Some authors are absolutely thrilled to have one book published in a lifetime. Others have the lofty goal of writing one book every year. Then there’s prolific author Sarita Leone, who has three releases this year!
I caught up with this busy woman and discovered a grounded person who enjoys life and always finds time to do more, such as writing the guest blog below. Welcome, Sarita, and thank you for sharing your story.
Sarita Leone:
Julie, thank you for having me here today! I love visiting other authors’ blogs, so this is a fun adventure.
Let me introduce myself. I’m an author who loves happy endings—in life and on the page.
When I’m not busy writing my next novel, I’m often either practicing or teaching yoga. I love being a yoga teacher! I also like to hike, travel, and dance beneath the stars. I enjoy learning new languages, cooking, and baking. And I never say “no” to fun. I plan to make every moment of this journey count!
When we first spoke about this post, Julie, you asked how it felt to have three holiday releases in one year. I’ve been thinking about that and honestly, it is a whole lot of fun! I love the holidays and to have three stories hitting shelves in time for the festivities really makes my heart sing.
But I have to admit, it was a whirlwind year writing all three!
I had a holiday release called A Wylder Christmas in 2020. It was one of the first four books in The Wylder West Series from The Wild Rose Press. It was a great way to become part of the Wylder community and almost as soon as I finished writing it I knew I wanted to write a Wylder holiday story for this year, too.
This year four authors teamed up to write a series within the bigger Wyler West Series. Nicole McCaffrey, Laura Strickland, Kim Turner, and I collaborated, and the result is that three holiday stories will release in December. They all take place following a horrible train derailment just outside Wylder in the days leading up to Christmas. My story is called Christmas in Wylder and I’m super excited about it. Christmas in Wylder releases on December 13.
Earlier this year The Wild Rose Press put out a call for submissions to a series of holiday stories and I knew I wanted to be part of that! It’s called the Christmas Cookies Series and each story takes place during the holiday season, with a central element being a particular holiday cookie. Sounds like fun, right?
Snickerdoodle Snowmen takes place in North Pole, Alaska. It is the tale of a couple who seem worlds apart but beneath the Northern Lights they find that they aren’t as different as they initially believed. It’s a fun story about love, family, and holiday magic. It released on November 3!
Her Sugar Cookie Heart releases on December 15. It is a second-chance love story that might tug on readers’ heartstrings. A bittersweet tale for these two, and a one that shows how love withstands time, distance, and much more.
So, it’s been a whirlwind of holiday writing, editing, and now promotion but it’s been delightful. And I’m hoping that readers will enjoy reading these holiday stories as much as I enjoyed writing them!
You can catch up on book releases and other fun news on my blog or Facebook page. And my stories can be found at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Walmart, and wherever books are sold!
Thank you for having me here today to chat about my holiday releases—it’s been great to visit with you!
The blurb for Christmas in Wylder:
Meg Channing is on the run from her home in Boston. She’s on her way to a new life—until a horrific train crash strands her in Wylder just days before Christmas.Tate Taylor’s waiting on a shipment of explosives for his mining business. When the Union Pacific train carrying them derails, he hightails it to the site, hoping the whole town isn’t blown to smithereens.
Just as they find happiness, secrets from both their pasts threaten to tear them apart. Wylder is safe—but are their hearts?
The blurb for Her Sugar Cookie Heart:
Willie Sharpe and Liz Klein were high school sweethearts but their plans to marry in December 1940 are put on hold when war in Europe calls him away. When he returns to the States, he brings a French wife with him.Twenty years later, Liz has learned to live with her broken heart. The respected New York artist has moved on. The only reminder of her past are the heart shaped cookies she has the local baker snap in half.
Then Willie shows up out of nowhere looking to rekindle their romance. Will it take Christmas magic for Liz to give him a second chance at love?
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Snickerdoodle Snowmen Cover blurb:
Baker Kris Kringles sends snickerdoodles from North Pole, Alaska, across the globe, spreading holiday cheer like confetti. But she has a secret not dusted with sugar, and an incentive to speak with a slick journalist that isn’t half-baked.
Reporter Santos Kloss hates Christmas. How could he not, with a name that makes him the butt of endless holiday jokes? He’s got one last assignment to complete before he can begin a new chapter in his life, so he grits his teeth, grabs a parka, and heads to Christmas central.
Both expect the interview to be a snap, but a snowstorm, insistent sisters, and a little holiday magic have very different ideas!
Snickerdoodle Snowmen Excerpt:
“You’re the newspaper man, aren’t you?”
Santos stopped the mug an inch from his lips and looked over the rim into the woman’s eyes. They were green—not merely hazel or a watered-down soda-bottle shade, but vibrantly colored, like the office parrot’s feathers. Polly, the newspaper mascot, looked like a beauty but swore like a sailor, courtesy of the newsmen who got their kicks from teaching the bird to talk. He’d even added some colorful Italian phrases to their feathered friend’s vocabulary.
She stared at him with those piercing eyes so long and hard that his heart began to pound. He wondered if she read right into the truth of him. It sure felt that way. As if despite his nonchalant entrance, small talk, and even observing her figure, she realized he wasn’t some fellow off the street, in for a coffee and cookies. He resisted the urge to pull his jacket closed.
Great. Precisely what he didn’t need. A dame with a brain, a killer attribute that never failed to stir something deep within him.
The stirring hadn’t ever proved deep enough to keep a woman, so he tried to steer clear of romantic involvements. But damn, it felt as if she reached into his soul with those incredible eyes.
Santos lifted his shoulders, then let them drop. He took a long swallow of joe before setting the mug on the counter. “Guilty as charged. I’m from the New York Daily, here to do a story on some cookies that I’m told are made in this shop and sent to crazy, obsessed Christmas fanatics all over the world.”
The minute he said it he realized he’d stuck his foot in his mouth. Pretty far down his throat, too.
