Put A Wrap on August

As the evidence on the right of this bar will indicate, this writer has not been writing.

Six posts for one month? And you call yourself a writer?

Yeah, yeah, I know but if I haven't been able to update this, it's a "good problem". It means that people are buying The Interim. We have enjoyed a fruitful August as The Interim has made its way all throughout the state, literally, from Cuba City to Marinette, from Superior to New Berlin.

I'd like to think that maybe, just maybe, I'm sitting on a literary monster with this. The detailed reviews are just starting to come in and they're good. Reviewers and readers are talking about the high stakes, character development, morality plays and, for those in Wisconsin, the imagery of reading about life in this very unique state.

Enjoy your Labor Day weekend. With college football now here (I'm watching Syracuse-Washington on my TiVo as I hammer away), I plan on being just "above worthless" on Saturday.

The Interim In Sunday's Leader-Telegram

Just a heads up for this weekend. The Interim will be featured in this Sunday's (August 26th) Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. Entertainment editor Troy Espe graciously took his time to come to our home to talk about The Interim and also my writing in general. Look for it, this Sunday and, yes, I'll probably find the time to post a link here with the story.

An inspiration for The Interim

I actually had to look back 15 years for one of the main points of inspiration for The Interim. Bob McCormack is now the head coach at his alma mater, CBC High School in St. Louis. Back at Ladue High in 1991-92, "Coach Mack" was our coach. He was a fiery 28-year-old in his first head coaching gig. I was an aloof 17-year-old know-it-all, short on talent but long on verbiage. I'm 32 now, he's 44 now and, I swear, he looks younger than I do.

And we all learned about the McCormack intensity. The result wasn't too bad: 4-20 the year before he came. 21-7 in his first year, my senior year. Ladue bagged its first District Title (that's a big deal in St. Louis basketball circles). He was named Coach of the Year in Missouri.

On that team, I was no star. I wasn't even a starter but I learned so much from his organization and his passion -- elements that I like to think I have transferred into The Interim.

Last week's Griswold-style odyssey through St. Louis brought me face-to-face with Coach Mack for the first time since 1996. Since our last meeting, we've both become fathers of two children and have enjoyed success in our relative careers. He won a state title after leaving Ladue for CBC in 1996 and coached an NBA lottery pick in Larry Hughes that year. I had the pleasure of covering Kevin Garnett for years with the Timberwolves. He is entrenched in basketball in St. Louis, where his playing reputation from 30 years ago is still talked about around town.

I only had the pleasure of catching up with Coach Mack for about ten minutes last week but I recommend looking up any teacher/coach from your past who really left an imprint and thanking that person.

This is a friendship that I hope only grows.

Return From The Clark Griswold Experience

2,000 miles in ten days.

The Great American Family Vacation.

This explains the extended gap between posts here on the site. Over the past ten days, we all experienced the passion and purpose of driving through Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas and Illinois. Along the way, we "knocked out" visits with every major family domicile on my side.

With two small children riding in the back, the odyssey became a constant carnival of children's movies and occasional stops along the way, the top two being the Iowa Children's Museum (nice work, Iowa City) and Go-Kart racing in Branson, even amid 102 degree heat in Branson, Missouri.

Now we return to the other end of dramatic weather, deadly flooding in southeast Minnesota and southwest Wisconsin. It's been an unnerving story to return home to and one that we'll all follow closely for the next few weeks.

A Very Welcome 'Attaboy'

As part of the constant search for people to check out The Interim and offer a solid opinion, good or bad, a welcome phone message hit my ears tonight.

"Hi, Chris, this is (enter respected author's name here) and I just wanted to let you know that I think you've written a wonderful, wonderful novel."

The name of the aforementioned "respected author" will be revealed at a later date but, the point is, this man, who has probably sold about 1,000,000 more books than I have over my lifetime took the time to read The Interim. He not only read it, but he told me later that he read it in two days and then offered specific praise over plot twists buried deep within.

You have no idea how much this means, especially as he has set the benchmark for sports books, in well-researched non-fiction on controversial subjects and people. I've read his works for more than 20 years -- one, in particular, pushed me into becoming a sports reporter way back when -- and consider many of the books cornerstones in the world of sports journalism.

A Radio "Hit" Amid A City's Desperate Week

Just yesterday, I made it through a successful segment on WCCO-AM 830, Minneapolis, with host Eric Nelson.

We're now five days from the I-35W Bridge Collapse, near downtown Minneapolis, which has taken up endless hours of airtime, both locally and nationally. As it should. We even had viewers, such as a couple from Spooner (about 75 miles north of Eau Claire) who were in a Jeep, on the bridge, when it fell. Their tale was one of true survival, one of so many that day. Note: However, their survival story has taken a much darker and sadder turn, as recent news viewers can attest.

Eric and I actually spent the opening minutes talking about the collapse and how the recovery efforts were coming along. The story has really been that important and I think the attempts, all over, to localize bridge safety have informed the public. (Mark this as a story that should be localized -- we all drive over bridges.

I could feel myself a little muted, compared with my usual radio appearances when I'm talking about my books.

Next up, gentle reader, on WAYY-AM 790, Eau Claire, this Thursday morning, sometime between 8-9 am. (I'm not saying that to "hook" you for the whole hour, I really do not know which 'slot' I will be at).