My Favorite Christmas - in a hospital cafeteria, by Diane Scott Lewis

All holidays share different memories with family and friends, close or remote.

We spent one in Puerto Rico, in steaming hot weather, our little, fake tree, just my husband and I and our new baby. I felt alone without extended family, but now see I should have rejoiced in a First, with my firstborn son.

My youngest son was born on that island. Many years later, while my oldest remains single, my younger son married and started a family.

Christmas was thrilling again with our first grandchild. 

Below our oldest granddaughter at Christmas 2011 when we lived in Virginia. If you look close you can see our dog Fritzie behind her, trying to sneak into the gifts.

,

Nearly eight years ago, we'd just moved from Virginia to Pennsylvania. My husband had retired from the government in D. C. and we moved north to be closer to my son and his family. A colder climate for this California girl, when it dropped to 7 degrees, I was in shock. I invested in plenty of long underwear.

A few days before Christmas, my very pregnant daughter in law had to travel two hours away to take care of family business. Her mom was in the hospital. Her father had recently died. My son and their three year old joined her.

My daughter in law wasn't due until the first week of January. But in the middle of Christmas Eve night, the roads icy, with all the stress, she'd gone into labor. The doctor advised her to stay where she was, near Pittsburgh, and have the baby.

Early Christmas morning, we drove down in an ice storm to meet our second grandchild, a little girl stuffed in a stocking.

Later that day, my husband, son, and I, with his three year old, ate Christmas dinner in the hospital cafeteria. The usual fare, nothing fancy, but we laughed and talked, and I thought this is a great Christmas dinner. My family close, a new, healthy baby upstairs. What more could I ask for? I savored the moment.

 

My beautiful granddaughters

In this time of a pandemic, I realize how the simplest things should be cherished, and those closest to you--even if you can't be physically near them--must be held in your heart, especially family.

I wish I had a Christmas novel to throw in here, but let's celebrate more family adventure and turmoil in my American Revolution story, Her Vanquished Land.

Long and Short Reviews says: Her Vanquished Land "Espionage and intrigue keep these pages turning. This is an exciting historical novel well worth the read." 

A Revolutionary War Gone with the Wind. Rowena Marsh fights for king and country, but the ruthless rebels are winning. Where can her family escape to, and will the mysterious Welshman, a man she shouldn't love, search for her? 

To purchase my novels, and my other BWL books: BWL

Find out more about me and my writing on my website: Dianescottlewis

Diane Scott Lewis lives in Western Pennsylvania with her husband and one naughty puppy.

What is the Difference Between Writing a Fictional Mystery and a Non-fiction Memoir

Arranging a Dream: a Memoir by J.Q. Rose

Official Book Launch January 1, 2021

Available for pre-order

Click here to discover more books by JQ Rose at the BWL Publishing JQRose Author's Page

Hello and welcome to the BWL Publishing Insiders Blog! I am J.Q. Rose whose purpose is to Focus on Story in my writing. In other words, I am a storyteller. Today, we'll discuss the differences between telling a mystery vs a memoir.

What is the Difference Between Writing a Fictional Mystery and a Non-fiction Memoir?

I have written mysteries to entertain readers and myself. Making up a story is so much fun. A memoir, also known as creative non-fiction, is so different from writing fiction where everything is made up. The writer can go hog-wild and write about alien worlds, space operas, contemporary romance and no one cares if it's true. Readers are willing to dispel their disbelief and step into the world of make-believe.

A memoir tells the truth about real life. That is very difficult for a fiction writer! A memoir only covers a slice of life, not the entire person's life from beginning to present. 

The flower shop and greenhouses the first day we visited in July 1975.

I wrote my memoir about the year we moved to Michigan in 1976 to purchase a flower shop and greenhouse operating. I thought this would be for my kids and grandkids to satisfy their curiosity. Not only to let them know about the "good ole days," but I also wanted to encourage our kids to dream big for their lives. That was our dream--to be entrepreneurs in the greenhouse business. We fell in love with a greenhouse operation in West Michigan, but it was attached to a flower shop. We knew nothing about operating a flower shop, and to be honest, my husband, Ted, had only worked in his little hobby greenhouse. Never in a commercial greenhouse business. We had lots to learn.

