This fine Saturday morning I will be taking a walk with Guinness the Therapy Dog. We try to take a walk every day. He loves all the smells and the cool air. I love the walk. Soon, I’ll take him to the mountains to play in the snow.
I’ll post pictures!
Have a wonderful Saturday doing whatever it is you want to do. I hope you spend a little time with a book and then with someone you love. Sonja
Since today is ‘Get to Know Your Customers Day’, I wanted to say hello!
I hope you are able to take a look at my books and can see a little of yourself in the story or in one of the characters. I know I do!
I think the best books are based on real-life emotions and I try to add that to each character’s thoughts and actions.
Tonight is also pet therapy night with Guinness the Therapy Dog! We’ll be playing with a group of kids as a part of Gabriel’s Angels, which is an organization that links up therapy teams with at-risk kids.
We get so much out of these visits!
I hope you have a chance to meet-and-greet with your favorite people today! Sonja
I’m pleased to announce that I’ll be appearing at the Tucson Festival of Books this year on Saturday, March 14!
I’m so excited to have this opportunity to meet you, dear reader. I’ll be in the children’s section for the first few hours of the festival.
I plan to have copies of my Fairies of Carlow series, including The Gilding, The Outsider, and The Commoner. I’ll also have The Voyage available, with all the pretty pictures.
I’m planning to debut my new series about Guinness the Therapy Dog, including Guinness Becomes a Therapy Dog and Guinness Goes to the Library.
I hope to see you there! Sonja
I don’t know about you, but I find it challenging to decide which story in my head is worthy of being put down on paper.
I have so many stories swirling around up there. I explore them when I’m walking, hiking, taking some quiet time, driving, or falling asleep.
I have a lot of stories to tell about Guinness. He’s a never-ending source of adventures! Just a walk around the block can lead to an interesting experience.
Just today, we were taking a walk and he was trying to be a good boy. Another dog walked by with his own human. Before we went to school, Guinness would have barked and lunged. Today, he merely kept a close watch on the dog and tried to talk to him. I think that will probably make it into one of his adventures that I write about. He loves to talk to everyone he meets. In the morning, he sounds like Chewbacca from Star Wars (R)!
I’ll try to catch his talking and post it on his Instagram page (@real_guinness_the_therapy_dog). Follow him and get daily updates on his shenanigans!
Have a happy weekend. Sonja
Guinness received a bunch of stuff with his picture on it!
I love the look on his face. It’s as if he is saying, “Really?!?!?”
Now his picture is all over the house, along with all the hair he sheds! It’s becoming a Guinness shrine!
I hope you have a furbaby to cuddle! Sonja
We’re just days away from 2020! Do you have any plans to celebrate the ringing in of the new year?
I’ll be hanging out with Guinness the Therapy Dog and his sister, Lucy. I expect fireworks in the neighborhood and both need a little reassurance when they hear the loud banging sounds.
I’m excited about the new year. To me, it represents a clean page in my journal and I can’t wait to write out my plans, hopes, and dreams for the next twelve months.
Enjoy the end of 2019 and the beginning of 2020! Sonja
Tonight is the night when Christians observe the birth of Jesus Christ.
It’s also the night that Santa Claus comes down the chimney. He fills stockings and leaves gifts under the Christmas tree.
Santa’s ride is immortalized in the poem, ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas’. It’s one of my favorite things to read. I’m a sucker for a good story written poetically, which is why I love Shakespeare’s plays and sonnets.
As a gift to you, dear reader, I have put together some deals for the next two days. Effective immediately, The Fairies of Carlow: The Gilding ebook and The Voyage ebook are available for no charge. That’s right. They’re free only until the night of Christmas.
I also scheduled special pricing on The Fairies of Carlow: The Commoner for today and tomorrow only.
Click the links on the left-hand margin of this website, or search for my name, Sonja Danielson, on Amazon.com and you will automatically get the free ebooks or the specially-priced ebook for The Commoner.
I wish you a peaceful and happy Christmas with all the glad tidings of the season.
I wish you a peaceful and happy Hannukah, also, with all the amazing things the holiday brings.
Have a wonderful fun-filled day. Sonja
That’s right. This handsome boy will be on Tucson’s Channel 13 tonight. They are planning a feature on the library’s Read-to-a-Dog program and will be ‘interviewing’ Guinness.
He’s fluffed and brushed and ready for his spotlight!
I can’t wait to see him!
I hope you see the story and leave a comment here. He and I read everything and can’t wait to see your thoughts.
We’re also gearing up for Christmas! There may just be a gift under the tree or what you use to present gifts for the holiday (if you put your laptop there!). This is my holiday gift for you, dear reader.
Have a happy holiday week! Sonja
Look at those eyes! They express the love Guinness the Therapy Dog has for every person he meets. As a therapy dog, Guinness meets a lot of people and he is happy to say hello to everyone.
The people he meets like to dig their fingers into his thick fur, stroke the soft fur on his chest and back, and fall into his expressive brown eyes.
Happiness is the biggest part of his personality and everyone who meets him finds an inner well of happiness.
I hope you get to meet Guinness the Therapy Dog either in person or in the books that will be published soon! Sonja
It’s different when you write the text for a chapter book that doesn’t include pictures and writing for an illustrated book. The illustrations help the reader visualize what you’re writing about.
I didn’t have to describe the clothing in ‘The Voyage’ because the artist did such a phenomenal job with her research to show the clothing and the colors that were true to the period.
For ‘The Fairies of Carlow’ series, I took literary license to use clothing that was suggested by the Victorian period and was able to modify it as necessary for the stories.
The ‘Guinness the Therapy Dogs’ stories will be modern-day and the dress of the people he interacts with will be easily drawn. I probably won’t mention the clothing unless it directly affects the plot of the book.
And dogs don’t wear pants! Hey, that’s a good idea for a story!
The illustrations in ‘The Voyage’ also show the world occupied by John Wing as he traveled through Europe as a preacher. It helps the reader see where he stood in The Hague, Oxfordshire, and Cape Cod, Massachusetts (for his family).
Take a look at the beautiful illustrations of ‘The Voyage’. The illustrations for the first two books of the ‘Guinness the Therapy Dog’ series are being drawn by the artist right now!
I can’t wait to show you. Keep a lookout for the logo that will appear on the front cover of every ‘Guinness the Therapy Dog’ book. It’s spectacular and I will unveil it here on this website soon!
Keep writing! Keep reading! Sonja