I’m sitting in my living room as I write this (a departure from my normal office space) because my daughter was the emcee of her winter concert today and I was simply not allowed to leave her at school and return to my office on such a festive day (did I mention she’s 6?).

As I sit here typing, I’m surrounded with festivity: A twinkling Christmas tree, a small Christmas village, one slightly creepy Elf on the Shelf, and a couple dozen wrapped presents.

The wrapped gifts thing is a new one for me this early on. I usually wait until Christmas Eve to wrap gifts. But Nola was very eager to help with the wrapping this year. And frankly, I ran out of places to hide things.

So, Christmas is very much on my mind, and as it’s my last blog before that Jolly Old Elf comes to visit, I thought I’d share a couple of projects with you in case you’re not quite as ready for Christmas (or perhaps you’re even farther ahead and looking for an escape of your own).

The first is a holiday video created by the talented minds behind such things here at WMG (read: not me J). It’s a visual gift guide of sorts, and guaranteed to put you in a holiday mood.

The second item of the day is a gift for Dean Wesley Smith, in a way. Here at WMG, we’ve just released a new edition of his very first published novel. Other than a brand new cover and design (plus an ebook edition), we’ve published Laying the Music to Rest unchanged from its first printing by Warner Questar Books back in 1989.

Here’s the synopsis:

A former college professor turned bartender, Doc finds himself trying to save his friends from a ghost under a lake in the wilderness of Idaho.

From diving into a ghost town buried under a lake to trying to stay alive on the sinking deck of the Titanic, this time-travel science fiction novel reads like a rollercoaster ride with all the twists and turns.

First published in paperback in 1989 from Warner Questar Books, Dean Wesley Smith’s first published novel gives a lot of hints of his future series and his bestselling career spanning over a hundred and fifty novels.

Published here in its original form, without any changes, just as Dean wrote it almost thirty years ago.

The novel was first serialized in Smith’s Monthly and then published in its entirety in Smith’s Monthly #36. It that issue, you can also read all about the genesis of the novel and what it meant to Dean to have it republished all these years later.

Or, if you want just the standalone novel, it’s now available in ebook and trade paperback.

So, whether you celebrate Christmas or not, you’ll have plenty to read. In the meantime, I wish you and yours a very happy holiday season.

Allyson Longueira is publisher of WMG Publishing. She is an award-winning writer, editor and designer.