I just finished this one (now it is the editor’s turn):

"Summer on the Moon" is set in this instant in America. The economy is tanking… People are scared… But for Socko Starr, and his mother, Delia, being worried about money is just business as usual. They are living in a cramped city apartment, Socko trying to dodge the notice of the local gang leader, Rapp, when Socko’s great grandfather makes them an offer. “The General” will buy them a house if they agree to take care of him so he doesn't have to go into a nursing home. “The General,” who Socko has never met, turns out to be a crotchety, bossy old man, who thinks it is a great joke to “play dead” to shake up his great-grandson—and that isn’t the only surprise when the mother and son start their new life.

The house Delia buys seems like a great bargain. What she doesn't know is that “Moon Ridge Estates,” the half-finished subdivision the house is in, is going bankrupt. When Delia, Socko and The General move in, they are the only people who live there.

So, what is it like to be the only kid in a sprawling subdivision of unfinished houses? It's great! Socko suddenly has turf of his own—far more than the gang leader, Rapp, could ever imagine. He turns the empty swimming pool into his own personal skate park, skeletal houses become giant jungle gyms. Then Livvy and her family move in. Livvy says she "owns" Moon Ridge Estates. It is her father's project. But who knows what will happen if Moon Ridge goes bust? Livvy, Socko, and an odd assortment of adults have to pull together to save Moon Ridge.

Things look like they’ll be okay—and then Rapp, the nightmare Socko thought he had left behind, comes after him.

How does it end? All I'll say is that it ends with a splash (like a car makes when it flies into a swimming pool)!

Another one from the neighborhood:

This is the book I should be working on right now, and I’ll get to it soon—I promise!

So many readers have written to me about the ending of “The Big Nothing,” asking, “What does Jemmie say to Justin when he tells her that he wrote that song for her?” Just for the record, I didn’t include it because I don’t think readers would have liked what she had to say. She appreciated the song, but she hasn’t yet figured out that she LIKES Justin. It will take her another book to realize that she does. I’ve also got to bring Duane home from Iraq. And what’s up with Ben and Cass and Anna and Mica? I hope to get all of that in too so stay tuned.

Also on the drawing board...

Every chapter book writer wants to try their hand at a picture book. Why should I be any different? I have three picture-books-in-the-works.

“The Dog at the Door” is about a stray dog that shows up at a boy’s house one morning and won’t go away. The boy’s father says, “We don’t need a dog.” And I guess he’s right. Nobody needs a dog. But as the boy points out, “Sometimes a dog needs you.”

“The Hat” is about what happens when Eddie Cooper—an ordinary kid—finds an old fedora in the closet: “The hat’s been waiting—most of the time in the dark—waiting for someone to put it on.” And what happens when Eddie puts it on? Plenty. I’ll hurry up and finish writing it so you can read it.

“The Wild Party” is about turning an ordinary yard into a place where wild things like to hang out, and yes, even party.