Listened to first audio chapter of "Deadfall Ridge."

Listened to the first audio chapter of "Deadfall Ridge" and thought it was great.

So bear with me, but I get a kick out of this. It sounds very, very professional--not just the narration, but the underlying text.

I wrote that!

I mean, it sounds good to me--to the point where I'm a little surprised that it is that good. I can't decide if this is egotistical or the opposite. I remember shortly after I wrote "Led to the Slaughter," my first book out this time, I said to a lady who complimented me, "I'm almost feeling like a writer."

"Oh, you're a writer," she said firmly. "Don't have any doubts about that."

The difference between this career and my former attempt is that with Star Axe and Snowcastles/Icetowers, I constantly see where I could have done it better. With these newer books, I'm not taken aback so much. It pretty much reads (and sounds) the way I intended.

Not bad, if I do say so myself. Pretty good even.