Under the Christmas Tree

Believe it or not–but yesterday it finally did snow here in Germany. And we’re talking about 14 hours of white stuff coming down. This morning we woke up to a winter wonderland, which makes me very happy. The view out of my office window is really amazing.

For our last blog entry in 2014 some of our authors shared with us what they found under the Christmas tree. Well, and I did as well.

[two_third_last]Jae:

It seems I was a good girl this year since there were a lot of things under the Christmas tree, among them wireless headphones and an electric hot water bottle. I also got a lot of books, candles (which I always put on while I write), and office supplies, including a pen that includes a penlight so that I can write down little notes when an idea pops into my mind in the middle of the night.[/two_third_last]

May Dawney:

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[two_third_last]Fletcher DeLancey:

Writer-slash-editors can be tricky to buy books for, because we’re very picky about the quality of what we read. My wife showed her perfect understanding of my wants and needs with her gift of two books: 1) Neil Gaiman’s The Sleeper and the Spindle, a reimagining and blending of both Snowhite and Sleeping Beauty, in which the Queen gets shit done because she’s the leader and the best qualified to resolve a major crisis…and 2) the latest edition of the Chicago
Manual of Style, which I have been wanting for a year. Yes, I am a certified dork who actually gets excited about getting a style manual for Christmas. But more importantly, I’m a dork with an understanding wife.[/two_third_last]

R.G. Emanuelle:

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[two_third_last]RJ Nolan:

Since it was past time to retire my Sony e-reader, under the tree this year was my first Kindle, a Paperwhite.  My previous reader did not have a built-in light. I’m already in love with that feature. Also under the tree were a number of DVDs. As you can see, my tastes run toward sci-fi with a few more serious titles thrown in.[/two_third_last]

Lois Cloarec Hart:

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Jane Waterton:

This year for Christmas, my partner Pip and I gave each other the trip of a lifetime. A 12 day cruise with Olivia from Sydney to Tasmania and New Zealand in February 2015.  We have always wanted to join an Olivia cruise, but the added cost of travelling to the US from Australia kept it out of our reach.  When we heard Olivia was coming “Down Under” in 2015, we booked immediately! Pip, myself  and approximately 1,898 other lesbians, from all over the world, on a luxury liner. What could possibly be better? For those of you that are interested, I have copied the link below!

Our Christmas day was spent with family and close friends, wonderful food and lots of laughter.  Life in the desert can be challenging, especially as we are the only lesbians for several hundred miles.  Living and working in a remote region highlights for us that all the presents under the tree mean nothing, if we can’t share our lives with those we love.

http://www.olivia.com/Travel/Trips_Australia_NewZealandCruiseOdyssey.aspx

[two_third_last]Caren Werlinger:

Beth and I exchange our Christmas gifts early before we leave to spend the holiday with her family. This year, I got something I’ve been wanting for a long time – Rosetta Stone Gaelic! She surprised me with an Irish-English dictionary and an Ireland touring book. It looks like maybe the dream of travelling to Ireland might happen in 2015! She also got me some old movies I’ve been hoping for, including Katharine Hepburn and Cary Grant in “Holiday”.

The best present of all, though, is being able to spend the holiday with my love. Nothing beats that![/two_third_last]

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It seems that Santa was busy with our authors this year. What about you? Did you get anything for Christmas you’d like to share with us?

Astrid Ohletz
Publisher