Alicia Street

Critters Open Our Hearts

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I’ve always loved animals. When I was a kid having one of those run-ins with my parents that produced tears, I always looked for my dog or cat to cuddle up and give me furry consolation. Little did I know what a healthy move that was.

NewHisXmasPromiseToday research shows that hanging out with a critter is good for both mental and physical well-being. It increases your level of the hormone oxytocin, which reduces stress and makes you feel happier. Petting a dog has been shown to lower blood pressure and cortisol levels and produce an antibody that improves the immune system. 

Aside from the highly trained service dogs that work with wounded veterans and handicapped individuals, the use of therapy dogs—untrained pets that are tested for behavior and handling—do wonders in nursing homes, hospitals, mental health centers, and other places where unconditional TLC is needed.

His Christmas Promise, my novella in the boxed set features a mixed breed therapy dog whose loving nature brings healing and change to a family—not to mention an unexpected romance.

Pets and romance are a great match because animals have a way of opening our hearts. Releasing today, Christmas Pets and Kisses rings in the holiday season with sixteen all-new sweet and heartwarming romances from New York Times, USA Today and National bestselling authors. It’s a romantic collection of Christmas tails…uh, tales as adorable pets with fins, paws, feathers, and hooves bring holiday magic with the gift of true love.

ChristmasPetsandKissesLG99 cents for a limited time ~                  Amazon       Nook       iBooks       Kobo    

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Dancing through the North Fork

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by Alicia & Roy Street

We have always loved excursions to the eastern end of Long Island, NY, but these days it isn’t easy to choose which Fork. No, we’re not talking about which fork to use at dinner but which side of the island suits our fancy.

 When most people think of Long Island they think of the Hamptons. That Malibu of the east, seashore playground to Manhattan’s rich and famous. That’s the South Fork.

 The North Fork, where we’ve set our new series of romantic comedies, is a more rural, downhome place, a collection of farming and fishing villages and quaint towns with a slight New England feel. But the North Fork is also now called the Napa Valley of the east, thanks to the forty-plus vineyards that have sprung up along this narrow strip of land between Long Island Sound and Peconic Bay.

 One of the great things about getting lost in a novel is the aftereffect of the feeling as if you’ve just traveled to another place and lived there for a while. To give our Dance ‘n’ Love series readers a broader taste of the North Fork, as well as giving ourselves some artistic freedom, we created a fictional town based on several of NoFo’s real places.

 

And being a hundred miles out into the Atlantic, the sea-kissed air, the enchanting light— and of course the wine—make it the perfect location for romance.

 

Casey, our heroine in KISS ME, DANCER, returns to her North Fork roots after her dream of dancing with a professional company fails. Here she struggles to forge a new dream with new meaning through her dance school for the local children.

When she falls for Drew, a hotshot South Fork guy, their tumultuous love affair goes though ups and downs while we follow them to a wine tasting at a local vineyard, a ride on the public merry-go-round, a down-on-the-farm pumpkin festival, and boating under the stars. 

     

Reader2Author

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When Americans are polled on their favorite hobbies, you know what usually comes out on top?

You guessed it.

Reading.

Of course everybody reads for school, work, research or just to figure out how to install the latest whatever-it-is they just bought. But when it comes to reading for ourselves, it is usually fiction we choose.

Being lucky enough to have older siblings and parents who loved books, I was one of those strange kids who started reading before I hit kindergarten. Growing up, I found as many friends in the pages of novels as I did among my neighbors and schoolmates. So, of course I am now a total fiction addict who goes into withdrawals if I get stuck waiting in a dentist’s office without a book or my e-reader.

I used to worry that this was escapism or at the very least, guilty pleasure. But those of you who share my obsession can relax. According to a couple recent studies, reading fiction not only helps you develop better social skills, but it can make you superior at interacting in business situations. (So, go ahead and load up your kindle with a vengeance!)

So, yeah, I think readers are special. And I think the act of a reader and author sharing a fictional world that is created solely out of words is a magical thing. After all, you’re living through situations together that are often more intimate and dramatic than those you’ve shared with people in your day-to-day life.

Am I sounding schizophrenic? Well, maybe all writers need to have a fluid sense of reality.

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