LUCY BURDETTE: I’m thrilled to announce that my women’s fiction title about a psychologist publishing a new pop psych book on happiness is finally here! I’ve heard about authors who insist their books arrived in their minds whole cloth, almost like a movie unspooling—their challenge was to write fast enough to get all the ideas and plot twists on paper. Not THE INGREDIENTS OF HAPPINESS! This book has been a labor of love, with years and years of revisions and new ideas and old ideas brought home again. This book did not arrive in a coup de foudre; nothing about it has been an overnight sensation.
Here’s the first time I wrote about it on this blog: This was 2018 and I know I’d been working on the book for years before that…
And here’s a blog I wrote in 2019 about how make little tweaks toward bigger happiness—I love this blog and recommend you read it. (It’s worth it for the singing cat and my favorite picture of T-bone’s ear!) I am certain I was working through some questions about Cooper and her book. Though it seems odd to me now that I was writing about boosting happiness when the pandemic wasn’t even on the horizon.
Thinking about the long gestation of this book, I grew curious and dug around in my email folders. I found several drafts of chapter one from 2008. Overnight sensation? Ha! Today’s opening bears very little resemblance to the earliest version. Plus, the title has been through many iterations. And so has the plot. But the thing that has never changed is the presence of the basic character, Dr. Cooper Hunziker. I just had to figure out how to dig deeper, to understand who she really is and why she is that way.
Oh wait, lest you think I’m exaggerating about how long this book took, I just unearthed one more blog. This is a real oldie, back when Rosemary Harris and Jan Brogan were blog sisters, and I went by Roberta rather than Lucy, and Julia and Debs and Jenn were not even a twinkle in our eyes… Cooper was chasing happiness even back in those days!
Though it may sound completely goofy, gratitude has been shown to boost happiness by promoting the savoring of positive life experiences, bolstering self-worth, helping the reinterpretation of stressful life experiences, encouraging helping others, building social bonds, inhibiting invidious comparisons, diminishing negative emotions, and thwarting hedonic adaptation!! One simple technique pinpointed by the research of psychologist Sonja Lyubomirski is counting blessings. In her study, people who actively expressed optimism and gratitude felt happier and less depressed than those who didn't. From THE HAPPINESS CONNECTION by Cooper Hunziker, Ph.D
All that angst aside, I’m so happy this day has finally arrived! I’d love to celebrate by giving away one copy of HAPPINESS, and two of these adorable tea bags that I found on Etsy. They say “the ingredients of happiness” in Italian! Leave a comment about a project that’s taken far longer than you ever dreamed of, or else pitch us your best tip about boosting happiness! (It helps a lot to leave a disguised email too…)
"Lucy Burdette's The Ingredients of Happiness is a compelling take on contemporary life and society's longing for personal fulfillment. Dr. Cooper Hunziker takes the reader on quite a journey -- which includes the friendship of a gargoyle named Howard -- as she untangles the threads of her life to accept the past, reveal a present betrayal, and finally find her own brand of happiness in an honest and heartfelt tale of self-discovery." --Jenn McKinlay
The setting is well developed, and Cooper’s journey has depths that are well-balanced with lighter moments. I would happily re-enter the world and lives introduced here. Burdette has the recipe for a feel-good - and thought-provoking - read. Give this to readers of Barbara O’Neal. Becca B., Librarian (Netgalley)
Ways to buy the book
And ps I'll be celebrating both this book and A CLUE IN THE CRUMBS at RJ Julia Booksellers in Madison CT on August 9 at 7 pm. Call ahead to reserve your spot 203-245-3959
Congrats on this new release!
ReplyDeletethanks Mark
DeleteCongratulations, Lucy . . . . I loved this book!
ReplyDeleteAs for boosting happiness . . . choose to be happy. Smile; be positive; be kind to yourself . . . .
thanks Joan! You'd be our happiness poster child
DeleteCongrats on your new book!!
ReplyDeletethank you!
DeleteCongratulations on your book release. I was lucky to get an early read and I enjoyed it. Tip for happiness is "don't let stress rule your life" and "if you are happy, that is all that matters"
ReplyDeletethank you Dru. For sure on Stress! It's just figuring out how to let it go, right?
DeleteCan't wait to read this - the world needs more happiness! I am sure that is what keeps my 101 year old Mom going. She endured World War II, the Japanese occupation of her homeland, and many moves over the years, always positive, always learning, always smiling.
