A Contradiction of Thought

By Robin Weaver

 I love that RTG has a monthly theme. Having a single topic provides just the right amount of inspiration to fire up my disjointed brain. If you’ve read any of my blogs, you know the theme and the resulting post are typically miles apart. But doing the twist makes writing fun.

I try to take the expected and do something completely different. For the November theme, “Abundance,” I wrote about having too many Christmas decorations. And being unable to stop making more. That same thought-contradiction led to the development of the Christmas Tree Wars. I mean, the holidays are about peace on earth, right? So naturally I needed to start a fight.

I didn’t plan to write a novel about a Christmas competition, but one year, a friend vowed to “one up” my holiday tree. At the time, she was helping me with my Phantom of the Opera decorations. We were creating a couple dozen music notes from dough and glitter (there might have been some Baileys involved), when she declared she was doing her own theme.

And she did. The birds!

Her tree was actually quite fowl.  STOP! I’m joking. Her creation was truly beautiful, and I probably spent more time looking for bird ornaments than she did. I’d love to tell you the planning/decorating turned into a scene from an Alfred Hitchcock movie (or Stephen King for those of you who don’t remember Al—wait, even Stevie is old now. What I meant is Squid Games—yeah, that’s it). Anyway, any of the three would have been more interesting, but we had a lot of fun.

My friend’s faux posturing—“My tree is gonna kick your tree’s butt.”—inspired the Christmas Tree Wars. The novella details a Christmas Tree competition, which brings in tourism, and is a big deal in the small town. Like any Hallmark Movie, eh…I mean character-driven story, our heroine doesn’t want to enter. A little goading by the town socialite (aka busty bully), a big bet, and an even bigger entry fee paid by friends who can’t really afford the gesture, and Suzette has no choice but to come out swinging (swinging tinsel on tree branches, but still…).

As the story developed, I fell in love with the imagined town, Merryvale, so had to set another story there. Likewise, the busty bully needed to redeem herself, thus Full Contact Decorating came to life. The third novella, the Gingerbread Skirmish, was actually planned. Everyone knows you must have three books in a series. 😊

I had a lot of fun with these novellas, especially writing the chapter headings. I added a twist on Christmas Songs to describe the chapters. Some examples include: What Childishness Is This, 12 Days of Lying, and, Chestnuts Roasted. I was advised NOT to do that—that it would be cheesy, but hey, no one paid me to NOT have headings. So, my book, my chapter subtitles.  And what’s wrong with cheesy, anyway?

Have a ho-ho, very happy holiday, Everyone.

And please check out the Christmas Tree Wars, written under my pen name Genia Avers.

Click on the link above to get the eBook FREE today on Apple & Kobo!

Reads for the Holidays

by Courtney Pierce

This holiday season, I’ll be breaking from my decades-old tradition of poring through the inspirational stories of Charles Dickens. I’ve always embraced his tales of the human condition in my antique editions, two-columns of tiny print on whisper-thin, fragile pages.

Holiday reads are about connecting to emotions that re-calibrate our attitudes, allowing us to take stock in our abundances. In the process, we soften our scar tissue, and lift ourselves to be better people than we think we are.

At the urging of my 85-year-old Mom, I picked up a full-price hardback edition of Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens. Yes . . . I’m one of those few reader/writers who are willing to pay full pop for a keeper-book on the shelf. It’s an amazing debut novel by Ms. Owens and is one of those rare first efforts that became a runaway bestseller. When I read the summary on the front flap, l worried that it might be depressing. Who wants a downer of a book around the holidays? But now I understand its success, and it wasn't just a new writer's beginner's luck.

Ms. Owens's writing style and voice in this book are unique. The combination completely captures the culture of “swamp folk” in North Carolina’s Outer Banks. Like many colorful locations in that part of our great country, the demographics, history, and topography shape the attitudes and beliefs of their inhabitants. Having myself grown up on the East Coast, both in the north and nearly south, this book hit home for me on many levels. Mom picked another winner that makes me want to work harder at being a successful writer.

Six-year-old Kya, the youngest of five kids, is living in a shack in the remote marsh country. Her alcoholic father has driven away her mother. Kya’s siblings all leave too, one-by-one, to get away from their poverty-stricken life. When her father is killed, there is only Kya, left alone to fend for herself. The long arm of the law and authorities don’t often reach to people in the marsh. A reader can’t get through the first six chapters without appreciating the gift of family and having enough to eat. I found myself so hungry that I gobbled up every word.

This is a story of survival against all odds, jumping up to touch bottom. Little Kya not only learns to survive, but to thrive with ingenuity, purpose, and instinct. The things we take for granted in lifeꟷeducation, socialization, electricity, the clothes on our backꟷare huge leaps for little Kya. And survive she does, even after being accused of murder. She’s a vulnerable target, because Kya is considered to be merely swamp trash by the locals.

