Golden...The Song Tells the Story

I've always marveled at how songs can tell an entire story in just two or three minutes.  And sometimes, as I'm writing, I find a perfect song for that book...something that captures the feelings, or the settings or simply the heart of what I'm trying to say.  A song that tells the story.

Same Time Next Summer

While I was writing Same Time Next Summer I found that perfect song, Keri Noble's Piece of My Heart.  It captured that summertime feeling...the comings and goings.  That book became my first SuperRomance, and every time it shuffles onto my iPod, I'm immediately back there near Port Clinton, Ohio walking down the rocky shore.

I just bought the new Lady Antebellum album, Golden, and was listening to the title track as I drove across town.  I was captivated and I realized that their song WAS the story of A Walk Down the Aisle. If you take out the word "Witchita" and replace it with "Valley Ridge," it would be exact.

This was a bit backwards for me.  When I wrote Same Time Next Summer I listened to Piece of My Heart repeatedly.  A Walk Down the Aisle is going to be released in a week (June 1st!!!).  It's done. And yet, here it is in song form.  It's as if Lady A. read the book and put it into song form.

Colton's a farmer, a simple man he claims.  He's a man of few words.  He met Sophie and fell immediately.  He fell hard.

A Walk Down the Aisle

Sophie has a painful past.  She think she's put it behind her and that she's finally found someone who will never let her down.  Someone she can trust.  Someone who loves her unconditionally.  She lets her guard down and loves him whole heartedly in return.

Then her past returns...on her wedding day.

Colton feels betrayed that she had kept secrets from him.  Big secrets.

She feels betrayed that the one person she thought would always stand by her walked away.  And even when he walks back, she has a hard time believing that he won't leave again if she does something wrong or makes a mistake.  She'd opened herself up to him once, but she's afraid to try again.

I so loved writing this story.  In the first two books in the series (You Are Invited..., April Showers) we met Sophie and Colton and hopefully started to believe, just as the entire community of Valley Ridge does, that they're the perfect couple.  Their love is palpable.  Mattie and Finn, and Lily and Sebastian had to work so hard to get to the place Sophie and Colton fell into naturally.  When things fall apart, Valley Ridge is cheering them on as they try to get beyond their mistakes and their pasts in order to rediscover what everyone always knew about them...that they're perfect together.

So, when you've read the story, turn on Lady A's Golden and let me know what you think.

Speaking of reading, let me thank you all for picking up the first two books in the trilogy.  I've loved hearing from you all and hope you feel that this third book is the proper ending for the trilogy.  But it's not the end of Valley Ridge.  Maeve's story will be out in December in A Valley Ridge Christmas!

Holly

Erie's Tourism Bureau's Secret Weapon...Holly Jacobs

I don't think I'm being too full of myself when I say I'm Erie's Tourism Bureau's secret weapon.  In fact, I'm so secret, even though I don't think they know about me at all. LOL

Lake Erie at Sunset

In the last few weeks, since my new trilogy started, I've heard from readers.  Readers who once lived in the region and are thrilled to be able to visit through the stories.  Readers who didn't know that Lake Erie has a wine region (it does! More on that in a minute).  And readers with questions about how much of my setting is real and how much is fictional.

I'll confess, I love having a chance to introduce readers to the southern shores of Lake Erie. And I get such glee knowing that it's not only readers throughout the US, but all over the world. Right now, for instance, I have a book out in Australia and one coming out in the UK this June.  That means readers in both countries will not only get a romance I hope they love, but they'll learn a bit about the Lake Erie Region.

Lake Erie Winery, Penn Shore

So, to set the record straight, Erie and North East, Pennsylvania are real.  Ripley and Buffalo , New York are real.  Valley Ridge, NY only exists in my mind.  Well, according to Robert Heinlein (Number of the Beast) that means it could be real somewhere, but for now, let's go on the premise that's it's fictional.

I know a few people who've stopped in Erie because of my books.  I'd love to see more of you visit.  So, if you're heading toward Western, PA this summer, here are a few links that will help you with your tour.

Let's start with wine! (Definitely let's start with wine.)  I had co much fun adding information about our wine region in the A Valley Ridge Wedding trilogy. I've visited wineries along the lake, from Ripley, NY, to North East, PA, all the way to Port Clinton, OH (hey, I had to do the research).  So start your trip by visiting Lake Erie Wine Country for info on our local wineries.

