Pitching a Book, Pitching a Business

by Wendy Tokunaga

A few months ago my husband quit his job to start his own business. He’s helped co-found a couple of companies before, but with this one it’s just him and his partner, who is located in a different state. So this is an exciting and important time. I want to help him as much as I can, but I’m not directly involved in the business. His industry is medical imaging, where he has many years of experience. I’ve worked in a few tech startups in the past in an editorial capacity, but I don’t have any expertise in my husband’s industry. I haven’t been sure how much help I can provide him in this new venture other than to give emotional support.

One way to get money to run the company is to tap venture capital (VC) funders or “angel” investors. We live in the heart of Silicon Valley so there are many such funders in the area. My husband started to devise a slide presentation to explain what his company does to prepare to pitch to VCs and investors. I had him practice in front of me.

To be honest, the presentation was much too long, rather dull and full of technical jargon the average person wouldn’t understand. I could comprehend very little of what he was saying. Something struck me immediately: he needed to use much simpler, to-the-point-language, leave out all the extraneous details and clearly describe the problem that his product solves and its benefits. He needed to tell it like a concise, compelling story. It was then that I realized that some of my expertise could help him. This was not unlike writing a query letter or pitching a novel to an agent. And this was a lot like the editorial service I’ve provided at writers conferences where I listen to an author’s pitch and tell her how to break it down so it’s short, sweet and compelling enough, with just the right amount of plot details and character motivations to make an agent sit up, take notice and request the full manuscript.

And it turns out that when you’re giving an initial business pitch, you’re not allowed to use Power Point. You must relay it in a two-minute speech. You can even do “speed dating” with investors. This, of course, is very familiar to me—how many times had I done speed dating with agents when I was pre-pubbed?

My husband and I attended a “Shark Tank” investors pitch event just to see how this operates and it was quite eye opening. A lot of people had the same problem—they didn’t know how to effectively explain their business in two minutes. The ones who were chosen to meet with VCs had their pitch down.

So I was able to give my husband some good advice on his pitch. And a few days later we went together to a pitch workshop and I was validated to hear the facilitator give largely the same advice. Why would a VC even think to fund you if you can’t give a compelling story about your product and clearly explain in jargon-free language what it’s about and why it’s worth his while? It’s the same with an agent.

I may not be able to help my husband’s company by coding in JavaScript or C++, but I feel good that there is some concrete way that I can give him support. We’re in this together and I’m looking forward to exciting times ahead.

My husband is blogging about his experience starting up his startup. You can read about his adventures here: http://rerereboot.blogspot.com/

Wendy Tokunaga is a novelist, creative writing teacher and manuscript consultant. Find out more about her at her website www.WendyTokunaga.com and find her on Twitter at @Wendy_Tokunaga

A Few of My Favorite Books

by Sara Rosett

The sleuth in my cozy mystery series, Ellie Avery, is a professional organizer and is inordinately fond of lists. While I’m not an organizer, I do love to make lists. And, what could be better than a list about books?

So here is a random sampling of some of my favorite books.


Favorite Children’s Book: The Secret Garden

Favorite Mystery Series: The Good Thief’s Guide series

Favorite New Non-Mystery: Where Did You Go, Bernadette? by Maria Sample

Favorite Agatha Christie: The Moving Finger

Favorite Jane Austen: Sense and Sensibility

Favorite Thriller: At Risk by Stella Rimington

Favorite Romance: Pink Carnation series by Lauren Willig

 


Favorite Re-read: Austenland by Shannon Hale

What about you? What books make your favorite things list? 


When not avidly searching for new favorite reads, Sara writes a cozy mystery series (Ellie Avery series) and a suspense series with a dash of romance (On the Run series). As a military spouse Sara has moved around the country (frequently!) and traveled internationally, which inspired her latest suspense series. Publishers Weekly called Sara’s books, "satisfying," "well-executed," and "sparkling."

Sara loves all things bookish, considers dark chocolate a daily requirement, and is on a quest for the best bruschetta. Connect with Sara at www.SaraRosett.com or sign up for her newsletter list here. You can also find her on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or Goodreads.