As I read this book, I am reminded of the poignant real-life story of Frank McCourt as told in his memoir, Angela’s Ashes. Even after 23 years since it's publication, I can never erase the scene where young Frank scours the Irish pub for discarded fish and chips wrappers just to lick the grease. The settings of these two books are thousands of miles apart, but the refusal to crumble under adverse circumstances makes the world much smaller. We who have so much, eat so much, whine so much are humbled by these stories. They inspire us to give away more than we take, even if for a short while. Then we retreat back into our comfortable ways until the next book inspires us.

Maybe I haven’t abandoned my beloved Dickens after all. I will see his messages everywhere this holiday season, holding up a mirror to the selfish, divided, and mean-spirited. And in their reflection, should they choose to see it, is a countenance that projects benevolence, unity, and kindness.

I’m in the early stages of drafting my seventh book, Big Sky Talk. The research phase of this process is both arduous and satisfying. I'll be delving into Native American folklore in order to weave authenticity into the prose. My goal is to sit down with tribal elders to discuss the spiritual meaning of reincarnation among the Blackfoot, Kootenai, and Salish tribes, which are prevalent here in Montana. Access to this wisdom must be earned . . . and so I shall work hard. I think I may have discovered my new Dickens.

Lessons heard. Lessons learned.

I have so much to be thankful for this holiday season. I now live in one of the most beautiful places in the world: Kalispell, Montana. Snow-capped mountains and abundant wildlife surround me at every turn. We fish and hunt to fill our freezer for the long winter ahead. We hike to remain healthy. A loving family wraps me in their arms by the glow of a wood stove.

And most important, I still have my freedom.

Photo: Micah Brooks

Courtney Pierce is a fiction writer living in Kalispell, Montana with her husband, stepdaughter, and their brainiac cat, Princeton. Courtney writes for the baby boomer audience. She spent 28 years as an executive in the entertainment industry and used her time in a theater seat to create stories that are filled with heart, humor, and mystery. She studied craft and storytelling at the Attic Institute and has completed the Hawthorne Fellows Program for writing and publishing. Active in the writing community, Courtney is a board member of the Northwest Independent Writers Association and on the Advisory Council of the Independent Publishing Resource Center. She is a member of Willamette Writers, Pacific Northwest Writers Association, and She Writes. The Executrix received the Library Journal Self-E recommendation seal.

Audiobook now Available!

Check out all of Courtney's books: 

courtney-pierce.com and

windtreepress.com 

Print and E-books are available through most major online retailers, including Amazon.com.

Available Now!
Book 3 of the
Dushane Sisters
Trilogy

The Dushane Sisters Trilogy concludes with Indigo Legacy, available now. There's love in the air for Olivia and Woody, but will family intrigue get in the way? Ride along for the wild trip that starts in a New York auction house and peaks in a mansion on Boston's Beacon Hill. 

The Dushane sisters finally get to the truth about their mother.

New York Times best-selling author Karen Karbo says, "Courtney Pierce spins a madcap tale of family grudges, sisterly love, unexpected romance, mysterious mobsters and dog love. Reading Indigo Lake is like drinking champagne with a chaser of Mountain Dew. Pure Delight."

Steamy Christmas in Australia

By Cassandra O'Leary

Potpourri Post

This month the Genre-istas are re-posting a mixed bag of popular posts from the past. So here's my Christmas post from last year. 

Author's note: today is almost 100 degrees F and we're inside playing on the new X Box and also Harry Potter Scrabble. We hope to visit the beach when it's not so hot!

I’m dreaming of a white Christmas…

Well, one day I might see a white Christmas if I travel to the other side of the planet during the holiday season. But as an Aussie, my experience of Christmas is quite different to many of my American and European friends and readers.

I’ve been thinking about Christmas in Australia lately, since I’ve just written and released a Christmas-themed novella set in my home city of Melbourne, Australia. There’s shopping and mayhem, plus a little romance. Also, steamy weather changing from thunderstorms with lightning to hot sunny days over 35 degrees C (95 degrees F), maximum strength sunscreen and hat required. This is Christmas to me!

As I write, we’re experiencing a spring heatwave with temperatures over 30 degrees C already. I can tell you I don’t feel like doing any Christmas shopping. Or writing. I must admit my brain turns to mush in the heat, so it's just as well the holidays are coming.

Christmas as an Aussie kid

Leading up to Christmas, we often made our own paper chains and Advent calendars at school and then decorated our lounge room with them. My favourite decoration was the pretty angel doll that went on the top of the tree. It was always exciting to decorate our Christmas tree in December. When I was younger we had a massive pine tree in our backyard, so Mum and Dad would cut off a good sized branch to be our tree. The whole house would be filled with the scent of fresh pine.

Our family usually went to Catholic Mass on Christmas Eve. I’ll admit it wasn’t much fun – too hot, too crowded and too many hymns and long-winded readings were boring to a child. But some years we went to the children’s service when kids would dress up as Bible characters like shepherds and angels, and that was fun.

