I’ve been working on two separate projects set in fictional Midwest small-towns. I can’t wait to introduce readers to the first and the sweet folks of New Hope, Wisconsin, in Holidays, Inc. (from The Wild Rose Press). An hour north of Milwaukee, this fictional former manufacturing community fell on hard times during the all-too-real 2008 financial crisis. The town never quite recovered. Until Dani Winter arrived… (stay tuned for more teasers soon!)

A proud Midwesterner since 1993, I’ve been blessed by the hard-working, supportive communities I’ve called home over the past three decades. And I’ve had the opportunity to visit and explore small-towns that have inspired me, including:

Galena, Illinois  History, special events, and spas. All three collide in Galena. With two resorts, Galena offers plenty of adventure year-round (skiing in the winter, golf in the summer). With so much to do in this little corner of Illinois, shopping, historic tours, festivals, visitors might need a couple trips to see it all.

Bayfield, Wisconsin (pictured above)  When I was in high school, my aunt and uncle purchased a vacation home on Madeline Island (across Lake Superior). I was lucky to spend many happy summers as their guest and fell in love with the region. My husband and I married there over a decade ago and had our reception in the white building pictured. The town and surrounding area offer a lot of outdoor adventures, hiking, boating, in addition to sightseeing.

Madison, Indiana  One of my college roommates grew up here. We visited her family, and I was so charmed by the community on the banks of the Ohio, I brought my mom for a return trip. The gorgeous town features a treasure trove of historic sites, houses, and museums. If you love restored old buildings, you have to go. 

If you get the chance to visit these towns, I hope you do!

Now that I’ve spilled the news on my next project (currently undergoing edits), Holidays, Inc., I wanted to share more of the story behind the novel I’ve referred to for several years as #projectshowbiz.

In the romance writing community, authors often talk about the “book of their heart” or the passion project. Many authors, myself included, try to stick to tried and true tropes and guidelines to appeal to readers. Major publishers have very specific requests for the types of stories they want to produce (because they have a ready built audience hungry for those books). Sometimes, a book of the heart can be adapted into the particular parameters. Other times, it’s nearly impossible.

The Wild Rose Press has been such a blessing because they don’t try to force my creativity into a box. As a publisher, they are supportive and encouraging. I have freedom to tell the stories of my heart. My editor, Leanne Morgena, is amazing. Under her tutelage through the editing process, I’ve learned exactly what wasn’t working in my writing, and how to improve my craft to tell better stories every time.

Holidays, Inc. is a story I’ve been circling for years.  The initial first draft was written during NaNoWriMo 2017 while A Perfect Picture of Us was on submission with The Wild Rose Press. It wasn’t quite ready. When I signed a contract for A Perfect Picture of Us, I took a break from editing to write something entirely different, Love Overboard. In so many ways, Love Overboard offered me an escape, and I’m very proud of the book.

While editing Love Overboard, I returned to Holidays, Inc. and drafted a sequel. I love the characters and am so excited to share them with you next year.

I grew up watching old movie musicals and have always loved the movies with the premise “let’s put on a show and save the town.” My Grandma, my self-declared number 1 fan, encouraged me to perform in the living room whenever I saw her. She always thought I’d been born in the wrong decade. She told me I should have been an MGM chorus girl (at least, for the tap dancing).

One of my favorites is Irving Berlin’s Holiday Inn. But, it’s a very problematic and racially insensitive movie. I wanted to write an updated retelling, thus Holidays, Inc. was born. Before I started writing, I spent about six months outlining the story in 2017. When I put pen to paper, the story almost told itself. I initially included three points of view. Ultimately, this didn’t work for me or the story. Taking out the third perspective was what involved the most work (and I might one day share some of these deleted scenes).

In December 2018, while the project was undergoing a first round of edits, I had the opportunity to see the stage musical at a nearby theater. The show was delightful (if you get a chance, watch it). By Fall 2019, I determined my story was ready to be submitted to my editor and was thrilled to sign a contract in early 2020.

I can’t wait for you to discover my fictional Wisconsin small-town and meet the quirky characters who live there. From Shirley, the owner of the diner and unofficial queen of town, to Dani, the former child star who buys an old movie theater and renovates it into a dinner theater, I hope you are inspired by the determination of one small town to resurrect itself. And–of course–love is found at the moment least expected–or desired.

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P.S. The town is so nice, you’ll want to visit twice. And…you’ll be able to! Holidays, Inc. is only the first in a (so-far) two book series called Finding New Hope. The sequel, Hope for the Holidays, follows the hero’s twin sister, Jill as she navigates the tricky combo of love and politics. More info to follow…

 

Have you ever re-read a favorite novel and suddenly the story doesn’t work? A book that you loved a decade (or longer) ago doesn’t seem plausible any longer and you don’t finish because it’s too much of a stretch?

Most historical romances escape this trap (but suffer backlash for antiquated tropes). Unfortunately, contemporary romance suffers the most from the passage of time. I love stories (books, TV, film) set in the modern-day world. Rapidly advancing technology, however, means the plot might fall apart on a re-read. Books from the nineties that require characters to use a computer at a public library to access the Internet seem ancient. But often those situations set-up interaction between characters. How do you strike a balance so in a few years your book isn’t obsolete?

I’m by no means an expert. With each project, I consider this conundrum. Cell phones and the Internet have simplified our lives and solved a lot of the classic reasons why two characters at odds would interact.

In Love Overboard, my heroine loses her cell in the first chapter and spends the rest of the book onboard a cruise. (Cruise lines provide wifi, but the charge is a premium; personally, I like cruising because we have a reason to unplug!) With my next Wild Rose Press book, Holidays, Inc., the heroine ghosts her past and moves across the country.  Fellow authors, how do you work around modern-day conveniences?