Sunday, August 24th, 2008 - 4:00 p.m.

Hi Everyone!

Had a very well attended book signing at Chillermania! today! The store was packed, and it was great to meet so many Chillers fans. Lots of people came from great distances, and I really appreciate it. In fact, we were so busy that staff photographer (Mrs. Chillers) was only able to get a few pictures (below). I have two more signings scheduled for next weekend. Hope to see you! Don't forget: free posters and pencils for everyone during all Chillermania! book signings.

Summer is winding down nicely. It's been a little colder this year (hey . . . what about global warming!?!?!), so we didn't even get a chance to do much swimming. Our dogs, of course, didn't care. They're doing great. By the way: Spooky Dude, whom we adopted from AuSable Valley Animal Shelter last month, is doing great. If you remember, he and Lily Munster were having a tough time getting along. Lily Munster has now accepted that Spooky Dude isn't going anywhere, and I think she now recognizes him as part of the family. He's learned to jump off the dock, and it was easy to teach him to retrieve his water toy.

Don't forget: my story 'Field of Screams' will be serialized in the Bay City Times and The Saginaw News beginning in September. Be sure to check it out. Each chapter will be published every Tuesday. Also: last years' story, 'The Ghost of Gratiot Road,' will be available in book form next month! It will only be available at select Meijer stores, and all proceeds will benefit our 'Read It Up!' program devoted to children's literacy. Very cool. I couldn't be happier. It's a great cause that I am 100% behind.

Author Quest camps were, once again, unbelievable experiences. We had two great groups of kids this year. We're already getting applications in the 2009 camps. There were many kids who didn't make it to camp this year because they waited too long to send in their application. Don't forget that you must be accepted to camp; you can't simply register or sign up. Your essay must be approved. This makes sure that only those who *really* want to write will be allowed to come to Author Quest. I can't stress this enough: if you want to attend next years' Author Quest camps, don't wait. They fill up fast, and we limit each camp to only 48 young authors to keep class sizes small. Click here for more information!

I'm back on the road in September, with my first stop in the beautiful state of Kentucky. I'll be in numerous states this school year, and I'm really looking forward to it. It's been nice to be home all summer, and I'm ready to get into a fun travel schedule again.

Pics from today:

Thanks again to everyone who dropped in today. It was great fun!

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