-the dark eggs, but I would advise doing some research and reading the reviews before you do. 

When it comes to decorative props I usually purchase items that will decorate my venue, but later I can hand out during and after as prizes.  Such as:  Easter baskets, large stuffed Easter bunnies, floral arrangements, decorative jars filled with jelly beans, even Easter flags.

Prizes

Whatever you purchase to decorate the premises with can usually be used as a prize that participants can win.  People love to win. Spread the love and opt for a lot of inexpensive prizes vs. one big ticket item. 

Even adults can guess how many jelly beans are in a jar, or participate in the Bunny Hop or Raw Egg Toss.  Children love to see their parents participating.

Sometimes guests will show up without an Easter basket to gather their eggs in.  Make sure you have some sacks or plastic buckets with your company logo on them that can be used.

Food

My favorite thing about any party is the food!   So when I plan a party I plan on giving myself an excuse to eat all those fattening treats I usually avoid.  However, some people have will-power and /or health concerns.  It’s a good idea to have diet drinks, gluten free something and anything that might illicit an allergic reaction labeled.

Even if the party is for children, you need to feed and satisfy the adults as well.

Entertainment

The competition of the hunt itself is usually entertainment enough.

However, you will also need something that will keep everyone occupied while waiting for dark, and your volunteers hide those nuclear powered eggs.

Like pin the tail on the bunny, and dancing to the bunny hop.

Or the video you see here. 

It’s entertaining, educational, and self-promoting.

This is your opportunity to get your message out in a way that is fun. If you squeeze it between your video and a dance party;  make it fun, call it a game, and offer prizes to the winners you will find that no one minds a dose of self-promoting Trivial Pursuit or nuclear fun-fact Jeopardy.  

7.      Costumed  Characters/ Visual Interest

Whether it’s the Easter Bunny, a company mascot, or a storybook character like Tickles Tabitha,

Someone is going to have to dress up and that’s all there is to it!

Plan far enough in advance to make sure you get the Easter Bunny and not the Easter Chicken.

Journalists and especially TV journalists want to see both a compelling story and colorful visuals.  Let them know you can provide both when you send them your pitch.

A costumed character provides a great video and photo opportunity.   When they are posted on Facebook it will help get the word out about your organization. 

I would suggest creating a backdrop out of an old sheet that has your company logo/ and or website address.  Strategically place a bench where the bunny can sit in front of it and have pictures made with attendees.

8.      Competition

Easter Bunny Competition.

I will never forget my first corporate Easter Egg Hunt.  We failed to mention that the grand prize was random and NOT going to the kid who collected the most eggs. It was a parent free-for -all as they literally ran over each other’s children to make sure their own child got the most eggs.   I was twenty-something, child-less, had zero tolerance and much disdain for those parents.  It took about a decade and having two children of my own before I had any empathy.

Even if you are having a friendly neighborhood fundraising event, announce your ground rules prior to the hunt and make sure you have volunteers stationed to enforce them.

Here is the way I have handled the stampede.  Let the youngest participants go first and every minute or so let another age group join the hunt.

The cat won!

9.        Marketing your message:   Nuclear powered eggs should be served over-easy! 

An Easter Egg Hunt may provide a captive audience of excited participants, but it is not the time for a lecture on the technicalities of nuclear power or any other lecture.

While most local reporters enjoy attending and reporting fuzzy bunny tales like your Easter party, it is not a breaking news event. 

Make sure someone writes, films, and photographs your party.  So later, if the media is a no show, you can express regret that they missed a great party, and send along your own stories and photographs for publication.  Most will appreciate it, and often will publish something you have sent.

If the local media does not, the social media experts attending your hunt will!  Thanks to Facebook just about everyone is a social media expert these days. 

As any five-year-old knows the best parties are the ones that give the attendees something fun to brag about later to the kids that didn’t go, and a yummy goodie bag to take home.  The same can be said for grown-up marketing events. 

So give your participants a memorable event, and send them home with a goodie bag filled with conversation provoking marketing  materials...like  maybe a picture book about nuclear power! Wink, wink.  

10.   Follow up

This is the section of marketing 101 that distinguishes a PR expert from a marketing amateur. It contributes to how people perceive you, your company, and your message. It will make it easier to keep or recruit volunteers for the next event.   It indicates your level of professionalism.  It will help promote your message.

Saying THANK YOU!

Say it, write it, and most of all mean it!

I was horrified to discover a story I sent a journalist several years earlier, that I thought had never been published, had made several regional papers where I lived near Raleigh, NC.  It was the second time that journalist had published a story on me, and probably would have been the last- even if she had not left journalism for another job. She did me a huge favor and I had not bothered to say thank-you.  I didn’t become on expert on any of these tips without making my own mistakes along the way, and I hope you can benefit from my mistakes.

Although it is the final step on my blog, it should be at the top of a “To Do” list.  Even for an informal event I have written down a verbal thank you to say the day of, have composed thank-you notes, and a letter of recommendation that can be personalized with the names of volunteers who helped out.

