Quarantine

Like so much of the country, Pennsylvania has a stay-at-home order. Right before the state went on lockdown, we got a new puppy. Tallulah Mae. I'll confess, she's been keeping us busy. As a writer, staying at home is my normal.  This week, I've been writing another short story, Quarantine, this week in between house-training a puppy, homeschooling the minions and working on the barn.

Quarantine

I've also been trying to post upbeat messages of hope and glee on my social media accounts! In the midst of this crisis good things still happen. Kids laugh, puppies chase balls, and people love. People fall in love. That's the story I wanted to tell in this short story. I didn't want to minimize the tragedy of what's going on, but rather I wanted to remind myself and anyone who reads it that in the midst of awfulness, good things happen. I hope this short story does that.

As always, there are elements of real life in my fiction. Of course this one has a puppy in it. Tallulah Mae to be exact. And it's a story of heroes. A nurse and a grocer. I think this crisis has reminded us all that heroes are everywhere.

I still love writing short stories. Those were my first writing sales and they're still such a joy to write. I hope you check out Quarantine and I'm including the list of the other shorts I have up and available.  And don't forget the first two books in my Hometown Hearts series are out, and the third is up for preorder!

I hope you all are staying safe and staying at home. I hope despite everything that's going on, you're still finding moments of glee in your days.

If, like me, you're home with kids, I've got some tips on what we're doing here with 4-8 year olds. Tip 1 & Tip 2.

Holly

Other Short Stories and Novellas

The Book

Labor Day

There He Was

13 Weeks

Bosom Buddies

Cinderella Wore Tennis Shoes

Able to Love Again
Spoons

Nothing But Series
(Short stories w/ characters from my Everything But series and my WLVH series)

Book 1 Nothing But Love

Book 2 Nothing But Heart

Book 3 Nothing But Luck

OUT NOW: Crib Notes

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iBooks

Nook

Kobo

Out Now: A Special Kind of Different

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iBooks

Nook

Kobo

Preorder: Homecoming
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iBooks
Nook
Kobo

The rest of the Hometown Hearts series will be coming soon.
Suddenly a Father will be out in September of 2020 and
Something Borrowed, Something Blue and Something Perfect in 2021!

Short Stories: A Reader's Country Video

I've talked before about why I write stories of different lengths. For me, short stories are a country video—they can pack a wallop quickly. Novellas are a made for tv movie. There's more meat on the bone, but (once you factor commercials in) in under and hour and a half, they tell a bigger story. Finally, novels are full on, go to the movies, get your bucket of popcorn and settle in sort of movies.  I tell all three because I love all three.  My very first romance sales were short stories.  And for me there's a sense of coming home.

Yesterday, The Moments came out on Amazon, Kobo and Nook. It's a sequel to Briar Hill Road. And Able to Love Again (my first story with a cowboy!) came out on Amazon, Kobo and Nook. The heroine worked for Alice, who readers met in These Three Words and Between the Words. I loved Alice and this was a great chance to see her again.

Yes, I love giving old characters cameos in new books. As a writer, I want to know how they're doing. And I'll confess, I feel such a sense of delight when  readers spots an old character in a new storyand shares my glee!

So on this cold, polar vortex day stay warm!! And pick up The Moments and/or Able to Love Again. I hope they warm you up!

Holly

PTA Moms: the Collection

Between the Words

Briar Hill Road

Find my books at:

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Radish Fiction

iBooks

B&N

Google Play

BAM

PPS.
Have you missed our most recent Trippin' with Holly and Susan? You can catch up with them all on YouTube.

Holly Jacobs' HOLLYday Books

Can you believe Thanksgiving is next week?

Me either.

It's HOLLYday time!

Visit my website for more information!

What I write...

I'll confess, on the surface, when I say, I write Women's Fiction/Romances, Sweet Romance, Romantic Comedy, Cozy Mystery, and Short Stories, it might sound like I write all over the place.  But to be honest, every book I write has more in common than not.

I was at a conference a few years ago and someone asked, "What is at the heart of all your books?"  And for me, it's family.  Sometimes it's a family by blood.  Sometimes it's people who come together and create a family, and sometimes it's people searching for their family...for where they belong.

You see...the same, but different.

Since people have asked, I thought I'd break down some of my more recent stories into a few categories.  Romance Plus. Romantic Comedy.  Homespun Stories. Cozy Mysteries. Short Stories.  

I hope you'll give all the categories a try, but if you find you have a favorite type, hopefully this will help you find new reads!

Holly

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Romance+

Romance+

Just One Thing

Carry Her Heart

These Three Words

Hold Her Heart

Same Time Next Summer

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Homespun Romance

Cupid Falls

Christmas in Cupid Falls
A Simple Heart

Perry Square

Do You Hear What I Hear?
A Day Late and a Bride Short
Dad Today, Groom Tomorrow
Be My Baby
Once Upon a Princess
Once Upon a Prince
Once Upon a King
Here With Me

Whedon PA

Unexpected Gifts
A One--of-Kind Family
Homecoming Day
A Father's Name

Everything But...

