Busy, busy! Off to the NC School Library Media Assn. Conference in Winston-Salem in a few hours. Still haven't finished packing. Do have the important stuff in the suitcase - tea bags, Luna bars, honey wheat pretzels! :-) I am doing a booktalking presentation on Friday a.m. so I need to get my books packed too. Was up late grading last night so didn't have time to pack - needed some sleep, but was still up at 1 a.m. worrying about what I hadn't gotten done. Should have gotten back up and packed!

Went to the East Carolina Literary Homecoming on Saturday and had the pleasure of listening to James Ransome and Eliza Carbone talk about their craft. Ransome took us step by step through the process of how he creates his illustrations from photographs and showed us slides of his workshop and his children. I had him autograph an alphabet book, Quilt Alphabet, that he and his wife did together for our newest grandbaby, Kady, who will join us via C-section on Friday. Also bought Brer Rabbit and the Tar Baby Girl for MJ so I can read it to him. I love doing that story! I get to see him the first week of November - Yahoo!!

Carbone discussed her research process, which is extensive, even to the point of sitting out in hurricane force winds to get the feel of what a character would be experiencing! I came home with two of her YA novels, but didn't get them autographed as I missed her autographing session. :-( Can't wait to read Blood on the River - about James Town and Storm Warriors, which is set on the Outer Banks of NC and based on a true story of African American life saving crew.

Karen, Lindsey, Libby and I were sitting together at lunch, talking about the morning presenters and the local newspaper reporter came up to talk to us. Our comments about the Literary Homecoming made the front page of the Sunday paper! :-)

All for now - really do need to pack and take care of the last minute things before I load my stuff into Bonny (my car - since it is a 007, named after Bond, but a female version! I love Brosnan's Bond, but am not a Connery fan at all.) Karen is navigating so I don't get lost! :-)