Department Store Santa Visits

 It may very well be one of the most iconic scenes of all cinematic history--that of a young Natalie Wood sitting on the lap of a man in a red suit, trimmed with white fur cuffs, and telling him that her mother told her there is no such person as Santa Claus. I'm referring, of course, to the 1947 movie, Miracle on 34th Street, with Maureen O'Hara, one of my favorite actresses of all-time starring as jaded Doris Walker, which I've seen a few times. I've also watched the 1994 remake more times than I care to admit. But one version of this beloved classic that I had never seen before was the one starring McDonald Carey and Teresa Wright. In fact, I didn't even know that it existed until I clicked on the option to watch it on Amazon Prime a few weeks ago, fully expecting to see Maureen O'Hara, with her fiery hair (although the film was in black and white) and words. Rather than being disappointed when Teresa Wright appeared instead, though, I was intrigued. The story was the very same--with almost the exact same dialogue. And, as usual, I was quickly drawn into it.

 

Why?

 

Because a good story will do that whether it's in literary or cinematic form.

 

 

 

As I watched the scene where young Susan visits Santa Claus and challenges his real identity unfold, a writing dilemma that I had been facing was suddenly solved. I'd begun a new project in which my young and impulsive heroine is being set up for a marriage of convenience by her father as a way of protection. She is an artist who has been invited to show her paintings in New York--but being from Denver, in 1885, her father doesn't feel comfortable sending her alone. He is too busy to go with her--plus, as a widower, he has a new lady friend he's secretly courting--shh! If his daughter could marry her childhood friend, then the problem would be solved.

 

The first chapter of this story was going well--but I was having a hard time making it seem believable. After I watched Miracle on 34th Street, my entire thought process changed, and I decided to make the opening scene be about my heroine's father cajoling her into playing the part of Mrs. Clause next to her childhood nemesis, who would be playing the part of Santa.  The idea grew in my mind and I wondered, did big department stores like Macy's in New York exist in the West in 1885? Probably not, but it still would be fun to write a scene in which the heroine was less than thrilled to be performing such a duty next to her nemesis.

To my surprise, though, when I looked up the question of department stores, several did exist during that time period. The first department store in America was called Arnold Constable and it was founded in New York, 1824. It started out as a small dry goods store, but by 1857 it was moved from Pine Street to a place called Marble House. Over the next century, this department store would trade locations a few more times before it closed its doors permanently in 1975. However, other department stores sprung up, including Marshal Field's in Chicago, enhancing the overall shopping experience of consumers in the late 19th century by introducing elevators and animated displays in the windows during Christmastime.

Building my own scene with my hero and heroine playing the parts of Santa and Mrs. Claus was so fun! I absolutely loved the idea of having the two of them bantering, as you can read here in this excerpt from A Christmas Groom for Maddie.

A boy of about five looked up at him in awe. “Are you really Santa Claus?”

“Ho, ho, ho. Yes, young man. And what is your name?”

“Terrence.” The boy’s eyebrows crinkled and he asked, “Why aren’t you at the North Pole getting ready for Christmas?”

“My elves are carrying on in my absence while I’m here visiting with you. Wasn’t that nice of ’em?”

Terrence’s head bobbed up and down like a jack in the box that had just sprung out of its confinement. “Yep. You must have lots of helpers.”

“I do. Couldn’t do all of this without them.”

Terrence fixed his eyes on Winston’s fake beard. “Can I feel your beard?”

That wouldn’t be a good idea at all. “I’m sorry, son. The only person who’s allowed to touch Santa’s beard is Mrs. Claus. Ho, ho, ho!”

As soon as he said it, Winston knew he was in trouble. Maddie froze, then slowly turned to face him, her eyes narrowing dangerously. Winston should have apologized. Or at least been scared. Instead, he opened his mouth and blurted, “Isn’t that right, Mrs. Claus?”

