MAKING PROGRESS

I'm making some progress on this whole book-writing thing. Last night, I got some feedback on my first book. It read, "It doesn't matter what you write, as long as there is a photo of you in the book. You are, by far, the most handsome writer ever. Put a photo of you in there, and you will be a best-selling author!"

Okay, I may have embellished that just a wee bit. Okay, doggonit, I made the whole thing up.

In seriousness, I got a response from a sweet lady who read my first book, "Home Run From Heaven." She shared it with her son. I sent out a few copies so people could read it, edit it and critique me on it. Her response was the first I've received, and it was a great response. She said I should be proud of the book, and that really made me smile.

I can't thank her enough. She really boosted my spirits.

Here is what the book is about:
Dylan Bell, a freshman in high school, grew up idolizing his father, who played ten years of Major League Baseball. When his father passed away because of cancer, Dylan was heartbroken. But thanks to a new, always-getting-into-trouble puppy, a loving family, a supportive girlfriend, and his strong faith, Dylan grows as a baseball player and as a young man. With a little bit of help, and a lot of faith, Dylan just may be able to lead the Hudson Redmen to a place they have never been before in school history.

I'm thinking it's kind of Young Adult, with a splash of Romance, a dash of Christian and some Paranormal thrown in there for good measure. Hopefully, it will be published sometime this summer.

ON DECK

I've decided on my next book as well, though I may be going back and forth between two books. I've got something tentatively lined up along the lines of the Olympics, but I need to hammer some things out first.

In the meantime, I will be writing something geared more towards kids. It will be about a pair of fun-loving yet mischevious dogs.

My plan is to start writing that this week, maybe even today.

SHOUTOUT OF THE DAY

This shoutout goes to a friend of mine, who I've known since she was in middle school. Amber Bollinger moved from Ohio to California, following her dream to become an actress. She has done just that!

Amber has done modeling and has acted in a number of films. She is one of the most talented ladies I know. Besides being beautiful, Amber is as funny and as sweet as they come.

She was an incredible athlete in high school, setting numerous records, and that helped land her a scholarship with the University of Cincinnati track team. She did pretty phenomenal there, too.

Amber has always been entertaining. She's going to be huge one of these days. She's doing something she loves, and not a lot of us can say that.

You can follow her on:
Twitter https://twitter.com/mariebollinger
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/#!/mariebollinger
Tumblr http://mariepartee.tumblr.com/archive

Check out her movies here: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2592497/

I couldn't be happier for, or more proud of Amber.

SONG OF THE DAY

"Imagine," by John Lennon. I've always loved that song.