And then let's talk about Erie County's own natural wonder, Presque Isle Peninsula.  So many of my books have taken characters there...probably because it's one of my favorite places.  It's a State Park and a wonderful, unique place to visit!  I love going out for sunsets. But you can also go out on the lagoons in pontoon boats, or bring your own kayak or canoe.  There are trails to walk or bike, and of course you can go swimming!  Tom Ridge Environmental Center is at the start of the peninsula. It such a fun place to visit.

Speaking of fun on the peninsula, you can also visit Waldameer Park.  It's a family friendly amusement park on the lake.  The views from the ferris wheel is amazing, and the park's roller coaster flies over the road that leads to the peninsula.

Be sure to visit our tourism bureau at Visit Erie Pa.

I've been busy on Pinterest.  You can find a lot about the Erie area on my boards there.

Now, something else we're known for, though I haven't talked about about it much in my books, is the Brig Niagara.  This year, there's a ton of fun things going on in commemoration of the Battle of Lake Erie.  Perry 200 has a jam-packed schedule!

Brig Niagara.  It's been rebuilt and has it's own museum here in Erie.

 Of course, I hope you'll all visit the region through my stories, but if you're able, I hope you visit in person as well!  I know as a lifelong resident, I'm biased, but I do believe that Erie is one of the most beautiful places in the world.  I'm so thrilled that summer's here.  You can bet you'll find me out at the peninsula, watching a sunset or two.  Or maybe I'll be heading out to our cottage in the middle of Amish country where I'll be tramping up the creek and watching for deer, turkey and even some bears.  You might find me shopping at the Millcreek Mall, or taking a drive out to North East and Ripley, tasting and buying some wine.  And of course, I'll do some antiquing at local stores, and the occasional housesale.

I hope some of you visit and enjoy all our region has to offer...both in person, and through my books!  So far, I've had more than forty books out in more than twenty-five countries...most of which are set in or around Erie.  I'm hoping I'll have a chance to talk about it for years and years to come, because though I'm biased, I do love my town!

Holly...aka Erie's Tourism Bureau's Secret Weapon

PS In 2012 Amazon named Erie #14 on their list of the US's most romantic cities.  Hmmm....do you think has anything to do with all the romance novels that are set here???

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

www.HollyJacobs.com 

EVERYTHING BUT A DOG,12/12 

YOU ARE INVITED..., 4/13 

APRIL SHOWERS, 5/13 

A WALK DOWN THE AISLE, 6/13

STEAMED: A Maid in LA Mystery, 8/13

A VALLEY RIDGE CHRISTMAS,  12/13 

Happy (Grand)Mother's Day

 My grandmother was born in 1924.  She married, then sent her husband off to war while she stayed home to care for her daughter.  She was a Rosie the Riveter.  She went to work and did a 'man's job.'

She was not an easy woman, by any stretch of the imagination, but she was a strong one.  that husband who went off to war came home and they divorced so, she continued to work at 'the shop' and raise her daughter.  Her mother came to live with them.  She wasn't an easy woman, and her life didn't soften her at all.  If anything, it hardened her.  Then one day something magical happened...she became a grandmother.

As much as she could be a difficult woman, she loved her grandkids.  My memories of "Nana" are spending weekends with her and "Papa" her friend.  I remember things like being shushed during Lawrence Welk, colored popcorn, sitting on her lap and reading countless books...and Sunday dinners.

On Sundays, she'd Set the table. Set it with a capital S.  And a Hall yellow teapot that looked as if Aladdin's genie could come out of it at any moment, sat at her right hand.  At dinner, she'd pour me and my brothers a cup of tea that was liberally cut with milk.

I loved those dinners.  Mom and Dad would come to pick us up, stay and then stay to eat dinner before we all went home.  Sitting at the table, surrounded by family...it was a wonderful part of the week.

When I got older, I lived in Nana's upstairs apartment with my daughters and husband.  One day she asked me when she died, what I wanted her to leave me.  (My grandmother was pretty sure she had one foot in the grave for as long as I could remember.)  I told her I wanted that yellow teapot.  For me, it represented those weekend meals...it represented family at the table together.

Long story short, she pulled the teapot out to wash and give me shortly thereafter...and broke it.  I was in the upstair's kitchen and heard a scream, the heartbreaking sobs.  I ran down the stairs two babies in arms, to find her staring at the shattered pieces of that teapot.  I told her it was alright and helped her clean it up.  But I was sad to see that tangible reminder of those happy weekends shattered.