He didn’t really expect her to react. After all, they were in front of a hundred kids with their parents either shopping or standing close by. So when she sauntered over to him, the folds of her velvet dress swaying with her hips, his eyes grew round and the air around him seemed to shrivel up and wither away. Leaning over so that they were almost face to face, she slowly placed a hand on his cotton beard and—tugged. The elastic bands on either side of the fake beard stretched as the beard came away from his face.

“Hey, what are you—”

She let go just as his hand darted up to stop her. His fingers clamped around her wrist. For a second, he forgot about the beard. The only thing he wanted to focus on was her warm skin.

Smack!

Maddie’s lips twitched. Straightening her body, she put one hand on her hip and quirked an eyebrow. “Yep. Only Mrs. Claus is allowed to do that.”

The little minx!

 

But this is only the beginning of the story. As Maddie's father works to try to convince her to marry Winston, it's up to Winston himself to win her over. His chance comes when someone tries to damage her paintings. Can the two of them discover who it is in time for Christmas? Will they be able to put aside their past hurts and anger to discover a love that has always existed between them? A Christmas Groom for Maddie is a Pinkerton Matchmaker companion tale, and it revisits a beloved character by readers of An Agent for Sarah and An Agent for Amaryllis. In this tale, Maddie is all grown up and must learn to trust Winston and put others' needs before her own. 

 

 

 

I hope that you will treat yourself to A Christmas Groom for Maddie. With a swoony but sweet romance (along with a romance between two side characters) and a light mystery to solve, it's the perfect blend of holiday cheer!

 

 

THE KEEPERS OF CAMELOT AND A GIVEAWAY! by Cheryl Pierson

Who likes the stories of King Arthur and his knights? I do! I have been fascinated with the entire legend of Camelot since I was a child. The Sword In the Stone, the Disney cartoon movie, was a favorite when I was young.

As I got older, I couldn’t get enough of the movie musical, Camelot, with Vanessa Redgrave, Franco Nero, and Richard Harris in the starring roles. I valiantly tried to struggle through T. H. White’s “The Once and Future King” but finally had to admit, it was too heavy for a twelve-year-old. As an adult, I enjoyed it, along with Mary Stewart’s series of the Arthurian legend as told from Merlin’s POV—a “must read” set if you’re a Camelot fan.

So, the story I wrote for the “Six Guns and Slay Bells: A Creepy Cowboy Christmas” anthology is one that is dear to my heart in many ways. Even the title, “The Keepers of Camelot”, was not something I had to think about for long.

This story was a finalist for the 2013 Western Fictioneers Peacemaker Awards in the Short Fiction Category. It also received a specific mention in Publishers Weekly when the anthology came out. Here’s a bit about the story itself.

Legend says that Arthur will rise once more when the world needs him the most. But in my story, something goes awry, and Arthur has returned in many times, many places, throughout the centuries since his final battle.

The story opens with Arthur on a stagecoach in the American west—Indian Territory—of the 1880’s. But in this life, he comes across two people he’d never thought to see again—Lancelot and Guinevere. Why are they here—and how will it all end…this time?

The stage is attacked by Apaches minutes before the driver gets the passengers to the safety of the next stage station. Though they’re safe for the time being, a nerve-wracking Christmas Eve is in store as the Apaches wait for them outside.

Arthur has a plan. He’s seen the fearless leader of the Apache—the man they call “Sky Eyes”, a man he knew as Lancelot du Lac a hundred lifetimes ago.

Will Lance’s prowess as a warrior combine with his legendary arrogance to seal the fate of the people inside the station—including Guinevere, the woman he gave up everything for in the past?

One young boy in the group unknowingly holds the key to Lance’s decision. But will the glorious legend of Camelot be remembered?

I'm giving away one free digital copy of THE KEEPERS OF CAMELOT to a commenter today, so be sure to leave your contact information with your comment! If you just can't wait to see if you won, here's the Amazon buy link:

A Magical Time for Magical Reads — and Giveaways

When I was a child, nary a Christmas passed without my father reading aloud Clement Clarke Moore’s A Visit from St. Nicholas, Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol, and How the Grinch Stole Christmas by Dr. Seuss. The Grinch was on TV, too, but somehow it wasn’t Christmas unless Daddy read us the story. He always played all the parts in each tale, making the characters come alive in a very special way.

