Some time after the middle of May we fall into a pattern of unrelenting heat, or at least what those of us in the northeast think of as heat. All through June, July and August the temperature hardly varies. A few cool days are an aberration rather than a trend. Then, just when it seems like the thermometer is stuck, the weather changes, and stays changed.

The descent into autumn is always abrupt. One mid-September night the house is sweltering. The next the furnace goes on. We won't need to burn propane continuously until October, but suddenly it is the warm days which are unusual.

This year our work seems to be in a transition period along with the seasons. Projects which have been underway forever are finished. Next year's schedule is being sketched out.

We are done with Seven for a Secret except for correcting the galleys. The book is due out in April, 2008, when the weather will be changing again. (Cover )

Although the rhyme upon which we based our titles ends at "seven" (for a secret never to be told) the decision has been made to keep the series going for a bit longer. We're very fortunate. Not many writers these days have the chance to write more than a handful of books in a series. Most of us are in a transition period most of the time. In the world of publishing the weather is usually changing and generally foul.

Now, let's see, we don't actually need to come up with a rhyme for "eight" do we?