Published in a Worldwide Book Series: Chicken Soup for the Soul

I love writing. I can write about anything, whatever my imagination fancies. It helps that I am observant. I learned to observe and while doing so, my imagination runs wild with ideas. Heck, I wrote a small children’s nursery book regarding a cup I saw on the street while waiting at a red stoplight! Besides writing for a few online platforms, I write books and self-publish on Amazon. As well as take on any opportunities I find to submit my stories. Such is the case with this year’s Chicken Soup for the Soul Christmas book, The Magic of Christmas.

Chicken Soup for the Soul has a book series, where they publish people’s true stories based on a variety of topics. I love they are all-inclusive. Therefore, you can submit your stories regardless of race, nationality, faith, or sexual orientation. Also, they share their revenues with nonprofit organizations such as the American Humane, Dress for Success, and Toys for Tots. All of the above were things that caught my attention.

After researching the company, I knew I wanted to contribute to their next book, Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Magic of Christmas. This series comprises 101 Tales of holiday joy, love, and gratitude, and I had the perfect true story for it. Of course, not any or all stories will make the cut. You need to keep in mind they receive thousands of submissions. All stories go through a selection process that takes a few months before publication. Therefore, I knew it had to be a good story for it to be selected. I submitted my story sometime early in the year. And then it happened. On July 1st, I received an email from Chicken Soup for the Soul that began with,

“Dear Debbie, your story, “A Christmas Miracle Right Before My Eyes” has made it to the first phase of our selection round for Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Magic of Christmas. Only a small percent of the submitted stories have made it this far…”

I was thrilled and full of emotions. Frankly, I forgot I had submitted my story, so when I received their email, I was ecstatic. But I was not over the hump yet. This was just the first phase. I had to wait for them to narrow down the official list of stories to publish. What took only a couple of weeks seemed like an eternity to me. Then, on July 14th, I received the official notice:

“Dear Debbie, your story, “A Christmas Miracle Right Before My Eyes” has made it to the final selection round for Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Magic of Christmas…”

I made it! Finally, I am published in a book! I am so excited and proud of myself for having made it into a publication alongside 100 other grand stories from different contributors. Although I have self-published my own books, it was a totally different feeling — so much pride. It opened a new window for me to expose my writings. According to the Chicken Soup for the Soul website, their series has sold over 500 million copies worldwide. Their books have been published in over 100 countries and translated into 43 languages.

Therefore, I invite you to join me in supporting Chicken Soup for the Soul, The Magic of Christmas. The book is available for sale on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org, and Indiebound. Purchase your book in time to gift it to your family and friends for Christmas. Know that when you purchase one of these books, you are also supporting the Toys for Tots organization since royalties from this book benefit this wonderful cause.

Also, Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Magic of Christmas wants to help your non-profit organizations with a fundraising program. These books can be used by a non-profit for fundraising, as gifts for non-profit patients, students, or volunteers, as goody bag gifts, etc. Contact Barbara LoMonaco at [email protected] for the details.