It's National Reading Day! I dug out an old post with one of my family's favorite books, The Wild Baby Book. I've read it so many times that I can do most of it by heart.
I think one of the reasons I made Pip (Carry Her Heart) a children's book author is that I so strongly believe in the importance of reading to children. For years, like Pip, I was a Kindergarten Book Lady. I came in once a week and read and sang song, from Grey Squirrel to Boa Constrictor.
Today I thought we could share our favorite children's books.
Oh, and my favorite first chapter book...Wolf Story!
Most of these are excellent stories that engage the children. They can shout about rain making applesauce, or understand why a book with no pictures makes grownups say ridiculous things. They become participants. And learning to engage with a book...well, that's what it's all about!
When I walk, I spend a lot of time thinking. So here's today's thought process...
When I wrote Just One Thing, my editor and I were discussing what I should write next and she said she wanted books that were the same, but different. And thus my Romance + series, Words of the Heart(Carry Her Heart, These Three Words and Hold Her Heart) was born. The stories were all centered on a woman's journey. A journey that included romance but romance wasn't the reason for her journey, nor was it her ultimate destination.
So I was thinking about my current Romance + story...more on that sometime soon. And that phrase same but different stuck in my head.
From there my mind jumped. I've been updating my iPod with some new CD's and had just loaded Simba La La, a lovely CD that the Erie Art Museum put out. And so that was on my mind as I walked. A CD of songs from around the world...songs countless mothers have sung to their children.
I'd just been singing Grey Squirrel with one of my favorite one-year-olds the other day. And as I walked, I felt a connection to all these other mothers from around the world.
And my circular thoughts led me back to that phrase, same but different.
I realized that I loved this little CD that was so very global because it emphasizes the sameness in all of us. Mothers around the world love their children. They sing to them. They want to give them opportunities, peace and joy. We're all the same but different.
I'd been talking to readers about the fact I write romantic comedies (Not Precisely Pregnant's out next month), Romance + stories (Words of the Heart), and cozy mysteries (Can't Find NoBODY) now. It seems like a wide range of styles, but to be honest, every book I write is the same at its core...it's about love and family and the need we all have to belong. They're all the same but different.
That need for love is universal, but if every love was the same, the romance genre would have one book. She met him. He met her. They fell in love and lived happily ever after. No, every relationship comes together differently. So despite the fact love is universal, every love is different. And that's why the romance genre is one of the most popular and enduring. That's why my books have gone to more than twenty-five countries...where despite different cultures, readers can embrace the stories. Because love is universal.
It's the same...but different.
And that was how my morning's walk went. To be honest, it's how most of my walks go. One thought chases another. Thinking about my work-in-progress intertwines with other things that are happening in my life.
So every walk, in essence is...the same but different! LOL
Holly
PS. I'm still counting steps on my FitBit...today's thoughts were on a 5,000 step walk! I'm halfway to the day's goal!
When I heard it was National Bird Day, I realized that Hold Her Heart had a lot of bird group names in it. I thought, well, I'll post those on social media...and as I posted them, bad bird puns kept running through my mind. So here are both...
OWL tell you about National Bird Day!
Can you SPARROW minute to talk about National Bird Day?
I've been HERON a lot about birds today.
I know it's hard to SWALLOW all these bird puns.
It must GULL you to keep reading these silly bird puns.
I can't DUCK the accusations that these are absurd.
Someone should give this silly GOOSE a sTERN talking to.
These bird puns are getting FOWL.
People are starting to GROUSE about your puns.
Alas, no one is RAVEN about my bad puns.
So what you're saying is, I've been a bit of a DODO today with these puns??
Okay, as someone who loves to tell TAILS for a living,
I think I'm going to get back to writing and stop punning around!
Happy New Years everyone!! I hope you had a lovely holiday, surrounded by family, friends, love and of course Glee!!
I've got a new (old) release for a new year!! Can't find NoBODY!! It was originally published as Found and Lost. I am so happy that this ebook version is going back to my title. I mean, a disappearing dead body romance...could there be any better title than Can't Find NObody??? Nope. I wrote this book for Harlequin's Flipside line...but the line was on its way out by the time the book came out, so this might be an older book, but there's a good chance it'll be new to you! Here's more about it...
~~~
Fans of Holly Jacobs' bestselling Maid in LA Mysteries are in for another zany who-dunnit. This time there's a disappearing (and reappearing) dead body.
As she hurries out the door on Monday morning, Markie Walkowicz trips over a body. A very dead body. She calls 911 from her closet, because what sane woman would stay on the porch with a dead body and a potential murderer hanging around? To make a bad Monday worse, the cop who shows up is Detective Zac Marshall--her longtime (former) friend. He announces there's nobody...uh, no body on her porch.
Over the next few days that body in its orange and green plaid suit keeps turning up—but never sticks around long enough for Zac to see it. Will he have to hang around full-time before he believes her?
Markie eventually admits that having Zac hang around isn't that bad. Even if she can't find no body, maybe she has found her somebody.
Fans of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum and Jacobs' Quincy Mac are going to love her newest amateur detective, Markie Walkowicz, as she finds a bit of romance and maybe a certain dead body.
"Holly Jacobs' latest . . . is a delight. A darkly comic whodunit, it's her best book yet." ~RT BOOKclub
"Ms. Jacobs delivers a sweet love storyfilled with humor to enchant her readers . . . prepare to be thoroughly entertained." ~Love Romances
"Holly Jacobs is the master of humorous writing." ~Writers Unlimited Reviewer
"Holly Jacobs hits the laugh track again with this fabulously funny tale of love and mystery." ~Romance Junkies
". . . an exceptionally humorous and delightful tale." ~CataRomance Reviews
Last Newsletter's Winners and a New Drawing:
Congrats to Kim, Crystal and Diane who won copies of Same Time Next Summer in my last newsletter drawing! The response was overwhelming!
Want to be a part of my newsletter fun?? You can sign up HERE. This newsletter subscribers had a chance at autographed books. Who knows what will happen next month? Speaking of next month...
Here's my new cover for my second release in 2017 Not Precisely Pregnant. I pitched this romantic comedy to my editor as Shrek meets Pollyanna! It features two reporters...one who covers hard hitting news stories and one who reports using the tagline Nice News Matters. To be honest, I do love nice news and think the world could use more of it! It's out February 7th! But you can preorder it now!!
My books World Travels: Carry Her Heart went going to Turkey. Dad Today, Groom Tomorrow went to Spain. Once Upon a King went to Portugal. A Valley Ridge Christmas went to France...for a second time. Ready, Willing and Abel? & Raising Cain are going to Spain.
I love taking Erie, PA all over the world! I've got to confess, I love the idea that readers in other countries are reading about Erie!
As always, thank you everyone for all your support! 2016 has been an amazing year! September's Hold Her Heart has been on the bestseller list and the first book in the Words of the Heart series, Carry Her Heart, is a bestseller in Turkey. And Just One Thing passed 100,000 books sold! And I know that every one of those successes is because of you! So again, thank you!
As always, t
hank you everyone for all your support! 2016 has been an amazing year! September's 