Top Ten New Year Excitements
by Jess Michaels

First, I want to say a big Thank You to everyone who posted their own “Snowed In” Top Ten additions. It was so hard to pick just two favorites, but I managed after much debate.

Congratulations to Angi, my top favorite who won an ARC of SOMETHING RECKLESS (April 2008). Also to Bailey Stewart, my second favorite, who will receive a copy of EVERYTHING FORBIDDEN.

Now then, on with my newest (and last) top ten list!

In just a few days, the calendar will be turning from 2007 to 2008. It is impossible to me how quickly this year has flown by, filled with the good and the bad. Now I'm looking forward to a brand new year, with all new excitement ahead. So I figured it was fitting that I end my month of Red Fridays here with a final Top Ten list about what makes the new year great.

10. Dick Clark's NEW YEAR'S ROCKIN' EVE - When I was a kid growing up in Idaho, we never quite made it to midnight for our family celebrations. However, we were in the mountain time zone and they played DCNYRE live from the east coast! That meant that when they were counting down to the new year in New York, we did the same in Blackfoot...at 10pm. This meant we got to sip our sparkling cider and throw confetti and make resolutions. And my poor parents got to put us to bed on time. I'm much more likely to make it to real midnight now...but I still smile when I see Dick Clark counting down to midnight.

9. Blank Slate – Whatever I did wrong all year, whatever I feel like I screwed up...the wonderful thing about a new year is that it feels like a blank slate. Which is silly because really it's just the next day...but it still feels shiny and fresh. With no mistakes made and infinite possibilities for joy. I wonder what will happen THIS year??

8. AULD LANG SYNE – Over the years, I've come to accept that I'm a sucker for a sentimental song. They don't get more sentimental (or weirder) than AULD LANG SYNE. It's a once a year song and we all sing along. It also makes me think of that great final scene in WHEN HARRY MET SALLY when Billy Crystal riffs on how he never understood what the song meant. Sally says it's just about good friends. Which is a good thing.

7. Blank Calendar – You should see my 2007 calendar right now. It is marked up, crossed out, filled up, and looks like it's been through hell. My 2008 calendar, however, has like four things in it. Again, it hints at infinite possibilities.

6. The Ball in NYC – Is there anything sparklier and prettier and fancier than that crystal ball dropping? I think not! Some year, I'm going to see it live. It will probably be somewhat cold and disappointing. But I'm still going to do it.

5. Looking Back – This is a big thing for me. I'm a list maker, for sure, so I love looking back over my goals and aspirations for the year that is past and seeing how I did. This year, it's pretty good. I lost more weight than I hoped to, I wrote a bunch of books, I sold a bunch more. I learned a lot about myself, which is a pretty cool thing.

4. The Midnight Kiss – I can't help that I'm a romance author. I mean, what better way to start a fresh new year than by full-on making out with someone you love (or like...or just met)? In public, no less! Zowie. I could start every month that way! Which actually sounds like a book...maybe I should write it.

3. Looking Forward – Really that's what this time of year is all about. Those infinite possibilities and what we hope to do with them. Like I said, I'm a list maker and I love really thinking about my goals, analyzing what I truly WANT, and then plotting out a way to get to it.

2. A Year of New Books! – Over at the Avon Authors message board, there's a topic in the Off Topic section that's about which books we're all looking forward to in 2008. Wow, there are some awesome books coming out this coming year!! Teresa Medeiros, Kathryn Smith, Julia Quinn, just about EVERYONE (including moi) has books coming out in 2008! My TBR pile is already groaning with the anticipated weight. :)

1. A Brand New Day – Back when the date changed from 1999 to 2000, I remember waking up the next morning and turning on the TV to find that some news organization had put up a montage of all these different nations having their first sunrise of a new millennium. It was put to Sting's song BRAND NEW DAY, which is a favorite of mine anyway. Every year, I remember that neat little collection of images from tiny villages to big cities and remember that everyone is having the same experience on January 1. For all of us, it's a brand new day.

So, my question for today is, what's your favorite thing about the New Year? Anything you're especially resolving to do over the next 12 months?

On a final note, I wanted to say thank you so much to all of you for playing with me every Friday of December! I had a great time being your “Red Guest of the Month”. A big thank you to Avon, too, for inviting me to do this. You guys may not realize just how many wonderful people go into the company and also this blog, but they work really hard all year long to make this site awesome and to help bring wonderful books to us all.

Happy New Year Avon, Happy New Year Readers, Happy New Year Everyone!!

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