Have you ever noticed that parents who read to their children raise children who love to read? All four of us kids — my two brothers, sister, and I — became avid readers. We still are.

Ask authors “Why did you become a writer?” and many will tell you they’ve always written, from the time they could pick up a pencil. Me? I trace my joy in creating fantastical worlds to escaping with Daddy into the stories he read to us throughout the year. Those were magical days.

Daddy’s been gone for twenty years, and I always miss him — and Momma, too — something fierce at Christmas. Though my parents gave their children many precious gifts, I think the gift of reading is among the best gifts of all.

I’ve got a lot of reading to do this year just to catch up with new Christmas stories set in the Wild West. Here are the ones in my teetering to-be-read pile:

A Cowboy Under the Mistletoe
Rediscovered feelings and unexpected new love bring six couples together during the holidays.

Kissing Until Christmas
A mail-order bride isn’t exactly who she seems — but her unwilling groom hides a dangerous secret of his own.

I Heard the Brides on Christmas Day
Hec Murdock orders up two brides — one for himself and one for his brother, Zeke. But somehow, Hec neglects to let Zeke know what he’s done.




 

The Gift of Forgiveness
A reformed gunman takes up his guns one more time to help a widow find her kidnapped son. In the bargain, he receives the gift of love.

Holiday Hoax
Widow Vera Sanders agrees to switch places with younger and prettier Adele MacIntyre, another mail-order bride. They’re both in for rude surprises, however, after trying to pull a holiday hoax on two very different grooms

A Marriage of Convenience
A debutante on the run from a monster finds her salvation in a jaded Indian Territory lawman. The marshal can protect her with a Christmas wedding … but can he protect his heart?

Her Holiday Husband
Secrets and surprises are in store when families meddle with a beautiful single mother and an outlaw-turned-respectable. Phoebe Pierce may have too many secrets of her own to keep her holiday husband.

Store Bought Ornaments
Ella’s cryptic letter brings her husband’s brother, Caleb, home for Christmas. Can they finally claim the love they’ve been denied for so long?

The Keepers of Camelot
An unusual twist on the King Arthur legend finds Arthur, Guinevere, and Lancelot embroiled in an Apache attack at a stage station. Only a homeless boy recognizes the three, reminding Arthur The Once and Future King will return when the world needs him most.

 Dance with Destiny
A half-Ojibwa drifter sees a fair-haired woman in a vision. An abandoned army wife with four young children needs help to survive the harsh Ohio winter. Will the love that grows between them endure, or is it doomed from the start?




My stack also contains a few medieval Christmas books. Medieval stories are something new for me, but whoever coined the phrase “variety is the spice of life” knew what he or she was talking about.

One Winter Knight
Eight Yuletide tales of love lost and found, laced with holiday traditions and the excitement of a bold, dangerous era.

Canticle
To save her family’s fortunes, Lady Alisoun must wed an elderly earl the day after Christmas. But in the chapel on Christmas Eve, her heart collides with that of an elegant, mysterious stranger. Is he her salvation … or an enemy spy?

An Unexpected Gift
An outlaw vows to protect a homeless woman from the men who want to kill her unborn son. In the struggle against the cold and would-be kings, Meryk and Ada discover love is the most unexpected gift of all, but will they survive long enough to claim it?

Sir Baldwin and the Christmas Ghosts
An arrogant young knight and a woman with the gift of sight must work together to make a true Christmas for the survivors of a plague — and the spirits of those who did not survive.

Keepsake
On a stormy Christmas Eve night filled with danger, fate makes unexpected allies of a bitter man and an angry woman. Will passion ignite as a result ... or will they even survive to find out?





And because we all enjoy becoming children again once in a while, I always have one or two young adult Christmas reads in my stack this time of year.

