The Winners--and Another Contest

Last week I offered to give away six copies of Make, Take, Murder to six lucky blog commenters. To choose the winners, I used a random number generator.

Here they are: Sharon M Dru Judy C Sarita Colleen SarahA Please send me your postal addresses (email me at JoannaSlan@aol.com) and I'll pop the books in the mail to you. If the spirit moves you, I'd love to have you post a review.

Do reviews help readers decide which books to buy? I don't know. Usually I read the book reviews in the newspapers and online, but I don't know that the reviewers' opinion matters as much as the information about the book. I think that Make, Take, Murder is my best effort so far. In fact, I'm having a hard time turning loose of Ink, Red, Dead because Make, Take, Murder hit a high-water mark in the series--and I want every book to be better than the last.

As many of you know, I try to include topical themes in my books. Make, Take, Murder involves domestic violence, but it also traces the roots of an abusive relationship. Kiki's daughter Anya and her friend Nicci are hanging around at the mall, when they bump into an older boy. Anya has a crush on this guy. He knows it. To impress his friends, he teases Anya and says something inappropriate and demeaning. I won't tell you how it ends, because that would spoil it for you, but Anya learns not to tolerate such disrespect.

In Ink, Red, Dead, I tackle the relationship between parent and child. How can we honor our mother and father when they are no longer logical or lucid? What do we owe an aging parent? How do we balance being responsible caregivers and taking care of our own needs? It's a tough series of questions, so my writing time REQUIRES a lot of long walks on the beach. Yep, that's my thinking time, the solitary moments when I wonder how each of my characters will deal with the challenges I've given her. I also ponder how I can make the situations realistic without tipping into melodrama.

CONTEST

Make, Take, Murder is the PERFECT beach read. You can win your own copy--plus a "Beach in a Bag"--by guessing where I was when I took the picture at the top of this post. If no one gets it right, or if multiple people get it right, I'll go back to the randomizer and pull a winner. So...dear readers, where was I when I snapped that photo? What is a "Beach in a Bag"?

 I'll show you next week.

What Makes You Happy?

Each New Year's Day many of us make resolutions, promises we can't keep. We concentrate on what we "should" be doing, rather than what we want to do. So this year, I'm making happiness a priority. Life is short. Seems to me that to live without joy is to waste this wonderful, but fleeting opportunity.

I plan to start the New Year by making a "Happy Me" list. Here are a few of the things that make me happy:

1. Scented candles. Especially those by the Yankee Candle Company.
2. Lattes. I bought a simple latte machine, and I plan to make myself a coffee confection each morning.
3. Dancing. Zumba and bellydancing here I come!
4. Walks on the beach. That's an easy one. The photo above is taken from my front deck. My house is less than 60 feet from the Atlantic Ocean.
5. More "no" and more "yes." My son calls obligations "traps." Too often I say, "Yes," when I should say, "No, sorry that won't work for me."
6. Thymes Gold Leaf. My favorite personal fragrance.
7. New underwear. (Enough said.)
8. More crockpot meals. Easy to make and healthy.
9. More time for crafting.
10. Paint. I recently painted my laundry room a beautiful periwinkle. It's so fabulous that it makes me happy every time I walk in!
11. Road trips. I love them!
12. More glasses of wine while enjoying the view. I need to take time to smell the salt breezes.

How about you? What's on your happiness list? Happy New Year!