Everything But a Groom
Everything But a Bride
Everything But a Wedding
Everything But a Christmas Eve
Everything But a Mother
Everything But a Dog

Valley Ridge

You are Invited...
April Showers
A Walk Down the Aisle
A Valley Ridge Christmas

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Cozy Mysteries

Maid in LA series:
Steamed
Dusted
Spruced Up
Swept Up

Coming soon...
Can't Find NoBODY
If you love Quincy Mac,
You're going to love Markie Walkowicz!

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Romantic Comedy

I Waxed My Legs for This?

Dear Fairy Godmothers:
Mad about Max
Magic for Joy
Miracles for Nick
Fairly Human

WLVH Radio Series...

Pickup Lines

Lovehandles

Night Calls

Laugh Lines

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Short Stories

Short Stories...
My 1st six shorts in one volume!

Able to Love Again

Sunday Shorts

13 Weeks

I started my career writing short stories.  I loved looking at a  small clip from a couple's relationship. This last year, I've been using my "Sunday Book" time to go back to my roots and write some short stories and a couple novellas. These are my Sunday Shorts!  I've had a blast returning to my roots!

In Labor Day a couple tells their daughter about how they met...and while it was over the Labor Day holiday, that's not the only reason for the title. (And after the short story came out, there was a story in the news that echoed it.) In There He Was, a Myth Buster's episode inspired me.  A minor explosion forces the heroine to look at exactly what love looks like.

This October, I have a novella, 13 Weeks, that's available for pre-order now.  A traveling nurse, by definition, travels.  Doran has spent most of her life moving from one place to another.  When she comes to Erie, PA (where else?) she meets Paul.  He's a man who has roots as deeply planted as the old elm in his backyard.  Helping them discover what really matters was so much fun.

I hope you enjoy all three of my return-to-my-roots!!  There are a few more coming out soon!

Holly

Labor Day

There He Was

A Short History

When I started writing, I wrote some romance short stories.  I loved them and was so excited when they started selling...and kept selling.  They were where I learned so much about writing, and about the romance genre.  A short story is by it's very name...short.  I can't tell a whole story.  Just a snippet.  A vignette.  I loved jumping into a couple's life, then jumping right back out.

Eventually, I wanted to tell bigger stories, and started trying romance novels.  And those sold.  But every now and then, I enjoy going back and playing with those short, blink-of-an-eye stories.  I like to think of them as a country video.  I'm telling you a story...just not all the story.

Nothing But Luck

Nothing But Love

Nothing But Heart

When Avalon was sold to Montlake Romance, and all my older stories for them were slated to come back out, I did three short stories that I felt tied together my Everything But... series (they're all on sale this month for $1.99 each) and my earliest series, WLVH Radio.  It was a blast introducing new readers to both series through the short stories.

Labor Day

There He Was 

The new shorts I'm writing this year aren't really tied to anything.  Oh, in Labor Day, I mentioned Quincy Mac, from my Maid in LA mystery series.  But these are simply stand-alone vignettes.  Labor Day, has been out for a few weeks.  Right after Labor Day came out there was a story on the news about a police officer in Ohio who bought a woman carseats. (Definitely go read his new story...what a nice guy!)  If you read my story you know why I felt I was a bit psychic after that!  I mean, I wrote mine first.

In mid-September, There He Was is out.  This one was inspired by an old Myth Busters episode where they show that a water tank can truly take off like a rocket. Mine doesn't launch exactly like that, but I watched the episode while I was mulling over that 'bang' moment when you simply know to your core that you love someone.

I hope you all enjoy these short stories.  As a writer, sometimes stretching your craft means going backwards and coming back to where you started!

Holly

PS. For newer writers, I think short stories can be a very useful educational tool.  They teach you how to focus completely on your characters.  You also need to be able to pick when to start your story and when to end it.  That sounds simple, but you have to figure out how to do it in a way that it makes sense to readers.  You have to give them enough to engage them with your opening, and end it so that they're satisfied.

Valentine Gifts!

I couldn't find a way to send you all flowers...or even chocolate, but I wanted to do something to wish you all a Happy Valentine's. I'm so lucky to have such great friends and readers.  So, on Monday and Tuesday, Nothing But Love (a Kindle short story) is free again, and on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, Nothing But Heart (also a Kindle short story) is free.

It was so much fun to try to combine my Everything But... series and my WLVH Radio series in this short story trilogy.  I got my start writing short stories and it's been a number of years since I've written one.  It was fun to go back to it.  It's really a very different way to tell a story.  Especially a romance.  In just a few thousand words, I can't give you a believable Happily Ever After, but I try to leave you with a potential HEA.

So Happy Valentine's!

Holly

PS And keep an eye out in March...the last book in the Nothing But... Trilogy, Nothing But Luck, will be out in time for St. Patrick's Day!

PPS The free stories are available at Amazon stores in other countries—Canada, UK, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Brazil...