Months later, my husband and I went to an antique show.  Now, I should explain that my husband was working full time and going to college full time.  We didn't have a nickel to spare.  If I complained there was nothing in the house to eat...there was NOTHING in the house to eat.  And so we went to this antique show to look, not buy.  But then I spotted it.  It was my grandmother's teapot...well, its twin.  It cost ten dollars, but the dealer said I could have it for seven dollars.  I had seven dollars and change in my checking account.  I knew we couldn't afford it.  But my husband said, buy it.  And I did.

My grandmother made Sunday dinner (which was good because all that was left in the checking account was the change) and that teapot sat at her right.  She poured all of us tea, even my toddler, who had hers heavily laced with milk.  And there was a new layer to all the memories of other Sunday dinners.

I lost my grandmother in 2004.  She was never an easy woman, not by any stretch of the imagination.  But she loved me absolutely and completely.  And that kind of love became a safety net of sorts as I grew into adulthood.

And since then, my family has been known to spot another piece of Hall china that goes with my ugly yellow teapot and buy it for me.  And when I look at my unintended collect, I tend to think of my own kids and  I remember how that gift of unconditional love just keeps on giving. My kids might occasionally drive me nuts, but I love them as completely as my grandmother loved me.

So, on this mother's day, I wanted to share a memory of this strong lady who loved completely.  I'm blessed to still have my mom here, and I'll be running out to see her later today and tell her Happy Mother's Day in person.  My husband and I will share her because we lost his mom in 2004 too.

Being a mother is more than biology...it's about love.  And unconditional love that sustains you and supports you.  I hope you all have a woman in your life who gave you that kind of love and support when you were young.  To all those women in your lives, and to to all of you who are mothers, grandmothers, sisters, aunts, mothers-in-law... to all the women who love completely I wish you all a Happy Mother's Day.

Holly

A week in Hollyworld

I'm guestblogging this week, but thought I'd put the link up here for you all!  And here are glimpses of my week...

Made a chive pesto with chives from the garden...awesome on fish!

My mother's day dogwood is blooming this year.

Ella got a bath...she was not amused.

I made myself a bike basket and here it is on my bike!

My garden.

My garden.

My garden...my MIL planted these forget-me-nots.  She didn't need to worry...she'll never be forgotten!

Went to house sales and found this!

Last but not least, our center of the city cemetery has a coyote in it.  I watched all last year and never saw it...but managed this last week!

Other than that, I've been working hard this week!  Sent my editor at Harlequin a proposal and now I'm working on a second Maid in LA Mystery...the first one, Steamed: A Maid in LA Mystery, is out in August and I did get a page started for it on my website!  But before that, there's still this month's SuperRomance, April Showers and next months, A Walk Down the Aisle!  Oh, and if you check out April Showers, note that it's an audio book, too!!  Yeah, I had my glee on!!

Have a great one, everyone!

Holly

April Showers...in May!

 The second book in A Valley Ridge Wedding trilogy, April Showers, is out on Wednesday!!  

Romantic Times gave it 4 1/2 stars and said, "Filled with interesting characters, this sweet enjoyable read is at its core a story of family and friendship."  

Family...it's one of the themes I love to explore.  April Showers explores a friendship between Hank, Sebastian's grandfather, and Lily Paul, a new kid in town.  I've been been blessed to have a May/December friendship like that with Marge.  She's a very special lady who started out as a friend and grew into family.

Thanks everyone who's bought and already read the first book, You Are Invited!!  On June 1st, the final book in A Valley Ridge Wedding trilogy, A Walk Down the Aisle will be out!

Don't forget the contest that's going on until the end of June. I'll be giving away one of my baskets!  The contest rules are on my http://www.hollyjacobs.com/contest.html.

Thanks, everyone!!  (Yeah, I know I already said that, but it deserves to be said more than once!)

Holly

April Showers

Copyright 2013, Holly Jacobs

April Showers, Holly Jacobs

            Sebastian Bennington was home.

            He waited for a wave of nostalgic happiness to sweep over him as he turned off I-90 and headed towards his hometown—towards Valley Ridge, New York.

            The wave never came. 

            No warm glow telling him that all was right in the world again because he was here.  No feeling that he should never have left.  No feeling that it was good that he was coming back.

            No feeling at all.  Nothing.  Nada. 

