The success of Clay Eals' biography of Steve Goodman has taught him life changing lessons in hope and gratitude.

"Steve Goodman: Facing the Music" sold out its first 5,000 copies in eight months, and is now in its second printing. The book has also just won a silver medal in the biography category of the 2008 Independent Book Publisher awards.

"When I decided to write the book, I suspected there would be an audience to connect with, but you don't really know until it happens," Eals said. "It's really gratifying to see that suspicion is correct."

While the name Steve Goodman may not ring a bell to many, Eals chose his subject because of the personal connection Goodman made with the few lucky enough to hear his music.

"There are two kinds of people, those that say 'Steve who?' and those that say 'Steve Goodman!' Eals said. "There is no in between."

But Goodman's obscurity resulted in 75 rejection letters from publishers and agents before Eals found one willing to take a chance on his book.

"It gave me confidence that the little guy and the little project are just as important as the blockbuster ones you hear about every day," Eals said. "Publishers don't want us to know about people we don't already know about. They want a sure thing."

Despite the odds, Eals devoted 8 years of his life and interviewed more than 1,080 sources to complete the book.

"We tend to think that we can do it all, but this book was a real lesson in gratitude to me," Eals said. "I needed a lot of special help to pull something like this off."

Eals' interviewees included Arlo Guthrie, Steve Martin, Jimmy Buffet, Bonnie Raitt, Jackson Brown, Willie Nelson, Emmylou Harris, David Alan Coe, Pete Seeger, and Goodman's high school classmate Hillary Rodham Clinton.

"People jumped at the chance to talk about Goodman," Eals said. "He changed a lot of people's lives."

Goodman was a songwriter and performer in the 1970s and early '80s. He was diagnosed with leukemia at 20 years old, but continued performing for 15 more years. He died at age 36 in 1984.

"You have to understand, leukemia in the 60's was practically a death sentence," Eals said. "Goodman was given a year to live at most, but with experimental treatment he lived for 15 more years. He had a death sentence on his shoulders, and that came out in every interaction he had."

For the past year the positive responses to Eals' book have put him on cloud nine, but it is time to return to solid ground.

"My biggest project now is finding a real job. I need to bring income back into my house, and this doesn't really do it," he said.

But the journey Eals has taken to research and write "Steve Goodman: Facing the Music" will continue to be a source of inspiration in his life.

"This book is proof that you can do your someday project," he said. "It is my best writing."

Camille Vallanueva may be reached at camillev@robinsonnews.com