Last Track, The (38 page)

Elynn Cohen crafted an awesome cover; I love her work.

When a student is ready, the master appears. Many individuals taught my psyche lessons I could receive only from them. Gene Mitelman taught me about quality control, the value of persistence, and to accept only my very best effort; Bill and Susan Schoonover taught me that a good relationship takes the hardest work of all and nets the greatest rewards—with any luck I’ll get that right someday; Dr. David Potter DC taught me that pain is an aberration, rather than a normal condition of existence.

A number of people offered friendship and support during this project: Todd Ellis, Susan Busfield, Michelle DeVries, Mario and Jamee Guerra, Ron Picone, Elena Bogan, Jim Biglan—the best boss on the planet, hands down, Ayanna Hill-Gill, Joan Del Negro, Justin Saporito, Jamie Cooper, Gwen Burleigh, George Schneider, Fran Sonneborn, Don Chisholm, Leslie Burns Patient, Steve “Comedy Madman” Patient, Jason “Pain Bringer” Gibson. Steve gets an extra shout-out for the book trailer. Speaking of the trailer, Jason Gibson earns another mention for the fight choreography and the months of martial arts instruction. Extra special thanks for not killing me.

I would be remiss to exclude Ian Rogers, who has quite a few great novels and stories in him, and the lovely Kathryn Verhulst-Rogers, so I shall mention them twice. Thanks, Ian and Kathryn.

When I stopped trying to meet women, inexplicably the right one appeared. Lisa Sisler, thanks for your strength, courage and love. May your considerable writing talents and commitment to the craft yield all the rewards you deserve. You had me at Hemingway, DB.

Still others helped in a different way. Whenever I felt low about prospects for
The Last Track
, encouragement arrived from unlikely sources, often phrased in the form of a rejection letter. I kept the kind notes and shredded the rest.

Over and over again, the story itself provided all the reasons I needed to persevere. Ultimately, I continued for Mike Brody’s sake as much as my own. In a strange way, we believe in each other and always will. He’ll never stop searching and I’ll never stop writing. No matter how long the odds.

About the Author

Sam lives outside of NYC with his girlfriend and an army of four cats—one feline under the legal limit. Working at an all-girls boarding school, he knows world-class drama firsthand. It’s also the reason he studies Krav Maga and Tai Chi.

Reading Guide available for download at:

www.buddhapussink.com

To schedule Sam to speak with your Book Group, contact: [email protected]

Web site:
http://samhilliard.com

Facebook:
http://facebook.com/thelasttrack

Twitter:
http://twitter.com/samhilliard

Sam Hilliard

c/o Buddhapuss Ink LLC

518-7 Old Post Road #323

Edison, NJ 08817

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