Celebrating New Years With Friends #OpenBook Blog Hop

 

December 30, 2019

Do your characters celebrate New Year’s and if so, how?

I haven’t written a holiday scene (any holiday!) into my books. (Hmm, I should change that one of these days) So, I had to think about it.

Harmony, from my mysteries, isn’t the type to go watch the tinsel oak leaf drop from the water tower in Oak Grove. What else would the town use to mark the New Year? And the water tower is the logical spot, being up on the hill and visible from many places in the town. No, she’d rather sit in her comfy chair, read a book, sip a glass of wine, and listen to classic rock. At least, almost until midnight, when she’d jump onto a video call with Eli to wish him a Happy New Year. He’d be up coding and welcome the break and the chance to flirt with his favorite lady.

Jake would be out bar hopping, flirting with all the ladies, the life of the party everywhere he went. He’ll even play along when guys flirt with him. When he finally heads to his place at 3 or 4 in the morning, he’ll still sober despite having a drink in his hand all night long.

The shifters in my Free Wolves series take advantage of the human holiday. (They celebrate a different New Year’s Day.) They can move about in their shifted forms, and no one will own up to spotting them. Because if someone claims to have seen a huge wolf in the alley, their friends will call it a night and take them home for being too drunk to stay at the bar.

The best part, as far as the wolf-shifters are concerned, is that the day marks a universal moment of peace. For twenty-four hours, all hostilities between packs cease. Any pack that dares to break the tradition is shunned by all packs for the next year.

As a result, it has become a day when old enemies mingle,  treaties are signed, and new alliances are formed. Cubs are rarely born on the New Year, and when one is, the cub is considered a special gift to its pack, a bringer of good luck. They are also much sought after as mates and often are used as bargaining chips in inter-pack negotiations. Naturally, this practice is seen as archaic by the more modernized packs.

So, it’s a day when old friends and old enemies can drink together. But shifters have a higher tolerance for alcohol so they don’t get drunk as easily. (Jake? But I’m getting my series crossed.)

What are Gavin and Dot doing to celebrate the New Year? As pack leader. it’s obligatory that Gavin spends his night with his pack in the Fairwood village. There will be a bonfire in the middle of the pack gathering grounds with an assortment of refreshments provided. Fireworks will be set off, and the old tradition of banging pot lids together will add another layer of noise. Gavin and Dot will make sure that they take a moment to talk to everyone who shows up to the party, then quietly slip away to find a private place to kiss at midnight.

That’s what I imagine my characters do to celebrate New Year’s. I wonder what everyone else’s characters do? I’m going to follow the links below and find out! But before I go, I want to wish everyone good fortune and happiness in the New Year.

December 30, 2019

Do your characters celebrate New Years’ and if so, how?

Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use #OpenBook when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.

 

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