And So It Goes

A dozen years ago this past Monday saw my first post here at the Library. I, myself, was working at the Public Library at that time and had just had my first piece ever published in an actual book! My son was only 8 years old.

In the years since, my family has weathered financial strife, the death of my wife's mother, major health issues among ourselves and friends, depression, two basement floods, the collapse of the economy, unemployment, the near-demise of the book industry, and the election of the single most unqualified man ever to be given so much power.

BUT...during that same time, this blog has helped me make genuine friends and contacts to the point I have now worked on more than 100 books in various capacities including writing, ghostwriting, researching, editing, proofreading and transcription. I have become friends or at least acquaintances with dozens of people whose work I grew up watching, reading, or listening to, including most especially Kathy Coleman whom I had actually written about in my high school journal!

We have been able to use crowdfunding to help both ourselves and many others in need and we have made considerable progress that may yet lead to solving the Christa Helm murder case. In fact, watch the Oxygen Channel this fall for Soledad O'Brien's new true crime series, one episode of which features Booksteve as an investigator!

Today, my son is in his third year at college, with a full ride! He's about to turn 21! I've been working in a bookstore again for the past two years, this time in the back room where I mainly open boxes, take out trash, and put away magazines three days a week.

As long as my insurance sticks around, I'm working on getting my health under control, having just been given a clean bill on skin cancer. Next month, I'm due to have several teeth necessarily removed. Ugh!

I have an article on Bobby Sherman, David Cassidy, and the Partridge Family coming up in BACK ISSUE magazine soon, with one on ARCHIE MEETS THE PUNISHER right behind it. I'm working on two other magazine writing assignments as well.

I also have written the text for Yoe Books' upcoming book collecting pre-Code stories of mummies!

THE BEST OF BOOKSTEVE'S LIBRARY is selling well and will stay available. I've already had requests for a second volume! There's also the possibility of BEST OF volumes from my other blogs, book versions of my annotated high school journals, collections of my long ago erotic short stories, and hopefully guest blog posts from time to time for other bloggers!

There is still the possibility of a podcast, too, once I see how bad my speech is affected when I lose more teeth.

And feel free to friend me on Facebook where I do a lot of the same kinds of stuff I've always done here and have more than 200 pop culture photo albums. I also run a FB group on Gray Morrow and one on all the actors who have played Superman!

And having learned from Sean Connery to never say never again, I leave open the possibility that I may, after a rest, return to blogging either here or maybe in some all-new venue.

But for now, this is my last post here. Check out FOUR-COLOR SHADOWS tomorrow, though, for not one, not two, but SEVEN all-new final posts, one per hour starting tonight at midnight!

So thank you all for stopping by, tonight and all the nights before! May the Force be with you! I am OUTTA here!

And so it goes...