As a kid, we’d often have a barbeque lunch for Christmas dinner or Boxing Day, when we’d see a few more members of our extended family. Lots of sausages (snags) in bread, hamburgers and salads, seafood platters and cold ham.

My favourite Christmas desserts were always Pavlova (fruit and cream-topped meringue dessert) and cheesecake, maybe ice-cream too. I never did care for hot Christmas pudding or fruit cake.

Despite being from England, my mother doesn’t like the traditional English hot dinner in the Australian heat. I don’t blame her – I wouldn’t want to cook roast beef and Yorkshire pudding in stifling hot weather with no air-conditioning either. My cousins and I would sometimes play a backyard cricket match after lunch. None of us were very good players but it was still fun.

Later, after Christmas dinner, we’d relax and eat leftovers, play with our new toys and then go to the beach over the next few days. I loved when we’d go to our family holiday house on the Mornington Peninsula, a gorgeous spot close to the ocean beach. Since it was also school holidays, we’d sometimes stay there for a week or two.

Christmas Eve – making our own traditions

As an adult, my boyfriend (now husband) and I started our own tradition of hosting Christmas Eve parties at home. We have lots of food and wine, catch up with old friends and family and the kids run around outside until late. The Christmas Carols in the Domain (a Melbourne live concert) is usually playing on TV. We do a Kris Kringle exchange of presents for all the kids. Last year we gave everyone water pistols, so they all got soaked but it was hot weather and good fun.

My two little boys love laying out their Christmas pillowcases ready for Santa Claus to come after our party winds down. We also leave out a few snacks for Santa and his reindeer near our Christmas tree. We’ve found Santa likes red wine and chocolate cake, while Rudolph prefers a carrot.

Last year my boys received BMX style bikes (still with training wheels at the time). This year it might be skateboards as well as Lego and other fun bigger kid things. Exciting! I'm sure we'll be riding and skating at the local park on Christmas day.

Getting ready for summer holidays

The kids will be on summer holidays for six long weeks from the end of December, so it will probably mean a slow-down in my writing. It will probably also be hideously hot and sticky, so I’m hoping to take off to the beach somewhere for a while.

I won’t be travelling anywhere white or snowy this year, but I’ll watch a couple of Northern Hemisphere Christmas movies and live vicariously through them…while I sip white wine or eat gelati by a beach somewhere!

What are your Christmas traditions and favourite holiday treats? I'd love to hear from you all.

Christmas novella - Heart Note

My holiday release is titled Heart Note: A Christmas romcom novella. It's out now at all major ebook retail sites and already has some wonderful reviews. The story is about Lily, a perfume counter manager at a major Australian department store. In the lead-up to Christmas, it's all about gift sets, keeping the grumpy customers happy and maybe...finding romance and catching some criminals!

Blurb

A funny, romantic comedy Christmas novella, perfect for fans of Love Actually . . . from the award-winning author of Girl on a Plane.

Love is like a fine perfume. The top note draws you in, an instant attraction, but the Heart Note is the true essence. Like true love – a great perfume should be a woman’s perfect match.

At least, that’s what perfume counter manager, Lily Lucas, tells her customers in one of Australia’s largest department stores. 

It’s almost Christmas, the store is bedecked with baubles and Lily has about eleventy billion gifts to wrap and sell. She and her team of spritzer chicks are glamorous, professional and hoping they don’t have to wear the hideous red onesies and reindeer antlers the store manager has in mind.

The high point of Lily’s work life is Christos Cyriakos, ex-cop, security guard, possible Greek god. He's a mystery box she’d love to unwrap. But can she trust him?

All Lily wants for Christmas is to kiss Christos (and more), catch a band of thieves running amok in the store, and live happily ever after. Is that too much to wish for?

Heart Note is on sale for a few more days! Only 99 cents at Amazon or free in Kindle Unlimited. 

Buy links 

Amazon US - https://amzn.to/2LCfwj4
Universal link - mybook.to/HeartNote

About Cassandra O'Leary

Winner of the global We Heart New Talent contest. Nominated for Best New Author in the 2016 AusRomToday Reader's Choice Awards for excellence in Australian romance fiction. 

Cassandra O'Leary is a romance and women's fiction author from Melbourne, Australia. You'll find her drinking coffee, dreaming of Italy and Spain, and raising two mini ninjas with her superhero husband. 

Cassandra loves romantic comedies and is having fun writing her own romcom books. Heart Note: A Christmas romcom novella, was released in November 2017. Her debut novel, Girl on a Plane, was released in July 2016. It was also translated into Czech!

In 2015, Cassandra won the global We Heart New Talent contest run by Avon Books/HarperCollins UK. She was also a 2015 finalist in the Lone Star contest, Northwest Houston Romance Writers of America, and a 2014 finalist, First Kiss contest, Romance Writers of Australia. 

Read more or sign-up for Cassandra's newsletter at cassandraolearyauthor.comcassandraolearyauthor.com