Guest Post and Giveaway with Melanie Jacobson

Today Fire and Ice is thrilled to host a guest post and giveaway from author Melanie Jacobson. I gave five stars to her newest book Not My Type which I just finished reading. Oh does Melanie know how to write a kiss! You will fall head over heels in love with her characters and the adventures of Indie girl who braves the crazy world of online dating for her job as a local journalist. This is one of the most fun books I've read all year. Welcome Melanie Jacobsen author of Not My Type: A Single Girl's Guide to Doing It All Wrong, Paperback, 257 pages Published September 1st 2011 by Covenant Communications.
Twenty-three-year-old Pepper Spicer is not living the dream. She ended her engagement at the last minute because her fiance-a musician and soon-to-be reality TV star-wanted her to sacrifice her own career ambitions for his. Now she's stuck at home sharing a room with her little sister, trying to pay off massive debt for a wedding that didn't happen, and spending Friday nights Facebook-stalking everyone who has a better life. Her therapist father urges her to choose her career dreams and count her blessings by writing weekly thank-you notes, but gratitude is a tall order when she botches an important job interview and has to settle for writing an undercover dating web-zine column-the last thing in the world she wants to do. Life takes a major upswing as Pepper's column hits the big time and she tastes the exhilarating thrill of success. But there's one tiny problem: the intensely hot man she's falling for is having issues with her job (again). Will Pepper trade her personal ambition for another chance at love?

Guest Post from the author: "My mom never made me write thank you notes. For a lot of reasons, it was one of those things that fell through the cracks of my social training. Thanks to a situation in which I mortally offended my new step-grandmother by not writing a thank you note I didn't know I was supposed to write, I've been reformed. Um, mostly.

Actually, I was kind of obsessed for a while. So much so that at one point I imagined writing a note that was going to get me on Oprah, a dream I've now had to accept I'll never realize. Along with the one where I'm invited to be on her favorite things show. But I haven't given up hope for making it to one of the Ellen twelve days of Christmas.

Anyway, the idea was that I would write a thank you note to someone every week for a year and then record the effects I observed.

That idea disappeared to the same place that has stolen all my best money-making schemes and sure-fire bestseller ideas. In other words, it went into the ether and it's floating around with all the wished upon dandelion fluff and falling star dust, waiting to coalesce into another dream for Stephenie Meyers.

But I've always loved the idea of a year of thank yous. Ultimately, instead of a life project it became a novel, Not My Type, about a girl named Pepper whose father challenges her to write the notes in an effort to snap her out of a self-pity funk. Still, the constant questions I get about, “Where did you get your idea from?” and “Do you write thank you notes?” has reminded me that I owe quite a few to people, so I might as well start catching up right here.

Dear Legos,

Thanks for teaching me the superhuman skill of biting back curses. Every time I have stepped on one of your evil bricks when chasing a half-naked child to wrestle her into a diaper, I have managed to keep the most vile curses behind my teeth. This has translated into me being able to travel the local freeways and merely grunt as I bite back my road rage-induced profanity. Sure, it sounds like I've had a stroke. But my kids have learned all their swear words from the church nursery and NONE of it from me. Barefoot Lego damage has prepared me well.

Dear Clothing Manufacturers.

I have gained thirty pounds in the last ten years, but every time I go shopping, I wear the exact same size. I love vanity sizing! Keep up the good work, guys!

Dear Dove Milk Chocolate Squares,

Sometimes you are the only reason my children survive the day. This thanks is really more on their behalf, because seriously, they OWE you one. More than one. They kind of owe you for every Friday afternoon that they've survived.

Dear kids,

Thanks for making me laugh, even though sometimes I'm doing it through Lego-induced tears. Love you guys! "

About the author: Melanie Bennett Jacobson is an avid reader, amateur cook, and champion shopper. She consumes astonishing amounts of chocolate, chick flicks, and romance novels. After meeting her husband online, she is now living happily married in Southern California with her growing family and a series of doomed houseplants. Melanie is a former English teacher and a popular speaker who loves to laugh and make others laugh. In her down time (ha!), she writes romantic comedies for Covenant and maintains her humorous slice-of-life blog. Her second novel, Not My Type, hits shelves in September. Visit Melanie on her website or blog. Click here to order Not My Type at 20% off the cover price.

To enter to win a copy of my new novel, Not My Type: A Single Girl's Guide to Doing It All Wrong, I'd love to hear about one thing you're thankful for that you wouldn't normally list. You don't even have to explain your answer. For example, for different reasons, I could and probably should thank the following things: Red Box, kitchen tongs, the neighbor's dog, and Cheez Its. Good luck!

Leave your entry in the comments below and we will pick a winner on November 10, 2011.