ReplyDeleteShe sounds like an amazing woman!
DeleteMy ingredients of happiness is a new book and some tea…
ReplyDeleteCongrats Lucy!
ReplyDeletethank you!
DeleteCongratulations, Lucy! I was delighted to see I was one of the commenters on that oldie blog link you included. And I'm glad you stuck with Cooper and the idea for the book.
ReplyDeleteI started writing my first novel in 1994 and the book that came out of it, A TINE TO LIVE, A TINE TO DIE, was published in 2013, landing as my second novel (with the first pubbed only nine months earlier).
I noticed that Edith, amazing! big congrats on your tenacity too--you've come such a long way!
DeleteI read one of the early versions of this book and loved it so much! Such a smart idea and likeable character.I’ve got several manuscripts “gestating” (for years)… I always tell new writers: don’t throw anything away!
ReplyDeletethanks Hallie, and so true...save everything!
DeleteCannot wait to read it!
ReplyDeletethank you Barbara!
DeleteCongratulations on your new release I would love to read a copy
ReplyDeleteRose Ward
rmward92@yahoo.com
thanks Rose!
DeleteLUCY: Congratulations on the release of this book! I was lucky to read a digital ARC earlier this year.
ReplyDeleteMany of us seek happiness. I download the Greater Good Science Center's happiness calendar each month.
https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/tag/happiness+calendar
What a good idea Grace, I've never heard of that calendar and will go look!
DeleteCongratulations Roberta/Lucy! Persistence has to count as an ingredient to happiness and to success and it sure paid off. My suggestion for boosting happiness is cultivating the ability to focus attention. We all have the ability to decide what to focus on at any given moment. Fred Luskin wrote a book, Forgive For Good, that helped me a lot when I was struggling years ago and he called it 'changing the channel'. I get to decide what I'm going to pay attention to--if I'm going to notice the beauty around me rather than staying stuck in negative thinking. Gratitude goes along with this, because once I started noticing the good, I started feeling grateful.
ReplyDeleteI love that Gillian, because it's specific enough to be very helpful!
DeleteLucy, I had the book on order several months ago and I got a call from them a couple of weeks ago saying the book came in. I went to pick it up and paid for it. Then after I got home I realized (no price on the upper right corner of the front jacket) it was different than others. The salesperson was new and probably, like me, didn't know the difference.
ReplyDeleteI read the book straight through. I honestly can say it is excellent. It is much deeper than I thought it would be touching on many issues we all face or have faced.
I appreciate that so much!!
DeleteWonderful! Congratulations :-) Thank you for the chance to win! The book looks fabulous and I can't wait to read it. Connection with good friends is a key ingredient!
ReplyDeleteSo true Angie, thanks!
DeleteWow I am so excited to read yet another book Lucy Burdette. Congratulations on this book.
ReplyDeletethank you!
DeletePre-ordered and waiting! My copy's on the way! I just love the cover!
ReplyDeletePeople don't realize how much control they actually have over their own happiness. You have to be willing to embrace it.
thanks Judy! changing little things can make a big difference.
DeleteLucy, congratulations !!! Currently reading your Ingredients of Happiness novel. Just woke up and cannot think before I had a cup of coffee. LOL
ReplyDeleteDiana
thanks Diana, I know that feeling!
DeleteLucy some time ago you mentioned your mother had similar issues and Dr. Howard Blue was a close family friend, and that you worked at the Yale Health Center. Is this somewhat autobiographical?
ReplyDeleteLittle bits are similar to my life--Cooper lives in the apartment I lived in, and of course she is a psychologist. But in the big things, no, not autobiographical. Dr. Blue was a dear friend and I am sad he left us way too soon.
DeleteCongratulations! You did it!
ReplyDeletethank you!
DeleteHuge congrats on this book, Lucy!! All that effort was well worth it!! It's a wonderful novel!
ReplyDeletethanks Debs, having my JRW pals in the background helps a lot!
DeleteCongratulations!
ReplyDeleteI love books in the happiness genre and I'm a true believer in gratitude changing your life. I fell in love with the concept when I first read Sarah Ban Breathnach's Simple Abundance. I'm looking forward to reading INGREDIENTS OF HAPPINESS.
thanks Kait!