Something Old, New and Borrowed for 2014

by Malena Lott

It's ordinary time. I used to loathe the "in between" — of holidays, life events. I always wanted something to look forward to 

Every woman needs her own power drill. 

- something BIG and bold and photo-worthy.

Now I relish the ordinary day and finding extraordinary moments within each one and I've tried to stop judging a day, a week, a year as "good" or "bad." Now to jumpstart this year, I give you something old, something new and something borrowed to make our writing year a big success.

Something Old:
I get the rights back on Dating da Vinci this summer sometime. I'm thrilled I'll get to give it a new cover, new pricing and control the marketing. And the cool thing about the Internet is even "old" things are new to someone. And my novel Fixer Upper was the first one I self-published in 2010 and it's my top seller now. Pause for a moment and be proud of your past achievements. 

Something New:
I do like to set my intentions for the year so it helps me to come up with a theme to keep me on track. I settled on Get Real, where I've (probably stupidly) committed myself to a weekly blog post and video about a new topic I (and we) can get real about. I started with time because I'm so tired of how much it slips away and am certain I'm the one to blame for any of it being "lost" or wasted. I want to take bolder action with my intentions this year and that means paying attention to what I do and where my mind goes.

I'm currently writing my second Messengers YA book, Genesis, and I know once I commit to daily work on it, I'll love the story again.) I'd like to finish a mystery I started but don't want to commit to that just yet. It might be 2015 and that's okay with me. I also get to edit and publish other writers' work and that's a fun challenge. The story and strategy are my favorite parts.

I think it's important for writers to be broad with their interests, too. We can feel like we live in a cave in a world of all imaginary people. That's why I started a new media site, Sooner Spaces, focusing on stories about stylish spaces and the people behind them in Oklahoma and it's been a blast. I'm getting out of the house, meeting people and getting to be creative in a new way.

Take a deep breath of gratitude that we get the opportunity for creating something new. 

Something Borrowed:
Well, it's not exactly borrowed, but I have set an intention to not buy anything new the rest of this year for me personally. After a closet cleanse, I realized I have loads of extra clothes and if I do need something, I'll try to shop thrift first or actually borrow a friend's. We'll see! I'm also borrowing lots of great advice from people I admire to include in my Get Real series.

Treasuring the things we have help us to feel we have and are"enough."

I'd love to hear your old/new/borrow for 2014 and I hope you'll get real with me this year. No time like the present.

Malena Lott is a storyteller and strategist from Oklahoma. She's written five novels and two novellas under her name, one young adult book under pen name Lena Brown and an advice book, Dance Mom Survival Guide, with co-author Jill Martin. 

'Tis the Season for Reading

The Road to You is a story about finding truth...
and love...along the highway of life.

Right now, I'm in between books...that is, in between writing them. I've been pretty much on a nonstop deadline for the past five and a half years with very few pockets of down time to just read. 

More often, I've only been able to snatch a few minutes here or there, while waiting in the school parking lot to pick up my son or at the orthodontist's office, etc. And, much as I love writing, I've missed those nights of snuggling up with my Kindle or a new paperback on the sofa downstairs, while the guys in my house obsess over the Blackhawks playing hockey. I've missed those cold winter weekends where the snow outside makes exercising at the gym even less appealing than usual, and I just need to escape into a novel for a few uninterrupted hours...

After having three major releases in 2013 (including my coming-of-age romantic mystery THE ROAD TO YOU in October) and finishing up edits on the new-adult/romance anthology I've got coming out in mid-January (ALL I EVER WANTED with authors Caisey Quinn, Rhonda Helms and Lexi Ryan), I promised myself that December would be all about reading. In fact, that's my Christmas gift to myself!!

So, it was doubly exciting for me when I found out that the theme of this month's GBC cycle was on sharing books, particularly those written by my fellow Girlfriends. I've had the pleasure of reading a novel (or two or three!) by almost all of them, and I have quite a few on my Kindle or paperback TBR list as well. Below are some of the titles that fit into one of those categories, and they're all books I'd recommend for readers to check out!

