Hi Wickeds. It’s the biggest Thankful Thursday of all–the one before Thanksgiving. Tell us what you’re thankful for and then reach down deep and offer our readers something extra special for the giveaway this month.
Julie: I’m grateful for NaNoWriMo this month. The goal is to write 50K words in the month of November, and I’m making strides. Being part of NaNo has given me a community of writers who are doing the same thing, a writing practice that will stick past this month, and the opportunity to visit Goosebush again. This month I’ll send someone my Theater Cop mysteries, both of them.
Edith/Maddie: I’m thankful to have found a new independent editor who focuses on historical novels. She gave me some great insights on my new project – and a boost about what I already had on the page. And I’m grateful my hand is healing enough to bake pies next week, even if it’s only for the two of us (sniff). I’ll send the winner one of my special Author aprons and a signed copy of Murder at the Taffy Shop.
Jessie: I am so thankful for my marriage. My husband was on the road almost all of the time from May of 2018- March of 2020 and I really missed him. When he started working from home this past spring I wondered if it would be difficult to readjust to having so much time together instead. It turns out that even after all these years we still have fun together, love to accomplish big goals together and even to spoil our dog together. I really could not ask for more! I am giving away my latest Beryl and Edwina mystery, Murder Comes to Call to the winner!
Liz: I am grateful for the family I get to spend Thanksgiving with this year – my boyfriend and his kids. We have a lot of fun together and it’s nice to feel like a real part of the family. I’m also grateful that my 2020 writing deadlines will be (mostly) complete by early December! So thankful for where my life is right now. I will be giving away a hot-off-the-press copy of my new Cat Cafe Mystery, Whisker of a Doubt.
Sherry: Reading what all of you are thankful for made me happy. NaNoWriMo, great editors, husbands, family — I’m thankful for all of those things too. I’m also thankful for Zoom which allowed me to spend a wonderful few hours with two friends I adore. It also made it possible to attend a couple of author events for my friend Ed Aymar whose new book, They’re Gone (written as E. A. Barres) came out this week. I’ll give away an ARC of Absence of Alice and a copy of From Beer to Eternity. Happy Thanksgiving to all of you!
Barb: I’m grateful to be home and settled after being away for a month. (Though I also enjoyed being away.) I’m trying to shop early and therefore I’m getting excited about the holidays. I love Thanksgiving, even an untraditional one. I’m giving away a “holiday package” of the three novella collections I’ve contributed to along with authors Leslie Meier and Lee Hollis, Eggnog Murder, Yule Log Murder, and Haunted House Murder, along with a Snowden Family Clambake tote bag.
Readers: What about you? Leave a comment about what you’re thankful for this month or just say “hi” to be entered for all this great stuff.
I am thankful for my lovely niece and nephews (and their spouses) who send regular photo updates of their small children; it helps bridge the miles. A special thank you for the many authors, including all the wickeds, whose words and stories have transported me to Many places in these ‘safer at home’ days.
My daughter keeps up a cheering photostream of her tiny daughters which many in the family subscribe to and look at when they need cheering up.
I am thankful for my wonderful family. It has been a tough year and I am not sure what I would do without them. Thank you to all the Wickeds for all the books to keep us entertained! Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving to you, Jane!
I am thankful for my family, they send regular photos and keep in touch as much as they can. I am thankful that after 1 year we were able to get a puppy that I love so much, I am thankful for my faith and I am also thankful for all the great writers whose books I have been able to enjoy during this time.
A puppy! How wonderful.
Good morning everyone.
I suppose I’m thankful for the various writing opportunities that give me varying levels of platforms to express my opinion about music and books. I’m not under any delusion that my opinions sway anyone else’s thoughts but I like that at times what I think is well received.
Otherwise, the usual suspects of thanks apply this month. Healthy and employed.
We love that you have opinions!
I’m thankful that I had already worked from home before all of this started. I’m also thankful for my friends and family that check in on my to make sure all is well.
I’m grateful for that, too, Karen. I have a couple of friends who retired immediately before all this began. It’s much tougher if you haven’t yet developed the skills to deal with it.
I’m thankful for for my continued good health, even with everything that’s going on in the world.
Yup. health is foundational.
I am thankful for my son and his family who keep me to date with pictures and videos and sometimes we facetime. It’s so hard being so far apart and with covid. Thank you so much for this chance at your giveaway!!! pgenest57(at)aol(dot)com
I am thankful that the increased time at home led me to pick up my mystery writing project which led me to wonderful resources such as The Wickeds, Sisters in Crime, and NaNoWriMo! Also thankful that my family is healthy and safe.
