Friday, January 11th, 2008, 1:00 p.m.

Greetings from our home on Topinabee Island, Michigan!

Here's how quickly things can change here. This picture was taken yesterday morning . . .

. . . and here's a picture *exactly* twenty-four hours later:

We had a snowstorm roll through, and we received about six inches of snow. Here are a couple of ice jams on the lake:

Ice jams like those above are caused by high winds pushing chunks of ice across the lake. Cool, huh?

Mrs. Chillers has been busy helping out at AuSable Valley Animal Shelter in Grayling. Someone should tell this cat that there's no fish in the toilet . . .

There are some really great dogs and cats available for adoption at the shelter. Scooby is a great, super-nice dog looking for a home:

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Autumn and Xena . . .

Two sisters . . .

Harley . . .

Callie . . .

Maude . . .

Anya looks vicious, but she's not. In fact, she's very, very smart and loveable . . .

Gabe LOVES hunting for his Kong ball in the snow . . .

Here's Mable the Table. When she came to the shelter, she was very overweight. She's on a strict diet and exercise plan, though, and she's doing great . . .

These animals (and more) are available for adoption from AuSable Valley Animal Shelter in Grayling, Michigan. If you're interested, call (989) 348-4117. Even if you're *not* interested, please consider adopting from an animal shelter in your area when it's time to find a new best friend!

Preparations are coming along for Author Quest 2008. I can't stress this enough: if you're interested, fill out your application, write your essay, and send it in soon. Last year, a number of people waited until the last minute, and camp had already filled up. We already have quite a few campers registered for both camps!

I'm off the road for most of the month of January, taking some time off to let my right arm heal. I'm still having a tough time with it. Some days it's really sore, and I'm not sure if it's doing much better. We'll see in time.

I've had a few e-mails from people, wondering if I'm 'on strike.' Nope. I don't belong to any writer's union, so it's business as usual for me (and most authors, for that fact. The writer's strike you read about or see on television doesn't have anything to do with most writers.)

American Chillers #23: Wicked Velociraptors of West Virginia will be out soon! I can't wait. I think you'll really enjoy it. I'm almost finished with #24: Haunting in New Hampshire. Dwayne Harris is working on the cover. Here's what the sketch looks like:

He's working on the color version as we speak. Very cool, I think!

Best wishes, happy reading, and . . . WRITE ON!