DeleteSeeing this book finally in print must bring you much happiness! Being outside connecting with nature is a happiness booster for me.
ReplyDeleteYou're right Brenda, it does bring me happiness. Glad nature does that for you!
DeleteSounds like a great book!
ReplyDeleteFor happiness I say don’t take everything personally!
njcar22(at)aol(dot)com
Such a wise suggestion, thanks Nicole!
DeleteThis is absolutely fantastic. I mean—-profoundly so. You are the shining example of persistence, sure, and dream-following, but also of the understanding that there is a time for things—and when it’s time for things to blossom, they do. Standing ovation! Xxx
ReplyDeleteThanks Hank, for all your support in every way!
DeleteSo happy for you! That's one of my tips--stop focusing so much on your own personal happiness and embrace happy times for others. I've put a request in at our local library for this book to be ordered--waiting for it to appear and will be telling everyone to read it!
ReplyDeleteExcellent suggestion Flora! And thanks for requesting from your library.
DeleteCongratulations! This is a book which I will cherish. Appreciate everyday and the outdoors, walks and beauty that surrounds us.
ReplyDeletethank you!
DeleteLucy/Roberta, with all you've gone through to birth this book, I feel you deserve a fanfare for getting it out there! Ta-DAAAA! So happy for you, and I can't wait to read it.
ReplyDeleteMy mother has gone through massive heartache, actual pain, and deprivation in her 93 years, and she continues to be happy. If she can choose to see the small and large joys of life, we all can. Attitude is everything, I firmly believe.
thanks Karen, and love hearing about your mother's approach to life!
DeleteRome was not built in a day. Why should a
ReplyDeletebook be built in a few years, weeks. Have
to do what it takes so you are satisfied with
what you are putting out there under your
name. Looking forward to reading the
book.
Thanks Mary. This book was definitely the slow boat to China!
DeleteFrom Celia: Congratulations doesn’t seem like enough Roberta and what an accomplishment and such tenacity too. I want to read it as I feel that you are launching at just the right time looking at the world. I’ve written more than once that Victor and I kept very strict lockdown and follow up rules. I’m still not going into any public place for more than ten minutes without a mask. But that aside life has changed for all of us and it’s taking a time for me as an oldie to readjust. However I have so much to celebrate and be happy about in
ReplyDeletemy current life, not to mention my JRW community. I wish you stellar sales and a NYT great review which you deserve.
You're very kind Celia. We have all been through so much, especially those of us with special vulnerabilities and also those who have lost loved ones, and other precious things during this pandemic period. I hope you and Victor continue to adjust and enjoy life fully!
DeleteI was in my local bookstore on Sunday, remembering you had a new book due. But, alas, I was just a couple days early, but now I can go back this weekend so all good for me. I always see happiness as an individual thing, as individual as the next person in line at at the market.
ReplyDeleteYes agree on how individual happiness is. Thanks so much for going to the bookstore TWICE!!
DeleteI loved this book so much. Everyone, go buy it right now! It's sure to make you HAPPY :)
ReplyDeleteJenn, thank you so much xoxo
DeleteI'm so excited it's finally here, Lucy! THE INGREDIENTS OF HAPPINESS is going to be a huge success, and I know your cozy readers are going to adore this new venture.
ReplyDeletethank you Julia! xo
DeleteCongratulations on this book. I have an unfinished book that I started 15 years ago and keep working on off and on because I love it. So this post gives me hope. And The Ingredients of Happiness sounds like a book I would love. I'm a great believer in the importance of gratitude and how it can illuminate understanding of one's life.
ReplyDeleteIf you love the book, definitely keep working Elizabeth! We will wait...
DeleteRead your book and loved it, Lucy! I was lucky enough to read it early on Netgalley. As for being happy, I think you have to remind yourself sometimes about what you already have as opposed to what you want. It took me a few years (with interruptions from Covid and two years while our granddaughter lived with us) to find a place to move to and a house to buy. It finally came together last year and I love my house and feel wonderfully safe in my new town! Perhaps persistence is one of the steps towards happiness!
ReplyDeletethanks Pat, and so glad to hear you had a successful move!
DeleteCongratulations. How fantastic that you knew this story needed to be told and nurtured it to maturity.
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to read it.
thanks a million!
DeleteCongratulations!
ReplyDeleteGetting rid of stress helps in happiness. My happiness is a good book and a relaxing trail ride in nature.
