Can you believe that the holiday season is in full swing? Halloween 2024 is in the history books, and now Thanksgiving and Christmas are coming up fast. Thanksgiving has always been my favorite holiday. We all have a different “thankful bucket list” for what we are thankful for, and mine is basically the same every year, but this year I’ve added a few things—especially since I recently had a birthday and realized that there are more years behind me than in front of me.

So, with that in mind, here goes:

I’m thankful for all the years I had with Mr. B. It’s hard to believe that he’s been gone nearly a year. We had such a good life together, and so many memories that keep his spirit with me through the days.

I’m thankful for my family who have kept me sane this past year. Without them I’m not sure I would have survived each day—no, each hour.

I’m thankful for my health and prize each moment that I can say that.

I’m thankful for our family gatherings for the holidays. I have three children, fifteen grandchildren and twenty-seven great grands. Some of the grands we got with a marriage license instead of a birth certificate. The way I figure is that marriage licenses and birth certificates are all just paper. In my heart every one of them—even the ornery ones—is mine. Like a mama bear or a Nene bear in my case, I would fight for any of them because they belong to me.

I’m thankful for my readers and for the support and love they shower upon me. They are truly the wind beneath my writing wings and keep me in my office chair many hours of every day.
I’m thankful for each member of my publication teams that help with edits, covers and all that goes into a turning an idea into a book.

Most of all, I’m thankful for my faith in God. Without that, I wouldn’t have the strength to get through each day.

So, looking back over the year, what have you got to be thankful for? We are having a Month of Thankfulness on my social media pages starting November 4. Check out any of the following to join us for the month, have fun and win prizes.

Author’s Page: bit.ly/3m2TQxz
My Sassy Babe’s Group: bit.ly/3RphOnr
Or Instagram: bit.ly/3x1Cjy7

Until next time,

Nineteen years ago, in June of 1997 I got what authors refer to as “the call”. I had been trying to get into the writing market for more than twenty years and had enough rejection letters to wall paper the White House. And that, friends, is the big house on Pennsylvania Avenue, not the little white two bedroom house where I grew up.

So after query letter after query letter, I was shocked that a publisher even asked to see two full manuscripts but I sent them in and figured that there was probably a space in a closet up there in the big house that still wasn’t covered with a rejection slip. A few weeks later I got “the call” that the editor wanted to buy both the books.

I couldn’t cry tears of joy because I couldn’t breathe. Then I thought it was a prank. When she finally assured me that she wanted to buy This Time Forever and Love Is The Answer, I didn’t know who to tell first. Mr. B was off in Pennsylvania. Finally, when my shaking hands could hit the buttons on the phone, I called Mr. B. From my breathlessness he thought I’d run a mile—and I do not run. That creates that strange stuff called sweat that I’m not fond of. So at first he was pretty sure I had bad news. When I finally calmed down enough to tell him that I’d sold not one but two books that day, he figured out that it was really good news.

I’d decided that writing would be my vice and only a few very close friends would ever know about it. Kind of like eating chocolate in the middle of the night. It has no calories if no one knows, right? I chose the name Abby Gray for my vice pen name. Abby was my one eyed black and white cat. Gray was my maiden name.

But when my sister got the news she immediately notified three local newspapers. The cat was out of the bag. Four books later in 1999 the line I was writing for died. That same year I sold Love Is to a different publisher and since everyone knew I was a romance author I decided to use the name on my driver’s license—Carolyn Brown.

Now fast forward ahead 19 years. Today, September 13, my 79^th book hits the market. The Lullaby Sky. And just for the record…every single time my amazing agent calls me to say that my publishers are interested in another book or two, I still lose my breath and can’t wait to tell Mr. B. One of my goals is to have 100 books on the market. Number 80 will be on the shelves at the end of this month and by the end of 2017, the number will reach to 88. It’s been an amazing trip since 1997 and here’s a toast to many good years and lots of breathless moments in the future!