Today I’m ecstatic to introduce to you a brand-spanking-new publisher, Roane Publishing, and their release, WINTER’S SWEET KISS. Seeing as there’s heavy frost on the grass here in Lower Alabama (WHAT???) it seems very timely.

Did I mention there’s a giveaway?

Yep, click above to enter to win a $10 Amazon Gift Card and paperback copy of WINTER’S SWEET KISS.

This anthology is out TODAY, so be sure to grab a copy (hmm, wouldn’t it make a great gift?) after reading the contributing authors’ Top Two Favorite Winter Traditions.

Amazon (Print)
Amazon (Kindle Copy)
Barnes and Noble
Createspace (Print Only)

Take it away, ladies!

Michelle Ziegler:

My favorite tradition is lovingly named Michelle-ika.  Probably not the most PC name, but it’s what my husband calls the week preceding Christmas. I am no good with surprises, and even worse with waiting.  I shake gifts, I try and get clues-I’m awful. One year my husband and I got snowed in. For fun he gave me one gift a day. The best part is my husband started to love Christmas again, a time of year that used to be hard for him. So although it’s a week of tiny trinkets, my husband’s Christmas spirit shines-which is good enough for me, but who says no to gifts?

My second favorite, is picking out ornaments.  This started because, like most newlyweds we had none.  We started by buying a couple of ornaments every year and just kept up with it.  Now that we have kids, the tradition has more wonder and excitement. Our tree is covered in memories.  Oh, and there’s no worry of running out of room.  Our golden retriever likes to eat at least one or two each winter.  Don’t worry, he doesn’t swallow them. I get to play find the dismembered ornament.

Shaya Roy:

1) Snuggling up with hot cocoa and a book to read on a cold night. Where I live, it rarely ever gets cold. So when it does, I’m sure to make the most of it.

2) New Year’s Resolutions. Love making them. Love breaking them even more. There’s a certain excitement to deciding to be good, and then being bad anyway 😉

Terri Rochenski:

My family used to have tons of holiday / winter traditions, but now that I’m married with children, things have changed. The best tradition we have comes when the Christmas tree goes up – Mr. Elf on the Shelf makes an appearance, and my girls go nuts (in a good way, of course, since he reports back to Santa every night).

The second would have to be spending the holidays with family. There is nothing more important than family, and I want my children to remember big holiday gatherings as I do from my own childhood.

Annabelle Blume:

1. I love to drive around and look at Christmas lights. We play Christmas music and bring hot chocolate, sometimes staying out for an hour or two. We visit many of the same houses every year. Our absolute favorite is the huge place up the road that has an entire light show set to music. They also collect canned goods donations for the local food bank.The residents have really embodied the spirit of the season with their annual display.

2. Making cookies is so cliche, but it’s a completely self-serving tradition. I am in love with those powdered sugar coated pecan cyphers, often known as Italian Wedding cookies. In my family, we have passed down a slightly altered recipe that includes a generous amount of honey, giving them a unique and decadent flavor. I dig myself out from under a mountain of these cookies on Christmas morning while the rest of the family has cinnamon rolls (yuck)!

Lily Carlyle:

Hibernating! I won’t go so far as to say the bears have the right idea (although some days, I think they do!), but winter–and the cold, snow, and sniffles it often brings–are a great excuse to stay inside, snuggled up with a good book and a cup of tea.

Ice skating. This is kind of a wishful thinking thing. I’ve always longed to ice skate on an outdoor pond, wearing a long full skirt, my hands encased in a muff–like the paintings you see. Unfortunately, the only skating I’ve done has been on a manmade county-operated rink with a bunch of other sweaty adolescents (years ago, obviously!). And I’m a really, really bad ice skater. Nonethless, this is a winter tradition I wish I could enjoy, and I still might try it, before I have to worry about falling and breaking a hip!