Greetings, friends and family. This will be my last regular post for the year. I will be on a blogging break while I work on my Top Ten best reads for 2025 list and other things that I’ll be sharing with you.
Our author community is grieving for the loss of Joan Hall. She passed away suddenly on December 6th. I’m in shock, as we all are. My heart goes out to her family and I pray they find peace. She was a friend to all authors and gave selflessly. I never asked her for anything she didn’t immediately say yes to. She will be sorely missed. This is the last time I saw her, which was November of last year. She and her husband, John, met me at a Cracker Barrel on my way home from Arkansas. I’m still in shock. Please keep John and her family in your prayers.
This past week I worked a lot. We are doing store inventory and physically counting everything. It will be ongoing through the month, so I will be busier than usual, is that’s even possible.
I have mentioned getting the White Rune Series back up (and they are) BUT two of the books are not showing any categories. Has this ever happened to you? I have contacted KDP to ask why the categories are missing. Hopefully, I’ll get an answer. It’s always something, right?
Over the next few weeks, I’ll be editing and tweaking the short stories for the new collection I will release next year. I’m looking forward to sharing these.
I got to spend some time last Friday evening with my two youngest grandsons and it was such a joy. My sixteen-year-old plays Tuba in the high school band and the younger one is learning to play clarinet in middle school. They put on a concert for me! I should have taken pictures, but I was just enjoying the moment.
I pulled up some interesting stats as I looked back on the year. I am happy with what I found.
My blog jumped from 7.4k views in 2024 to 13.4k in 2025! I am doing a happy dance over that. I published 101 posts. I had 3.2k comments in 2025 compared to 1.8k in 2024. My most viewed and shared post was this one: https://jansikes.com/the-weight-of-snow-and-regret-blog-tour-inspiration-newrelease-lizgauffreau-bsky-social/ Congratulations to Liz!
I don’t know what I’ll do on this blog next year, but hopefully I can get inspired with something new and fun. I’d like to go back to blogging at least twice a week, if I can manage it. I have also joined Substack. Well, actually, I joined about a year ago and never did anything with it. I’m still learning what the platform has to offer. I don’t see that it will ever take the place of this blog, but it might replace my monthly newsletter. As I say, I’m still learning. If you’re on Substack, I’d appreciate a follow! https://substack.com/@jansikes145199?
I love this bit of inspiration, and hope you will, too.
I went to the Angel cards for our final card for this year. I just love it! What a great thought to carry into a new year. We all have knowledge on different aspects of what we do and by sharing, we all grow together.
I wish you good days ahead filled with love, laughter and joy. Please join me in sending up a prayer for all those suffering this holiday season.
I’ll be back with my Top Ten list when I get it created. It’s going to be so hard to choose. I had a stellar year in reading!!
Here’s a thought to carry with us into 2026: “Last year’s words belong to last year’s language. And next year’s words await another voice.” –T.S. Eliot
Take care, tell your loved ones what they mean to you and keep creating!
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Joan’s passing was such a blow to our blogging community. She will be missed by many.
Yes, it was, Liz. Thank you for leaving a comment.
You’re welcome, Jan.
Happy Holidays, Jan. Wishing you the best in the new year.
Thank you, Andrew!
The photo of you and Joan is precious, Jan. What a loss for our writing community. 🙁
You have a lot going on, and I enjoyed reading your thoughts about what you’ve accomplished and what you’re thinking about for the coming year. I know you’ll get those categories figured out, and I’m looking forward to your new stories. Wishing you a beautiful holiday, my friend. Hugs.
Such a lovely tribute to our dear Joan. I still am having trouble believing she is no longer with us. I love the Angel card you picked. A good reminder. Have a wonderful Christmas with your family my friend. ❤️❤️🎄
Thank you for visiting, Darlene. I appreciate you. I wish you and your family a wonderful Christmas!
This is a lovely post, Jan. Your relationship with your grandchildren is wonderful. I’m not on substack and just can’t. I have enough SM as it is. Joan’s passing shocked me too as I received a news letter from her recently and she released a new book not long ago. I thought she was doing okay. Hugs
Thank you, Robbie. You are so right about social media and I don’t know if I will stick with substack. There is simply not enough hours in a day to do it all. And yes, Joan’s passing is still a shock. It’s hard to believe it’s real.