            That pretty much summed up his emotions since he’d received his separation orders from the Marines.  Hearing that he was unfit for service hurt, but after that, it was as if everything froze and became a blank greyness.

            He reached over and turned up the volume of the car’s stereo, thinking maybe the music would inspire some feeling.  “93.9, The Wolf,” a female DJ’s voice announced.  Sebastian flinched when his left hand tried to grip the wheel, as Lady Antebellum’s plaintive song soon filled the car.  Sebastian had always loved country music, and this song seemed nice enough, but it was new and evoked no particular emotion or memory.

            Grey. 

            Sebastian had planned on driving immediately to his grandfather’s diner once he arrived in town.  He’d talked to Hank often on the phone, glossing over why he was delayed.  He didn’t share anything about the surgeries, or much at all about the injury.  He’d simply said that he hurt his hand and was having trouble getting leave.  He’d explain the discharge in person. 

            But instead of taking Park Street to the Valley Ridge Diner, where his grandfather would be this time of day, Sebastian went north toward the lake.  Without thinking about it, he found himself standing at the edge of a rocky cliff, looking out over Lake Erie.

            He breathed deep and took comfort in the expanse of grey-blue water below. 

            When they were young, Sebastian and his best friends, Finn and Colton, came here often.  There was a small path that led to the spit of rocky beach sandwiched between the lake and the cliff wall.  His grandfather had hollered when he’d found out the boys had gone down there, but Sebastian only grinned as Hank lectured him about the dangers of that stretch of shore.  Back then, he’d thought he was invincible.  Back then, he’d thought that there was nothing he couldn’t do if he tried.  There was no cliff he couldn’t scale, no situation he couldn’t get out of.

            Sebastian Bennington knew better than that now. 

            He knew that even if he wanted to climb down that cliff today he probably couldn’t.

            He flexed his damned-near useless left hand and winced at the sharp stab of pain.  April in Western New York was still chilly, especially at the lakeshore.  However, he wasn’t wearing a jacket because he was particularly cold.  He wore it because he was home and he’d be seeing his grandfather and friends soon.  His jacket’s pocket was a great place to disguise how damaged his hand was.

            You should be thankful you’re right handed, a therapist had joked.

            You should be thankful you’re alive, his doctor had informed him.

            Maybe he should be thankful to be alive, to be right handed, to be back in Valley Ridge, New York.

            But thankfulness was an emotion he couldn’t manage.

            Sebastian knew he should get back in his car and drive into town now.  Instead, he continued to stand on the cliff’s edge.  He didn’t ponder anything special.  He didn’t think any great thoughts.  He just stared at the lake; his thoughts and emotions as flat and monotone as the water.

            “Sebastian Bennington?” a woman asked, pulling him from his non-distinct mental foray. 

            Sebastian turned and saw a dark-haired woman, whom he couldn’t place.  He searched her features, waiting for the click of recognition, but still nothing.  Valley Ridge was filled with friends and acquaintances.  It was a small enough town that even if he didn’t know someone, they at least looked familiar.  But the woman didn’t. 

            A stranger. 

            She had to be because she had the kind of look that a man would never forget.  She had on some kind of flowy skirt, with a blousy top and big, chunky jewelry around her neck and wrists.  And she had on dangling earrings that brushed her shoulders.  But it was her hair that got him.  Dark brown on the border of being black.  It was long—way longer than most women wore their hair—and hanging down her back in soft waves that hinted at curls.

            “Sebastian?” she repeated, staring at him with very blue eyes.  Those eyes were even more memorable than her hair.

            He realized he’d been staring and nodded.  “Yes?  Do we know each other?” 

            “No, not exactly, although I know you in a way I’ve known very few people.” 

            He must have looked puzzled because she laughed.  The expression seemed at home on her face, as if that upturned curve of her lips and the crinkling of her eyes were their default positions. 

            “Sorry, how do you know me?” 

            She struck a pose similar to that statue his grandfather liked.  The Thinker.  Her hand was under her chin and she was serious for a split second, then smiled again, as if whatever thought she’d had was a pleasant one.  “Well, I know that your grandfather served you brussels sprouts when you were young and you dropped them on the floor in hopes your dog would eat them for you.  Problem was, Chance didn’t like brussels sprouts either.  Of course, I’ve had Hank’s brussels sprouts and there’s really nothing to recommend the vegetable the way he prepares them.  I mean, he’s a good cook, but he’s never really had to perfect vegetables at the diner, has he?”  She punctuated each question with more laughter and he was sure he was right...this was a woman who laughed a lot.

