Sylvia Day - Reaching Out

Hi Everyone,

I hope you had a lovely Thanksgiving, if it was that time of year where you live. If not, I hope it was simply a beautiful day for you!

Reaching out to readers is something I really love doing. I travel to as many readers' conferences/conventions as I can afford, I participate in book signings and guest blog when asked, and I try to keep my website as accessible as possible with areas like my blog and message board, an interactive Q & A section, and fun things like book trailers.

Funny thing is, when I meet up with readers at events I usually talk about anything but my books. Recent all-night reads, favorite recipes, interesting things to see and do in the area, mutual fan-girl moments for other authors... those are the topics I touch on most. I'm a shy person (though some who've met me don't believe it *g*) so focusing on other things is more comfortable for me.

Then, late last month, I tried a new way to interact with readers that I'd never attempted before -- podcasting. Have you listened to podcasts? Do you enjoy them? I was a bit apprehensive at first, plus I had to talk about my latest release, A PASSION FOR HIM, since that was the whole point of the interview. Despite my nervousness, I jumped in with both feet and gave it try.

Through the podcast readers can hear me talk about my book in my voice, with all the inflections it carries. It’s another way to interact and when the interview was over, I found I enjoyed it. If you’re curious about the one I did, you can listen to here: http://www.sylviaday.com/books/passion-for-him/

I’d love to hear what you think. (I’ve been too shy to listen to it myself. LOL!) Hugs and Happy Holidays!

Sylvia

Happy Thanksgiving Day... gobble gobble

Many families find the holidays, especially Thanksgiving, very stressful. But we've come up with our own way of de stressing the whole thing. After years of analysis of the holiday we've come up with the plan -- work to people's strengths. It sounds cynical, but it works.

First, have the dinner at my house. (Yes, I hear you snickering but until the kids get married, I'm pretty safe. We'll deal with that disaster down the road or encourage them to match up with orphans.) And give each member of the family, aka chefs, their own space and time in the kitchen.

Second, everyone has to make their own specialty. In the husband's case that means oatmeal in the morning and carving the turkey. Not too hard and he's a whiz at the carving and critiquing the "doneness" of said turkey. And after the year of living dangerously -- the deep frying of turkey *shudder* -- it's probably the safest thing for all of us. The son makes the turkey. Each year he researches the proper brine, proper cooking hardware, roasting times, and each year the bird is delicious. I think this year he discovered a cheesecloth blanket for basting to golden perfection. I'm excited to see and taste the final result. Daughter makes the side dishes. This year she discovered the science of make-ahead, spending most of Wednesday putting together casserole dishes of sweet potato souffle, mashed potatoes with cream and cheese, cornbread dressing, cranberry compote, grandma glick's cranberry relish and the blueberry/banana batter for quick make muffins. My specialty is supervising and timing. And yes, it's a tough job. We want everything on the table at the right time and correct temperature. I also get to mediate space and hardware issues. Who gets what pot when and the ever critical oven space issue.

Third, it's a family holiday, so guests are encouraged but in the end, every one has done their best and we're thankful for what has been made. No critical judging of the results. We gave up the clean plate syndrome for this day at least, so don't hurt anyone else's feelings by being too critical of the way a dish turned out, just leave it on your plate. Shudder, we all remember the Brussels sprout experiment. And now is the time to reminisce over past family dinners and recipes. It keeps the past alive to remember how grandparents made a dish: grandma Reyes' garlic turkey, great-grandmother glick's cranberry relish and pepper relish, aunt mary's oyster stuffing, the smell of turkeys roasting in grandma's kitchen when she made 10 turkeys each year for the church. And stories of past Thanksgiving experiments can make everyone smile.

Fourth, share the clean up. Trust me, it goes faster and with TiVo, you'll still be able to catch up on the football game! Or, do what we do, go see a movie. It might be the one time in the year when our schedules are forced to collide so take advantage of it.

So from my family to yours, wishing you a happy Thanksgiving and in the spirit of sharing, grandma glick's cranberry relish (from an old Pennsylvania Dutch custom of a sweet and sour with every meal):

Important to remember: Equal parts cranberries to oranges to apples

2 cups of fresh cranberries (washed, drained and dry)
2 juice oranges, zest before peeling, the white stuff is bitter
2 apples (use a sweet apple if you don't want to add too much sugar, otherwise granny smith is fine. Do NOT peel.)
walnut pieces
sugar to taste

Using a food processor (Grandma used a food grinder but we've moved into the 21st century), process each fruit so that they are roughly ground. Mix together with the walnut pieces and add sugar to taste. We use honey crisp apples and about 1/3 cup of sugar. Mix thoroughly and refrigerate for at least two hours before serving. The relish keeps for at least a week and is delicious on turkey or ham sandwiches or in a salad. It's low calorie and good for you!

Tracy Garrett | Thanksgiving

Just the word elicits memories. For me, it’s years of gathering with the family and inviting new friends into the fold; waking up to the scent of roasting turkey – an arguable pleasure at 6am; long-standing traditions of Sara Lee Coffee Cake with my parents and siblings; and sitting down at a table laden with, and surrounded by, the evidence of the many blessings in my life.

Being a historical writer, you know I won’t pass up the opportunity to do a little research on the holiday in the United States. Thanksgiving, as we know it, is an amalgamation of many traditions, going far back in European history, when farmers celebrated the end of the harvest and gave thanks for the success of another growing season.

