Finding the Story for HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS

When I started to write book 3 in my Holiday Hearts series, all I knew about Victoria, my main character, was that she worked as a barista and she liked to flirt with her customers…

It wasn’t much to go on, but Victoria had already played a small role in the first two books in the series. She was a social butterfly who obviously had some growing to do when the time came for her to star in her own story.

One thing I’ve learned from being an indie author is that it’s really hard to find the right images to give the feel of the story for the cover. So whenever possible, I like to find the images first and let them inform the story. This worked out really well for this book because I already knew I’d be using a coffee-and-cookie photo from a set I’d used for the first two books. Those first two covers featured a bell-shaped cookie (perfect for CHRISTMAS BELLS ARE RINGING) and one shaped like a tree (because the plot of HEAVENLY PEACE is centered around a Christmas giving tree). That left me with quite a few to choose from.

So I looked at the series of pictures to see which one might inspire me. There’s a shooting star, a fish, a pig (?!), and a snowman. But wait…there’s also the classic gingerbread house. That one really clicked with me. Since I also wanted to stick with my theme of incorporating Impact Ministries into the story, the idea of having Brian, my leading man, work for an organization that builds homes for people in need struck a cord. What would happen if high-maintenance Victoria volunteered to help build houses just to get Brian’s attention? The story potential there seemed like too much fun to pass by.

So that was the beginning of HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS. I hope you enjoy seeing how Victoria handles her volunteer duties, and how Brian responds to her flirtation. Let’s just say, it’s not going to be easy for either of them.