Oooh, my feet.

My poor, poor feet! OK, maybe it's not that bad, but other than a fine, fun lunch with a big bunch of talented, funny, generous of spirit, dedicated, and local kidsbook friends (and please note that all those adjectives describe 'em all, so I just linked in totally random order... and encourage you to visit them in equally random order), I spent from about 8:30-5 yesterday walking. And walking. And looking. And carrying heavy books. And walking. And walking. And waiting in a 40 person deep line for caffeine. And walking. And carrying heavy books. And then walking some more.

Oh, yeah -- and chatting with great people and learning a ton about what's going on in the world of children's literature. Book Expo America is quite the scene, this first-timer would say, but once I got over the sheer size of it (and got over the idea that the goal was to find everything free!!!!), it was also quite the good time. I was wearing my author hat and my children's librarian hat (and occasionally my book promotion hat), and I can safely say it was informative in all ways.

Plus I don't have to exercise for weeks!

Off to BEA....

Gonna hit the floor at Book Expo America tomorrow (and thus forego a Poetry Friday post, unfortunately). If any of y'all are there, I hope you'll say hello! I'll be the guy who looks like my picture, but I'll probably have a glazed/overwhelmed look in my eye as I roam the floor....

The bloggers gather (again!)...

Last year it was Chicago that saw the first children's literature bloggers conference -- a sorta spontaneous seeming event that happened only due to the driving spirit and hard work of the funny and talented Robin Brande. This year it's gonna be Portland that sees us descend in mass.

So I'm thinking... hey, there are some bloggers of the kidlitosphere who read GottaBook. Maybe some of y'all wanna come?

Check it out here... and don't be shy.

Summer so soon???

How can it almost be June???? I need to work on a mathematical formula that determines how fast each year flies by based on a slew of variables....

So what's up ahead, you ask? Writing. Library (and look for more on this soon, lest you think I've forsaken this part of my life). Poetry. Sunshine. Heat. And yes... continued blogging, much (though not all) of it more substantial than this post!

All I wanna do is...

... sleep! And then sleep some more. Normally a cross country trip doesn't wipe me out, but normally I don't get up at 4:30 and fly to the west. Egad!

Anyway, it was a wonderful trip full of brain-fattening ideas AND friends and kidlitters a-plenty in NYC (thanks Fuse!). I couldn't have had a much better time in general. More on all of this, I'm sure, will appear in dribs and drabs AFTER a good night or two of sleeeeeeeeeeeep.

My brain hurts, I tell ya.

For the past couple days, I've been thinking a lot, all about issues not usually at the forefront of my brain. No poetry this week -- instead, it's a steady diet of issues related to computers, freedom, privacy, social networks, data mining, and technology policy among other things. Good stuff, but I not an iamb to be found!

You can tell I've been busy, I suspect, as this is my first post in days and days. And, in fact, it's brief, as there's much more to twist my brain around here for the next 24 hours. See you when my brain's not a pretzel....

And he's off....

Posting might be sporadic here as I journey to the east. Or it might not. I have very little idea what'll happen, other than I'll be at kidlit drink night on Monday and CFP after that. I hope to see some of you at one of the other. Heck, I hope to see all of you, but that'd make for one full bar/conference!

My Superhero Band-aid -- a band-aid poem/a bandaid poem/a boo-boo poem

MY SUPERHERO BAND-AID
By
Gregory K.

My superhero band-aid
Takes all my pain away --
I put it on a cut I got when I went out to play.

My superhero band-aid
Is barely hanging on….
I’ve worn it 18 days, but still, it’s why the pain is gone!


It's a Poetry Friday poem dedicated to all the parents who've tried to peel off a band-aid TOO EARLY! The Two Writing Teachers are on the poetry roundup today. Check it out here.

And if you want to get all my new poems (and only the poems) emailed to you for freeee as they hit the blog, enter your email address in the box below then click subscribe!

And after NYC, you ask?

I'm not actually going to the East Coast just to be at a kidlit drink night. Nope. There's more to it than that. So why is this poet/writer guy heading to Connecticut after a brief day in NYC?

I'll be at CFP2008, of course!

I know some of you guess "Computers, Freedom, and Privacy" cuz really, why wouldn't you. But I'm serious that that's where I'll be -- learning about a slew of stuff, from freedom of speech to reputation management to how technology factors into the upcoming election, and the impact and issues of social networks. I'll even be leading a breakout session on how to promote a book via Facebook and other social networks. (Got tips or want tips? Check the in-progress wiki!)

Promises to be a blast, I have to say. And who knows... maybe I'll see you there?

Me... in NYC!

Yes, I'm taking the GottaBook show on the road and getting a whopping full day in NYC. And because she's the bee's knees, Fuse #8 is organizing a Kidlit Drinks Night so I can hang with the City's children's literature finest (or at least the ones who are free and able to make it to Sweet & Vicious on Monday, May 19th at around 6PM). Here's all the info per Fuse.

