I'm happy to announce that there will be a fifth book to complete The Tapestry series. The development occurred as I was working on the manuscript for The Maelstrom and realizing that there were too many interesting aspects of the world and interesting story lines to explore to wrap up the series in a fourth book of manageable size (i.e., not a a thousand-page book). It's a tricky topic to broach with one's publisher - after all, they thought the series was originally going to be a trilogy - but fortunately they were open to expanding Max's tale.

I can't tell you how thrilled I am. As I was writing The Maelstrom - and thinking it would be the last book - I was agonizing over how best to economize certa [...]
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My mother is the first person who reads each new chapter of my books. I can always count on her to provide timely encouragement and constructive criticism as The Tapestry takes shape. On Mother's Day I want to say a great big THANK YOU to the woman who brought me into the world and raised me. Without her, Max McDaniels would not have made the leap from thought to page.

Here she is in 1971 - a spectacular photo of a new mother in front of the Eiffel Tower with her firstborn (my older brother, John). A beautiful, loving, and thoughtful lady. My siblings and I are very fortunate.

And here's to mothers everywhere - thank you for everything you do. It's a hard job and sometimes a thankless one, but your kiddies love you for it...

Alright, I promised an update post-dancing lessons and I'm a man of my word.

Danielle and I opted for the special "introductory" package of lessons at the Fred Astaire dance studios in Manhattan.  We arrived to see a variety of students and teachers gliding gracefully about the floor, engaged in everything from the rumba to the foxtrot to cha cha cha.  Alas, there was no one engaged in Lamada...the infamous "forbidden dance" popularized on the silver screen.

Anyhow, back to the lesson.  Nadia - our very patient, very skilled instructor - explained that the rumba is a stationary dance while the foxtrot is one which travels.  We tried both and spent the next forty-five minutes giggling, blaming one another for missteps, and doing our best to master the basic [...]
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