2000, the Year of the Dragon, saw the release of DRAGONFLY, my first middle-grade novel since SECRETS. It's not your standard fantasy set in some unreal time and place. This story unfolds in the normal world, as Jason and his family - along with a couple of unusual adult friends - face the increasingly difficult task of protecting a dragon hatchling from the various Others who might want to study, exhibit, or destroy her. Tristan Elwell was the artist for the cover. His image of Jason making his first flight on the dragon's back is perfect. The reviewers liked it, kids like it, and I'm still getting requests for a sequel. I'd love to oblige, but there's a problem. I had terrific problems with the publisher of this book, and had to use binding arbitration twice in order to enforce my contractual rights. He then simply put my books with him, including this one, out of print! I bought up all the remainders of DRAGONFLY so as to be able to offer them in school visits. Now my only hope of being able to share other dragon stories is to interest a reliable publisher in reissuing this first title. (Nobody's going to publish a sequel when the first book has vanished.) Having a sequel or two ready may help make things easier, so I have one already drafted and another plotted out. I'll try! In the meantime, at least the students at schools I visit can get signed copies of this one, and other readers can probably find used copies on the web. I hope there's a chance of sharing more stories involving this dragon. I had a lot of fun writing this one. Wish me luck!