Writing Love for the Holidays
Part Two
Hello Everyone! Thank you for joining me again for writing Holiday Romances. This is part two. If you missed part one, you can find it HERE.
So in part one we talked about using the five senses to convey the holiday season. But there is more to Holiday stories than just being around the holidays and setting the mood. You need to have themes and characters in your book that are affected by the holiday season.
Your characters need to affected by the season. They love that time of year or they hate it. They’re lonely and missing their family because they are working, or maybe they’re on their way to see their family. Or maybe they don’t want to be anywhere near their family this year and they’re headed to Hawaii! No matter what you choose, the holidays have to have something to with the character. For good or for bad.
The holidays need to bring the hero and heroine together. Maybe they meet in the airport or they are both reaching for the last bottle of wine. Maybe they’ve both gotten snowed in a ski lodge and people are being murdered. Whatever the reason, again. The holidays need to play a part in why the hero and heroine find each other.
If you decide on a theme for your book, or a message you want to share, it too needs to focus around the holidays. The stories can start around November 1st when Christmas decorations start taking over all the stores. And they usually end by Christmas or New Years. (If you are going for a winter holiday story and not a Valentines or St. Patrick’s Day or something else.) There are so many themes for holiday romances.
Themes & Plots:
1) It’s all about commercialism. It doesn’t really mean anything to people anymore.
2) Girl doesn’t want to celebrate because something bad happened before around the holidays.
3) Boy goes home for the holidays and runs into the love of his life that he left and they never stopped loving each other.
4) Boy and girl get trapped in an airport, or bus station, or hotel with only one room left or only one rental car.
5) A woman is traveling and finds the love of her life.
6) A man loves his riches more than relations until a woman shows him the error of his ways.
7) A poor woman with very little is happy with what she has and meets a man with lots of money who is unhappy.
8) The son of Santa has to find a wife.
9) A girl is going home for Hanukkah and she said she was engaged and gets someone to pose as her fiance.
10) A little boy wishes for a mom for the New Year.
All of those have been done, but they can also be made fresh and new. They all revolve around the holidays and bring it further into the stories than just the setting.
There are all kinds of fun characters we can write into holiday stories too that help set up the season. The Yenta mom who wants her son to get married to a nice Orthodox girl more than anything. The child who only wants for her Mom to find happiness. The crazy great aunt who knits sweaters for everyone. The boss who doesn’t care about holidays and thinks they are a waste. The mysterious stranger who seems to show up with help when needed. The old man with the beard who thinks he really is Santa. Yes, some of those are cliche, I get it. But you get the point. There are people who can help add to your setting and plot as well.
Lastly, when you write a Holiday Romance you need to be aware that the calls for them come out sometimes a year in advance. In February or July they can be looking for stories to come out the following year. It’s sometimes difficult to get in the holiday spirit around that time of year. Especially if you are like me and you live in Sunny Southern California. So do what I do. Find some holiday scented candles. Pine, Cinnamon, Apple Pie and light them. Turn on some holiday music. Put up some decorations, especially lights. Watch holiday movies. Drink hot cocoa or hot apple cider and eat some pie while sitting in front of your fireplace. All of these warm cozy things will engage your senses and bring you back to that place where you feel your Holiday spirit the most.
I hope this has been a bit helpful for you and that you are already brimming with ideas for your next Holiday Romance. Drop me a line when you finish and let me know!
Rebekah R. Ganiere – Books with a Bite
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