Romance Writers Weekly: December 23, 2014

Merry Christmas everyone! I almost missed this post today because I'm running around doing my christmas shopping. I'd like to say last minute but the truth is, I only started any shopping two days ago. Regardless, I'm not going to let a little thing like Christmas unpreparedness prevent me from taking part in today's blog hop.

This week we are completing a statement. So here we go.

All I want for Christmas is...

to see the people I love be happy. And maybe for Christmas to be less about gifts and more about spending time with the people who make us happy. I know, I know. The commercialization thing is often talked about, and that's fine. We all want to give the perfect gift to someone. I get that. But what I really wish is that people could feel loved for Christmas. 

Today I was out shopping downtown with my mom. We were having a great time, laughing, being happy, not stressing about things. And yet so many people we met looked angry or frustrated. People were bickering. People were alone, huddled in the corner of a building looking for money. There's sadness all around us and for someone who really does believe in the power of happiness, it hits me in the heart to see such sorrow. 

I often wonder how I can change this. And I don't have the answer. But all I can do is smile at people, whether they want to smile back or not. I don't know if happiness is contagious, but I can at least try that. 

In the meantime, I can make sure that those I love are happy. Happily fed, happily hugged, happily told how much they mean to me. And that goes out to the people that I know in the virtual world as well. I have many friends in the Romance Writers Weekly group that I've never met, and yet I wish them all the love and joy of the season. And I wish it for my readers as well. 

Maybe that's why writing romance, and being proud of writing romance, is so important to me. Because I know that for a little while at least, people can escape from the things that might be filling their days with stress, and know joy and love for a small moment in time. 

Merry Christmas my friends. Even if this isn't a holiday you celebrate, I wish you nothing but the best this season, and always. 

I also wish you'd do the rounds of this blog hop this week and see what all my friends want for Christmas. You can start right here with Dani Jace.  

Isn't this lovely? I found it on esty. 

Romance Writers Weekly: December 9, 2014

"Tis the season to be jolly" and crank up the old Christmas tunes. What a fun topic this week. Many thanks to Xio Axelrod for making us try and choose our favourite Christmas song. This is very difficult for me, mainly because I can never pin down just one thing as a favourite, and what might be top of the list this morning could be forgotten by this evening. 

Yes, I'm one of those people, where every second or third song that comes on the radio is "My favourite song in the whole wide world." What can I say? I like way more things than I dislike. 

So here's what I'm going to do. I'll list my top three Christmas songs, and we can all assume that this fluctuating list will change many times between now and old Christmas day. 

Now, without further adieu, here are some of my favs! (Videos included so you can sing along!)

The Cherry Tree Carol, by Jose Feliciano 

This song makes me cry every time I hear it. And while there are plenty of beautiful versions, there's no other like this. His voice and the guitar, the sincerity of it all, crushes me. And I love it. 

Oh Holy Night

Another classic carol that kicks me right in the heart strings. And still, it makes me smile as well. It brings back memories of a crisp winter night at the family cabin where my cousin and I belted this out at the top of our lungs. We thought we were the best singers ever! She's actually pretty great. Me, not so much. Anyhow, there are a lot of beautiful versions out there and I honestly have no particular favourite. But for today, let's say this version by Josh Groban is pretty awesome. I do prefer piano versions over huge orchestras, so this has a bit of both. 

Barefoot Santa Claus by Sonny James

So when I was a kid, I loved this song. These days my favourite kid christmas song is the Hippopotamus one, but there's no way I can lie and say that this wasn't what got my little feet tapping at Christmas time. So here it is, in all its barefoot glory!

Honourable mentions go out today to other favs including:

• Anything by Boney M
• Carol of the Bells
• The Mummer's Song
• Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer
• Some Kenny & Dolly christmas songs

The Blarmling Dilemma (Hearts in Orbit Book 1)

By S.C. Mitchell

Buy on Amazon

Now pop on over and say "Jingle Bells" to S.C. Mitchell to see what he has on his list. And be sure to check out his brand new release, The Blarmling Dilemma. 

Romance Writers Weekly: December 2, 2014

It's time for the Romance Writers Weekly Christmas Cookie Recipe exchange! If you've come via Collette Cameron, I'm not sure we can top her spritz cookies but I'll try. 

Mmmmmm. Cookies. I love cookies no matter the time of year, but there's something about Christmas that just makes eating them so much more acceptable.

I'm blessed to have a husband that bakes all year round so there's never any shortage in our home. Last night in bed I said "What recipe of yours do you want me to post tomorrow?" Because let's face it, with a toddler, that's about as exciting as it gets in our bed these days. 

Anyhow, after much deliberation I've decided to go with his brownie recipe. Two reasons: They were already made so I could take a photo this morning of the real thing, and also, they are so good that they don't even need icing or ice cream or anything to add to them. They are moist, chocolatey, and decadent all on their own. And simple to make. Or at least that's what I'm told. Because I cook. He bakes. It's a great house we have. 

Don't judge. This was my breakfast this morning. I'll have a healthy lunch. I promise. 

Decadent Fudge Brownies

Ingredients

• 1  1/2 cup of flour
• 3/4 cup of rich dark cocoa (The better your cocoa, the better your brownies!)
• 1/2 tsp  baking powder
• 1 cup of  melted butter
• 3/4 cup of vanilla sugar (Vanilla Sugar. Simple to make. Poke a couple of long vanilla beans in a tall glass, fill with sugar, cover and let sit for a week. Mmmmm.)
• 3/4 cup of brown sugar
• 2 eggs

What to do

• Preheat oven to 350°F 
• Lightly butter and flour a 9 x 13” (23 x 33 cm) pan, shaking out excess flour. You could use cocoa instead of flour. This is a great alternative.
• Whisk flour, cocoa and baking powder in a mixing bowl. Set aside. 
• In a separate mixing bowl, whisk remaining ingredients. Combine both mixes and pour into prepared pan. 
• Bake for 25 minutes
• Eat! You can eat them warm with ice cream (my dad's favourite), eat them right from the pan with nothing on top (my favourite) or sprinkle cocoa or icing sugar on them. You can also spruce them up with icing, but trust me, they are perfect just as they are! 

Now hop on over to see the most amazing lebkuchen recipe from Betty Bolte! This cookie is new to me but I guarantee we'll be giving it a go. 

Oh! And be sure to pop over to our Facebook party today. We're giving away books all day long!