At the offices of BradParksBooks.com, the interns were rushing about in a last-minute frenzy, trying to get their boss launched on the next leg of his book tour, a grueling three-week, 12-stop schlep that will take him from Virginia to Maryland to New Jersey to Connecticut.

(Note: Brad made us use the word "grueling" so his wife wouldn't think he was having so much fun; you, gentle reader, should not be fooled).

While Brad was packing and preparing to open the next front—some would say affront—on the Sometimes-Dashing Book Tour, Sarah, the smart intern, noticed something was missing.

"The turtleneck!" Sarah crowed. "Where's the turtleneck?"

She was talking, of course, about the charcoal grey turtleneck Brad made famous—some would say infamous—in his author photo.

"Maybe it's been retired to the Pretentious Author Hall of Fame along with Steinbeck's pipe," said Zach, the silly intern.

"I didn't know Steinbeck smoked a pipe," Sarah said.

"Must you always be so literal with my humor?" said Zach, sighing dramatically.

Being careful not to wake Peter, the slothful intern, who was lightly snoring, Sarah nosed around until she found the turtleneck. Then she extracted the following promise from Brad:

That he will wear the turtleneck at one of his upcoming appearances. Which one? The only way to find out is to attend:

In addition to your last chance to mock Brad about the turtleneck—he's taken so much ribbing about it he's talked of mothballing it—it might very well be your last chance to get a signed first-edition copy of FACES OF THE GONE, since even the reprints are now going fast.

Brad says he hopes he sees you at one of the above events, which are, it should be noted, turtleneck optional.

Happy New Year,

The Interns at BradParksBooks.com