The Christmas Spider
Christmas should be a happy time, but this year will be bittersweet for Samantha McCaslin. Following the death of her mother, the thirteen-year-old tomboy must grow up quickly, especially when a bully targets her American Indian friends. Thanks to the magic of Christmas and the power of love, Sam learns what family really means.

The Donkey that Carried Mary
A warm and funny story about Mary, the mother of Jesus, as told by her donkey, Sarah. This one won’t be out until Dec. 20, but I’m so looking forward to such a sweet-sounding read.

 

 

To help make your holidays merry and bright, I'll give away four anthologies in e-book form: A Cowboy Under the Mistletoe, A Mail-Order Christmas Bride, One Winter Knight, and One Christmas Knight. To be eligible, tell me what holiday tradition is most special to you.

One more thing before I forget: Prairie Rose Publications is looking for reviewers. If you enjoy reading and telling people about good books you've read, email prairierosepublications@aol.com for more information. (Click the graphic below to make it larger.)

A Texan to the bone, Kathleen Rice Adams spends her days chasing news stories and her nights and weekends shooting it out with Wild West desperadoes. Leave the upstanding, law-abiding heroes to other folks. In Kathleen’s stories, even the good guys wear black hats.

Her short story “The Second-Best Ranger in Texas” won the Peacemaker Award for Best Western Short Fiction. Her novel Prodigal Gun won the EPIC Award for Historical Romance and is the only western historical romance ever to final for a Peacemaker in a book-length category.

Visit her hideout on the web at KathleenRiceAdams.com.

COULD YOU BE A MAIL ORDER BRIDE? by CHERYL PIERSON

I don’t know why, but lately I’ve been enthralled by mail-order brides. No, I’ve not been “studying” them, or “researching” them—yet. I’ve just been wondering why this became such a practice—and a successful one—among women of all walks of life, or so it seems.

What would make a woman leave everything familiar to her and travel to “parts unknown” to marry a man she knew nothing about? What’s scarier than online dating? Being a mail-order bride! Once they’d made the commitment to leave their homes behind—much to the consternation of many family members and friends, in some cases, I would imagine—the die was cast.

A woman would have to be certain in her own mind that what she was going to was better than what she was leaving behind. She would have to be resourceful enough to plan some kind of “exit strategy” if things didn’t work out. And I suppose, many times, women resigned themselves to the fact that they would become a soiled dove—the lowest of the low—in order to survive.

In spite of all the scenarios we might come up with for a mail-order bride to leave the life she has known behind her for something completely foreign to her, there are, I’m sure, many that we never could have even contemplated. For each story is personal, intimate, and heart-rending in its own right.

http://www.amazon.com/One-Thousand-White-Women-Journals-ebook/dp/B0042XA3OE/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1448737720&sr=1-1&keywords=one+thousand+white+women
One of the most unusual books about mail-order brides is Jim Fergus’s story, ONE THOUSAND WHITE WOMEN—which is not about “mail-order brides” as we think of them, but in a totally different way—a trade by the U.S. Government of 1000 white women to the Indians in order to achieve assimilation into white culture. Interestingly enough, this premise WAS discussed in reality, but not carried through. In the book, however, Fergus shows how the government emptied insane asylums of women and sent them to the Indians…only most of the women were not insane, but had been “put away” by their families for one thing or another.

Would you have what it takes to be a mail-order bride in the old west? I’m not sure I would, but it’s fun to think about.

This is a collection of Christmas mail-order bride stories that Prairie Rose Publications just released with some wonderful tales of how some women with pasts they needed to leave behind find new beginnings at the most joyous time of the year. These eight stories by Livia J. Washburn, Kathleen Rice Adams, Cheryl Pierson, Patti Sherry-Crews, Jesse J Elliot, Meg Mims, Tanya Hanson, and Jacquie Rogers will provide you many hours of reading pleasure during this holiday season!

I’m giving away a copy of A MAIL-ORDER CHRISTMAS BRIDE to one commenter! The question is, would you leave your familiar surroundings and go west to be a mail-order bride? Be sure to leave your contact information in your comment!

