Graeme

Paddy's one of my favourite characters in the story. He doesn't have a major role, but he's by no means a minor character I have a habit of introducing things in one chapter and then developing them a few chapters down the track. Andrew was introduced in chapter 15. He's the classmate that Ross caught videoing him while he was getting changed on the last day of formal schooling before the exams.

I don't know why people seem to think there's a problem. Andrew rings a school friend and asks if an offer is still valid. Why does this sound bad?

LOL -- originally, the draft was supposed to be part of Leopard Spots but I knew I wasn't going to be able to finish it while keeping a regular posting cycle. In hindsight, I'm glad because it allowed me to make this third part of the year a separate story with its own story arcs, rather than just being a straight continuation of the football season. Ross appears to be on the borderline of whether he'll be drafted. He hasn't impressed people, but they can see the potential in him. Trevor pretty much said that what he's done after the season ended (at the combine and training with the Leopards) has lifted his profile, but whether that's enough to get him drafted remains to be seen.

Thank you! This was the second novel I started, but the first I finished. In the process I learnt that I wasn't able to work on two novels at the same time -- I had too much trouble keeping the two stories separated, so I put New Brother on hold for awhile to finish this one. I had a lot of fun writing it, and I'm delighted with how it came out. I'm even more pleased that the readers think the same

Thanks, Tim! As usual, you've give me lots to comment on...or avoid commenting on If Ross ends up with the Lions in Brisbane, it would certainly help if there's a Leopard there, too. However, I need to point out that the rookie draft (which is where Dave thinks he'll be drafted if he's drafted at all) is approximately a week after the main draft (which is when Ross is hoping to be drafted). That means that Ross would have to wait to see if there's going to be someone to support him before he comes out to the club. Doable, but it's an added complication. Regarding Liam's brother (Noel, for those how don't remember), there's no reason Noel couldn't go with them to Sydney. He's autistic, but that doesn't mean he can't go on a road trip. He'll probably need some sort of long-term distraction to keep him occupied, but that's why they invented electronic games. At least, that's why I assumed they invented them... There is a vast spectrum of autism and we haven't been given a good feel for where Noel fits in on that spectrum. He's been shown to be slow to warm up to strangers, but that's not relevant if they're getting in a car to drive to Sydney. Autistic kids like routine, but unless they're severely autistic, they're not slaves to routine. It is possible that Daphne knows the exotic dancer that Kevin encountered at the start of the year, but it's quite possible that she doesn't. I have no idea of how many transgender women there are in Sydney, but I would assume that not all of them would be members of an online transgender support group. Some people just aren't that interested in the Internet. However, I'm sure you're right -- Kevin would be wondering if it were possible to go back and try to apologise again. However, given the risks associated with that (she had made it clear she never wanted to see him again, and doing so could result in a call to the police for harassment), he probably wouldn't jump in and do so. As for your other points...keep reading

Thank you. Ross is overall a nice guy. At least that was my original intention... As for Andrew calling, he's a classmate of Ross's. What's the big deal about him ringing Ross?

Trevor Boss put down his cup and frowned across the cafe table. “I’ll be honest; we didn’t have you high on our list. However, when you kept showing up around some people we are interested in, we took another look.” “Can I ask who?” Ross took a sip from his own coffee while maintaining eye contact with the Brisbane Lions recruiter. Trevor chuckled. “Straight to the point. I like that.” He stared for a moment, a smile playing at the edge of his lips. “We’ll get to that later. I’d like to talk a

I thought we should continue this thread for the upcoming paralympics. From Baghdad to Rio for the boy born without arms or legs

Out of all of Ron's stories, this is my favourite. It's the one I remember when other stories I've read start to blur together. Dorian's growth from timid brow-beaten boy to a young man standing side-by-side with friends and lover is one that I've enjoyed immensely. Thank you, Ron

Thank you! Yes, there's lot of scope for trouble if people make the wrong moves. I feel bad for Ross. He has a dream, but it could easily turn into a nightmare. Is he better off following his dream and taking that risk, or is he better off missing out on his dream? His relationship with Warwick is another area where he could get badly hurt if Warwick can't get himself sorted out in time. None of this is life-threatening, but sometimes emotional hurts can be just as painful as physical injuries...

Julie? Evil? How can you say that? As was stated right back in Leopard Skin Cover, she used to be a personal trainer and knows just how to get people motivated to work harder This series will only be three books, but I'm reserving the right to do some spin-offs. I'm seriously considering a spin-off novel (no details on what because I don't want to give out any spoilers), but I won't be starting on that immediately. I've got another novel I want to work on first.