Ariella Papa ~ A SEMESTER ABROAD
Barbara Claypole White ~ THE IN-BETWEEN HOUR
Brenda Janowitz ~ RECIPE FOR A HAPPY LIFE
Christa Allen ~ THE EDGE OF GRACE
Cindy Jones ~ MY JANE AUSTEN SUMMER
Ellen Meister ~ THE OTHER LIFE
Ernessa T. Carter ~ 32 CANDLES
Hank Phillippi Ryan ~ THE OTHER WOMAN
Jacqueline Luckett ~ SEARCHING FOR TINA TURNER
Jenny Gardiner ~ ANYWHERE BUT HERE
Jess Riley ~ ALL THE LONELY PEOPLE
Judith Arnold ~ SAFE HARBOR
Karin Gillespie ~ BET YOUR BOTTOM DOLLAR
Laura Spinella ~ BEAUTIFUL DISASTER
Lauren Baratz-Logsted ~ THE BRO-MAGNET
Leslie Langtry ~ 'SCUSE ME WHILE I KILL THIS GUY
Leslie Lehr ~ WHAT A MOTHER KNOWS
Maggie Marr ~ HOLLYWOOD GIRLS CLUB
Malena Lott ~ SOMETHING NEW
Maria Geraci ~ A GIRL LIKE YOU

All I Ever Wanted - coming January 13, 2014!

Megan Crane ~ I LOVE THE 80s
Melissa Clark ~ SWIMMING UPSTREAM, SLOWLY
Michele Young-Stone ~ THE HANDBOOK FOR LIGHTNING STRIKE SURVIVORS
Samantha Wilde ~ THIS LITTLE MOMMY STAYED HOME
Sara Rosett ~ ELUSIVE
Saralee Rosenberg ~ DEAR NEIGHBOR, DROP DEAD
Sheila Curran ~ EVERYONE SHE LOVED
Wendy Nelson Tokunaga ~ LOVE IN TRANSLATION

How about you?? What have you got on your reading list for this month? Any novels you've been itching to break open? Any others you've especially enjoyed?

Whatever your December plans, may you all have a fabulous holiday season and a happy, healthy and safe start to 2014!!

---
Marilyn Brant is a USA Today Bestselling Author of contemporary fiction and was named the 2013 Author of the Year by the Illinois Association of Teachers of English. She loves to listen to music, travel to new places, and read for hours at a time...whenever she can. She's also really fond of ice cream -- even in winter.

5 Must Haves in Book Marketing

by Malena Lott

So this post is where my two worlds meet. I'm an author marketer. A marketing author. When I'm not writing fiction, I'm creating branded content for clients - everything from brand strategy like taglines and positioning to digital ads, web copy and traditional advertising campaigns. You can learn more about my company Athena Institute here. In 2011, I added publishing into the fold with the imprint Buzz Books USA. We've published 16 titles with 7 more coming this year, which means a whole lot of branding going on because each title or series needs a marketing plan.

Must haves?

1. 4 Ws and 1 H. If you don't know who you are, what you're doing, why you're doing it, where you're going to promote yourself and how you're going to get it done, you'll feel lost. A marketing plan can be as simple as that. Work it out and stay the course. 
2. Do something daily to promote yourself. It could be a guest blog or it could be simply having an ongoing campaign running to keep your name in front of your audience, but you do have to have action to make traction.
3. Invest in your brand. This means both time and money. It can be as little as a dollar a day spent reaching new folks on Facebook or a pay per click campaign. If you have enough money to try "lump sum" advertising, go for it and see what results. If you're confident about your 4 W and 1H, then you'll feel better about advertising.
4. Put yourself out there. Including in the real world. Digital is great and online will always be here, but it's actually noisier on here than it is in the traditional space. Reach is wonderful online, but effectiveness and return on investment can come a lot quicker with a speaking opportunity. I'm speaking to a group of young business leaders next Tuesday and I got my new business cards in. Or are they bookmarks? They are business card bookmarks. All business on the front and party on the back. And by "party," I mean my book covers. I'll offer those 60 attendees a card and if they email me, I'll give them an early review copy of my first branding book, The Little Brand That Could coming out in late spring. I'll also co-promote one of my author's books, PR Rock Star, which is the first Little Brand book. Always give them something in return for their time.
5. Persistence and patience. Don't give up. I tell my clients and my authors, just when you're getting tired of your campaign, everyone else is just starting to notice it. Marketing should be ongoing and good brands should never die. You have to keep breathing new life into them and also work on reach and frequency. If you are talking to a lot of people but don't have repetition, you're message will be forgotten. If you talk to too few people, but hit them with frequency, you'll get results but only by those few. It takes both. 

