And we are so close now – can you smell the Christmas cookies baking? Can you see the Christmas lights on your neighbours homes? Are you up to your ears in Christmas spirit and full to the brim of Hallmark movies? Well there’s always room for more HEA! Please welcome our third 3 things – Christmas edition blog, with Mel A Rowe!
1. Finding a town’s backstory helped create an authentic setting in a rural romance series.
Readers, from all over the world, consistently ask if the fictitious small town of Elsie Creek is real.
Some of it is true. And some is not.
Confused?
I set this outback series in the Northern Territory, based upon my experience as a long-time Territorian. It gave me the perfect excuse to revisit old friends in various remote regions to unearth some local legends. This boots-to-dust type of research enabled me to breathe a uniquely heightened level of authenticity into Elsie Creek’s story. Judging by my reader’s overwhelming responses—it worked!
2. To celebrate Christmas in a way that suits your climate
Christmastime in the Top End is sweltering! It’s too hot to cook the traditional turkey feast. We get monsoonal storm fronts that shred outdoor decorations. Not to mention what the overhead ceiling fans do to Christmas tree ornaments.
If that’s not challenging enough, it’s also the middle of our cyclone season.
Even though Xmas Dust contains my real-life experiences of surviving way too many cyclones, this book was still a lot of fun to write. Xmas Dust fabulously flipped all those festive traditions on its head, showing me how Christmas Day plans are never perfect and they don’t need to be.
3. Having a book series bible is a necessity.
I stuffed up. Big time.
Between book 1 and 4, one of my character’s names changed from a Lenny into a Jimmy! Or was that Jimmy into a Lenny?
Thankfully, I’ve always kept a basic book bible. But creating a book series bible, I had to re-read the series, allowing my ex-corporate inner-nerd to play with spreadsheets to create a style that suits.
Hint: save yourself some time by creating a decent book bible that can easily convert into a series bible from the get-go.
About Xmas Dust, Elsie Creek Series #4
A sassy pilot. A cranky cattleman. And a storm that threatens to ruin everything…
For this dare-devil of the outback skies, emotions and Christmas are a no-fly zone for the bush pilot, Monet. Hired as a farm-sitter, she’s looking forward to her escape from the festive holiday season.
The only problem is the farmer has decided to stay home!
Humbug and heartbreak are all the Christmas cheer this cowboy can take, where Timothy wants nothing but peace and quiet to wallow in his misery.
Until Monet and her endless playlists bombard his home.
This grumpy boss had forgotten to cancel her contract—and she needs to go because the longer she stays the more layers she’s repairing of his broken heart.
But with a cyclone set to crash on Christmas Eve, the small town of Elsie Creek is in trouble and Monet will risk more than her heart to save the many.
But will Tim let her fly away for good…
Grab a handful of hope and fly away home in this friends-to-lovers romantic outback adventure as the next instalment for the bestselling Elsie Creek Series.
Discover more about the book HERE: https://melarowe.com/xmas-dust/
About Mel A ROWE
Living in Northern Australia, Mel enjoys random road trips while annoying her family with her bad singing and making new friends in the middle of nowhere — except for water buffalos. She’s been chased by a few!
As a bestselling author, Mel is known for reinventing romantic versions of home, taking her common characters on uncommon journeys that lead from boardrooms to billabongs as they try to find their own HAPPILY EVER AFTER.
When in range, you can find Mel at:
Website: https://melarowe.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MelAROWE
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/MelAROWE
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MelAROWES