            “Who are you?” Sebastian asked.

            This didn’t invoke any laughter, but her smile lingered.  The crinkling around her very blue eyes wasn’t quite as pronounced, though it was still there.  Laugh lines.  He’d never understood why they were called that until this minute.  They weren’t a sign of aging, as he’d always imagined, at least, not on this woman.  On her, they were a sign of a happy disposition.

            He wished he could work his way up to feeling happy...to feeling something.

            On the back of that thought came the awareness that if he mentioned those laugh lines the woman wouldn’t thank him for it.  Not that he would mention it.  He might not know a lot about the female gender, but he was pretty sure most women didn’t want to hear they had lines of any type.

            The woman extended her hand.  There was a zing of awareness as they touched and he realized it had been a long time since he’d been this attracted to a woman.  And that little zing sent a ripple through the blandness he’d been living with for a long time.

            “Sorry,” she said as she shook his hand.  “I’m Lily.  Lily Paul.  Hank’s tenant and—”

            He pulled his hand away, disregarding any attraction that he imagined he’d felt.  He knew who this was, and he was absolutely not attracted to her.  As a matter of fact, he felt an immediate surge of another emotion.  Annoyance.  Not that he’d thank her for that either.

            “You’re her,” he said. 

            “I am.”  

I'm guestblogging at Seekerville...talking about being a geek.  Yeah, you all already knew that!

Holly

Earth Day!

Forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet, and the winds long to play with your hair.  ~Kahlil Gibran

It was snowing last week, so I'm not quite ready to go barefoot, but I still love this quote.  Today it's almost sixty out and the sun is shining.  I imagine someday soon it will be warm enough!

And it's Earth Day.

We're hoping to plant a new serviceberry tree today.  It's a tree that's native to Pennsylvania and it not only pretty, but provides food to the birds who visit my yard daily.  

That's my little gift to the planet today...a new tree.

How are you going to celebrate?

Holly

It's National Library Week

It's National Library Week!  I blogged about it, and about my use of truth as I write fiction at Tote Bags 'n Blogs this weekend.  

If you're here in Erie, I'll be talking on the same topic at the Blasco on Thursday:

 An Erie Connection: Truth in Fiction

April 18, Blasco Library @ 2pm

Libraries meant so much to me growing up...especially the Bookmobile.  I lived out in the county and it was my lifeline to new books. They knew I had a fondness for sci fi and kept me well supplied!

And speaking of books, today on YourErie.com they're running a poll...what's your favorite type of novel.  I already voted and romance is winning at 50%!  Stop in and take the poll if you have a minute!

Hope you all have a great week and if you know any librarians, I hope you tell them how awesome they are!

Holly

Waste Not, Want Not My Grandmother Used to Say

My grandmother was a child of the depression.  She used to say, "Waste not, want not," frequently.  Unfortunately, not everyone listened to her.  New statistics say, 40% of the food in the US goes uneaten.  We've always been pretty good about using our leftovers, but we've redoubled our efforts this year.  And what little we do throw out, we compost.

I've gotten creative.  Last night, we grilled steaks.  (Yes, Erie's finally gotten warm enough to barbecue again!)  We had leftovers...we've been trying to eat a lot less meat, so what used to be one meal is more than that now.  So tonight, I sliced it thin, added mushrooms, heated them with some taco spices.  I did black beans and onions in another pan.  Then we topped them with salsa and Greek yogurt instead of of sour cream.  (If you've never substituted it...try it.  It's very good.)  Served them on tortillas.  There's a bit left for my lunch tomorrow.  No leftovers!

An added bonus is, I cook a lot less because one meal can turn into two...sometimes three.

If you have any favorite tricks to using up leftovers, I'd love to hear them.

Holly

Taming Medusa

Finally, a haircut today.  Uh, it's been a while and I've got a lot of hair.  You all have heard me refer to my hair as Medusa hair?  Yeah, it does things.  So longer is sometimes better.  The weight of all that hair tames it...well, slightly.

Whenever I get my hair cut, the stylist comments on the mound of hair left on the floor.  We sometimes joke about people who'd love to have some of my hair.  Well,  a friend, Amy, donated her hair to Pantene's Beautiful Lengths.  My youngest decided she was going to do the same and challenged me to join them.  And this time, there won't be quite the mound of hair because that's just what I'm going to do....right?

Ready for the before and after??

Before:

After a trip to see Lindsay at Diane McShane's:

And here are the two ponytails for Beautiful Lengths!

Remember how I said I didn't think there would be a mound of hair???  I was wrong.  Even after two ponytails, Lindsay still had a bunch of hair to sweep up!

I'll be sending the hair into Pantene.  I love the idea of helping someone else out!

Holly

Following the recipe?

 I was making macaroni and cheese the other night and my youngest pulled out her recipe book and took notes.  Notes are about the best my kids can hope for because I'll confess, I'm not a recipe follower.  That's not to say I don't like recipes.  I so do!  I have a growing collection of cookbooks and love to browse through them.  But most of the time, I don't follow the recipes precisely.

For instance, I had some ripe bananas a few years back.  I thought about making banana bread, but it didn't really thrill me, so I played with a banana bread recipe and came up with a banana/blueberry, whole grain muffin.  I added lots of cinnamon and walnuts.  They've become a family favorite.

I bought a wonderful cookbook, Artisan Breads in Five Minutes or Less.  Again, I loved it.  But frequently, a whole loaf was a bit too much for a meal.  I found a cast iron biscuit pan at a house sale.  It was brand new and had never been used.  I seasoned it, and tried dropping the basic dough from the book in and making rolls.  Perfect!  I could make anywhere from two to more than a dozen. (I bought a second pan because I liked the first one so much!)

I'll confess,a less-than following the recipe form of cooking has its good days and it's not so great days.  But I really do love experimenting, and when something turns out good, it turns out real good!  I'll confess, sometimes, experiments fail, but that's why there's cereal in the cupboard!

So, here's my banana/blueberry muffin recipe.  I started with the banana bread recipe in Whole Foods for the Whole Family and then I tweaked it.  And here's what I came up with.





RECIPE:

1 3/4 C whole wheat flour
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
2 t cinnamon
1/3 C oil
1 C brown sugar
2 eggs
1 C mashed banana
1/4 C hot water
1/2 C walnuts
1 C blueberries (frozen, fresh or dried)

Mix wet ingredients, add dry and mix.  Add solids (nuts, berries).

350 for about 15-20 minutes.

You'll see these muffins in A Valley Ridge Wedding: You Are Invited...  Mattie, known to her family as Waltzing Mathilda (yes, I sang the song a lot as I worked), is working at Park Perks, the local coffee shop.  She adds a bakery section and these muffins are a hit.  She's someone who doesn't always follow the rules.  It's a little thing, but I love that some of her independent spirit comes out in her cooking at the coffee shop.

Mattie's spent years wandering the US, but when the chips are down, she throws her own life aside and hurries home to help a friend.  I imagine Mattie's someone who doesn't follow a recipe exactly.  Frankly, I'm pretty sure she considers them a loose guideline...rather like me! Go figure!  LOL

Now, if you look at this recipe and think the muffins look good except for the ____ (nuts, berries, bananas...) then switch it up and try out some variation of the recipe.  If you do, let me know how it turns out.

Happy Cooking...and Reading!

Holly

I've been pretty good about posting a blog every Monday.  Most of you read it after I post on FB, but I know some of you have subscribed, so I thought I'd drop in and tell you that today's blog post is at the SuperAuthor's blog  You can click the link and come hang with me there!

Happy Monday, and I hope that if you celebrate Easter this weekend, you have a lovely, lovely one!

Holly

Lucky in Love?

I hope you all had a lovely St. Patrick's Day weekend!  Erie's a very Irish Town, so there was a lot going on here.  There was a big parade to start things off on Saturday.  You can see it for yourself at GoErie.com.

I'm an Irish girl, though you probably can't tell from my name (everyone thinks I'm a Christmas girl...I was born in August.  Mom just liked the name).  And I'm a writer who enjoys writing holiday stories.  I've done six or seven Christmas books, a Thanksgiving, a Valentine's.  I can't believe it's taken me so long to write a St. Patrick's Day story.  It's only a short story, but it's free for Kindle today, so you can pick it up and join in with Erie's festivities!

Take one frazzled bartender, one animal rescue volunteer, a stray dog and add one matchmaking grandmother.  Maybe someone will end up being lucky in love!

Nothing But Luck

If you don't use a Kindle, or a Kindle app, I'll be releasing the three short stories (Nothing But Love, Nothing But Heart and Nothing But Luck) for other eReaders next year.

I hope you all had a lovely weekend, have a wonderful day, and that you've got your Monday Glee on!

Holly

One Author's Arduous Research...or how a writer suffers for her art!

I've got a new trilogy starting in April (just a few weeks now) and I thought I'd share a bit about the arduous, really difficult research I did while working on this series.  (I wrote this right after I went on my tour, so it's over a year old, but I thought you might enjoy seeing how writers suffer for their art!)

The hero of the third book, A Walk Down the Aisle, owns a vineyard and a small winery. In the interest of setting the tone, I went and toured Lake Erie Wine Country. Yes, it was difficult research...but somebody had to do it, right?

I can almost hear you now... What? Lake Erie has a wine region? The answer to that is a resounding, yes! It just so happens we're on the same latitude line as some of the finest wine growing regions of France. And we have Lake Erie to stabalize the temperature. The new trilogy is set in the fictional Valley Ridge, New York. In my head, it's set between North East, PA, and Ripley, New York...two towns that are part of the Lake Erie Wine Region. So, here's where I started my day...

Floyd (my orange Vibe) and I started our research at Penn Shore Winery. Not that I wanted to play favorites...all the wineries in the area are great. It's just this one has the small, personal touch that I visualized for my setting.

Jeff Ore, the owner, offered to show me around. He pretty much runs the show with the help of his wife, and some summer help. Here he is at his vineyard...an acre and a half of Noiret grapes.

In the bitter Erie winters, those vines need pruned. In the spring, he keeps the small suckers from growing at the base of the vines...he wants all the plants energy going into the grapes. Around about September or October, it's time to harvest the grapes.

Noiret Grape

Here are some of the stainless steel containers where the grape juice and yeast ferment.

Sorry about the glare on this, but Jeff ran some wine through the bottler for me to see. This one machine not only puts the wine in the bottle, but also puts on either a screw on cap or a cork. The dry reds do better with corks, the sweeter wines and whites benefit from being hermetically sealed in a screw on cap.

The lab.

Penn Shores tasting bar. I'll confess, I had to try some wine...it was research after all! LOL I made sure I tried the Noiret since I'd 'met' the vines!

Me and Jeff.

This is me with Julie Pfadt. She works for the Lake Erie Wine Country organization. The website has info all the wineries in the area. It's a helpful way to get a taste for what the area has to offer. An even better way to get a taste is to...get a taste! LOL

After Penn Shore, it was time for lunch on the deck at South Shore Wine Company. What a beautiful view, and there was a great lake breeze. And look at the stonework in the wine cellar!

When I finished lunch, I went into downtown North East. From Erie (where most of my books are set), North East is about a twenty minute ride east, and another five minutes to get to the border of New York. Ripley, NY is another few minutes into New York. Now, I realize this doesn't leave a lot of room for my fictional town of Valley Ridge, NY. So, we're going to pretend, Ripley's a bit farther from North East...okay? Valley Ridge sits neatly in between the two towns and has the feel that you'll find in North East. (I set one other book in North East, Here With Me.)

Here's Gibson Park, in the center of town.

As I start to write  this is the kind of house I envision for the local bed and breakfast that is in the 1st book.

These next few are just some of the beautiful buildings that house a lot of the local businesses.

And here's the kind of house my heroine in the first book might live in with the three kids she's taking care of.

I left North East and headed back to Erie. I stopped at one of the area's newest wineries, Courtyard Wineries. Beautiful, isn't it?

Here's the vineyard across the street.

My final stop was Presque Isle Wine Cellar. They've got a beautiful little creek next to the building.

This winery is very picturesque!

It was a long day, and I've got a year or so of book writing ahead of me (Okay, so it's behind me now.  There were moments I wasn't sure I could finish four 85,000 word books, but I did and I'm so happy with the results!). I imagine I'll have to do more research. Yes, I suffer for my art! LOL You can check out the Lake Erie Wine Country page to find out more about our wine region!

Now, after a long day of arduous research, guess what I did? This is the Noiret wine that Jeff made from the grapes in his vineyard...and let me just say it was awesome!  (I'll confess, I've gone back for more since that day's tour!)

A Walk Down the Aisle

You Are Invited

April Showers

 (Writing this in in March '13...I want to add, I've had to make a few more trips to North East to make sure my research was...well, spot on.  And like a wine that aged in it's barrel, that tour with Jeff paid off and the finished product for me...is the Valley Ridge Wedding Trilogy! It starts in April '13.)