Nutshell 2006

One of the biggest events of 2006 was the Texas Library Convention in Houston. I stayed south of the big city with a friend and former student from Wyoming days and she engineered a visit in the Alvin School District where she volunteers and her son goes to school. I had a wonderful time talking to children and renewing ties of long ago with two undergraduate classmates from Southwest Texas State University in San Marcos.

Besides visiting after hours, I spent most of my time at TLA signing books in the Eakin Press booth and in making new contacts. One of the contacts led to an invitation to the Literature Festival at Sam Houston State University in Huntsville in November. It was a very rewarding experience. I met a lot of other authors including Gary Paulsen and renewed my love affair with a good ol' Texas-style chicken-fried steak with cream gravy. Ah-h-h!

The other main activity in 2006 centered around two visits (spring and fall) to the Arlington Schools. Again, I stayed with a friend and student from long ago, this time from my days at North Texas State University in Denton. I wore two hats on separate days: visiting author and writing consultant. Both were very satisfying. Nothing compares to being with children and talking about books and writing.

Lastly, I mustn't forget to tell you about my wonderful experiences with the Girl Scouts of the Dogwood region in Missouri. At various times during the year, I helped girls of all ages earn badges connected with writing. I was never a Girl Scout myself; we didn't have the option where I grew up. But I always wanted to be. So now I'm an adult Scout with a title: "Girl Scout Writer in Residence."

Hooray for children and those who work to help them love books. Thank you all.