You get $3.00 off on the Mirror World Publishing site using the code HOLIDAY23, which is valid from December 1st to 31st. 

You also get the discount through Amazon and other third party retailers starting Dec. 1st…the eBooks are only $2.99 on Amazon.ca and Amazon.com!

This link automatically applies the discount, or the code can be manually entered at checkout: https://www.mirrorworldpublishing.com?cc=HOLIDAY23

Happy Holidays to you!

This holiday season, bring the dual joy of pets and music to your children—give them my award-winning picture book, “Dog Band”! The eBook version is discounted to only $3.99!
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Purchase the eBook anytime before December 25th to take advantage of the special: https://www.amazon.ca/Dog-Band-Regan-W-Macaulay-ebook/dp/B08X64RBSQ/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1700444640&sr=8-1
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But if you want the print edition, I can sign it for you to anyone on your gift list! You can find it on my website: https://www.reganwhmacaulay.com/dog-band.html
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Alfie, Tubby, Ollie, and Raxl have created a band—Dog Band! But what kind of music should Dog Band play? Their assortment of animal friends help them figure it out.

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https://pandamoniumpublishing.wordpress.com/2023/11/19/pandamonium-publishing-house-holiday-gift-giving-guide/

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Love, Merry Myrrh…
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Get your copy directly through me—I can personalize and sign it to anyone on your gift list: https://www.reganwhmacaulay.com/merry-myrrh-the-christmas-bat---new-edition.html
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Don’t wait too long—get your copy in time for the holidays!
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Myrrh is a young and very merry brown bat named after one of the gifts of the Magi.  He experiences the wonders of his first Christmas among the decorations of a farmhouse, as well as the kindness of the family that discovers him in their home.

The October Carnival
By Steve Bernardi

The town of Whisper Falls would not be celebrating Halloween this year. It was a decision which had been almost universally reviled, but still the city council held firm. The decision could be traced back to last Halloween, during which no less than three tragedies took place. To some it was a comfort to believe they were all related, with one malevolent trickster being the cause. The alternative was to accept that the wickedness which persisted in their town was legion, or simply that the random chance of the universe could allow such misfortune at any time.
 
The first tragedy was the least complicated. Ray Brady, aged eleven, had disappeared without a trace. He had been eager to go out with his friends to get candy, his parents reported, but neither of them had been available to drive him. Despite their firm instruction that he was to stay home and watch Halloween specials on TV, he had set out to make the journey himself on foot. None of his friends had seen him, meaning something had happened to him along the way. Whether he had been snatched in the night or merely vanished into thin air, not a soul could say.
 
The second tragedy was the second most harmful. Multiple groups of teenagers had independently decided to try and make a name for themselves as master pranksters, making an innocent bet with one another when their activities overlapped to see who could pull off the most elaborate pranks by midnight. What was surely just a nuisance at first turned into a malicious game of one-upmanship, which ended in three hospitalizations, dozens of police reports, and thousands of dollars in property damage. No arrests were made and no reprisals were dealt out on account of every perpetrator wearing a mask.
 
While not counted amongst the tragedies which occurred that October 31st, it is worthy of note that those involved in the prank wars had all simultaneously removed their costumes and discarded them in a river which ran through the heart of the town. The decision was hasty, conceived from a mixture of exhaustion, fear of consequence, and a nasty sugar rush which rivalled the fiercest intoxication. The buildup of fabric and cheap plastic clogged the waterways, causing flooding in several areas and killing off a population of salmon which was in the middle of its annual migration.
 
And then there was the final tragedy. A batch of tainted candy, homemade, had poisoned dozens of trick-or-treaters. Had the matter ended there it would have been one thing, but there was an additional side-effect to these treats, one which caused those who consumed them to, well…the less said about it the better. Suffice it to say, one suburban household was destroyed, and countless sidewalks were irrevocably stained from the evening’s carnage.
 
The media fallout was heinous, with everyone falling over themselves with the sheer volume of ways they were able to ask how such an awful night was allowed to happen. Fingers were pointed, names were thrown under the bus by those looking for someone to blame. The small town whose most exciting export was drywall suddenly found itself on the national news, with words like ‘irresponsible’ and ‘cataclysmic’ slapped on it, because what’s a wound without a little salt to liven things up a little?
 
The notion of cancelling Halloween was floated around for several weeks before the motion carried. There may have been more opposition to it, had it not been for the collective trauma of Whisper Falls. Nobody wanted to even think about Halloween, and any reminders served only to turn their eyes away. They tried to distract themselves with preparations for Christmas, but that December which should have been warmed by festive lights and good cheer was just cold.
 
There weren’t even that many on the city council who wanted to cancel Halloween. But there were eyes on them, and they were expected to do SOMETHING to show they were trying to prevent another disaster. By the time it got far enough to actually happen it was too late; if they backed down now it would make them look weak, and open the town up to more scrutiny. When the decision was made, each politician involved privately absolved themselves of guilt with potent denial, maintaining that cancelling the holiday was really the best thing for their community.
 
Local businesses felt the hit coming first. Stock which had been ordered almost a year in advance had to be sent back at cost to the retailers. Hefty fines were issued to anyone promoting Halloween or trick-or-treating. Any candy packaged in seasonally dark wrapping, or costumes of any kind, were targets on the back of every small grocer and big box store. A few thought they could still make a profit by accepting these fines and selling festive merchandise anyway, but there was no one heretical enough to buy it.
 
It had been a grey September in more ways than one that year. Heavy rainfall beat down on Whisper Falls, painting the sky in bleak tones which mirrored the way more and more people seemed to feel. Christmas music came early from a few stores; a fitting death knell for the holiday that kids loved, and most adults didn’t realize they’d miss until it was gone.
 
“I can’t take it anymore!” shouted Becky Myers, aged thirteen. Had there been anyone present besides her two best friends, she might have felt a little more insecure about such an unbridled and spirited display of passion. But there wasn’t, so she just felt ticked off.

“Easy, fearless leader,” offered Joe. “People our age shouldn’t have blood pressure as high as yours.”