Trippin' with Holly and Susan—12

Susan Gable and I have done a series of videos about writing and books...and today's release, about where we set most of our books, Erie, PA.

Yes, Erie is Eriesistible! It's the setting in so many of my books, but more than that...it's home! Come see why we love it so much in today's trip!

You can go back and check out the first eleven videos on YouTube on my aptly named, Trippin' with Holly and Susan playlist.

We had so much fun making these videos and we'd love to have you come along...so climb in the backseat and come trippin' with us!

Holly

PS. Carry Her Heart is on sale, along with the 2nd book in the series, These Three Words.

Polished Off

And don't forget my new release Polished Off: A Maid in LA Mystery is out! Check out Quincy's newest adventure!

Join in the fun at:

Amazon

B&N

Grownup Clothes

So, I'm heading to New Jersey Romance Writers conference this weekend and realized yesterday, I have to pack.  Yes, I realized that fact as I sat in holey jeans, a t-shirt and a buffalo plaid flannel shirt.  Let's just say it...I don't do grownup clothes very often.  Hardly ever, truth be told.

I walked to my grownup clothes closet and stared at it.  And then I hit on a plan...
You see, I'm going to New Jersey because I've getting a Hall of Fame Award (you can read about it here).  And two of my books are finalists in the Golden Leaf Awards.

And all the books that are part of that Hall of Fame Award and in the Golden Leaf Award are set here in Erie, PA.  (What, you mean Erie isn't your first thought when you think of romantic cities?? Maybe it should be! LOL) So, if I wore some of my very cool Erie t-shirts (thanks Erie Apparel) I wouldn't be avoiding grownup clothes, I'd be marketing my books.  Yes, that's right, those t-shirts are branding.  And branding is smart and business savvy.  

So, if you see me in New Jersey wearing my t-shirts (and non-holey jeans and a nice cardie) don't think, boy that writer seems less than grownup dressed.  Think, wow, that writer is very market savvy.  She's a branding dynamo.

Uh, did you buy that??

New Jersey here I come!!  And if you're looking for a romantic city...maybe you should be thinking Erie??  You can visit Visit Erie to find out a bit of what we have to offer...or you can pick up a Holly Jacobs' book. (Oh, I think that was more marketing savviness right there!)

Holly

Visit Erie

Lights, Camera, Action...

It turns out I spend a lot of time on social media talking about books...and food.  So many people have asked for recipes that I've decided to make some cooking videos.

I made my first Cooks and Books video in December.  My holiday Christmas Candy.  And in January, I made one for dinner rolls, then remembered how I make cinnamon rolls out of the dough and did a second video.

In the 2.5 I also gave a quick tour of my kitchen because so many people asked.  Yes, we have a lot of antiques...a lot of them relating to my hometown, Erie, PA.  I set most of my books here because...well, because I love Erie.

Hope you enjoy the videos.  There are more on their way!

BTW, Happy New Year! Hope you all had a great holiday and the new year has started with a lot of glee!!

Holly

Here We Go Again

2014 is turning out to be my year of backlist books.  My first books were

published by Kensington's Precious Gems line and they're coming out again as eBooks.  The two that are out now were published as Be My Baby and Side By Side.  They're back to my original titles.  Why?  Because I really liked my original titles.  So now Be My Baby, which deals with a lactation consultant (something I worked at for years) is Bosom Buddies. Yeah, I know.  You're either laughing…or rolling your eyes.  My kids would be rolling their eyes, so it's okay if you are!

The book was Side By Side, and now it's Cinderella Wore Tennis Shoes.  Really, when a runaway bride runs what else would she wear but tennis shoes??

On all these new old releases I'm using the tagline "A Holly Jacobs Classic Romance" because I want readers to know that these are older works.

I don't tend to reread my older works, so rereading some now has been interesting.  I see the writer I've become (am becoming) in those stories. I hope that readers enjoy these blasts from the past!

On Thursday, even more older books are coming out.  Harlequin is rereleasing most of my Perry Square series as eBooks.  These stories were set around a real park in downtown.  I've set most of my books in and around Erie, but the Perry Square series is unique because I set it on a real downtown park.  Oh, I include real Erie landmarks in other books, but being set on the Square made this series unique.  I put together a tour of the real Square.  If you ever visit Erie, you'll definitely want to visit it, until then, come with me...


A Perry Square Visit:

Perry Square is a real two block park in Erie, Pa. It's named after Oliver Hazard Perry, made famous during the Battle of Lake Erie. There's a statue of him in the park.

Here is just a beautiful autumn shot of the park.

The real Perry Square is surrounded by businesses. In my Perry Square books I've added fictional businesses such as Snips and Snaps Beauty Salon, By Design, The Chocolate Bar, a law firm and a eye doctor's office. This isn't any reflection on the very lovely stores that really make up the square. If you're ever in Erie, I hope you stop by and visit them. In the meantime, I hope you'll read about my fictional ones! 