If you're a marketer, small business owner or an author, and would like to read an early copy of either PR Rock Star or The Little Brand That Could, leave a comment below and let me know which title you'd like and your email address. If you have a marketing question, hit me up. I'll answer. 

If you're on Facebook, I'm doing a year-long True-Do campaign on my Facebook author page with tips on living our true purpose with as much peace, prosperity and joy as we can muster. I'm also giving away weekly prizes. 

Wishing You a White (Elephant) Christmas

by Sara Rosett

About fifteen years ago I was invited to my first white elephant gift exchange party. The first rule was that we had to bring something from home—we couldn’t spend any money. The second rule was that our gift had to be awful as possible. I can’t remember now what I took, but I do remember that what one person thought of as “trash,” another person saw as a “treasure.”

The party was a blast. We had so much fun competing over gifts that at first glance wouldn’t seem that valuable. For instance, one woman brought a broken sewing machine. Another woman fought to get it because she wanted a sewing machine and knew her dad could fix anything.

I “won” this kitchen utensil. Can you guess what it is?

I couldn’t either.

   

Turns out, it’s a tomato slicer, a quintessential white elephant gift.

I wasn’t writing books at the time, but knew I wanted to attempt to write a mystery someday, so lots of my everyday experiences went in my mental “that’s interesting” file. The white elephant gift exchange party went in that file.

Fast forward thirteen years or so. I had written six Ellie Avery mystery series by then and was planning to write a Christmas book. I had several ideas, but the one that I was most excited to use was the white elephant gift exchange idea. Several of the gifts that I use in MISTLETOE, MERRIMENT, AND MURDER came from that first white elephant party.  

The white elephant gift exchange provided all sorts of interesting plot possibilities as well.  What if one of the gifts was a hidden treasure? What if one of the gifts was used as a murder weapon? What if several of the gifts were red herrings? That one party provided a great jumping off point for brainstorming.

I’m a huge fan of white elephant parties now. In fact, it’s about time to start thinking about what would make a great white elephant gift this year. It might be time to regift that tomato slicer… 

~Sara

P.S. Check this website for White Elephant party tips or ideas.

Sara writes mystery (Ellie Avery series) and intrigue (On the Run series). As a military spouse Sara has moved around the country (frequently!) and traveled internationally, which inspired her latest travel thrillers. Publishers Weekly called Sara’s books, "satisfying," "well-executed," and "sparkling."

Sara loves all things bookish, considers dark chocolate a daily requirement, and is on a quest for the best bruschetta. Connect with Sara at www.SaraRosett.comor sign up for her newsletter list here. You can also find her on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or Goodreads.

Trendy

Footnotes in Fiction 1

1 and Nine Other Trends in Publishing 

by Sara Rosett

Marketing folks would classify me as the classic “late adopter.” No first generation iPod or iPhone for me. No color blocking or printed pants going on in my closet—been there, done that with Guess jeans in the late eighties. 

Yes, by the time I pick up a trend it is usually well into the mainstream, sometimes it’s even on the way out. In contrast to this “lagger” tendency (awful name, but it is a real name applied to late adopters) in most of my life, there is one area where I’m often aware of and possibly even ahead of the curve:  books and publishing. I thought I’d take a look at a few of the popular trends of the last few years in books and publishing as well as some of the possible trends on the horizon.