That is so great to hear! Have fun with it.
It’s amazing how many people have mentioned photos today. I feel the same way.
Very thankful that hubby is retired and we CAN stay at home during these troubling times, Thankful that we planned well for our retirement and have a guaranteed income when so many are struggling to make ends meet. Thankful for a home for a roof over our heads and a place to lay our heads at night. Thankful that we took the plunge 4 years ago, sold out downsizing to move to our dream destination where we have many daily critter visitors that keep these two photography nuts happy and content during this extended stay at home phase we are in. Thankful that even with medical issues that we are both well and Covid free able to continue on living life as we know it. Always grateful for my Mom teaching, bless her heart in heaven, for teaching me throughout my to keep a well-stocked pantry and the ability to cook from scratch. Thankful for ample food when so many are wondering where their next meal is coming from. Thankful for a loving man that I love more with each passing day who makes the last 37 years seem like a twinkling of an eye and who I pray I have many more years to share with. And lastly but most definitely, I am grateful for my loving God who is walks with me every day holding me up when I don’t think I can make it.
On the smaller scale and recent events, I’m thankful for being able to keep my cool yesterday and saying a little prayer for the Wal-Mart employee instead. Ran into the most horrible lady while shopping yesterday. She was wearing a yellow jacket which I believe means she is higher in authority. How she got there is beyond or stayed there is a mystery after her actions of yesterday. At the time we went there was no signs posted about limits. Knowing what was going to happen after news reports, we had picked up four bundles of toilet paper along with all our other purchases. Upon entering the self check out area, this woman came and grabbed all the tissue out of my hands and screamed you can’t do that while turning to walk away. It was only then that she said there was a limit of one each. Told her about there not being a sign, but I WANTED my one and hubby wanted his. She continued to scream that he would have to check out on his own and threw it at him. To say I was fuming is an understatement but I refused to drop to her level. On the way out I got to thinking that the best way to release my anger was to pray for her because I haven’t walked in her shoes in the past few months. I do think it’s a shame that the situation has drawn people to bitterness and anger, but I was thankful for my two packages of toilet paper.
May we all learn to be thankful for the little things as well as the bigger ones.
2clowns at arkansas dot net
Good heavens! I’m amazed you kept your cool.
I’m thankful for my amazing coworkers and the time we had in person teaching our preschoolers. We have to say goodbye for a month today. I’m also thankful for my supportive family.
bmedrano34@yahoo.com
I am so sorry for the reasons you have to say good-bye today.
I’m thankful for my family in New York – both for being open to taking my son for the last week of his college semester and for being flexible and helpful when that plan exploded and we had to move to Option B.
You’re only on Option B? LOL. Seriously, it takes a village even to raise a teenager in these times.
Oh, that’s only Option B regarding college. I think we’re somewhere around N for overall “raising a teenager”! LOL
LOL
I am thankful that my family has been able to work from home and not lose their wages, that my daughter is doing well and plans to be home for Christmas, barring any travel restrictions. Also thankful that the bathroom we had to demolish due to a pipe leak behind the wall should be completed by the end of the month!
You and Sherry need to compare leaks. What an ordeal. I’m so glad you’ll be through it by the holidays.
I am thankful we’re able to enjoy a quiet Thanksgiving this year. It will feel different not having any guests, but we also haven’t endured the same hardships as so many have this year.
It will be a different holiday for so many for sure, but as you say, it is good to reflect on our relative good fortune.
I am most thankful that no one in my family has been effected by Covid 19. Also I pray for those who have had this touch their families. I hope God will touch them and heal them quickly.
Amen to that.
I’m thankful that I still have my wonderful 97-year-old Mother here; that I have two wonderful Grandogs that I adore (and who adore me back); and that I have a daughter of incedible talents and intelligence who will contribute to saving the future of our country and our earth. I am thankful that I have a loving brother with whom to share burdens and joys. I am thankful for my solid and caring “library family” with whom I work every day. Finally, I am thankful that all of my family, by birth and by choice, are healthy and safe.
We are the same so far, too. Healthy and safe.
Good Thankful Thursday morning, y’all! I wish everyone a wonderful rest of the week!
I was raised by my paternal grandparents. So Thanksgiving has always been a special holiday for me. Although it will only be Ken (my Cajun hubby and cook), me, and our three furbabies, we will have a traditional Thanksgiving dinner with half being frozen for Christmas dinner. We will remind ourselves of all the things we have to be thankful for; home, income, mostly healthy selves and pets, and ability to drive to curbside or drive-up for our supplies.