Ted and I in 1986

As I wrote about our passion to become entrepreneurs, I realized the story contained the elements of fiction such as character, conflict and setting. The character was me. The situation provided plenty of conflict between the previous owner and us. Not knowing a thing about business or floral design created anxiety about whether we could run a successful business. I was also a new mom who was insecure about taking care of a baby and filled with guilt choosing to go to work rather than staying at home with her. I knew a lot about third-graders because I was a school teacher. In my heart, I wished my baby would be 8 years old because I knew about 8-year-olds. The setting was a small town, exactly like the ones in my mysteries, Deadly Undertaking and Dangerous Sanctuary. 

Arranging a Dream: A Memoir by JQ Rose

I have penned two novels based on my life story. Arranging a Dream: A Memoir is my true story. I interacted with real people in a real town, but I changed some of their names to protect their privacy. Both books contain elements of fiction with interesting characters, colorful descriptions of the setting, and conflict. 

Deadly Undertaking--a cozy mystery
Fiction

Deadly Undertaking is based on a version of my life. The setting of this romantic suspense is a funeral home. My dad was a funeral director. Many of the jobs I mentioned in the story are ones I did for my dad, such as dusting caskets, running errands and helping my mom set up flowers for visitations and church services. ( a foreshadowing of my future in the flower business??) But there was no murder or Henry the Shadow Man in my real life!

I enjoyed writing both books, but the deep dive into looking back at my real life through the perspective of time proved to identify truths that I had never realized until I completed the book. The journey of writing a life story may be a difficult one, but a better understanding of your life brings satisfaction and a sense of wrapping up the loose ends in that period of life, similar to the satisfaction when reading the closing pages of a good fictional book.

I hope you will take some time to sit down and filter through your memories. Write down or record them on your phone. Start with those family stories that are told every time your family gathers together at family dinner; the ones the kids stay to listen to. It is so much fun sharing the good old days with friends and family and getting their perspectives on what occurred so many years ago. Believe me, each person will have a different recollection about past experiences, even if you were there with them.

Do you enjoy reading memoirs? Do you prefer reading fiction to non-fiction books? Are you ready to dive in and start writing some of the experiences you have had in your life story?

About JQ Rose:

JQ Rose, author

Whether the story is fiction or non-fiction, J.Q. Rose is “focused on story.”  She offers readers chills, giggles and quirky characters woven within the pages of her mystery novels. Her published mysteries are Deadly Undertaking, Terror on Sunshine Boulevard and Dangerous Sanctuary released by Books We Love Publishing. Using her storytelling skills, she provides entertainment and information with articles featured in books, magazines, newspapers, and online magazines. 

J.Q. taught elementary school for several years and never lost the love for teaching passed down from her teacher grandmother and mother. She satisfies that aspect of her character by presenting workshops on Writing Your Life Story.

 Blogging, photography, Pegs and Jokers board games and travel are the things that keep her out of trouble. She and her husband spend winters in Florida and summers up north with their two daughters, two sons-in-law,  four grandsons, one granddaughter, two grand dogs, four grand cats, and one great-grand bearded dragon.

Connect online with JQ Rose:

Focused on Story Blog

Facebook

Thank you for stopping by.

Happy Holidays!!!

Lights Aglow by Helen Henderson

Windmaster Legend by Helen Henderson

Click the cover for purchase information

For the upteenth time, I'm changing my mind about this month's post. I wanted something dealing with traditions, but everything I came up with has changed. There are the unofficial traditions such as raking leaves before Thanksgiving dinner, or watching the Tournament of Roses or Macy's Thanksgiving parades. Football games on television or at the local high school field fulfilled those interests; while some of us preferred the National Dog Show. My Scotch blood cheered when the Scottish Deerhound won best in show even as my sentimenal side had rooted for the collie to win.

In disclosure:
Bumps was not an award-winning collie,
but he did have a way of herding sheep and children on my childhood farm.
After hours of brushing, there are no burrs in his coat.