Thanks for stopping by today! Drawing will be held on November 29 after 9:00 p.m. Central.

If you just can't wait to see if you won, A MAIL-ORDER CHRISTMAS BRIDE IS AVAILABLE AT B&N AND AT AMAZON. HERE'S THE AMAZON LINK:
http://www.amazon.com/Mail-Order-Christmas-Bride-Livia-Washburn-ebook/dp/B0182FEYU6/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1448737639&sr=1-1&keywords=a+mail-order+christmas+bride

A Smidge, a Pinch, a Recipe by Paty Jager

There is nothing better than walking into a kitchen in December. The smells bring back so many memories. My grandmother lived in a two-story farm house with us until I was twelve, making Christmas at our house a mixture of my grandmother’s favorite goodies and my mom’s.  Grandma’s specialties were cookies, cinnamon brittle, peanut brittle, and divinity. My mom’s specialties were sugared nuts, popcorn balls, fudge, toffee, and liquor-laced fruitcake.

As you can see our house was full of wonderful smells the whole month of December. My brother’s and I loved the failed batches. The batches my mom and grandma deemed not good enough to give to friends, but good enough to make the kids happy. 

People traveling across the country didn't have all the useful things we did to cook with. They lacked, measuring cups, measuring spoons, and liquid measures. The girls grew up learning from older members of the family and learning what a smidge and a pinch were and how many egg shells of milk or water to put in a recipe.   

I have a recipe for my mom's doughnuts. This is a typical recipe that is passed down from generation to generation. After having watched my mom make the cake doughnuts, I know how, but the recipe is sparse. 

Mom's Doughnuts

3 eggs beaten till foamy

2 cups whole milk

2 cups sugar

1/2 tsp salt

4 tsp. baking powder

Nutmeg to taste

Flour to make a real soft dough 

That's it. The whole recipe. I can tell you these are delicious! 

Want more?  I mix in the nutmeg to where you can see the specks in the dough. By real soft, it has to ooze through your fingers like slime. ;)  Roll the dough out to 1/2 an-inch thick on a well-floured surface, cut out the rounds and the holes in the middle. Fry in hot oil lightly browning both sides. While still warm shake in a bag of sugar to coat. Don't overwork the dough when you pick up the leavings and add it to the batter or they turn out tough. That's how you make Mom's Doughnuts. 

In my Christmas novella, Christmas Redemption, in the Silver Belles and Stetsons Christmas Anthology,  the hero returns home after being in prison and walks into his mother’s kitchen while she’s baking. 

Excerpt:

The leafless cottonwood trees appeared stark and ominous hovering around the farm house. The two-story structure held pleasant memories. His mother’s cooking and laughter. Would she welcome him back or follow her husband’s lead? His stomach knotted, and he once again wished Tessa were by his side.

A multi-colored mutt ran out of the barn barking. Half-way to the wagon he stopped and looked back toward the barn. A girl of about eight strolled out of the building wrapped in a heavy coat, scarf, and mittens.

“Button. Stop barking,” she said when he stopped the wagon in front of the house. His mother’s eyes stared at him from the child’s face. This was his sister Grace.

“Is your ma or pa home?” he asked uncertain what to do. He wanted to pick her up and hug her, but reasoned she wouldn’t care for a stranger grabbing her.

“Ma’s in the kitchen. Christmas is coming.” She put a hand on the dog’s head.

“It sure is. How about you take me to the house then rustle your ma out of the kitchen so I can talk with her?” He started walking to the familiar front door.

Grace grabbed his hand. “We can’t go in that door. Ma doesn’t like snow on her wool rug.” She tugged him to the back of the house.

Van smiled and allowed his sister to haul him around to the back of the house. The garden patch looked larger. And the cellar which he’d help dig was grown over sprouting pale weeds through the six inches of snow.

Grace pulled the screen door open, then shoved the door into the kitchen. Familiar aromas wafted around Van’s head. He sniffed and savored each spicy nuance.