1. Footnotes in Fiction – What is up with footnotes in fiction? I’ve Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella, If You Were Here by Jen Lancaster, and the Spellmen books by Lisa Lutz. Personally, I find footnotes a bit distracting. I feel obligated to drop to the bottom of the page, read the note, then find my place again in the narrative. Slightly jarring.  Have I missed any other Footnote Lit? What side are you on:  Team Footnote or Team Parentheses?

2. Supernatural – I’m lumping all witch, vampire, zombie, troll, and mythical figures together (Harry Potter, Twilight, Percy Jackson, et all). This phenomenon is the zombie of trends. It defines the accepted rule:  publishers overdo successful trend, flooding the market, thus digging their own graves. However with supernatural lit it’s been years and it’s still going. The upcoming release of Johnny Depp’s new movie Dark Shadows indicates the stake hasn’t been driven home yet.

3. Nordic Noir – The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo started it and now there is a plethora of gritty books set in cold climes by authors whose names have dots above or dashes through consonants.

4. Chick Lit – Bridget Jones, Sex in the City. DOA or still kicking? The debate rages, but there sure are a lot of articles about Chick Lit out there for a dead trend. Chick lit authors also report brisk sells of their ebooks.

5. Buggy Lit – Girlfriend Karin contemplated this trend (Amish Lit) in another post and I have to agree with her puzzlement. Is this evidence of a collective nostalgia for simpler times? A reaction to the Supernatral Lit trend?

6. Non-fictionalization of  Mystery (i.e. Hobby/Craft Mysteries) – Every mystery must have a theme nowdays: knitting, couponing, scrapbooking, cooking, decorating, vintage clothing, and even beekeeping. It’s the “added-value” concept of non-fiction brought to fiction. Go ahead and by the book, you’ll use it. It has recipes/patterns/tips. My first book came out six years ago when this trend was taking off. I wrote about a professional organizer and I suggested I could include some tips, if that would help the book sell. Eight books later, I’m still including tips. Apparently no end in sight for this trend at least from publisher perspective. I’d love to hear what readers think. Do you like the tips and the hobbiest focus of mysteries or would you rather read a magazine than read about a sleuth whose hobby is, say, ice fishing?

7. Futuristic Dystopian – With the success of the Hunger Games there are sure to be more of these themes. Uglies and Cinder are two recent examples of the trend as well.

8. Historical People as Main Characters in Fiction – Another blend of non-fiction and fiction, this trend involves using a historical figure as a main character in a fictional story. The unsinkable Molly Brown has a mystery series as does the ever witty Jane Austen. The Paris Wife (Hemingway and his wife Hadley) and Clara and Mr. Tiffany are two examples of the trend in general fiction books.  

9. Fan Fiction Goes Mainstream? – 50 Shades of Gray is the latest sensation. It grew out of fan fiction based on Twilight. Following the success of the fan fiction, the author rewrote, revised, and “repurposed” her story. Trend of the future?

  

10.Bookstore Morphs into Gift Shop—a funny thing happened to my local B&N. It’s become a gift shop/electronics/café, at least on the first floor. Refitting is going on at most major bookstores. Paper books are out, ereaders, cards, puzzles, and games are in. People are actually reading more according to some research, but many of those books are ebooks, so bookstores are shifting the physical stock they carry in their stores to reflect the changes.

What’s your favorite publishing trend? Which trend do you wish would go gently into that good night? What trends did I miss?

Sara Rosett is the author of the Ellie Avery mystery series, an adult “whodunit” mystery series in the tradition of Agatha Christie. Publishers Weekly has called Sara’s books, “satisfying,” “well-executed,” and “sparkling.” Library Journal says, “...Rosett’s Ellie Avery titles are among the best, using timely topics to move her plots and good old-fashioned motives to make everything believable.”

Visit http://www.SaraRosett.com for more information or connect with Sara on Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, orPinterest.   