If you go a few blocks down from Perry Square, you'll reach our bayfront. In my books I take you there a lot. Characters go visit the tower. And they've even taken dinner cruises. 

A view of Presque Isle Peninsula from the tower.

A view up State Street from the tower. Perry Square is about five blocks straight ahead!

Finally, see the little stack in the background? That's ourMaritime Museum and the Blasco Library!

These three beach shots were taken August '03. That's me...and the sunsets. Truly, the sunsets are Erie at its best!

Once Upon a Prince spend a lot of time on the Bayfront. Shey and Tanner go to the Blasco library (2, 3), which is next to the Maritime Museum (1) and the Brig Niagara (4).

1. 

2.

3. 

4.

Finally, Shey and Tanner head off to Liberty Park's Ampitheater and watch a Jimmy Buffet tribute band. 

Notice the great views!!

I write a lot about the beauty of Erie. I hope, through my books, you learn to love my favorite city as much as I do! 

~Holly

The 8 Perry Square Books:
Do You Hear What I Hear?
A Day Late and a Bride Short
Dad Today, Groom Tomorrow
Be My Baby

Once Upon a Princess
Once Upon a Prince
Once Upon a King

Here With Me

Truth in Fiction

Blasco Library, Erie, PA

National Library Week is April 14^th through the 19^th.  I've been invited to talk at our local library as part of 

their celebration.  I’ll confess, I am thrilled.

I’ll be talking about incorporating fact into my fiction.

Here’s the thing, I love including fact in my fiction.  Most of my books are set in, or around Erie.  Why?  Because I love Erie.  I love bringing my hometown onto a national, sometimes even and international stage.  My new series talks about the Lake Erie Wine region.  Yes, I had to do research…lots and lots of arduous research. 

But more than settings, I write about subjects and issues that touch me.  Many of my books have dogs in them.  I have dogs.  I know dogs.  Most days I like dogs.  (My dogs were the stars of my December book, Everything But a Dog…they keep waiting for the PUParazzi to hound them.  Alas, they haven’t been hounded yet.)

So many of my books have babies and kids in them.  I have kids.  I know kids.  Most days I like kids.  

Family. 

You Are Invited...
SuperRomance, 4/13

I think that’s the most common theme in my books.  Even when there are no kids present, family always is.  Maybe it’s a hero or heroine’s parent(s).  Maybe it’s friends that have gone beyond mere friendship and moved into the realm of family. 

When I’m asked why I write romance, I say, it’s about the relationships.  It’s fascinating to take two people and watch them find their way to each other, overcoming all obstacles in their way…and there are always obstacles.  I make sure of that. (This is where I insert my very evil writer laugh, bwah ha ha.)  But so does life...it's a big element of truth in fiction.

April Showers
SuperRomance, 5/13

I think that’s why family is such an important theme for me…I love watching the dynamics of how those families function and how they impact that hero and heroine’s journey to love.  My new Valley Ridge trilogy is a great example of that family reality in fiction.  In the first book, You are Invited... the heroine loses a friend who is definitely her family.  She needs to form a new family with her friend's children...and the hero.  In the second book, April Showers, the heroine forms a bond with an elderly man.  He starts out as her landlord, then becomes a friend, and finally becomes family, as surely as those people who share her DNA.  And finally, in the third book, A Walk Down the Aisle... Well, if I tell you how I explore family in that one, I'll be giving too much of the story away.  Suffice to say, yep, it's in there.

Going back to my mention of libraries, the heroine in my December book, the fourth Valley Ridge book, A Valley Ridge Christmas, is a librarian.  I’ve been lucky to have so many wonderful librarians who impacted my life.  I wish I remembered all their names, but I do remember the librarians who came on the Bookmobile every few weeks.  They discovered I was a bookworm and would frequently have a book or two stashed away for me.  And then there’s Miss Kitty.  She was the story lady at the children’s library when my kids were growing up.  All four kids remember her with such fondness.

A Walk Down the Aisle
SuperRomance, 6/13

Truth in fiction.  It’s in every one of my books.  Both the comedies and the dramas.  There’s settings.  There’s exploring what a family is and how it functions.  There are even dogs and the occasional cat.   But mainly there’s love.  And at the heart of all my books, that’s the main theme…love.  Love of town.  Love of pets.  Love of family.  Love of that one special person who despite all the odds, you’re destined to be with.

Holly

Happy St. Patrick's Day

 I love spring!  Winters can be long here on the shores of Lake Erie.  We have this thing called, Lake Effect Snow.  Cold Canadian winds blow across the lake, picking up moisture, which hits the lakeshore in the form of...you guessed it, snow.

Here in Erie we have an average of almost 80 inches of snow a year.  That's a lot of snow.

But now it's March!  At this moment, the snow in my yard has all melted.  Although, they're calling for more snow tonight.  This time of year the weather is more precarious than ever.  This last weekend it was in the sixties.  I opened the windows and I wore just a sweatshirt as I walked the dogs.  Tuesday, when I walked, I was back in a heavy coat, but still wore sneakers.  If it snows, well I'm back in boots and bundled up.

