J. H. Authors

One Woman. Three Names. Many Books.

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A Christmas Carol Round Up

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A CHRISTMAS CAROL ROUNDUPA few years ago, I wrote a series of blog posts about A Christmas Carol. This was well before A Christmas Peril was published, but I was already working on the book. I unabashedly love A Christmas Carol. So in this spirit, I wanted to compile the previous posts in one place.

Found in the Wild!

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In Bookstores now.png

Seeing your books in a bookstore never, ever gets old. Yesterday I went to a Barnes & Noble, and saw both Chime and Punishment, the 3rd in my Clock Shop series, and A Christmas Peril, the debut of my Theater Cop series, close by each other on the shelf marked “New Releases”. I beamed. Since I was alone, I couldn’t share it with anyone, so I thought it was worth a post!

I’m currently on a “blog tour” for A Christmas Peril—here’s the schedule! I had a great tour for Chime and Punishment in August. What a whirlwind these past two months have been–truly a dream come true!

Over at the Wicked Cozy Authors blog I posted about A Christmas Peril’s path to publication! It took a while, but here it is!

Thanks for all of your support!

 

Tick Tock Tick Tock

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Sunday was T – 6 months. 6 months before my birthday. A birthday that ends in a “0”.

6 months used to feel like a long time. Now it flies, FLIES by. So it is time to get the ducks lined up.

What do I want to be different in 6 months? And what am I going to do about it?

I want to get back in shape. Three years ago this fall I ran a half marathon. Two years ago this summer I did spring triathlons. Last year, nothing. I need goals–am thinking about signing up for a couple of 5Ks to get moving. Am not going to talk about losing x pounds or y inches. Just want to be in fierce shape.

Balance. Still trying, still losing. But reframing, realizing that I can’t have traditional 9-5 balance in my life. Need to figure it out, and steal time where I can.

Writing. I am revising my first novel again–getting rid of a character completely, shuffling a couple of scenes. Then back to #2 and continue shopping for an agent.

Reading. Less for work. More for pleasure. Much, much more.

Gratitude. I have a wonderful life. I am grateful for it, and want to keep being more conscious of how blessed I am. No matter what happens, I am blessed.

 

In Praise of a Handsome Man

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This could be a multi-part blog series. And it has nothing to do with the People issue that just came out, though Bradley Cooper was a nice choice. Instead, it has to do with the theater weekend I just had in New York. I saw three shows, all of which featured handsome men. Paul Gross in Private Lives, Alan Rickman in Seminar and Hugh Jackman in Hugh Jackman Back on Broadway. My focus for this post is Hugh Jackman.

I have seen him in the movies. And I have watched him host the Tonys. But I had never seen him live. And while I was prepared to enjoy the show, I was not prepared for how enormously talented Hugh Jackman is. He is charming and charismatic and has a nice singing voice. But it is the dancing that got to me.

I love old movie musicals, with a very special place in my heart for Fred Astaire, with Gene Kelley coming in a close second. I love their easy way of telling a story through dance, and layering romance with athleticism. Hugh Jackman is that kind of dancer. Lovely, at ease and really, really good. Truly a talent that may have been better served in another era, when he could have made some movie musicals a la Gene Kelley (or Fred Astaire). Wolverine the Musical? I don’t think so. But maybe take his Wolverine cache and make a big old fashioned musical with production numbers? A girl can dream.

Hats off to Hugh Jackman. You surprised me.

Cozy Holiday Reading

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Last fall was so nuts that I didn’t read a single book. Or shall I say a single fiction book. But I made up a lot of ground during the holidays, and thought I would catch you up.

I read IF WALLS COULD TALK by Juliet Blackwell, THE DIVA COOKS A GOOSE by Krista Davis, HOLIDAY GRIND by Cleo Coyle and DEATH OF AN AMBITIOUS WOMAN by Barbara Ross. I am fans of the Diva series, and the Coffehouse series and these holiday themed books didn’t disappoint. IF WALLS COULD TALK promised to be a good series as well.

DEATH OF AN AMBITIOUS WOMAN is Barbara Ross’s first published novel. It is not a cozy, but more of a traditional mystery. And it is wonderful. I highly recommend it.

Now that I’ve rejoined the reading world I have started Rachel Brady’s DEAD LIFT. I will report back.

Happy reading!