I’ve written for years now with dogs next to me. My first dog books were written with Julius and Stanley, my late, departed Labs. A Dog Year was written with Orson, my wonderful, demented border collie. Izzy and Lenore were by my side for the last book, and my next two books are either focused on Rose or inspired by her. Now, I am working for an hour each morning with Frieda, and she loves her work as a writing dog, lying by my side, uttering the deepest sighs. Outside, Frieda is a Helldog, chasing everything in sight, but she is a natural writing dog and is helping to inspire me.