What I'm Grateful for this Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is a time for stepping back from the hubbub of everyday life to celebrate with family and/or friends all that we have to be grateful for. I'm grateful for my family, my health, financial security, and being lucky enough to live in the United States of America. I'm also grateful for my ability to write mystery novels and for the readers who read those novels and let me know how much they enjoyed them.

What are you grateful for?

I wish all of my blog readers a Happy Thanksgiving and many blessings for which you can be grateful!

Feeling Grateful, Part Two

Last Wednesday, I blogged about things I was grateful for in my writing life. That included reviewers, both professional and amateur, who have praised my writing. I'd like to acknowledge some of those recent reviewers here today. The following folks have been kind enough to post thoughtful reviews on Amazon for my first two Claire Hanover gift basket designer mystery. Thanks to you all!

For A Real Basket Case:

Maureen Mullis says "...I would absolutely recommend reading this book. And if you happen to live in Colorado Springs, as I do, you'll find plenty of familiar landmarks that will add to your enjoyment."

Giovanni Gelati says "...Beth Groundwater has a very clever debut novel here...."

For To Hell in a Handbasket:

Patricia Rockwell says "...There are numerous chases, gun fights, dead bodies, kidnappings, captures, and all sorts of excitement that, to me, suggest that this book would make a great action/adventure movie--or at least a television movie of the week...."

"Birchleaf" says "...TO HELL in a HANDBASKET is the best Cozy-Mystery I have read this year...."

Feeling Grateful

As we approach the Thanksgiving holiday, it's time to reflect on all the things we have to be grateful for. I'm grateful for my health, my friends and family, my faith, my financial stability, the brave soldiers who keep the USA safe, and for so many other blessings in my life, but today in this blog post I'm going to focus on those things in my writing life that I'm grateful for. So, here goes:

I'm grateful for my hard-working literary agent, who negotiates like a bull dog for me and shepherds my career.

I'm grateful for all of the editors at various publishers who have cared enough about the quality of my published works to ferret out the errors and make suggestions for improving them.

I'm grateful for the behind-the-scenes folks at my publishers who create gorgeous cover art, who produce great-looking books, who promote and sell the books, and who keep track of advances and royalties and write the checks. Yes, I'm grateful for the checks, too. :)

I'm grateful for my critique group for making me a better writer, for supporting me in my career, and for being the wonderful friends you are.

I'm grateful for the published authors who educated and helped me in so many ways (especially with blurbs!) as I learned the business and craft of fiction writing.

I'm grateful for the writing communities I belong to for making me feel part of "the in crowd" and for demonstrating through your friendships that yes, the dream of being a published author is one worth fighting for.

I'm grateful for the subject matter experts who gave their time, answered numerous questions, and reviewed scenes so my stories portray their area of expertise as accurately as possible.

I'm grateful to the reviewers, both professional and amateur, who have taken the time to praise my books and for encouraging others to read them.

I'm grateful to my parents for instilling a love of reading in me, and to the teachers and librarians in my life for fostering that love. And, I'm grateful to my book club for picking such great books to read and discuss that provide rich examples for my own work.

I'm sure I've forgotten someone. Who are you grateful for in your writing and reading life? I hope all of you have a very happy Thanksgiving!