Oh, umm...yeah. That.

The outline is done, major scenes scripted out, conceptual themes drafted. I'm beginning to lay down all the sentences to connect these elements and produce a readable story. And I've already hit my first...well, hurdle isn't really the right word since it's probably just in my head, but...slow down, maybe. I've taken three of my daughter Kayli's close friends and inserted them as major characters sharing this adventure with her. I've also taken facets of their personality and expanded on some trait as the dominant characteristic. Anna - She plays some pretty wicked softball. She's also a laugh riot with her sense of humor. Edie - She's a top-ranked trap shooter and entertaining offers from colleges in far-flung states to join their shooting teams. Apparently these places offer hefty scholarships to shoot guns. Who knew? It was an easy transition to turn her into a weapon's master. Kelsey - She got my daughter into animals. I think I blame her directly for causing baby goats to appear in my garage every spring. She's also quiet and a vegetarian. So, of course, I made her a pacifist. As I started getting a few chapters under my belt, a new concern arose, something strange I've never dealt with, simply because I have never done this type of work. My wife and I are friends with all the girls' parents. None of them know I'm doing this project and now I've started sweating their perception of my perception of their daughters. What if Anna's parents think: 'Hey, what's up with the softball connection? Our kid is more than that!' Or what if Edie's parents think I'm portraying her as a trigger-happy killer? I don't know, in the trap shooting world trigger happy could be a fatal trait to have. I'd hate to be the reason a college yanks her offer because they perceived she was a loose cannon. Ha ha, I'm just kidding. No one will read these, probably not even the girls themselves. There's no way a some college officer in Florida will ever see the way Edie is painted on the written page. Anyway, I think I'll lay the groundwork with the parents, a little preemptive discussion with mom and dad so they're prepared. Otherwise I risk losing drinking friends.