Thank you! While it may be a little creepy for Trevor to contact Ross so quickly, it could also be a sign that the Brisbane Football Club are eager to draft him. After all, Trevor range Ross on an official basis, and he was also watching Ross train on the previous Saturday. That shows a significant level of interest.

As usual, you've given me lots to comment on Thanks, Tim! Kevin's parents are unusually nosy. Some people don't appear to have a filter when it comes to asking questions, and that's Kevin's parents. Most people know what questions not to ask The worst part from Kevin's point of view is that he knows that it's not malicious -- they honestly care for him, but still... Yes, the characters are all quite young. Warwick's age hasn't been mentioned, but he's probably around the 20-21 age. Most people that age are not looking for a life-partner, but some are. At a guess, I would say that the less secure someone feels, the more likely they're looking for a life-partner because they're scared of being left on the shelf and not finding anyone. Ollie and Helena, for example, were not looking for a life-partner when they found each other. Neil, on the other hand, was looking for someone to save him. There's a difference between training hard and having the necessary levels of aggressiveness on the sporting field. As you've pointed out, Charlie also has problems with his level of aggressiveness, though he still trains hard. When you're putting your body on the line and risking an injury, it takes a certain mindset to not back-off. Charlie's been told he has to develop that mindset, and it appears Ross may need to as well.

French race walker Yohann Diniz finished the 50km race despite collapsing partway through and blood running down his leg. It's amazing the determination and sheer courage some of these athletes exhibit.

Warwick started cooking breakfast when he heard the shower running. Ten minutes later, Daphne walked into the room drying her hair. “Did you sleep well?” he asked as he transferred the bacon to a tray and placed it in the oven to keep warm. “How do you like your eggs?” “No preference. If you insist on me making a choice, poached would be good.” She smiled. “I had a really good night’s sleep with lots of pleasant dreams. I really need to thank you and Geraldine. I didn’t want to get my hopes up

Thanks, Tim! Yes, Warwick is going around things in a weird way, but in some ways that shows the level of desperation he has with trying to get rid of his feelings for Kevin. The danger is if he fails to move on from Kevin, Ross is in for some more hurt (and could very well develop an aversion to having a boyfriend, given what had happened with Stuart). Ross is rightly getting stressed about the possibility of being drafted interstate. Coming out when you have no support network at all has to be scary.

It appears that the swimmers may have made a false report. According to the latest reports, they may have lied to covered up an incident at a petrol station.

That story Dorian's father came up with to explain what had happened is going to backfire on him. It would've worked if he'd managed to get Dorian under his control, but Dorian got away. Now, he's going to have fires to fight, especially since the presidential candidate clearly thinks that Dorian's arrest was inappropriate. Dorian has something he's never had before when it came to standing up to his parents: friends. Seth, Sydney, Jade, and Wes are all there to support him. He's not able to stand up to his parents by himself (the power differential is too big), but with their help, he's got a chance

That's a lot better than I had feared. If Cory hadn't been bigger and stronger than his father, however, it could've had a very different ending. Even so, it sounds like he drove practically non-stop for 24 hours which is probably just as dangerous as the nightmare scenarios I had contemplated. The chance of an accident, especially with the pre-Christmas traffic, was high. One thing I noticed is that Cory's mother isn't angry; she's upset. She seems to have almost expected it, but had been hoping it wasn't going to happen. To me, that means that she's a decent chance to come around and accept her son. Cory's father, on the other hand, is going to need to experience some sort of boot up the backside before he turns around...if he ever does. The question is if he gets it from Cory's brothers, Efrain and his family, or from someone else. As a few other readers have said, it would be good to see how the rest of Cory's family react. I'm also wondering about Cory's mum's side of the family and what the fallout was about. Is that in anyway related to Cory's father's reaction? Questions that I'm sure will be answered in future chapters...eventually Thanks, Dayne! A very strong and powerful piece of writing

:joe: Happy Birthday, Bill! :joe: :music: :music:

The Australian ABC has an entire article on wedding proposals at the Games. Both same-sex proposals are included

Raising money for childhood depression by climbing Australia's highest mountain in their underwear And just as a teaser for the article, here's the main picture...

Olympic Spirit on display after fall on the track

:wizard: Happy Birthday, Cia! :wizard: :read: :read: