What a magickal world we live in...
You plant a seed in the ground and our earth and water causes it to sprout and the sun and air nourishes it until it becomes a plant capable of bearing flowers or vegetables or fruit!
You tell a person good morning and they are more apt to have a good day than had you told them today is going to suck!
We pray...we make wishes on shooting stars or coins tossed in a fountain...does that not take some belief in something other than what we can physically see or touch? Call it faith or call it magick...but it's certainly a wonderful thing, isn't it?
As I prepare for 2019, I am doing something I've not done in the past and that is planning out the books I will be releasing over the next 12 months. Planning right down to the general plot, cover and release date. And I'm going to have faith in magick! And that's why I am starting 2019 with the next two books of my new MAGICK series. These are all going to be standalones, so you won't have to read them in any particular order. Some of you already know I released One Magick Yule just in time for the holiday season, and you can still pick it up for the special holiday price of $1.99 through December 31st. Coming in 2019 will be a cute little novella called Cupid's Magick Kiss in time for Valentine's Day and Beneath the Magick Oak which is a full-length time travel to 18th Century Ireland that will release just before Saint Patrick's Day!  Both are currently available for pre-sale right now on Amazon, B&N, Apple, and Kobo but if you watch my blog and my Facebook page, I may just toss in a couple of exclusive special price days!
I don't know about any of you, but I am certainly ready for some magick in my life! And my goal is to make certain there is a little bit of magick in each and every day of 2019!
​Happy New Year to all and B-E-L-I-E-V-E!!!

It's been a busy few weeks for me, but now I am settling in to take a much needed breather and to reflect upon what the Christmas season is all about to me. 
It's been a difficult year, but I was reminded by a very dear friend the other night on the phone just how much I have to celebrate. Things that I sometimes take for granted, as I'm sure each and every one of us do.
I have family whom I love very dearly and for all my bizarre ways, I know in my heart they love me too. And as I shopped for Christmas gifts for them, a million dollars would not have been enough to give them everything I wanted to give them. As I wrapped said gifts...cursing all the while at the daunting task in front of me...I realized how fortunate I was that I could give them those gifts. There will be some of those dear to me who are missing this year; yet, they are still in our hearts and memories and those memories are the greatest treasures of all. Some people go through life not having the love of family, and friends who have become family over the years, so I consider myself very blessed indeed.
I have a roof over my head and a stockpile of food in the pantry. My home might not be a mansion, but there are touches of me all the way through and that's what makes it a home. The food in the pantry was grown in my own garden for the most part and through some very hot days in the kitchen, is sitting in Ball jars lining the shelves and that gives me great satisfaction. A lot of hard work, but rewarding work it was. The days toiling barefoot in the garden and feeling the warmth of the earth beneath me as I worked while the sun beat down and bought color to my skin. As I search the internet, I see photographs of people who line the sidewalks beneath overpasses, huddling beneath cardboard and blankets with nowhere else to go and it humbles me greatly.
I have a menagerie of animals. A ten-year-old dog named Oscar who allowed me to dress him in a Santa suit for the holidays and greets me every time I walk in the front door with his tail wagging so hard his whole body wiggles. When he looks at me, there is nothing but pure love in his eyes. A fourteen-year-0ld cat named Whiskey who is a grumpy old woman to say the least who sits on the vanity as I get ready for work every afternoon and still comes to lay on my shoulder despite the times I push her away because her claws are lethal. A fifteen pound cat named Halo who loves nothing more than to give hugs and leaving his white fur on every surface of my house. And even though he's not allowed on my bed, he sometimes finds his way in there leaving trails of himself behind. I have Pops, the miniature stallion who has a tendency to want to intimidate my sexy landlord every time he steps foot inside the fence and who absolutely loves stale Christmas cookies and apples. There is Smith and Wesson my pygmy goats who are the chubbiest and furriest little lovers who spent nights in the house last summer to keep them safe from the coyotes. I have Mo the rooster who doesn't crow but prances around with his vivid tail feathers and doesn't seem to mind the Rhode Island Red rooster that joined him in the fall and who IS able to crow, even though he is still pretty hoarse and hasn't figured out what time he's supposed to do it. And the hens who will eventually bring me eggs in the spring. I can't imagine people whose lives don't include the love of a few animals.
I have a full-time job that pays the bills. A career in human resources that has spanned almost thirty years at this point. Co-workers who are some of the best I could ask for and employees who have blessed me with a great number of memories and who usually have a kind word or a smile.
I have friends who are dear to me. Friends who push me at times, console me at times, and aren't afraid to remind me who I am and just how much I have to give. And when I forget, they remind me all over again.
And I have my writing. A talent of storytelling which I am able to share with the world. Through my writing, I've met a great number of wonderful people and learned a wealth of information and been able to travel to places that I may not have otherwise gone.
So, as Christmas day approaches, I want to give thanks for each and every wonderful blessing our Creator has bestowed upon me. That includes each and every one of you!
God bless and thank you for the part of my life and heart you have filled.
​ 

This week, I want to talk about heroes. Heroes can be obvious or not so obvious. They can be the men and women who have taken an oath to serve and protect...police officers, first responders, fire fighters, our military. Or, they can be the neighbor who sees a fellow human in need and jumps in to provide the right assistance at the right time. They could be the doctor or the nurse that works around the clock in times of strife or the veterinarian who gets up from their family dinner to save a beloved pet for a young child. We all have--and will have--heroes throughout our lives. The people who are there for us just when we need them the most to hold our hand or lend us an ear. 
I have known many heroes throughout my life...my father and my mother...my children...grandchildren...my friends. Teachers who encouraged me and friends who helped me remember who I am when I have forgotten. Without those people, my life may not be as rich and full as it is today. To them, I want to send gratitude and love for all they have done. God bless each and every one of them.

With that said, I want to introduce all of you to a collection of short stories written by lovely group of authors. The title of the book is Hometown Heroes and it was published by Bienvenue Press just in time for your holiday reading. Or to give as a gift to the book lover on your Christmas list....


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Synopsis:
Community. Courage. Compassion.
Hometown Heroes brings you five Christmas romances that celebrate everyday heroes.
From paranormal to contemporary to historical, there's something here to fill everyone with the spirit of the season.
A portion of the proceeds will be donated to Cajun Navy Relief, an organization dedicated to helping neighbors in distress.

“Courtship and Courage” by Carrie Dalby
Witnessing the race riots before the soldiers left for Cuba during the summer of 1898 didn't stop Claire O'Farrell from opening her heart, but it prevented her from wanting to share it. The stormy Mobile Bay winter proves the right catalyst for Joe Walker to prove his devotion to the woman he loves, though Claire is determined her choices have made her unworthy.

“When Time Stood Still” by Chelsi Arnold and J D Boudreaux
Jacqueline Jones needs a change. Abandoning her Upper East Side apartment, she’s looking for an adventure, or maybe a challenge that will make her heart race. Nick Lapointe, once a member of the Cajun Navy, bids the bayous farewell, seeking less destruction and more beauty in the world. Together in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee she has her hands full with the tall, handsome, and infuriating Nick. As for him, the five-foot-two beauty may be just what he needs, if he can survive “Hurricane” Jacqueline.
 
“Hobbes House Noel” by cj petterson
Merrill Cowper rents her beloved Hobbes House lakefront cabin to a stranger and becomes an unlikely hometown heroine when she saves his child from a watery death. This will be the year she learns that the best Christmas gifts don’t always arrive wrapped in pretty paper and tied with a bow. Sometimes they don’t even fit under the Christmas tree.

“Talking in Code: A Christmas Homecoming” by E.A. Hale
In 1919, as a suffragette for equal rights, Evelyn Thompson arrives at the ammunition factory for her regular supervisor shift. She learns that she’s been terminated for the flimsiest of reasons: to make room for a war veteran whose battlefield heroics have earned him celebrity status in Oklahoma. When her father hosts a Christmas gala with the Choctaw Code Talkers as guests of honor, she is drawn to the courageous and dashing Lieutenant James Clayton, until she discovers that her job at the factory was handed over to him! An accidental explosion tears apart the factory but brings Evelyn and James together in a selfless display of heroics that has nothing to do with gender and everything to do with love.

“Safe Haven” by Jolie St. Amant
Letting go is never easy, and for Haven Cross, it’s almost impossible. Every year at Christmas, she returns to the Chateau Rouge and relives the moment her fiance’ proposed and the grief she felt when he was killed in action. This year, however, the enchanting hotel has other plans for her and for the charming musician, Chance Montgomery. Will Haven be brave enough to leave the past behind and embrace a new beginning?
 
Purchase Hometown Heroes:
Kindle: https://amzn.to/2R3hMl7
Paperback: https://amzn.to/2SfeYBX
 
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Jolie St. Amant fell in love with all things New Orleans after reading Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice. Now, a frequent visitor to the Crescent City, she can often be found getting inspiration from ghost tours, or sipping cafe au lait at Cafe du Monde.
 
Social Media Links:
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