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To my friends of EBWW,

At last year's conference, I loved sharing the journey of my mother's God Box from page to stage. And in just nine days, I will be onstage at the University of Dayton's Boll Theater to perform the show to benefit EBWW, building an endowment so that more deserving writers can attend this incredible event.

But before I do, I wanted to share another way that I am hoping to give back...on my feet. I accepted an invitation to compete in a charity version of "Dancing with the Stars." "Dancing for our Future Stars" pairs professional ballroom dancers with amateurs who've built careers doing anything but. The competition is a fundraiser to support the Independence Mission Schools in Philadelphia. These schools support children in the city's hardest hit neighborhoods. (My own grade school is one of them.)

I've spent four months learning the rumba, cha cha, swing and waltz, honing my spray tan, pumping my sparkle and dancing backwards in stilettos and tonight, I am put to the test.

Can you be partner from afar? If you go to www.dancingforourfuturestars.com and vote for me between noon and 8 p.m. EST today (Saturday, March 21), your tax-deductible donation of $10 or more will count, first for the kids but also as votes for my dance. I promise I will rock it and if I dare to share, video will follow. Thanks so much for anything you can do.

And soon, I will pay it forward in Dayton for our beloved Erma Workshop! Hope to see you there!

Your fellow writer,

Mary Lou Quinlan

- Mary Lou Quinlan

Mary Lou Quinlan is the New York Times' best-selling author of The God Box, Sharing My Mother's Gift of Faith, Love and Letting Go, a marketing expert, actress, speaker and advocate for women. The God Box Project has become a global movement, including a vibrant online community, series of short films, mobile app and a one-woman play written and performed by Ms. Quinlan. All proceeds go to various charities around the U.S., mostly to benefit women's health and educational causes.