2011 Favorite Books Round-Up by Sara Rosett

I absolutely love the last week of the year.

I love the lull between Christmas and New Years Day, the slower pace, the weird out-of-sink quality of those days. They almost feel like vacation days, even if they’re not. You may have to go into the office, but you know nothing much is going to get done during that week.

It’s a perfect time for the year-end round-ups of everything from news to fashion to movies. Here's a sample from pop culture...

Most Viewed YouTube Ad:

Classic is hot again, thanks to Kate Middleton.

And Harry Potter ruled at the box office, according to BoxOffice Mojo.com.

I won't delve into the top news stories of the year...there are too many to choose from and hard news isn't really our forte here.

What is perfectly appropriate is a round-up of some of my favorite reads of 2011.

If you like women’s fiction…

Helen of Pasadena by Lian Dolan. Funny and sweet story of a Pasadena socialite finding her way after her husband’s unexpected death.

A Vintage Affair by Isobell Wolff. Vintage clothes with vintage mystery circa WWII.

If you like historicals…

The Orchid Affair by Lauren Willig. Love the mix of contemporary romance plotline with the historical one, this one set in Regency Paris where spies and intrigue abound.  

Crimson Warning by Tasha Alexander. I always enjoy Lady Emily’s adventures. In England, she acquaints herself with the early women’s rights movement and hunts a vandal.

Naughty in Nice by Rhy Bowen. 1930’s French Riviera intrigue with the delightful Lady Georgina, who is once again on assignment for the Queen.

If you like traditional mysteries…

Death on Tour by Janice Hammrick. A contemporary Death on the Nile.

Murder Most Persuasive by Tracey Kiley. A modern who-dun-it with a Jane Austen twist.

A House to Die For by Vicki Doudera. Great debut about a realtor in Maine.

If you like suspense…

Learning to Swim by Sara J. Henry. Compelling from the first line.

Come and Find Me by Hallie Ephron. Creative take on our digital lives. 

If you like thrillers…

Rip Tide by Stella Rimington. Smart spy thriller set in England about a female MI5 agent.

What were your favorite reads of the year? What books are you looking forward to in 2012? 

Sara Rosett is the author of the Ellie Avery mystery series, an adult “whodunit” mystery series in the tradition of Agatha Christie. Publishers Weekly has called Sara’s books, “satisfying,” “well-executed,” and “sparkling.”Library Journal says, “...Rosett’s Ellie Avery titles are among the best, using timely topics to move her plots and good old-fashioned motives to make everything believable.”

Visit http://www.SaraRosett.com for more information or connect with Sara on Facebook, Twitter, or Goodreads.

The Best Christmas Gift Ever

by Susan McBride



Christmas tree hand-picked by Mom.



My family moved around a lot when I was growing up (my dad worked for IBM, aka I’ve Been Moved). So every few years, we celebrated the holidays in a different place. My mom was good about keeping up traditions so that Christmas was Christmas, no matter where we lived. Sometime after Thanksgiving, she’d pillage packing boxes marked “Xmas Stuff;” and once she got going, there was no stopping her. The scent of evergreen permeated the house as she wrapped boughs of it tied with red bows up and down the banisters. Other decorations crowded table-tops, bookcases, mantles, and the piano. Mom’s mix was eclectic: an elaborate nativity set from Italy, trees made from tuna cans, sculptural metal angels, and paper-mache snowmen with painted faces. No surface remained free of holiday cheer.

But before any counting down of days ‘til Christmas could commence, we had to do two things: (1) Bake my great-grandmother’s shortbread cookies (that had at least 150 ingredients and all had to be iced in appropriate colors), and (2) Get a fresh tree. The cookie part was almost easy compared to the tree trip. Mom had to bundle up three kids in enough layers to nearly render us immobile then we’d pack into the station wagon, bound for the nearest lot. My dad would grab the first tree he saw and say, “This looks good to me!” Only my mother’s idea of “good” was a wee bit different from his. A half hour and two dozen trees later, my mother would nod and say, “This is it!” She always liked the biggest, fattest balsam that took eons for them to tie atop the car. Once home, Dad stuck the tree in a bucket and prayed the water didn’t freeze overnight. The next day, he’d stuff it into the stand and put the lights on, and Mom would spread the skirt beneath. Ta-da! Let the tree-trimming begin!