In addition, although most of my immediate family I grew up are no longer with us, I will reminisce with fond memories of Thanksgivings in the past where I can “see” my grandmother, step-grandfather, dad, his sister and her husband, and my brother. I miss them terribly but also have wonderful memories that I am truly thankful is still intact!
Thank y’all for being great friends! Have a fantastic day!
That is beautiful. We have decided to cook ahead and have my favorite parts of Thanksgiving, pie for breakfast and turkey sandwiches for lunch, on the actual day.
I am thankful for my family, my dog Alfie, my job, and that I have a home where I can feel safe and cozy.
A wonderful list.
I am thankful my husband and I still enjoy each others company almost 50 years. For my family and animals to bring comfort. And last grateful for surviving an intricate kidney stone operation,part 2 in Dec.
Wait, are you me? I am thankful my husband and I still enjoy each other’s company after 8 months of constantly being together without a break. And I’m grateful to have survived an intricate kidney stone operation. Will find out in December if there will be a part 2.
I’m thankful for life. I’m thankful for my friends. I’m thankful for you guys who write the stories that keeps me entertain.
I hope you all have a great holiday.
You have a great holiday, too, Dru!
Always I am thankful for my husband of going on 50 years and our family, but I am also so grateful for long distance and even close by friends who are writing me letters and I get to write back to them. Snail mail, I do enjoy it! And, I am grateful for our neighbors and neighborhood. We live in an historic district in a middle-sized town and our neighborhood is one of the oldest, so we have mature trees and one of a kind style small homes…so beauty all around and grace, love and concern from sweet neighbors, too!
I love snail mail letters, too.
I’m thankful for family, my cat, books. Mostly this year in thankful that, due to being moved to another department at work the beginning of the year, this is the first time in 15 years I don’t have to work Thanksgiving and Christmas. I’m really excited to be able to celebrate a holiday like everyone else. It’s a little thing that really does make a difference.
That is good news! Have a wonderful holiday.
I’m thankful for the instructors that have been running out exercise classes on Zoom despite technical challenges
Yes! Staying fit has been such a challenge during this time.
I am thankful my family is safe and able to be together. I am thankful that my daughter will soon be delivering my first grand baby!! Thank you for this wonderful chance, money is tight and this is a helpful way to have some books!!
What a wonderful, anticipatory time for you and your family.
I’m thankful that family members are staying safe.
The most important thing to those of us who are lucky enough to still be thankful for this.
I’m thankful for having a sound roof over my head and heat that works. I have the best plumber in the business and I’m thankful that he is available to get the plumbing issues taken care of. I’m even thankful the bats are still up there. It’s fun to be able to giggle about it right about now. I’m thankful for all the Wickeds and the wonderful reading they consistently provide. Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving, Patti. Having a good plumber makes life so much better.
I’m grateful for the place I’m at in life, semi-retired with my husband who is fully retired and the balance , camaraderie and rhythms we have been able to sustain this crazy year!
I’m grateful for same. However, after all the years when we both traveled for work, being together for eight months straight is a little weird.
I am thankful for my husband’s unwavering love and kindness. He always has special boxes for church families living paycheck to paycheck. I’m also thankful for my rheumatologist and pain clinic. Thanks to all my favorite authors, for keeping me sane with their books.
What a lovely thing your husband is doing.
I continue to be thankful that we are surviving, actually much, much more than surviving. Whatever normal is for now, we’ve got our routines and we are still enjoying life. Lucky to be retired and not have to really venture out, lucky to have an adult granddaughter here to take care of errands and us in general and thankful that extended family is well and employed. And loving Zoom – we will get to meet 2 new grand-nieces on Thanksgiving!
We’ve had a new baby and an engagement announced since the last time the extended family was together. I’m grateful for Zoom, but can’t wait to hug them all.
I’m grateful for the writing community. They have been there with support and encouragement whenever needed. It’s a precious family, although I have met few members in person!
I completely agree.
I’m Thankful for all of you. I greatly enjoy this news letter and all of your books. I’ve discovered so many new reads through you. Many Thanks. I’m also very grateful to be alive, well, safe, fed, clothed and sheltered. So many are not in these perilous times. Have a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving. 🦃🦃
You have a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving, too.
I’m thankful for this beautiful fall season, especially my favorite month of November. We still have some pretty leaves here in Virginia.