Will I see you there? I hope so!

The allure of bubble letters....

I'm not sure what the actual allure of bubble letters is, but I do know that many, many people out there are interested in making mother's day cards out of said letters... cuz they somehow end up finding me here at GottaBook (specifically going here).

Which of course leads to interesting questions about what knowledge, if any, we can gain about the world by seeing what people search for in general. I love seeing that type of information -- on More Words, I am fascinated by seeing the recently looked at words, for instance. I'm sure there's a bunch of great philosophical questions that could be discussed when it comes to all this, but I don't think that's where this blog is heading. In fact, what I really wanted to say when I sat down to type this (and please imagine this in a bubbly font) is...

Happy Mother's Day!

Another Poetry Friday repeat!

Seemed like an appropriate time to dust off my Mother's Day poem , since most of y'all weren't around two years ago when I posted it. And, after all, 'tis the season!


HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY
by
Gregory K.

I made my mom a giant card
With letters three feet tall
(I couldn’t find the paper
So I used the playroom wall).
Then I made her breakfast –
Trix and jam rolled up in bread!
I think she would’ve liked it,
But I spilled it on her bed.
Our neighbor grows great roses,
So I filled our biggest vase.
I wish you could’ve seen it –
What a look on Mommy’s face!
Our cuckoo clock chirped six A.M.
I said I’d go and play.
Then I told my mom I loved her…
And she said I’d made her day.


If you want to get all my new poems (and only the poems) emailed to you for freeee as they hit the blog, enter your email address in the box below then click subscribe!

Plus, it's Poetry Friday, and writer2b has the roundup. Go on over and see how poetic the blogosphere can be....

It's been a long time...

... since I posted a Search Fib (that'd be a Fib made up of various search terms that have brought folks to GottaBook). I may have to dust off that oddball sub-genre soon, particularly since today's search highlight is eight syllables. But what does it mean?

"Don't want to give credit poems"

So... is this a search for poems about not wanting to give credit where it's due? Or is someone gonna use my poems without giving credit? Or...? Guess we'll never know!

The SCBWI 2008 Summer National!

Was just perusing the info for the 37th Annual SCBWI Summer Conference. As always, a stellar lineup (this year seeming to be extra heavy on editors). I love this conference, I must admit (as if it were some big secret?), and am already looking forward to August.

I know I'll see many familiar faces there, but maybe some of you lurkers/new readers will be showing up, too? Lemme know!

Changing gears....

I gotta say that it's been a bit tough switching back into a more traditional blogging mode rather than a poetically-posting mode. Oh, sure, you say... just post poems EVERY day ALL year!!!! Hmmm. I'll take it under advisement :-)

But in the meantime, I hope you'll forgive some fits and starts as I get back into linking, writing, and ruminating.

A Sixth Grader Sees the Future -- an original poem by J. Patrick Lewis

It's a huge Poetry Friday treat for me -- an original J. Patrick Lewis poem, posted here with his permission. You really should go to his website, and check out his fabulous books of poetry for children. Seriously. (And check out the Poetry Friday roundup at Big A little a, too)

A Sixth Grader Sees the Future
By
J. Patrick Lewis

In a billion years, A.D.,
Our sun will shine for none to see.
The sea will miss each passing ship;
The sky will hover over zip.
Those blazing stars will start to cool,
And I won’t have to go to school.

In a billion years from now—
Or maybe more—but anyhow,
The earth may shrivel up and die,
                   The universe? Pi in the sky.
                   The future, spinning, may have spun.
And I might have my homework done.


[Note: This poem will appear in J. Patrick Lewis’s COUNTDOWN
TO SUMMER: A POEM FOR EVERY DAY OF THE SCHOOL YEAR,
Little, Brown, 2009. All rights belong to J. Patrick Lewis. Posted here by his express permission]

April poems bring May... uh... well...

I guess I'll have to see what happens in May before I can answer that, but I suspect it won't rhyme.

Posting poems here is a lot of fun, and it's also occasionally instructive. I love feedback, but it's not that I post here to workshop poems, per se. Still, it's always clear when a poem really connects, because it inspires more comments and emails than normal (though I've also learned that a paucity of comments or emails doesn't translate to a 'bad' or 'weak' poem).

Also, as always, I learn a lot about my own take on what I've written -- as when I paste a poem in but then hesitate too long before actually publishing the post. That long hesitation always leads to not putting the poem out in public. This month there are six poems sitting in a folder because for some reasons (some I know, but some I haven't yet discerned) they didn't make the cut at the last minute. For all I know, of course, those poems would've been somebody's favorites of the month... but they weren't mine, and it's my blog!

Again, thanks to all for hanging around and reading....