Two things to share

I confess: I'm going to the outlets today with my daughter instead of working. She needs boots for her semester in Ireland, and I need . . . well, I don't need anything, but I'm happy to give her my opinion on heel heights and synthetic linings and roundness of toes. (Shoe shopping is such a perfect social activity to do while talking with a friend. No dressing rooms to interrupt the flow of chatter. Something for everyone, from the practical to the ridiculous to the sublime.)

But before I go, I have two things to share:

The dynamic duo at A Year of Reading are hosting an online writing gallery for the NCTE's National Day on Writing Celebration. What a fabulous idea! Here's what they're looking for, but read their whole post for the full scoop.

A LIFETIME OF READING

Members of the Kidlitosphere are invited to submit stories from their reading lives. Your submission can be an anecdote from childhood, a recent experience around books or reading, a memory from school (good or bad), a vignette about learning to read, the impact of a particular book--anything about your life as a reader.

We are looking for a variety of short pieces (think blog post length) from anyone in the Kidlitosphere, including bloggers, authors, illustrators, readers of blogs, etc.

Yes, I think that means they want to hear from EVERYONE with something to say about being a reader. Get going!

Secondly, if you're an author who lives anywhere near the East Coast, MotherReader makes an eloquent case for why YOU want to come to the Kidlitosphere Conference on October 17th. (Other than to see me, of course. I'll be there, speaking on a panel and helping Pam herd author cats. I'll go shoe shopping with you, too, if you want.)

Off to find the perfect pair!