But spring is busting out all over!  If you look closely at the picture on the left, I've got purple flowers starting to open on my crocuses.  The one on the right is a hyacinth.  The birds are loud as I walk in the mornings.  I love this season of rebirth and renewal.  I just turned in my Christmas book and I'm working on something new.  I come to my computer each day with that same springtime sense of potential...anything can happen!!  And since I'm working on one of my comedies, it probably will!

Now, this is Erie, so I know we'll have at least one more snow.  Local legend has it that St. Patrick's Day generally means a late season snow storm (although at this moment, weather.com is calling for 33 degrees and only a 10% chance of snow).   But even if it snows, St. Patrick's Day seems to herald the official start of spring here on the lake.  It's a day when everyone's a little Irish.  A day when green isn't simply a color that's coming back to life in our gardens and lawns...its the color everyone's wearing.  A day when you can get Guinness at almost any bar in town! (As a Guinness fan, that's a good thing!)

So, Sláinte, everyone!  I hope spring is arriving where you are and that even if you're still snowed in, you remember that spring is just around the corner!  I hope this season gives you that same sense of potential and glee that it gives me.  Anything's possible!!

Happy St. Patrick's Day...and spring!

Holly


A St. Patrick's Day Gift for you all:

I've tried my hand at publishing a short story trilogy this year.  I gave Nothing But Love away for Christmas, Nothing But Heart away for Valentine's and my springtime/St. Patrick's Day gift is the final book, my first St. Patrick's day romance, Nothing But Luck.  It stand alone, so even if you didn't read the other two, it's fine.  And it's free for Kindle this weekend, Saturday the 16th, Sunday the 17th and Monday the 18th.  So mark your calendars and stop in and pick it up before you go get that Guinness!  (And I know that many of you have other types of eReaders.  The entire series will be out next year for those platforms.)

Nothing But Luck

Coming Home

Me at The Smithsonian Air & Space.
..and missing my dogs.

Last week, my family was on vacation in DC and Williamsburg, VA. Both are beautiful cities. I loved all the museums and monuments. And I especially loved going through the residential areas. I love seeing how other people live. Their homes, their gardens. Seriously, both cities are gorgeous.

But I was so glad to get home on Friday.

I missed my dogs. I missed my house. I missed my own coffee at breakfast, and leisurely reading the paper as I sip it. I missed my own bed.

I missed Erie.

As I walked the dogs Saturday morning, through the quiet neighborhoods, I couldn’t help reflecting about how much I love my house, my life...my city. Other cities are great to visit. Beautiful, hospitable, historic... They’re nice. But Erie’s home.

When we were in Williamsburg, we had a chance to talk to the hotel’s manager. He was born in Michigan, spent most of his childhood in Alaska, and now lives and works in Virginia. He was a history major who found his true home in Williamsburg, in the midst of all the history that area is steeped in. I was born here in Erie, and despite seeing more and more of the country and being able to admire those region’s assets, I’ve never felt the slightest inclination to live anywhere else. Erie is my home.

I recently wrote an essay for The Erie Times newspaper that will be out sometime in July talking about how much I love Erie. And as I worked on it, I realized that Erie’s been the setting for more than thirty of my books. I guess the fact I like Erie shows! LOL

What about you? Were you born in your true home, or did you have to go look for it? Or, are you still looking–trying on different cities, looking for the right fit? If you’ve found your true home, what is it that delights you about it?

Holly

PS. I’m leaving in a few minutes for Toronto on business, but I’ll be back this evening and will check the board! (That’s another great thing about Erie...I can be in Toronto, Buffalo, Cleveland or Pittsburgh in just a few hours.)

I'm traveling

I'll confess, I long for the day my dh and I can travel. Well, we do take annual trips to Disney World for the kids, and he maintains that walking through the countries in Epcot counts, but I disagree. I want to really go see the world. And in a few years, when our youngest heads off to college, that's just what we're going to do. But for now, I have two ways of exploring the world, Epcot, and with the fact my books go overseas. In April, last summer's Here With Me, will be released in Italy. I can imagine a reader, sitting in a cafe, with a glass of red wine and some chees, reading about...Erie, PA.

Yes, that's the other part I love about my books going overseas...the idea that I'm introducing Erie (well, at least most of my books are set in Erie) to other countries. I love my city...I'm pretty sure most readers have realized that already! LOL We've got Lake Erie on our doorstep, and the beautiful Presque Isle peninsula, jetting out into it, giving us a bay on one side for recreation, and wonderful beaches (with great sunsets...perfect for reading your favorite book) on the other. We have historic landmarks (I've dined at the Waterford Hotel...just like George Washington), and toured a house used in the underground railroad. I feel very fortunate I can introduce readers all over the world to my hometown.

What about you? What makes your hometown special? Something you'd like to share with readers?

Holly

www.HollyJacobs.com