Blogging in my sleep!

I've been blogging in my sleep again. Apparently, I didn't need much sleep last night. I went to bed at one and was wide awake at 6:00 a.m. A smiling baby K motivated me to get out of bed because she was ready to play. Sometimes, that's the best motivation.

What was so important in the wee hours of the morning?

1) I am just so thrilled that the amazing and talented Cynthia Leitich Smith is coming to Kansas --this year, date yet to be determined.

2) I was thinking about Susan Taylor Brown's blog and what she had to say regarding writing about writing with emotion, through the fear. (Do You Feel Safe Enough To Write the Truth?)

"So we need to write toward that fear, past, through, over, kicking and screaming if need be but we need to face the fear, claim it, make it ours so it will reveal the treasure that is our writing, the stories we were meant to tell."

If you click over, be sure to read her response to me. I've been struggling with this "write what you fear" advice for months. It now makes perfect sense to me!

3) After I read Susan's response to me, I recalled a similar blog conversation I had with Cynthia Leitich Smith and Don Tate. You'll have to check this out once she turns her comments back on. Strangely, when comments are off, all comments seem to disappear. I found it to be another helpful conversation--she explained how she was able to recall feelings and use past experiences to write "Riding With Rosa," a story about a young, gay boy. (March/April 2005 issue of Cicada).

4) Then, I started thinking about bookshelves once again. We do not have enough bookshelves in this house. I hesitate to say that we have too many books. Can one ever have too many books? So, it must be a lack of shelving. I feel so sorry for the books I have stored in tubs in the storage closet. They must be very lonely.

Of course, that reminded me of Susan Taylor Brown's post from yesterday. It's full of writing quotes, my favorite of which is: "I would be most content if my children grew up to be the kind of people who think decorating consists mostly of building enough bookshelves." Anna Quindlen.

Have you been to Susan's new web site? A must see for parents, teachers, writers and readers. Way cool!

5) I realized today that I now subscribe to over 50 blogs via bloglines. (For those of us not on LJ, it's a great way to keep up on all the important blogs!) I think I may be addicted.

6) I just received notification from the library that the books I requested are ready for pick up. Yippeee!!!