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A N E XC L U S I V E M O N T H LY C O M M U N I Q U É F O R O U R W R I T E R StheINNER CIRCLENOVEMBER2015A Note from Your PublisherRuth Jones and her best friend Marilyn were at the coffee shop complaining about Thanksgiving. “My entirefamily is coming this year,” Ruth said. “I love them dearly, but you know what that means.”“Yep,” Marilyn said. “Cooking and cleaning, changing sheets,wondering what to feed everybody for breakfast. I go through thesame thing every year.”As Ruth wrote in her story, “The Great Thanksgiving Challenge,”published in Chicken Soup for the Soul: Find Your Happiness, thesecomplaints gave her pause.“You know something?” she said. “Some days, all I do is complain.”“Me, too,” Marilyn said.So they decided to start noticing the good things in their lives and keep journals to track their progress.“As weeks passed,” Ruth wrote, “I noticed my notebook recorded more blessings than complaints.” And shefound that focusing on the things she was thankful for instead of trivial problems actually changed heroutlook. “I feel better about myself and about life in general,” Ruth wrote.By Thanksgiving, Ruth and Marilyn had succeeded in their challenge. Their first instinct was no longer tocomplain, but to focus on the things that made them feel fortunate. In the process, they’d both learned thatall it had taken to be happier was to appreciate what they had, which is not a bad lesson to keep in mind thistime of year.Do you have a wonderful story about gratitude? We’d love to consider it for Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Powerof Gratitude. The submission deadline is December 15th! Click here to learn more about the book.Your publisher, Amy NewmarkJoy is the simplest form of gratitude. Karl Barth@amynewmarkINSPIRATION forW riters
Changing your life one story at a time We Loved Meeting Our NY-Area Contributors!We hosted another successful weekend of contributor luncheons in October. We met on Saturday, October10th at 76 House in Tappan, New York. Below, pictured from left to right, is the entire group smiling after adelicious lunch. Peter Wood and Dorann Weber, both contributors in Chicken Soup for the Soul: Reboot YourLife, smile proudly for the camera. Rob Norden, the owner of 76 House, shares the history of therestaurant with the contributors.Our second luncheon was on October 11th at Coast Seafood Restaurant in Cos Cob, Connecticut. Thegroup enjoyed delicious seafood followed by a tour of the Chicken Soup for the Soul office. Below from leftto right you’ll see Ed Joseph standing next to the book he contributed to, Editor Kristi Pastir andPublisher Amy Newmark with four fabulous writers, and Doris Leddy standing next to her book.Below is the entire group before their tour of the office after getting the inside scoop from Amy abouteverything going on at Chicken Soup for the Soul. Below right you’ll see three of our writers: Lois Kipnisand sisters Eileen Hession and Kathy Levine.Will you be in the Boca Raton, Florida–area the weekend before Thanksgiving? We’re planninganother contributor luncheon, in Boca Raton, FL on Saturday November 21st, and we want you to join us!We’ll be e-mailing all the contributors for whom we have Florida addresses, but our address files are onlyup-to-date for people we’ve published in the last few years. If you’ll be in the area and you haven’t receivedan invitation, please send an e-mail to webmaster@chickensoupforthesoul.com.
Book Signings Across the Country!Deborah Norville, coauthor of Chicken Soup forthe Soul: Think Possible, spoke at The FergusonLibrary in Stamford, Connecticut on the releasedate of the book—October 6th. Deborah,pictured left with Amy and at right speaking tothe group, told some of the stories from ourlatest bestselling book to a rapt audience. Earlierthat day, she had featured the book on her show,Inside Edition. You can watch the segment here.Contributor Lynne Leite has hosted several speakingengagements. She’s contributed to Chicken Soup for the Soul: TheMultitasking Mom’s Survival Guide, Chicken Soup for the Soul:Thanks to My Mom, and Chicken Soup for the Soul: Parenthood.“It is such a blessing to be a contributor to Chicken Soup forthe Soul,” Lynne said. “You really do make us feel like we arepart of something special. I am always encouraging friendsthat have stories to submit them. In fact, a friend gave aspeech in my Toastmaster’s club recently and I told her, ‘Thatwould be a great Chicken Soup for the Soul story!’ Greatending—her story was chosen for that book!”Linda Smith hosted a book signing for Chicken Soup for theSoul: Inspiration for Nurses at Givens Books in Virginia. GivensBooks sold all the books they had ordered, plus one of thebooks that Linda brought with her to the signing. Lots ofLinda’s nurse friends came by, plus other folks and friends.Linda has also done a local TV interview and newspaperinterview to help promote the book.Celeste Palmer and Kay Presto hosted a joint booksigning at Klatch Coffee in Rancho Cucamonga,California. Celeste has a story in Chicken Soup for theSoul: Recovering from Traumatic Brain Injuries and has beendoing lots of signings for the book. Kay has stories inChicken Soup for the Coffee Lover’s Soul and Chicken Soup forthe Soul: NASCAR.