I was in Virginia for all of October and it was gorgeous when I left. Not so much here in Maine. All our leaves are gone.
I’m thankful that my parents, siblings and friends helped me to become a strong, independent woman who owns 2 businesses. I love what I do and not many people can say that! I’m also thankful for my healthy children and 2 adorable puggies!
That is 100% lovely.
Hello everyone. There’s much to be thankful for. Good health, 37 years of marriage, our children, our grandchild, husband being able to work from home, fall season (my favorite time of year), and Zoom–watching author interviews and distance learning for my grandson when not in-person at school. Here’s wishing the best for everyone.
I listened to a lot of Zoom learning when we were in Virginia with my seven-year-old granddaughter. Quite a feat. I especially loved all the little ones giving the teacher hints and tips about how to use the technology.
I’m thankful for my family and friends, my dogs, cozy mysteries, and the Hallmark Channels. Oh, and chocolate! Really thankful for chocolate.
That all adds up to a cozy evening.
I am Thankful for my whole family.
Me, too.
I’m always grateful for the Wickeds’ blog to make me feel connected to the rest of the world. I love that I have had 47 years of great love from my husband. And I’m grateful that our daughter will be moving to Lancaster, PA from Phoenix sometime in the early spring. Her move here isn’t for the best of reasons, but we are all making it as positive as we can and are getting excited about it. It will be wonderful seeing her more than once a year. I’m grateful to the doctors who have helped me move from excruciating pain to just discomfort. What a joy.
We are getting take-out the day before for Thanksgiving and will warm it up. No sense in cooking a bit meal for two people, and we will have the sense of some normalcy. We are really good at “making do” and enjoying our blessings.
44 years for us! I’m sorry it’s not for a happy reason but what a joy to have your daughter nearby.
I am thankful for my family and that everyone is happy and healthy. Love your books Barbara Ross! Never read any of the others but look forward to checking them out.
Thank you so much! I feel confident you’ll enjoy the books by the other Wickeds.
I am so thankful for my family and friends in these trying times.
So true.
I am thankful for my faith, family and the great surgeon who saved my life twice this year. I was also blessed to be able to see my oldest son get married.
Congratulations on the marriage of your son! We got a new granddaughter this year which is why I can never join the chorus when people say 2020 had been unremittingly awful.
I am thankful for my wonderful family. It has been a tough year and I am not sure what I would do without them. Trying to take care of aging parents with health issues is horrific and wouldn’t be possible without my brothers and sister-in-law. Thank you to all the Wickeds for all the books that give me an escape mechanism, even if it is temporary. Happy Thanksgiving!
I 100% understand how tough it is to care for parents in ill health. We are more than happy to provide an escape mechanism.
I am thankful each day I wake up. Some days I feel so old and bones creeky. 70 years isn’t old yet. Love my husband of 48+ years.
Not old yet! For sure.
Grateful that my son and I are healthy and that I’ve been able to continue working during the pandemic. Love our great nation.
So glad you are healthy and working!
Thankful for my parents, both over 70, who I get to see every day. Thankful for a wonderful brother. Thankful for my boyfriend who understands me. Thankful for a home, employment, and tons of caring friends
What a wonderful, full life.
I’m thankful to have had my husband spend the last 4 weeks at home with me. He is usually gone every other week, so we have enjoyed our time together.
I am thankful that my Mom is home from a rehab center after seven weeks. She fell in the kitchen and hit her head. She had two staples in the back of her head. The hematoma was the size of an apple. We are adjusting to some memory issues. She is now in a wheelchair. We are waiting to see if the insurance company will approve for her to have an electric wheelchair so she can be more independent. Thank you for the opportunity. Happy Thanksgiving to all.
Besides being thankful for you cozy mystery authors, I am very thankful for my son and for my mom who is still going at 86!
I’m thankful for Zoom which lets me have weekly LEGO building and trivia contests with my brothers and their families. I’m grateful for the 3 kittens I adopted. My house felt empty with just me and my 1 cat. I’m grateful to have had 2 job interviews this week.
I am thankful for a countless number of things, but most especially for our family. Our young girls bring us countless joy. I am also thankful that I am a life long bookworm who loves to read. With wonderful mysteries written by authors like you all, we can escape – for a few hours – the realities of illness and 2020.
I remain thankful for Meals on Wheels, the Sunday Soup ladies, and you gals (and the one guy) for your posts, even though I don’t always read them while drowning in unread emails (currently 12,051).