Do you know when (and where) the earliest Thanksgiving was celebrated in the United States – back before we were states, or united? No, not Plymouth (or Plimoth), Massachusetts, as we were taught in grade school. The earliest claim to a celebration of Thanksgiving was by the Spanish around El Paso, Texas. According to several sources, on April 30, 1598, Spanish expedition leader, Juan de Oñate, declared a day of rest for his party. They held a Catholic mass of thanksgiving for their safety and success in finding abundant food, water and grazing land.

Our Thanksgiving didn’t start out as a feast day. It began as a religious celebration. On December 4, 1619, English settlers gathered on the James River in Virginia to commemorate the day they landed on this continent. Captain John Woodleif declared "We ordaine that the day of our ships arrival at the place assigned for plantation in the land of Virginia shall be yearly and perpetually kept holy as a day of Thanksgiving to Almighty God."

The “Thanksgiving” we all know, with the Pilgrims and Native Americans of the Wampanoag tribe, took place in 1621. It was a three-day festival giving thanks for an abundant harvest.

Thanksgiving didn’t become a regular, scheduled celebration until 1863, when President Abraham Lincoln invited Americans to “observe the last Thursday of November as a day of Thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the heavens.”

Every subsequent U.S. President repeated the invitation, until in 1939, hoping to lengthen the shopping season and draw the United States out of the great depression, President Franklin D. Roosevelt permanently set the date of Thanksgiving as the fourth Thursday in November.

Celebration and thanksgiving. Those are the themes of the day we in the United States celebrate on November 22, 2007. So gather your loved ones close, invite some new friends to join in the feasting, and give thanks for all you have. And remember to take a little time for yourself and curl up with a good book!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Tracy

Tracy Garrett’s debut novel, TOUCH OF TEXAS, is available now from Zebra Historical Romance.

Visit Tracy at Fresh Fiction or http://www.tracygarrett.com/.

Jennifer Estep | Hooray for Thanksgiving!!

It’s the most wonderful time of the year. Know why? Because it’s Thanksgiving
week! Hooray!

Thanksgiving has always been one of my favorite holidays. As the years have
passed, it’s moved up the list to take the number-one spot in my heart. Know
why? Because it focuses on some of my favorite things -- food, family, and
football.

The food, well, that’s pretty obvious. Turkey, cranberry sauce, mashed
potatoes, green beans, cornbread stuffing, buttermilk biscuits, lime party
salad. Mmm-mmm! I’m getting hungry just thinking about all the yummy things
that will be on the Thanksgiving table this year.

As for family, Thanksgiving is a chance to spend time with them. To enjoy a
meal together and share what we’re grateful for. For me, that’s my family,
friends, and so many other things. Too many to list here.

And then, there’s football. After I’ve had all the food and family I can stand
(and sometimes a little of both goes a long way), I get to snuggle under a
warm, fleece blanket on the sofa and nap my way through a whole day of gridiron
action. What could be better than that?

I know what you’re thinking -- what about Christmas? Don’t you like getting
presents? Well, yeah, I do. But let’s face it, Christmas comes with way too
much stress. Lugging a tree home. Fighting the crowds at the mall. Wondering
whether I’ve bought everyone what they really want. Panicking at the thought
that I may have accidentally given my uncle’s socks to my mom. I enjoy
Christmas, but I’m also glad when it’s over with every year.

For me, Thanksgiving is just tops. Food, family, football. A winning
combination all the way around. Come Thursday, I’ll enjoy all three. And I hope
you will as well.

What about you? What’s your favorite holiday? Inquiring minds want to know …

Julianne MacLean | On Romance and You Tube

So here's the deal. I am a Romance writer (I write historicals), and I do what most writers feel a compulsion to do -- I make an effort to promote my books so that not just my mother will read them. I've done everything from purchasing print ads in magazines to sending shelf talkers (those pretty little flaps that hang off a store shelf under your book) to thousands of retailers. I have a website, I do book signings, and I hang out on reader message boards to connect with readers all over the world.

The one thing I had not done yet, however, was a book video.

I've been watching the whole video trailer phenomenon with interest over the past few years, and since my husband has an interest in filmmaking and we love to do things together, I was keen to give it a try. I knew I could trust him with the project because he'd already directed a short film that made it into some major film festivals, but also because hey - he's my soul mate -- and most importantly, he has great sense of humor.

This was key, because I wanted to do something fun. I wanted to produce a trailer that would entertain, because that's the promise I make to a reader every time I write a new book. My aim is to provide a few hours of entertainment, escape, laughter, and the emotional experience of falling in love. I want my readers to feel passion.

So we set out to produce a video for my newest book, In My Wildest Fantasies, with a whole lot of passion in our hearts.

My husband came up with the concept and wrote the script. We then hired the right people for the job -- from the actors to the director, the producers, and the very important hair and makeup artist who made the leading lady look like the model on the cover of my book. We hunted all over the city for the proper corset (a key element in the plot), and put immense effort into the set decoration.

It was a busy and stressful few weeks leading up to the day of shooting, but it was all worth it in the end, when everyone came together, the director said, "Action," and the cameras started rolling. It didn't end there, of course. The footage had to be edited, and a great deal of skill and artistry went into that. It took weeks, and it was 3am on the final day when my husband finally arrived home with the final cut.

If you haven't seen it yet, you can watch it on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qpkg7T8iYvc

Let me know what you think and if you found it entertaining. We had so much fun doing it, that we already have a script ready for a sequel. I guess that means more passion in the offing for hubby and me!