A Little Help from My Friends

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.