Hello and Have a happy holiday if you’re into it,

I learned a few days ago I can hold a book signing at the New York Police Museum in Manhattan, on 100 Slip near Staten Island on tentatively October, 29. I am of course thrilled and so far not too nervous, I'm excited; for one, to get the chance to visit New York after all these years, to be alive in that great city. I have an itinerary of three excursions I hope I can do which includes not only the signing at the museum but to get to tour it as well, I have a feeling their police museum is terrific(Cleveland has one too and its a good one) filled with so much of the departments phenomenal history; I hope there’s an exhibit on Frank Serpico and the Knapp Commission.

I also hope to do a Ride-Along out of the 1-9 precinct, this would be terrific though I’m hoping it won’t taint my ideas of police life in the precincts for my novels—it probably will--I’ll just have to keep a rein on it because I’m satisfied with how I depict the police in my novels.

Lastly, I want to meet Mayor Bloomberg, this is not a weird request. I admire him and know he's done a wonder job for the city I'm in love with; so to meet him would be a terrific experience.

That’s my New York trip; unfinalized, but getting there. The most important reason for going there is in reality to get my novel and the next two known in the city they’re set and to also get the real feel, taste and smell of the place I imagine each and every day. I’ll keep you posted if and when I get the okay for parts of my itinerary; I’m going to do what’s necessary to make my trip a success because it’ll help make my novels that much better.

I hope you got to watch Barack Obama’s acceptance speech, it was awe-inspiring and one of the most important things I came away with from the experience was the fact that he or his team had to write it, face that blank sheet and come up with the best words, the sweetest historical references, the here and now experiences of us Americans and put it down on paper; it was an amazing undertaking. Yet, through the miraculous power of putting words and sentences together he's able to inspire the world.

If you have any comments or suggestions please e-mail me at my new address: shabazzl@adasbcc.org.

Until next time, God willing,

Lori