The gatherings of 20 people from our various family households were reduced to those who live under the one roof. During those larger gatherings, I was in charge of the children's table. And yes, it was a table set aside just for the younger members who ranged in age from 18 months or so to teens. A rite of passage was when you got to go from the picnic table and low benches to a real chair at the adult table.

Not saying things haven't changed before 2020. Locations for the holiday gatherings varied depending on the family's situation at the time. If someone had a newborn or young children, they were given the option to host or visit, whichever they thought was easiest for them. Other times we gathered at the home of the oldest member so that they wouldn't have to travel. Then when the time came, to avoid adding to the holiday emotions with those raised by an empty chair, we would gather up those who could no longer drive and take them with us. Over the years, seating has been on living room couches, around dining room tables (after we filled our plates buffet style in the kitchen ) or sitting on the steps leading to the upper floor. All meals were potluck with everyone contributing their specialty. And if someone couldn't cook anymore we made sure they felt like they were contributing even if they only brought the dinner rolls or a plate of cheese and crackers to nibble while visiting. However, for the majority of the years, the host household was chosen based on one thing-- who had the most room.

Image by Vuong Viet from Pixabay

In the dark days of winter, whether from white bulbs outlining the roof or covering trees and bushes, or luminaries lining sidewalks, lights help brighten moods and are a tradition onto themselves. In the spirit of reflection and giving thanks, a note about another tradition of lights, the lantern rising festival from Windmaster Legend. Inspiration came from two events, the lantern float held annually on Memorial Day on Oʻahu’s south shore and the sky lantern festival of Taiwan. In one, lanterns are set afloat on the water in a personal and collective moment of remembrance and offering of gratitude to those who have gone before. In the other, sky lanterns are released into the night sky with people's wishes written on them. The one sky lantern launch I’ve seen in person combined both water and sky. A grieving family sent a single lantern aloft over the water in memorial of a loved one’s passing. I couldn’t see if it bore handwritten wishes or if only a picture of the loved one was carried skyward.

The Windmaster Legend festival has several traditions related to it. Local residents wrote note on the lantern itself. Some were thanks for a profitable year, while others were prayers for the one to come. Many were poignant remembrances of loved ones who had passed beyond the veil. The lanterns were sent aloft from the decks of ships just offshore so that the breezes could take the lights skyward. A necessary item because a lantern that caught fire before reaching the clouds would never be fulfilled.

On a lighter note the lantern rising had another pertinent connection to one of our world's winter holiday tradition -- a stolen kiss beneath the mistletoe. In the land of the Windmaster Novels, whether onboard a ship out on Botunn Loghes or watching from the shore, when lanterns fill the sky, a man—or woman can claim a kiss from anyone they chose.

You’ll have to read Windmaster Legend to see if the tradition was followed … and which of the two men in Pelra's life was the recipient.

To purchase the Windmaster Novels: BWL

As this is my last post of the year, a special wish. In the upcoming year may your dreams come true, and you once again fall in love with reading. Helen

Find out more about me and my novels at Journey to Worlds of Imagination.
Follow me online at Facebook, Goodreads, Twitter.

Helen Henderson lives in western Tennessee with her husband. While she doesn’t have any pets in residence at the moment, she often visits a husky and a retriever who have adopted her as one of their pack. 

Christmas Memories by Nancy M Bell

 

Storm's Refuge takes place at Christmas and gives a stay dog a start at a new life. To find out more about Nancy's books click on the cover.  

Many years ago, I lived on a little farm in Uxbridge Ontario. I'm please to share A Brandy Hollow Christmas with you. This was originally written in 1987.

There is nothing quite like a country Christmas, in this fast paced world it is a very few of us wo have the chance to live with nature rather than against it. I am lucky enough to live on a small farm and experience the joys of working with the land. Recently we sold this farm and I began to say good-bye to all the little things that are so much a part of living here. Suddenly, I realized that this Christmas I wouldn't be in my little house in the hollow. Perhaps because I won't be in Brandy Hollow this year I want to share the Christmas' we did enjoy here.