Hanging the ornaments was a huge honkin’ deal. My mother made sure the whole family was present before she put out eggnog and placed a holiday album on the stereo. While my sibs and I unearthed equal parts hand-made doo-dads and delicate glass baubles from the tissue stuffed cavities of cardboard boxes, Nat King Cole crooned of chestnuts roasting on an open fire. I loved glass birds with clips for claws so I could stick them on the ends of branches, like they’d flown in and were just resting. I adored silver orbs that reflected every color in the rainbow. But one pair of ornaments remained the most special for years: a burlap man and woman my sister and I had named “Speed” and “Trixie,” after the characters in Speed Racer. Every Christmas, their ink faces rubbed off a little more and their yarn hair disappeared, but Molly and I couldn’t wait to place them on the tree next to one another so they could chat about the latest shenanigans of Spanky and Racer X.

Once the ornaments were up, it was tinsel time! We were tinsel-flinging fools back then. Despite Mom’s instructions to put it on one piece at a time—“like a dripping icicle”—we’d toss fistfuls at the higher branches and see what would stick. By the time we’d finished, our tree looked gaudier than the Vegas Strip.

We had our big family dinner on Christmas Eve (still do!). The menu forever seemed to echo our Thanksgiving meal: turkey, spiral ham, green bean casserole, corn casserole, cranberry mold, and fat black olives that my sister plucked off the garnish tray and stuck on each fingertip like a freaky manicure. After dinner, we opened one present from a far-away relative before we put on our coats to attend Christmas Eve service. I loved to warble with the choir on “O Come All Ye Faithful” and “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” and sit in silent awe as the star vocalist belted out “Ave Maria” and “Oh, Holy Night.” Once home and sleepy, we’d set out cookies and milk for Santa, glance at our empty stockings, and head up to bed. Before I nodded off, I’d listen for reindeer on the rooftop (I swear, one night, I heard them!). At the crack of dawn, I’d awaken and fling on my quilted robe as the rest of the house slowly roused. My dad would bark a reminder not to go downstairs until he had his camera ready.

While Dad played Spielberg and Mom sipped coffee, my siblings and I tore through whatever Santa had brought, usually something like Tonka trucks, games, and trains for Jimmy; stilts, a slide-making kit, and a baseball mitt for Molly; a rock tumbler, dolls, and books for me. Always books. My favorite part of Christmas, once the chaos had ended (and it was always over quickly), was curling up somewhere quiet with Nancy Drew, Black Beauty, or Laura Ingalls Wilder. Bliss!

Much about the holidays has changed since my childhood as my husband and I strive to keep life—and Christmas—simple. We don’t go big on the decorations and often opt for a pint-sized tree (less muss, less fuss). I don’t bake shortbread cookies with 150 ingredients, and I’m not much for turkey. But, as long as I have a pulse, two things will never change: the pleasure of being with family (because, yes, my mom’s still big on fresh trees and decorations!) and the joy of un-wrapping a book. Honestly, was there ever a better gift?

I’d love to know if you have a favorite gift you’ve received, long ago or recently. Was it a book, an E-Z-Bake Oven, an e-reader…or something else entirely?

Susan McBride is the author of Little Black Dress, a Target Recommended Read, and The Cougar Club, a Target Breakout Book. Visit her web site at http://susanmcbride.com/.

** This essay previously appeared elsewhere but was tweaked for its appearance today. I figure recycling is good for the environment, right? Plus, I’m on deadline and WAY behind, which makes it very hard to be clever with fresh blog posts. On top of that, I’ve got pregnancy brain like you wouldn't believe (I’m a little over 12 weeks as of this moment!)—talk about the best Christmas gift ever!