Eileen Davidson — who’s now on contract as Ashley Abbott on “The Young and the Restless,” but was nominated as Outstanding Lead Actress for her work as “Days of our Lives'” Kristen DiMera — took a cue from the statue she ended up winning at the end of the night. Just like the golden award, she sparkled on the red carpet during the 41st Annual Daytime Emmy Awards.

The best of the best took home statues during the 41st Annual Daytime Emmy Awards last night, and while viewers were able to see the winners accept their honors on stage, Soap Opera Network caught up with many of them for exclusive backstage reactions! Where will they put their gorgeous gold statues? And how will they celebrate being the top of the top in their field? Read on to find out!

After saying goodbye to friends and colleagues on Friday, May 23 as she wrapped filming her 21 year run as Samantha “Sami” Brady on NBC’s “Days of our Lives,” Alison Sweeney is gearing up for the release of “Scared Scriptless,” her fourth book. The actress will appear at the NBC Experience Store in New York on Tuesday, June 3 signing purchased copies of her book, which is being released by Hyperion the same day.

On Saturday, November 8, fans in and around the Los Angeles area will be able to meet and greet their favorite Salemites as they are all scheduled to appear at Universal CityWalk at Universal Studios Hollywood for the annual “A Day of DAYS” fan event celebrating NBC’s “Days of our Lives.” The news was posted on the show’s Facebook page.

On Thursday, May 1, nominations for the 41st Annual Daytime Emmy Awards were announced, and “Days of our Lives” star Eric Martsolf (Brady Black) received the happy news that he’d received his first ever nomination, although in the most unusual of ways. “I had forgotten that they were announcing it. I had an early call time and I’m in the shower at 6:00 AM,” the actor recalls of the time news began rolling in. “I get out and my phone’s just going nuts. There I am soaking wet standing there in the bathroom. I look at my Twitter, and sure enough, I found out through some fan,” Martsolf states with a chuckle while nonchalantly apologizing for the visual. For reference, “The tweet read, ‘Congratulations on your Emmy nomination, Eric Martsolf’ and that’s how I found out.”

Justin Gaston has joined the cast of “Days of our Lives” in the contract role of Ben, a guitar playing “country boy,” per a casting call from last summer.

Even though she’s on “Days of our Lives,” hosts “The Biggest Loser,” and graces the covers of countless magazines, the world just can’t seem to get enough of Alison Sweeney (Sami Brady). And now fans of the busy mom of two have another venture to look forward to: Her new book, “Scared Scriptless.”

If you’re looking to set some resolutions for 2014 and need some inspiration, look no further! Soap Opera Network asked “Days of our Lives” and “General Hospital” stars to open up on how they hope to improve themselves and their lives in the year to come, and they were none too shy to shed some light on the ways they’re setting out to achieve greatness. Bonus: They also threw in some opinions on how their characters should approach 2014, as well! Read on for the fun, and happy New Year from Soap Opera Network!

It’s been quite some time since Soap Opera Network last brought its readers a weekly breakdown of what’s going to happen during the upcoming week of soaps. With our new sense of direction and focus as we get ready to enter a new year, and a new phase for the site, we thought it would be a great opportunity to get back into the previews game.

Whether it’s parties or church events or cooking (oh my!), shopping or wrapping or snow shoveling (oh why?), the stars of “General Hospital” and “Days of our Lives” will be quite busy this holiday season! But don’t worry: Before the casts took off for their fun-filled Christmas break, Soap Opera Network managed to catch a few actors and get the scoop on how they plan to spend the next two weeks ahead!