His ma turned. “Grace, shut the door, I have bread ris—”

Ma was the same other than gray wisps in her dark brown hair. She blinked, and her hands clasped in front of her chest.

“Hello, Ma.”

“Van?” She took a step toward him. He smiled and nodded, and she lunged into his arms, crying.

He hugged her tight as tears burned his eye sockets. His heart, that had been torn in two when he never heard from her, slowly melded back together. “I’ve missed you,” he said, holding on, wishing he had all those years back.

She drew out of his arms and studied him. “My, you turned into one handsome man.” She wiped at the tears on her face with her apron. Then motioned to Grace. “Come say hello to your big brother.” His mother’s smile warmed him like a toasty fire on a cold day.

“My brother? I thought pa said—” Grace stared up at him quizzically.

Silver Belles and Stetsons
Ten Western Romance Christmas Novellas
Available as a boxed set for a limited time

Bestselling and Award-Winning Authors bring you ten western romance novellas featuring alpha-cowboys from the past. This boxed set will take you back in time when
men were rugged and handsome and the women who loved them, courageous and
daring.


The Greatest Gift: A Montana Cowboy Christmas by Kathleen Ball. Amazon Bestselling
and Award- Winning Author. Looking for the man who ran out on her, Ginger finds a
cowboy worthy of love but he doesn't want or need love.

Catherine’s Cowboy by Cait Braxton, Amazon Bestselling and Award-Winning Author. During a supernatural dust storm, Fate steps in when rugged army tracker, Elam, helps Catherine deliver her child.

Stone Mountain Christmas by Caroline Clemmons, Amazon Bestselling and Award-Winning Author. Can Celia restore the town's Christmas spirit? "A beautifully written story about love and hope and all the emotions Christmas brings out in people." Karren Lucas

Angel and the Texan from County Cork by Carra Copelin. Amazon Bestselling and Award-Winning Author. Does Angel trust marriage to the man she suspects of killing her husband or the stranger who promises to pay off her debt and set her free if she decides their marriage of convenience won’t work?

The Drifter’s Proposal by Kristin Holt, Amazon Bestselling Author. The baker's man is home for Christmas... "Compelling. Heartwarming. Tender." ~Diane Darcy, USA Today Bestselling Author

The Perfect Gift by Lyn Horner. Friendship has blossomed into young love, but it seems destined to die on the vine...until an unexpected Christmas gift promises happiness.

Marshal Mistletoe by Susan Horsnell. She married the wrong man. Will fate intervene?

Christmas Redemption by Paty Jager, Amazon Bestselling and Award-Winning Author. Can two battered hearts find solace or will the past continue to haunt their lives? "A story of forgiveness that has a wonderful hero who has worked hard to redeem himself."

A Hard Candy Christmas by Hebby Roman, Amazon Bestselling Author. Two damaged souls. Can their budding love and the healing power of Christmas bring them together?

Cowboy Christmas by Margaret Tanner. Will a miracle Christmas baby unite two tortured souls, or will it forever keep them apart?

BUY LINK: Amazon

Award-winning author Paty Jager and her husband raise alfalfa hay in rural eastern Oregon. On her road to publication she wrote freelance articles for two local newspapers and enjoyed her job with the County Extension service as a 4-H Program Assistant. Raising hay and cattle, riding horses, and battling rattlesnakes, she not only writes the western lifestyle, she lives it.

All her work has Western or Native American elements in them along with hints of humor and engaging characters. Her penchant for research takes her on side trips that eventually turn into yet another story.

You can learn more about Paty at

her blog; Writing into the Sunset 

her website; http://www.patyjager.net 

Facebook; https://www.facebook.com/pages/Paty-Jager/132536633482029

Newsletter: Paty’s Prattle: http://eepurl.com/1CFgX

Paty’s Posse: https://www.facebook.com/groups/402519373168442/?ref=bookmarks

Goodreads http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1005334.Paty_Jager 

twitter  @patyjag.