Todd Burleson
@tburleson.bsky.social
Educator, librarian, and author with 33 years of experience, 2016 SLJ Librarian of the Year, and global speaker. Passionate about reading, tech in education, ethical AI, and finding joy in creativity through photography, design, and storytelling.
Two young men. A black bear. Nothing on but our boots.
Absurdity and terror under the Sierra Nevada stars—an unforgettable night when survival and laughter blurred together.
#WildernessTales #BearEncounter #Memoir #Adventure
Absurdity and terror under the Sierra Nevada stars—an unforgettable night when survival and laughter blurred together.
#WildernessTales #BearEncounter #Memoir #Adventure
September 16, 2025 at 10:49 AM
Two young men. A black bear. Nothing on but our boots.
Absurdity and terror under the Sierra Nevada stars—an unforgettable night when survival and laughter blurred together.
#WildernessTales #BearEncounter #Memoir #Adventure
Absurdity and terror under the Sierra Nevada stars—an unforgettable night when survival and laughter blurred together.
#WildernessTales #BearEncounter #Memoir #Adventure
The half-dome, the mosaics, the light — Union Terminal is more than architecture. It’s memory, story, and timeless design all in one.
A morning alone in Cincinnati’s Art Deco icon.
#Cincinnati #Architecture #ArtDeco #Travel #Photography
A morning alone in Cincinnati’s Art Deco icon.
#Cincinnati #Architecture #ArtDeco #Travel #Photography
September 15, 2025 at 10:56 AM
The half-dome, the mosaics, the light — Union Terminal is more than architecture. It’s memory, story, and timeless design all in one.
A morning alone in Cincinnati’s Art Deco icon.
#Cincinnati #Architecture #ArtDeco #Travel #Photography
A morning alone in Cincinnati’s Art Deco icon.
#Cincinnati #Architecture #ArtDeco #Travel #Photography
What happens when you hand over a story you’ve carried for thirteen years?
I’m learning that waiting for feedback is not idle—it’s the work of trust.
Read the full post: Before the Feedback Arrives
#WritingCommunity #AmWriting #BetaReaders #IndieAuthor
I’m learning that waiting for feedback is not idle—it’s the work of trust.
Read the full post: Before the Feedback Arrives
#WritingCommunity #AmWriting #BetaReaders #IndieAuthor
September 14, 2025 at 12:03 PM
What happens when you hand over a story you’ve carried for thirteen years?
I’m learning that waiting for feedback is not idle—it’s the work of trust.
Read the full post: Before the Feedback Arrives
#WritingCommunity #AmWriting #BetaReaders #IndieAuthor
I’m learning that waiting for feedback is not idle—it’s the work of trust.
Read the full post: Before the Feedback Arrives
#WritingCommunity #AmWriting #BetaReaders #IndieAuthor
A child with butterfly wings, pencil in hand, lost in creation. I sat with coffee and gratitude, realizing I was watching something much bigger than a Saturday morning.
#ChildhoodInnocence #ArtOfNoticing #Gratitude #Photography #Family
#ChildhoodInnocence #ArtOfNoticing #Gratitude #Photography #Family
September 13, 2025 at 12:41 PM
A child with butterfly wings, pencil in hand, lost in creation. I sat with coffee and gratitude, realizing I was watching something much bigger than a Saturday morning.
#ChildhoodInnocence #ArtOfNoticing #Gratitude #Photography #Family
#ChildhoodInnocence #ArtOfNoticing #Gratitude #Photography #Family
Out of collapse, I built something raw: wires, rage, and brokenness set aflame with light. What I love about it isn’t beauty but honesty—a record of survival.
What have you forged from your own fire?
#Creativity #Resilience #Photography #InnerFire
What have you forged from your own fire?
#Creativity #Resilience #Photography #InnerFire
September 12, 2025 at 10:32 AM
Out of collapse, I built something raw: wires, rage, and brokenness set aflame with light. What I love about it isn’t beauty but honesty—a record of survival.
What have you forged from your own fire?
#Creativity #Resilience #Photography #InnerFire
What have you forged from your own fire?
#Creativity #Resilience #Photography #InnerFire
Locked in a dead train car. No air, no way out. I screamed at the platforms flying past, pounded with my shoe, and thought: this might be how I die.
Full story: Trapped: Next Stop Humiliation
#Trapped #MemoirMoments #NearMiss #SurvivalStory #HumiliationStation
Full story: Trapped: Next Stop Humiliation
#Trapped #MemoirMoments #NearMiss #SurvivalStory #HumiliationStation
September 11, 2025 at 7:13 PM
Locked in a dead train car. No air, no way out. I screamed at the platforms flying past, pounded with my shoe, and thought: this might be how I die.
Full story: Trapped: Next Stop Humiliation
#Trapped #MemoirMoments #NearMiss #SurvivalStory #HumiliationStation
Full story: Trapped: Next Stop Humiliation
#Trapped #MemoirMoments #NearMiss #SurvivalStory #HumiliationStation
Independent publishing has felt like balancing two lives at once—writing the story and building the bridge for it to reach readers.