Hi Jan, I didn’t know Joan, but I’m so sorry to hear of her sudden passing. My heart goes out to her family and friends. Thanks for your update, and I wish you a wonderful holiday with your family. I appreciate your support as well. Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year! ❤️
So sad to hear this news about Joan. I only knew her as a blog friend. She always had lovely comment. She will be missed.
Thank you, Paula.
I did not know Joan Hall really well but I’ve conversed with her on her blog. Her passing is certainly a shock and I am very sorry for your loss. I wish you as well good days ahead filled with love, laughter and joy and a Merry Christmas.
Thank you so much, Thomas!
I was totally shocked that Joan passed, too. That photo is a beautiful memory. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you for stopping by, John. I am glad you did.
Jan, that photo of you and Joan is precious. Just looking at her brings tears to my eyes. You are so lucky to have met her in person. Thank you for sharing that.
I am so glad I got to meet Joan in person. And John, too. I am still in shock, as I know so many are. Thank you so much for stopping by, Mae.
Very sad news about Joan. I had noticed that she hadn’t been blogging much in the last couple of years. She was always so kind to her fellow bloggers.
Thank you, Pete. Yes, Joan was always kind to everyone and she will be missed.
I’d noticed the same thing, Pete, and hoped that her cancer hadn’t returned.
It’s sad that Joan passed away, but nice that you can share good news about your blog and White Rune Series, Jan.
Thank you, Tim!
You’re welcome, Jan. 😊
I hadn’t heard about Joan. I saw a few posts she made recently–a comment on one of my articles, too–thought things were on the rise. I am so sad. She was one of those bright lights. No surprise the card you drew was the Angel card.
You are right in saying Joan was one of those bright lights, Jacqui. She will be sorely missed. I was definitely drawn to the Angel cards this time and it was a beautiful message. Thank you for stopping by!
I was a band mom for many years, so I love that your grandsons enjoy music, Jan. Because of marching band in college, Reese performed in over ten different countries and also on a cruise ship. I was shocked and saddened to learn about Joan, but how fortunate you were to meet her in person last year. Merry Christmas and enjoy your time with family!
My daughter is a dedicated band mom, and loves it. My middle grandson is going to get to march in the St. Paddy’s day parade in Dublin in March! What a great experience for your son, Reese, to get to see the world AND play music. I treasured my friendship with Joan and she will be sorely missed.
Yay for Dublin – and on St. Paddy’s day!
Joan was a bright star in our writing community.
How precious that your grandsons gave you a tuba-clarinet concert! That sounds so fun!
I loved that the boys wanted to play their instruments for me. It was one of those rare moments in time where you just want to hit pause and soak it up. You are right about Joan. She was a bright star. thank you for stopping by.
I was so sad to hear about Joan. I didn’t know her well, but I recall having some very nice comment/reply exchanges with her and she seemed like a caring person. My heart goes out to her family. Good luck with all the plans and work. I hope you have a great week.
Thank you, Dan. Joan was such a giving person. She was always ready to help anyone who needed it. I’m happy you stopped by and I wish you a great week ahead as well!
I still cannot believe that Joan has gone… it must have been sudden and as you have done, condolences to her husband and family… I know we have reached an age when we do expect those we love and connect with may leave us, but it is still a shock… Like you I am considering my blogging for next year. I know you are busy with your job so we will be delighted to see you when you can fit the blogging in… Merry Christmas Jan and love and hugs Sally ♥
Thank you, dear Sally. You are right in that we’ve reached an age where we lose more of the people we care for, but this year for me, with losing Rox Burkey and now Joan, it just too hard. Merry Christmas to you and your crew, my friend. I’m sending the love and hugs right back to you across the pond!
Oh poor John! I hadn’t heard this sad news until now. Joan will be missed deeply. Thanks for sharing this news, Jan. wishing you all the best 💜💜💜
My heart goes out to John, Harmony. I know he is completely lost. Thank you for stopping by. Hope you are doing well.
Oh, Jan! My heart is breaking with the news about Joan. :'( I didn’t know her the way you did, but I know she was a talented author and was very loved by all who knew her. She definitely made her mark in the pattern of the universe.
Yvette M Calleiro 🙂
http://yvettemcalleiro.blogspot.com
You are so right, Yvette. She definitely made her mark and she will always be remembered for her kindness and support of others. Thank you for stopping by.