Thank everyone publicly during any welcome speech the day of the event, including the people who show up to hunt eggs.

Say a private verbal thank-you to volunteers afterwards.

Post your thanks on your own and their social media pages.

E-mail a thank you to colleagues.

Write and deliver a letter of thanks and recommendation on your company’s or organization’s letterhead for your volunteers. 

If the media attends send them a thank-you via whatever social media you used to contact them ASAP. After your story is published or airs send them a handwritten thank-you note.  If possible, one that pictures your company’s logo.

Sadly, the only time some people adhere to this advice is when they’ve spent mega bucks to hire a PR consultant who offers up what my mama told me free of charge:   Use your manners, show some class, and say Thank you!

So….thank-you, for reading through my rather lengthy nuclear powered Easter blog. 

Happy Hunting! 

Power Outage at Nukie Nuclear Power Plant!

Just prior to their first public appearance in East Tennessee, Nukie Nuclear Power Plant employees experienced a sudden power outage.

The power outage had nothing to do with nuclear power… but I couldn’t resist that headline! It’s just the type of sensationalized news I’ve grown accustomed to seeing when it comes to nuclear power plants.

The only thing our power outage had to do with nuclear power is that it prevented us from lighting up the giant hard hat our lab rat-inspired parade float (jeep) was wearing. It did not prevent us from shining a light on nuclear literacy or wowing the children lining the streets of Kingston, Tennessee.

Riding atop our Chubby jeep was Tickles Tabitha the character from my children's book about cancer. My daughter Tabitha portrayed her children’s book self; I sat in back and tossed out candy. My son Jordan was our driver.

I don’t remember when I got the bright idea to turn my son’s green jeep into a white lab rat, but I spent Thanksgiving doing it.  

Everything was good to go or so we thought until we cranked up the jeep and turned on the power supply that- according to our in-house experts- was plenty powerful enough to light up our lights. Instead they blinked and went out.  

As they say, the show must go on… so we took off all our Christmas lights 
and fell in line behind the Senior Citizen transit bus!

Despite not having any Christmas lights, the kids loved Tickles Tabitha and Chubby. As it turned out, the adults did too. The Monday morning after the parade weekend, I received a notification from Kingston Tennessee’s Park and Recreation Department that our parade entry won grand prize!

Chubby Rat along with Tickles Tabitha received the prestigious Mayor’s Award.  While I’m not going to brag about how much, it was a CASH reward which we invested promptly in a larger more powerful inverter for the jeep. 

The Kingston Tennessee City Council sponsored the parade float competition and floats were judged on the following criteria:

           1.  Was a theme covered?

                 2.  Are there any special effects to enhance it?

                 3.  Does it incorporate a unique or creative idea?

                 4.  How is the public appeal? Does the crowd seem to relate to it?

The following award-winners were announced:

Mayor’s Award          Nutcracker Publishing Company

Council’s Award        Starnes Wood Stove and Patio Store

Band Award              Roane County High School

Youth Award             Tri County Roll Arena

Honorable Mention   Dr. James Walmsley, DDS

Church Award           Impact Church

Nutcracker Publishing's next parade is December 12, in the Secret City, known as Oak Ridge, Tennessee. With any luck there will be no power outage, and parade bystanders will be blinded by nuclear literacy radiance and #Christmas lights! 

How Does a Reindeer Glow his Nose? NUCLEAR POWER!

Nuclear Power…where does it come from; where does is go?  At Nutcracker Publishing Company we think everyone needs to know!  This holiday season Crack Open a Book about Nuclear Power! 

Radiating Crazy!

The children I penned Tickles Tabitha’s Cancer-tankerous Mommy for are all grown up. Last January, after almost 15 years, the Cancer-tankerous Mommy (in other words, me) wrote what would be her last blog with that moniker.

I am grateful that cancer is no longer the first thing I think about upon waking up each day. Nor is it the only topic I blog about.  As anyone who was Facebook friends with me when Nuclear Power: How a Nuclear Power Plant Really Works! was released can attest, I have a range of interesting topics.
While I’m not claiming to be brilliant myself, some of my topics are!  A few years ago, I did a campaign to promote nuclear literacy called Radiating Brilliance! The campaign and I did radiate the brilliance of nuclear education. I thought radiating brilliance was a great tag line.  

It’s just not what I always radiate.

Lately, I've been radiating the crazy that comes with migrating to a new webserver, the scathing critiques of my in-house editor, and worrying about what art and/or copy people will find offensive.

For the past several years I've been off the social market grid. My creative energies have gone into all the DIY projects that come with relocating and building a new home. I’ve been seen doing so much manual labor that our builder and new neighbors had assumed I must be retired. 

My family wishes I had stayed retired! But books don’t just jump off the shelves and sell themselves.  

Instead of preparing for Thankgiving, I've been preparing to enter Nutcracker Publishing's book characters in the local Christmas parade.  

'Tis the season for marketing and promoting. 

Nutcracker Publishing is lighting up the holidays with... (sound the trumpets)

Nuclear Power!   Crack Open a Book  Hotter than a cup of coffee!