We Wish You a Merry Christmas!

Nicola here, wishing you a very Happy Christmas to those who celebrate the festival and happy holidays to everyone celebrating their traditions. Today is the first day of Word Wenches’ annual tradition of short daily blogs over the Twelve Days of Christmas.

This year for the first time in as long as I can remember, and possibly the first time ever, I’m spending Christmas in a hotel. Every year for the past forever we’ve either been at home, hosting family and friends, or visiting them as their guests. This year, though, my mother-in-law went into a care home near my sister-in-law’s home in the North of England so we are staying nearby in order to see everyone over the festive season. I’m writing this before we go and I’m wondering what it will be like. The hotel promises all manner of wonderful treats: delicious food including the full Christmas dinner, festive afternoon tea, carols and other live music and the chance to work off all the food in the gym and pool. It sounds great. But even at Christmas I find I still think about writing – will it be the sort of hotel that would be a good setting for a murder mystery? What will our fellow guests be like? Will there be rows – or romances? (I’ll be taking note!) Will it snow??? All will no doubt be revealed as our Christmas trip progresses! Wherever you are in the world and however you celebrate, the Wenches wish everyone peace and joy in the year ahead.

How are you spending the holiday season? Will you be at home, or away? Are there any special holiday traditions you enjoy with family and friends? 

Comments

[Janice J.]

I am about to head off to my family's for Christmas dinner. It will be a small crowd, but the rescue dog Bentley will be among us and no crowd is too small for Bentley to work effectively. I expect to see one stuffed dog by the end of the evening :)

It has been a year of changes for me, some personal, some common to all of us, some good, some not so good, but we are all coping better than I would have guessed and are finding new wells of kindness, I think.

Merry Christmas to you all and hopes for a fulfilling New Year with lots of good books in it.

[Vicki L]

Nicola, I hope you have a wonderful time at the hotel. I'll await a report of what festive doings they had and how they turned out.

Merry Festive Season, Merry Christmas to everyone.

We went to my Mom's yesterday for the big Family Christmas. As well as spent the night there and had a small Christmas breakfast, etc this morning.

Now I can sit back and relax after cooking up a storm this past week.

[Binnie Syril Braunstein]

Happy hotel Christmas, Nicola. I love the idea of staying in a well kitted out hotel for Christmas. And as a writer, the possibilities,including murder (mysteries) are endless. For starters, I would urge you to have a look at Hugh Pentecost's "Pierre Chambrun" mystery series, which took place in New York City's (fictional) Beaumont Hotel. You could have such fun with the possibilities: locked rooms, rooms with connecting doors, etc. Just sayin'...

[Nicola Cornick]

Thank you, Janice. Wishing you an enjoyable day, and many lovely treats for Bentley!

[Nicola Cornick]

Thank you very much, Vicki. I certainly have plenty of material for a book! Have a lovely relaxing time after all that cooking!

[Nicola Cornick]

Thank you! I will check out the Pierre Chambrun stories. I’ve certainly gathered plenty of material here…

[Annette N]

Nicola, just look at it as being a completely new experience and a huge supply of new ideas for books. It could be worse, you could be staying at a hotel where someone's mother is in a rocking chair - or where a person has an axe in hand - or where noisy neighbors are having a great party and did not invite you.

Take care - God Bless us everyone - and may each of us find exactly what we are seeking.

[Nicola Cornick]

Haha! As it turned out there WAS a big row and a noisy party in the car park, plus plenty of other stuff going on so much fodder for books!

[Kareni]

Nicola, I hope that you had a fine Christmas despite the row and noisy party. (I actually spent quite a few Christmases in hotels growing up as my father was a hotel manager.)

My husband and I had a mellow Christmas at home. We did have a lengthy video chat with our daughter on our Christmas Eve/her Christmas Day which we all enjoyed.

[Linda S]

Just catching up and wanted to say I hope you enjoyed your hotel stay. When my husband and I were first married, we would spend Christmas with my family but stay in a hotel nearby. I liked it. Everyone was cheerful, the hotel was beautifully decorated, and because it’s not a busy time, we usually got one of the better rooms. Also, the hotel was across the street from one of the best shopping malls in the Chicago area, so post-Christmas sales were a short walk away.

[Nicola Cornick]

That sounds as though it would be a very nice, restful Christmas, Kareni.

[Nicola Cornick]

That sounds great, Linda! We did enjoy our stay - the hotel was excellent and enabled us to see lots of family, which was lovely.