Jo Leigh, a multi-Rita nominated author of numerous Harlequin lines, lost her husband in June to cancer. Unfortunately, like so many of us who are writers, or self-employed, or just juggling life, there wasn’t health insurance and now Jo has been left with catastrophic medical bills.
A fabulous writer I admire very much named Allison Kent has stepped forward and organized an online auction to benefit Jo Leigh, and its an auction that will definitely appeal to both readers and writers. The list of donated items is long and includes everything from critiques from favorite authors to critiques from some of the industry’s best editors, to mentor packages, to signed books and gifts. You’ll find the complete list here, as well as a link to Jo Leigh’s story.
If you’re a Jane Porter fan and looking for signed books for yourself, or to give this Christmas, I’ve donated two items:
1) A fun mom beach bag with signed copies of Flirting With Forty, Odd Mom Out, and Mrs. Perfect. The beach bag will include a very stylish beach towel perfect for the fashionable mom, a Starbucks drink card and the JP summer water bottle. The auction link can be found here.
2) My entire Harlequin Presents backlist plus a copy of The Secret and The Christmas Anthology for a total of 22 books , a $10 Starbucks drink card plus lots of other Jane Porter goodies. Here is the auction link.
Even if you don’t purchase anything check it out and report back to me what items appeal to you. Share with me what you’d buy–or what you’ve bid on–and you’ll be entered to win my fun tropical giveaway celebrating Hawaii and Flirting with Forty. It’s a 2009 beaches calendar, Save A Wave, Ride a Surfer t-shirt, chocolate macadamia nuts, tropical bath goodies, make up compact, and lots more. I’ll leave the contest open until Thursday midnight and will annouce the winner Friday morning. So peruse the auction, let your reader and writer friends know about the cause, and let me know which items grab you.
Lots of wonderful items up for auction. I’d go for the Jennifer Estep YA collection so my teenage daughter and I could both read them and then discuss them with each other. There aren’t any other readers in the family besides the two of us and I’ve found talking about our favorite parts of the same book is so much fun. I haven’t bid yet but there’s a very good chance I will.
Personally, I would have to go for the Jane Porter items…because I simply love her 🙂 I also like the Lynn Viehl and Jacquie D’Alessandro and Carly Phillips packages too. There’s lots to choose from…if only I had the money to bid!
Great idea and a great way to help out your friend. I wish I could afford to place some bids, but money is tight right now!
Hope you are doing well!!
Much love,
Melissa
Here’s the link to your other item. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110319943771
(there’s probably an easier way – sorry)
It was nice to see Larissa Ione participating since a few years ago the romance community did a similar thing for her when she lost her home to Hurricane Katrina. Romance writers are a wonderful group of people.
jane…
i placed a bid for your stuff..its getting up there 🙂 also i liked sj day and nicole north..i would like new jewelry and then there was laurie damron offering the cookbook & candle. that would be another good one to be on…
I’m going to go back to bid on a few items in the morning. Right now, I’m making my list. I love your items, Jane! Also, Carly Phillips and the Smart Bitches along with Dear Author have some nice assortments. It’s so great to see so many authors and readers coming together to help out one of their own. Happy bidding everybody! 🙂
Joleigh use to belong to my chapter many many moons ago.
I’ve bid on several items so far – some books… some critiques… the coveting after some of the full manu script critques!
So many books, so many authors, I am totally confused and having never used eBay, I think I will have to skip the auction.
I am watching the Tonight Show right now and Jay has Heather Locklear as a guest. She has a white dress on and looks lovely and sounds very sweet. (How could anyone have a crush on Ross, the very gay intern??) Anyway, Jay showed an old tape of Heather in TJ Hooker and she could hardly get over it and talk about the movie. They didn’t even show a clip of the movie, darn! Still, Heather has such a cute grin and she is almost as pretty as you are, Jane, so people are going to want to see it!
I really like it when there is an opportunity to get a whole book series at once, so if I had money to bid, I’d head to those auction items!
HI Jane,
What a lovely thing for the writing community to do to help out a friend in need.
I tell you even with health Insurance it seems the prices of health care are too steep.
I should know my daughter has a chronic condition and the cost even with insurance boggles the mind.
I plan on bidding on your beach bag and 3 books. I don’t know anything about ebay and will have to wait for my DH. He has an account on ebay so he can help me. I found your item on page #3 of the auction.
I also am looking hard at Carly Phillips and Lori Wilde’s items.
What a great idea! Thanks for sharing Jane!
I’m having trouble getting to the auction site right now, but I will try again after work tonight…the Jane Porter items sound great!
Hi Jane,
What a wonderful thing to do. I just lost a friend at my work to cancer. I checked out the auction and there is a link on the web site for the beach goodies and novels. Yeah, I just placed a bit on ebay for it. I hope I win, now I just have to watch it like a hawk till it ends.
p.s. I saw an advertisment for Flirting with Forty on the web site http://www.perezhilton.
I was just on Allison’s website last night and read all about this. I don’t have any money right now to bid, don’t consider me for the contest. I just wanted to post what a great thing you are doing.
This is an amazing thing – and definitely the way the world should work.
I’m bidding on your stuff Jane, who else?
happy thursday – peace out
I bid on your beach bag gift set. Although I already own the three books included, it would be nice to have signed copies. Plus, I can always use a trendy beach towel and a Starbucks gift card!
I like all the items, but the quilt from Lynn Viehl and the smart bitches gift certificate and novels are fabulous!! Had to bid on both!!!
I love reading so any of the books would be great or a GC. I’ll have to take a peek at my budget first though.
Seems like there is a something for everyone on this auction. There are a number of things that strike my interest like Jane’s offering as well Alison Kent’s complete set of the SG-5 books and Lucy Monroe and Bronwyn Jameson’s donations. Carrie Alexander, Nancy Warren and JT Schultz also have good things.
Hope that you are taking it easy and writing away, Jane.
Money is really tight right now and I would love to help out Jo… but I can’t at the moment… here are the items I would bid on if I could…
~25 Autographed Leslie Kelly novels
~4 Chris Marie Green Vampire Novels
~The Missing by Shiloh Walker and goodie bag
~2 Erotic Romances and A stuffed wolf from Kate Douglas
First off, I think you are a wonderful person for doing this Jane! This is benefiting a wonderful cause and wish I had the money to bid on the items! Personally, I like the signed books from you. The Starbucks card is always wondeful too….what would I do without my coffee? 🙂
There are so many wonderful items in the auction, it will be hard to chose. I’m leaning towards the books that you have signed.
I work with cancer patients everyday and this is a cause that really touches me. Thanks for getting involved!
Have a wonderful weekend!
I’d love to have the winning bid on your contributions, they sound fun! I saw an ad for the “Flirting” movie at http://icanhascheezburger.com/
Deb
#2 Melissa, you are the winner of this contest! Sorry I didn’t post yesterday but after beginning my web designer to put up the I’m-sick-message on my blog for me, I spent the rest of the day out. Anyway, Melissa, shoot me a private email and congrats, you’re the winner!