Earlier this week, a dear friend and fellow writer, Susan Blood, and I were guest speakers at a local organization. We talked about writing, we answered questions, sold some books, and had a wonderful time being amongst people who love books, are curious, and were incredibly warm and welcoming.
We’re living in such stressful times that it’s easy to lose sight of the small kindnesses, which actually aren’t that small, in our everyday lives. Those little things we take for granted.
One of the questions I was asked was about when I wrote Christmas in Cranberry Harbor, and what inspired that first book, and the eventual series.
I told them how it was during Covid, when everything felt so bleak, when we were isolated, didn’t have a lot of answers, and were scared. So I did what lots of writers would do - I started to create a world where people are kind, their community is warm and welcoming, and, despite some bumps in the road, everything turns out okay in the end.
Cranberry Harbor became a wonderful place to escape to every day, and I’m so grateful that I had it, and that I was fortunate enough that a publisher, and in turn readers have agreed.
There’s often a bit of a misconception about the genre of light, contemporary fiction. Especially books with very cute covers. It seems if you check certain boxes there’s no depth in your books:
Small town - check
Friendly locals - check
Romance - check
Christmas cookies - check and check
Ex-fiancee’ - check
The thing is, within those boxes, you can also write about less light topics as well. I’ve written all four of the books in the Cranberry Harbor series and loved all the fun and light storylines, but also loved writing about the importance of independent newspapers, supporting small businesses, being kind to others, jobs, and the environment.
As we get ready to head into another holiday season, I hope if you haven’t read Crhistmas in Cranberry Harbor that you will pick it up. If you have read it, maybe a re-read is in order as you curl up under a cozy blanket by your Christmas tree. And perhaps it would make the perfect gift for some special folks on your list. We all sometimes need to escape the stresses of everyday life, and a cozy novel can do just that.
Bottom line, don’t judge a book by its cover. That book may have much more to it than you ever could have imagined.
If you are on Cape Cod you can find my books at Sea Howl Bookshop, The Sparrow Store, both on Main Street in Orleans. The Brewster Book Store, Barnes and Noble, and Wellfleet Marketplace. You can also order it online directly from my publisher, Sea Crow Press, and at Simon and Schuster Publishing.