Chicken Soup for the Soul Hallway HeroesWe’ve talked to you in the past about our work with The Boniuk Foundationusing Chicken Soup for the Soul stories to spread the values of tolerance,respect, and compassion. Now we’re heading into schools nationwide with aliteracy-based anti-bullying program that combines your stories with lessonplans for Grades 1-6.This program, offered with the financial support of The Boniuk Foundation, isfun! Teachers will love using the stories as the basis for lesson plans that kids willtruly enjoy. Learning values becomes enjoyable in these colorful andentertaining, yet thought provoking, programs.We’re also spreading these values through Chicken Soup for the Soul’s Hidden Heroes,our CBS weekend television show, also sponsored by The Boniuk Foundation.Click here to find out when it’s airing on your local CBS station. Classroom Package26 copies of Chicken Soup for the Soul: Be the Best You Can BeTeacher Guide25 Student JournalsImplementation GuideSubsidized Online Story Library AccessVisit www.chickensoup.com/hallwayheroes to learn more. You can also contact the program via e-mail ateducation@chickensoupforthesoul.com. We’ll connect you with our representative for your state.Announcing the Winners of Our Latest Giveaway!We’re excited to announce the winners of copies of A Taste ofChicken Soup for the Soul: Think Positive and A Taste of Chicken Soupfor the Soul: Messages from Heaven.Alice KliesVicki JullianKelly KittelJackie ThrasherIrena NielsonCongratulations to our winners, who were chosenat random! Stay tuned for another giveaway nextmonth!
Unveiling Your Early 2016 Books!We’re excited to show you the covers for the first three Chicken Soup for the Soulbooks of 2016. All three are in various stages of production now and they are lookingwonderful.Chicken Soup for the Soul:My Very Good, Very Bad Cat101 Heartwarming Stories about OurHappy, Heroic & Hilarious PetsChicken Soup for the Soul:My Very Good, Very Bad Dog101 Heartwarming Stories about OurHappy, Heroic & Hilarious PetsChicken Soup for the Soul:The Joy of Less101 Stories about Having More bySimplifying Our LivesBy Amy NewmarkForeword by Robin GanzertPresident and CEOAmerican Humane AssociationBy Amy NewmarkForeword by Robin GanzertPresident and CEOAmerican Humane AssociationBy Amy Newmark &Brooke Burke-Charvet,CEO ModernMom, Host of ChickenSoup for the Soul’s Hidden HeroesOn Sale: February 9, 2016On Sale: February 9, 2016On Sale: April 19, 2016A while ago, I received an e-mail aboutbuying books from the Chicken Soup for theSoul office. Are those books still availablefor holiday shopping?via Priority Mail. The cost per box is 45: 6 booksx 7.50 45. Unfortunately, the cost to ship toCanada and other countries from our office isprohibitive, so we can only ship within the U.S.Absolutely! We still have too many copies of sometitles in our storage room, so youcan buy any six of our extrabooks for 7.50 each, assumingwe still have extra copies of thetitles you want. We only haveextra copies of books publishedsince 2008 by the way. We willship them anywhere in the U.S.Payment will be made via PayPal. Please contactblomonaco@chickensoupforthesoul.com toinquire about which titles are still available in ourstorage room and to place your order.We will also be able to include copies of thespecial hardcover Christmas books that we madefor Walmart and B&N back in 2010. Four of themwill fit in the mailing box along with two regularsize books.
CEO ModernMom, Host of Chicken Soup for the Soul’s Hidden Heroes On Sale: April 19, 2016 Chicken Soup for the Soul: My Very Good, Very Bad Cat 101 Heartwarming Stories about Our Happy, Heroic & Hilarious Pets By Amy Newmark Foreword by Robin Ganzert President and CEO American Humane Association On Sale: February 9, 2016
