Grisham isn’t losing any sleep over this, but the story goes like this …

When Danny Bedford, a firefighter and father of three young children, dies in a house fire while trying to rescue a baby trapped in the inferno, his ten year old son, Bally, comes to resent his father’s decision to take ‘too great of a risk’, and vows to always protect his siblings.

30 years later, Bally is a college sports legend and hometown hero. But disaster strikes his newest real estate development, The Neighborhood at Bedford Falls. Suddenly, Bally’s personal fortune and the careers of his entire family are put on the verge of collapse.

When a prayer is answered with a booming clap of thunder in Downtown Columbus, a sinister betrayal is revealed that will alter the Bedford family’s future for generations to come, and a kid on a bike must make the decision of his life.

A contemptible newspaper columnist, fair-weather allies, and the person who sabotaged The Neighborhood at Bedford Falls, all conspire to bring Bally to the brink of ruin.

That’s when Bally and his wife, Emily, retreat to the old neighborhood, where they learn new details about the shocking impact of Danny Bedford’s fall 30 years ago.

Their son Ryan, a renaissance priest, a beautiful violinist, and Tomorrow’s Cowboy, all have roles to play, if the Bedford family is to survive.

If you like stories of seemingly unconnected characters making huge impacts on the dreams of others, you might like this book.

Heroes are everywhere. But will Bally know where to look … when Bedford Falls?

Many of you, in real estate related fields …

might recognize yourself in some of the good characters of the book. Be confident, however, that all of the villains are purely made-up imaginations!

To learn more about Bedford Falls, visit Amazon.

The post Can We Learn from Reading Fiction? appeared first on Walking and Talking.

I recently released my new book, Bedford Falls.

Every time I gave a manuscript of Bedford Falls  to a friend or colleague, they’d ask, “Why did you write a novel?” The setting of the story is the world of real estate in Columbus, Ohio – a place I know and love. But still, there are always trade-offs, and writing a novel takes a lot of time, energy, and focus. So, why did I write a novel?

I suppose the answer is, like so many of you in real estate, I like to connect.

 Why do you …

• Organize golf outings,
• Establish real estate groups, and
• Launch so many charity events?

Because you are connectors. You bring people together. You gravitate towards being with others.

It’s time to reconnect! This makes for a good excuse to get together.

Over the last couple of years, when it was challenging to maintain relationships, I wrote Bedford Falls, with the idea that it would create a great opportunity to get together with friends and colleagues for breakfast, a cup of coffee, or who knows, maybe even a group-luncheon or two, where all of us can reconnect! I’m open to your suggestions!

That is why I wrote Bedford Falls, a novel.

And yes, you can order the Kindle version here at Amazon.

Or click here to order a paperback edition at Amazon.

The post Why Did I Write A Real Estate Novel? appeared first on Walking and Talking.

Photo courtesy of @iStockphoto.com

The Change of landscaping to the American front yard

My dad did such a great job on our front yard in the 60s and 70s. He would seed and fertilize it every year. And the grass around the circle of dirt we called a pitcher’s mound was so green! You couldn’t find a single weed on either side of the base paths we created during our baseball games! We can learn a lot just from looking at old photographs of a typical neighborhood from the late 50s to the early 70s. Back then there were ball gloves, kickballs, and frisbees everywhere. There were bicycles laying on the ground (no need for bike locks). There were basketball hoops and badminton nets, along with an occasional teatherball pole. In the backyard were croquet mallets, horse shoe pits, and maybe a tent was set up where the kids kept their Daniel Boone stuff. It was not the least bit unusual for you to drive down the street and see a basketball or football that had rolled down to the curb. They’d be there for a couple of days, until the parents told the kids to “Clean up the yard, before you come in.”

A childhood of greater freedom

Think of how freeing that was. Certainly for the kids, and even for the parents who could go about their day, knowing that there were games being played throughout the neighborhood. No worries about what the kids were doing. And for that matter, no worries about maintaining a manicured lawn, or the time and expense of having lavish landscaping.

Of course, today, if we see our neighbor’s kid hitting golf balls against the trunk of that tree in our front yard, we’re mortified. “Get out of here you nutball!” It really is true that there were a lot of broken windows back then; and yes, you really did get in trouble when that happened. But, so what?

The change of landscaping of America

Today, if you want to know about the changing landscape of America, you don’t have to look any further than the change of landscaping in America, where front porches have been replaced with elaborate backyard decks that are rarely used because everyone is too busy driving all over town to their ‘sporting events’.

The invention of organized games

‘Organized games’ are where you hand your kid a $160 baseball glove and a $300 bat and chauffeur him or her to a ball field that is only slightly nicer than Fenway Park. There you will find 2 umpires, more parents with cameras than there are players, and Mrs. Johnsen whose turn it is to provide after-game treats for the famished little athletes. Four assistant coaches are usually enough to insure that the kids will stay off their cell phones and politely thank Mrs. Johnsen for her efforts.

Five hours later, you pull back into your driveway and admire how pristine the front yard looks. “Honey, do you think the mulch is fading?”

Was all of this done intentionally?

Our change to organized games was not necessarily a good or bad thing, but was it made intentionally? Did we think about how this change would impact our lives, or did we just kind of follow along? Today, are we once again just following along with the latest trends? The trends of video games, and phantom football. Maybe it is time for us to take back the reigns of leadership; to be a bit more intentional and think about the best way to lead our children – the best way to show a good example. Maybe we should stay closer to home on Sundays. Cincinnati is a long ways to go for 2 groundouts and a pop-up to second base.

Question:  Is it time to change the landscaping a bit?

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