The times when the snow bloomed against my living room window and laced the cedar trees, bending the woods beneath its weight. In the new light of morning the children and the dogs make tracks across the virgin blanket of the lawn, and the horses when we turn them out blow the snow up in puffs with their snorts and then roll and run and roll again. I want to share the special stillness there is here after a snow fall and especially a Christmas snow. The sun just catching the top of the cedars and the birch in the barnyard and the blue jays and the chickadees already searching for seeds. The gentle hand of the morning air sending sparkles dancing from the delicate fingers of the snow dressed trees. The warm smell of horses and hay when you step into the barn from the frosty stillness of early morning.

The warm glow of my little living room, the sun coming in the window, a fire in the woodstove and the Christmas tree taking over the living room. Every year we re-arrange the furniture so we can fit the tree in and by Christmas morning there are presents under the tree, on the tree, around the tree and presents across the floor and in front of the hearth as well. The cats just waiting for all that lovely ribbon and paper to be theirs.  The lovely peace of Christmas Eve when the children are asleep and the old folks are waiting for Santa. Jessie and Josh, the dogs, sleeping on the hooked rug my Grandfather Pritchard made by the stove, joined by most of our five house cats. There is that special thrill of anticipation that comes on only on Christmas Eve. The warm feeling of the love that goes with the presents. The sharing of joy in giving that special gift. The dark quietness of the night, moonlight throwing blue and silver shadows on the snow as i go out to the barn to tuck the horses in on this most special of nights. The music of the wind in the trees and the starfire crackling in the stillness as I take a Christmas walk around the pond and savour the opportunity to say my own private Thank You to the spirit who created al this wonder.

There is a peace on this farm and always a feeling of love. As this this house and this land have always been loved and blessed. But never is the feeling so strong as at Christmas. All things find refuge here. Strays find their way to my door, both wild and tame and human as well as animal. This is a safe place and a healing place. There is that little bit of Christmas love here all year.

One of the best things about Christmas is the love, the giving. It is the one time in the year we can hug someone and not embarrass them or ourselves, or kiss someone and say the things we think all year but never find the words to say.

This year I'm leaving my little farm and I will miss it terribly. But I will never lose the peace or the love that it has given me. And always I'll carry that little piece of Brandy Hollow Christmas in my heart.

My Christmas wish for you and yours is that you will know the peace and joy that Christmas brings. And that 'all things wise and wonderful' and 'all things bright and beautiful' will be yours.

I wish you a Brandy Hollow Christmas.

Nancy

  

Christmas Stockings - Janet Lane Walters #BWLAuthor #MFRWAuthor #Christmas #Traditions #Stockings

 

 

Christmas Stockings

 

 

I don’t have any one book completely dedicated to Christmas but Christmas is a feature of the Leo Aquarius Connection. It’s also coming up in my next Moonchild story – Haunted Dreams. But Christmas Stockings is what I’m talking about this month.

 

My father was a steelworker in Pittsburgh, PA and often during the years after WWII there were strikes and many of them extended over Christmas. In our house, this meant money could be scarce so my parents spent the year finding things to put in the stockings for their children and themselves. My mother loved to knit and so she made us stockings. These were magnificent and able to stretch to massive proportions. Unfortunately most of them have disintegrated over the eyars and I believe there are two and maybe three left. Those were stockings, she mad for my children and not of woolen yarn. Perhaps the kind still have some of them

 

The tradition continued with my parents filling stockings for children and grandchildren until first my father and then my mother died. I’ve taken on that chore and I really enjoy doing this. Finding odd and different things for each person. Often in all the stockings, there were socks. I still continue this tradition. I stopped sending oranges when the stockings had to be mailed. This was after the year one of the orangers was flattened in the mail.

 

This year with Covid in the air, and children and grandchildren at a distance, I had to make the stockings to be mailed early. So of the fifteen I do every year, 7 have been sent. The rest will be done on Christmas Eve – maybe a day or two earlier and be around the tree and fireplace for everyone. What I wonder is who will maintain this tradition started when money was scarce when I no longer can.

 

My Places

https://twitter.com/JanetL717

 https://www.facebook.com/janet.l.walters.3?v=wall&story_f

bid=113639528680724

 http://bookswelove.net/

 http://wwweclecticwriter.blogspot.com

https://www.pinterest.com/shadyl717/

 

Buy Mark

https://bookswelove.net/walters-janet-lane/