Can’t wait to read the book!
You are right--it's hard to be happy while stressed...
DeleteShalom Reds and readers –
ReplyDelete----------Congrats on the new book. I will look for it.
----------All things being equal, I am happy most of the time. I think it’s mostly temperament, which may be genetic, because even though myself and my brothers are very different, they are both very easy going and usually happy, also.
----------There are two things that bring me great joy and contentment. The first is music. I love listening to most all types of music. And these days, when I am not at work, I have earbuds in my ear, listening to something. With audio streaming, we are surely living in the golden age of recorded music and also the recorded spoken word.
---------The second solitary pursuit that I have cultivated, is the ability to fall asleep. I do everything that they say not to do in order to fall asleep in a timely fashion. Being single, I leave the lights on. I bring my phone to bed. I drink coffee in the late afternoon and sometimes into the evening. Etc. But between 9 pm and midnight, if I am in bed, I close my eyes, listening to some odd podcast and just relaxing I am asleep within five minutes. I’ve reached the age where I may awake several times during the night, but I have trained myself, to stay relaxed and return to sleep promptly.
---------There was a time in my life when insomnia was a great challenge in my life. So being able to fall asleep at will is a great and satisfying gift in my life.
wow I am so envious of your ability to fall asleep! I'm certain temperament has something to do with happiness, but everyone I believe can make changes that help!
DeleteCongratulations. Will grab my copy this week. 🍾📖 Wendy
ReplyDeletethank you Wendy!
DeleteWhat a wonderful feeling--to publish a book that has been an important goal to you for so many years, Lucy. I'm very happy for you. And, speaking of happiness and trying to live a happy life, I don't think my formula is very original, but I try to focus on small, everyday things, like good weather and beautiful flowers on my balcony, and medium-sized things that I look forward to, like an interesting vacation, and not on analyzing my Life with a capital L.
ReplyDeletethank you Kim! Your suggestions are spot on.
DeleteCongratulations on your new release! I'm looking forward to reading it. I think having a positive attitude helps in the happiness department. We have to be happy with ourselves to project happiness.
ReplyDeletediannekc8(at)gmail(dot)com
thanks Dianne!
DeleteLove your books!
ReplyDeletethanks so much!
DeleteIt's SUCH a good book! Delayed success? I got my teaching degree in 1972, when schools were laying off instead of hiring, so I worked in insurance until 1980! Then that district laid off a bunch of us. Worth the exercise in patience when I found FHSD in 1983. StorytellerMaryG (gmail)
ReplyDeleteYay for patience Mary!
DeleteI am a quilter, so my guest room--well, my entire house, if I'm being honest--is overflowing with projects that have taken so much longer than I ever anticipated. Quilts that seemed straightforward until I neared the finish line, and then realized it needed appliquéd flowers around the border, or a quotation stitched along the edge. Or the blue and white quilt that stared at me for years, looking exactly as I designed it, "ready to go", but I knew it was not right. Eventually I saw a photo of a folk art quilt and knew that I needed to cut the blue and white quilt apart and then sew it back together, in chunks. So...it's back on the list. When I get to it, it will be fantastic, and just right. Congratulations and way to go to you, for getting your book to this point. etalmage at earthlink dot net
ReplyDeleteWow, those are amazing stories. I can't wait to see the blue and white quilt...
DeleteCongrats on release! Best tip for happiness is getting outside to enjoy nature. I enjoy walking everyday. Thanks for the chance! Jess
ReplyDeleteMaceoindo(at)yahoo(dot)com
that's a good one Jess, thanks!
DeleteI am so excited to read this. I have not been well, so I feel like I have, FOMO...Fear Of Missing Out.
ReplyDeleteYour patient persistence paid off; what a great lesson for all of us! My tip for happiness is giving up what I call WITBOW: Wishing It To Be Otherwise. This doesn't mean giving up trying to improve things, but does mean making peace with what is and being clear on how you can be okay anyway. hecate4stuffATyahooDOTcom
ReplyDeletethat is a fabulous tip!