Here’s what I’ve learned so far.
#IndiePublishing #WritersLife #AmWriting #BookJourney
Here’s what I’ve learned so far.
#IndiePublishing #WritersLife #AmWriting #BookJourney
September 11, 2025 at 1:08 AM
Independent publishing has felt like balancing two lives at once—writing the story and building the bridge for it to reach readers.
Here’s what I’ve learned so far.
#IndiePublishing #WritersLife #AmWriting #BookJourney
Here’s what I’ve learned so far.
#IndiePublishing #WritersLife #AmWriting #BookJourney
Independent publishing has felt like balancing two lives at once—writing the story and building the bridge for it to reach readers.
Here’s what I’ve learned so far.
#IndiePublishing #WritersLife #AmWriting #BookJourney
Here’s what I’ve learned so far.
#IndiePublishing #WritersLife #AmWriting #BookJourney
September 11, 2025 at 1:05 AM
Independent publishing has felt like balancing two lives at once—writing the story and building the bridge for it to reach readers.
Here’s what I’ve learned so far.
#IndiePublishing #WritersLife #AmWriting #BookJourney
Here’s what I’ve learned so far.
#IndiePublishing #WritersLife #AmWriting #BookJourney
What happens when stone meets sky in perfect balance? My new series, Lines and Light, begins with the Al Noor Mosque in Sharjah, where morning light turned architecture into grace.
#LinesAndLight #Architecture #TravelPhotography #Sharjah #UAE
#LinesAndLight #Architecture #TravelPhotography #Sharjah #UAE
September 9, 2025 at 11:49 AM
What happens when stone meets sky in perfect balance? My new series, Lines and Light, begins with the Al Noor Mosque in Sharjah, where morning light turned architecture into grace.
#LinesAndLight #Architecture #TravelPhotography #Sharjah #UAE
#LinesAndLight #Architecture #TravelPhotography #Sharjah #UAE
The series began in wonder. It ends the same way — but deeper now, shaped by gratitude and perspective.
This is the final chapter of Streets, Squares, and Stories.
#TravelReflection #EasternEurope #Perspective #Storytelling
This is the final chapter of Streets, Squares, and Stories.
#TravelReflection #EasternEurope #Perspective #Storytelling
September 8, 2025 at 2:15 PM
The series began in wonder. It ends the same way — but deeper now, shaped by gratitude and perspective.
This is the final chapter of Streets, Squares, and Stories.
#TravelReflection #EasternEurope #Perspective #Storytelling
This is the final chapter of Streets, Squares, and Stories.
#TravelReflection #EasternEurope #Perspective #Storytelling
In Budapest, a pharmacist slid medicine through an acrylic cylinder. In that simple act, I heard something bigger—kindness flowing across languages, like the Danube itself.
#Budapest #Danube #Kindness #TravelReflections
#Budapest #Danube #Kindness #TravelReflections
September 7, 2025 at 1:05 PM
In Budapest, a pharmacist slid medicine through an acrylic cylinder. In that simple act, I heard something bigger—kindness flowing across languages, like the Danube itself.
#Budapest #Danube #Kindness #TravelReflections
#Budapest #Danube #Kindness #TravelReflections
One daisy stood apart this summer—ordinary yet unforgettable. 🌼 Sometimes the simplest bloom carries the heaviest weight of joy and memory.
Read the full post: Friday Flora: A Summer of Daisies
#FridayFlora #DaisyLove #SimpleBeauty #NatureReflection
Read the full post: Friday Flora: A Summer of Daisies
#FridayFlora #DaisyLove #SimpleBeauty #NatureReflection
September 5, 2025 at 11:17 PM
One daisy stood apart this summer—ordinary yet unforgettable. 🌼 Sometimes the simplest bloom carries the heaviest weight of joy and memory.
Read the full post: Friday Flora: A Summer of Daisies
#FridayFlora #DaisyLove #SimpleBeauty #NatureReflection
Read the full post: Friday Flora: A Summer of Daisies
#FridayFlora #DaisyLove #SimpleBeauty #NatureReflection
A wooden door that felt more like a poem.
A flag carried not in anger, but in honor.
A city suspended between past and present.
Bucharest left me with fragments worth carrying.
#Bucharest #TravelReflections #DefianceAndHope #LastLight
A flag carried not in anger, but in honor.
A city suspended between past and present.
Bucharest left me with fragments worth carrying.
#Bucharest #TravelReflections #DefianceAndHope #LastLight
September 4, 2025 at 12:22 PM
A wooden door that felt more like a poem.
A flag carried not in anger, but in honor.
A city suspended between past and present.
Bucharest left me with fragments worth carrying.
#Bucharest #TravelReflections #DefianceAndHope #LastLight
A flag carried not in anger, but in honor.
A city suspended between past and present.
Bucharest left me with fragments worth carrying.
#Bucharest #TravelReflections #DefianceAndHope #LastLight