September 30, Tuesday evening -- Reading Metsy Hingle and Jonathan Kellerman

I have to preface this post by saying that, when I interview people with shopping cart lifestyles I am frequently asked for money. The fee I respect is a dollar. For the man in the right of this picture, reading A Cold Heart, the dollar was very important, so important that he tried to get two dollars for himself and none for the other reader. Which didn't fly.

Reading Flash Point, by Metsy Hingle--he works for the convenience store a half a block down and likes to stand out here and read. He reads everything, from Dean Koontz to Nora Roberts. He went through the cart looking for other titles he could show me. He said he reads a lot of women authors.

While he was searching, I talked to his friend, who was also reading, and I asked my favorite question--if you were to write a book, what would it be about? His answer? A love story. He showed me a framed picture of a pretty young woman who he had wired to the front of his cart. "My girlfriend." She was grinning and holding a carwash sign. A very sweet picture. But, his love was not reserved simply for the photogenic. Later, near the end of our conversation, a frazzled woman in a wheel chair approached. Her hair was a mess and her face was blotchy as if she'd been crying or had just been in a fight. She said that she needed money. He was reluctant at first, but then, with a warm smile, he did what any friend would do--he helped her out, he gave her the dollar I'd given him.

If you were to write a love story, what would it be about?