DeleteThe unfinished project, we all have one don't we? Mine is a Christmas Angel crosstitch picture that I started vefore my first son was born. It was to be a present for my Mom. My son is now 25 and the stitcing project is 85% complete, and has been for about 25 years. I have been thinking that it is about time to pull it back out and get it finished. Thank you for the inspiration to do it. Congratulations on your new book(s)! tracy dot condie at gmail dot com
ReplyDeleteThanks Tracy, I hope your mom has enjoyed the thought of it all those years:)
DeleteTo boost happiness I lke to celebrate all the things big and small with my family. It might be something as simple as baking a favorite dessert or something that is a bit more work like having a special family tea party. No matter what we ene up doing it is just good for us to be together supporting each other. cherierj(at)yahoo(dot)com
ReplyDeleteWonderful ideas, thank you!
DeleteCongratulations on your book! I would say I try to find the happiness every morning by thinking about how lucky I am to be close to my family and friends.
ReplyDeleteaprilbluetx at yahoo dot com
DeleteApril, exactly! Gratitude is very good for happiness.
DeleteCongratulations on this book! I try to remember the things that I am grateful for everyday! lindaherold999(at)gmail(dot)com
ReplyDeleteWonderful!
DeleteCongratulations Lucy! My project and happiness are combined. During Covid, I decided as one way to keep me occupied and happy at the same time was to crochet lapghans for all the residents in an assisted living facility close to me where a close friend of mine was residing. I would be so frustrated at times because these Rheumatoid Arthritis fingers of mine are not as fast as they once were, I’d get get little calluses on the tips of my fingers, sigh a lot, but I was determined each resident would receive one so they would know they were not forgotten during the shutdown when no visitors were allowed. Each week I would put all the completed ones in gift bags, call the facility and tell them I was on my way. Someone would come out and distribute them. The facility took pictures of the various residents so I could see the joy on their faces when they opened their pretty gift bags. It was more than worth all the calluses and frustrations for me to see their faces.
ReplyDeleteOMG, I love that story! what an amazing project!
DeleteI started a quilting Block of the Month and doing only one block a month just seems agony. LOL but it is coming along nicely. It is all a different animal a month. so my husband and I split up which animals we both like and I will be making a lap quilt for each of us. quilting dash lady at comcast dot net
ReplyDeleteThat's so sweet that your hub wants an animal lap quilt too:)
DeleteSetting my garden up took far longer this year....so much snow and ice left over from winter...the ice in particular...gardening does provide me with much happiness...so does reading about persistence with what you KNOW is a good idea e.g. your new book! Congratulations!
ReplyDeletethanks Kathleen!
DeleteCongratulations on the new book! It sounds like such a labor of love. I firmly believe that happiness is a choice we make thousands of times a day, until it becomes a habit, then only hundreds of times a day! I've also learned that doing something for someone else helps when I slip into a bit of self-pity. I always come away most grateful for what I have and who I am. Excited to read this one!
ReplyDeletethanks so much Marcia!
DeleteMy best tip on boosting happiness is to do something to help others. Give a sincere compliment, share something extra, pass along a favorite book or magazine, let someone go before you in line, pass along your grocery cart from Aldi, and so on. To my mind, the best way to gain happiness comes when you give freely to others .
ReplyDeleteNancy
allibrary (at) aol (dot) com
excellent ideas Nancy, thanks!
DeleteMy best tip for boosting happiness is to just live day by day. Most of my unhappiness tends to stem from worry about the future and then I miss the good that is happening today!
ReplyDeletethat is very wise!
DeleteWould love to win. Enjoyable. I review
ReplyDeleteMy husband and I spent our entire courtship and engagement period remodeling a house from 1942. We stripped multiple layers of paint on 22 doors. Retrofitted plumbing in the bathrooms. Stripped wallpaper and layers of patched flooring. It was work! My grandfather told us that if our relationship could survive a renovation, our marriage would be a piece of cake. He was married to my grandmother for over 72 years… so he must have known what he was talking about. My husband and I just celebrated our 19th wedding anniversary last month!
ReplyDeletecongratulations, renovations and marriage are not for the faint of heart! xo
DeleteHow can I get a signed copy of your new books? You’ve signed several for me in person but we are not going to be in Key West at the same time this year. I sm going down on 7/16
ReplyDeleteI won't be back in KW until Fall--I know Suzanne at Key West books will have them and I can sign one for you. If you can't wait, you can call RJ Julia booksellers in CT 203 245-3959. You can order from them and they will let me know to come over and sign it for you! thanks!!
DeleteCongrats on the release, would love to get a copy!
ReplyDelete