Angel Breath Books
Nona Mae King | Spirit Driven Fiction
Writing With Christmas Flavor
Tis the season for Christmas romances on the Hallmark channel. Some are corny, goofy, or cliche, but all of them are clean, sweet, and brimming with holiday cheer and happy endings.
Today I watched one that was particularly delightful, much to my surprise (since I’m one of those people who don’t really seek out RomComs or any heavy romantic movies). The title was ‘A Bramble House Christmas’ and it followed our heroine Willa and her son Scout as they took a vacation that was gifted to them by one of her clients (she is a healthcare worker) who had recently passed.
Watching the relationship bloom between her and Finn (the son of the deceased client) had me thinking about how a writer comes up with a holiday season romance. In my mind it doesn’t seem like it would be an easy task since so many things need to come into play before the season ends in the story… And I have a tendency of writing relationships that are months in the making.
So how would I do it? Would it work to have a Christmas season romance that spans more than one Christmas season? Maybe a collection of short stories that take place during the various holidays through the year? Is it worth the time and effort to take up this particular challenge? Maybe I should start looking into other romances that take place during the holiday season?
It’s definitely something to consider, especially since Christopher and Sara haven’t celebrated their first Christmas yet.
12 Days of Christmas Event
Might as well dive in head first, I suppose.
So, I have signed up to participate in the CWW (Christian Women Writers) ’12 Days of Christmas Event’ that starts tomorrow the 10th and goes through Dec. 21st. There will be cash prizes and gifts throughout the event and many, many talented authors will be participating.
I will be participating on the 11th and 16th from 7am to 11am EST, although I’m not quite certain yet how I will be doing that. At this point in time I will more than likely use Angel Breath Books’ Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/angelbreathbooks/) and will give away copies of my books to people who comment on my page and/or ask me questions. I might even give away a ‘Searching for Sara’ book purse created by Novel Creations. (Yes, it is a purse made from the cover of my book). Gift cards are always good as well, so one or two of those may pop up once I figure out the best way to disseminate the prizes. 🙂
Once I decide on physical and digital prizes, I will post a detailed list either here at my blog or on my Facebook page. Please forgive my fumbling around. This year is a learning experience for me as I attempt to find my love of writing once again.
Currently Untitled
It’s funny the things we think of while in the powder room (loo, bathroom, toilet, shower, etc).
I was trying to figure out, again, how to get myself back into writing when all of my motivation and drive has died a horrible death. The first unfinished project which popped into my head was His & Hers, a present day romance that touches on redemption and moving beyond fear… appropos? Anyway, in this storyline a reclusive writer meets a photographer who is, also, hiding from his past. In the process of helping him find his way back, she must face her own demons and overcome them so that they no longer control her and her future.
Now, in the original story she has been constant in her writing endeavours and simply living away from her public. I believe it should be changed that she is actually struggling to find her next story idea, as well as the drive to write till the end. Also, in the original storyline, the love-interest is a widower with two boys and the main character is single. My time brushing my teeth in the powder room (bwahahahah) led me to a sudden conclusion: I think I want to write romances that deal with repairing broken relationships.
My husband and I have been happily married for almost 15 years, so I have my ‘happy ever after’ and don’t feel the need/want/desire to write more. But writing a redemptive romance? That is definitely intriguing me, especially since I already (on a previous occasion years ago) revamped my Romantic Comedy outline to be about two ‘exes’ getting back together.
Relationships are hard, and not just romantic ones. Sometimes it seems the art of communicating and compromising in a relationship has been lost. Perhaps the stories I have left to tell can help someone figure out how they can work things out in a relationship, whether they are in one now or simply hope to be someday.
I cannot begin to explain how nice it feels to begin to figure things out, at least in part. Putting it into practice will, of course, be the biggest challenge and the self-discipline required will be tremendous. Growing up, I always used my writing to help me work through challenges and feelings. Why did it take me so long to realize this current difficulty should be approached the same way, even if just at first.
Actually, I’ve suspected it for a while but simply hadn’t worked out the first step. This may work out into something good.
