Photo: Unsplash

A few months ago, I got to attend my niece’s wedding in my hometown of San Luis Obispo, CA. If you’ve read Drawn In, you’ll know that this is also the setting of the Paper Dreams Chronicles, so I thought it was a perfect opportunity to take you all on a little tour of some of the locations from the books!

We had a very short amount of time to play tourist, so I only have a few locales to share, but it was still so much fun, so I hope you enjoy it with me!

Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa ( : me)

First stop: the Mission! Mission Plaza is a sort of hub for downtown SLO and host to many seasonal events. The creek runs nearby, and the iconic fountain (next photo) is one of my favorite local stops.

In Drawn In, Rennie spends some time here pondering what it means to be a Traveler, has a run in with Seth, tells Maia some secrets, and has a second run-in of a more sinister nature.

The Fountain at Mission Plaza ( : me)

The aforementioned fountain at Mission Plaza. I love the little Chumash Indian boy and the bears… they just make me happy!

Chinese Garden ( : me)

Here is the entrance to the Chinese Garden and the lion statues which hold greater significance in A Time Forgotten.

Gazebo in the garden ( : me)

And behind the bamboo is the gazebo within the Chinese Garden. The pond is drained right now, but it’s still so lovely.

Alex has something special planned for Rennie here in Drawn In. And unfortunately, so do the Enforcers.

Avila Beach and pier ( : me)

This is not a great pic, but it had to be included anyway. Several chapters of Drawn In take place here… a bonfire, a few very important first meetings, and a literal dream come true. We visited just after dusk and it was chilly and dark, but still magical.

Bubblegum Alley ( : me)

Why is this a thing? Why oh why? Haha! Well, I can’t fight it… Bubblegum Alley has been a part of downtown SLO since before my time, and it’s still as gross and iconic as ever. It gets a brief mention in Drawn In, but I just couldn’t bring myself to set an actual scene here!

Golden hills ( : me)

Last one for this tour. This is actually on my brother’s property in north county, but I thought it was a great representation of the rolling hills and trees in the “golden” hills of SLO County. I think Rennie would love to climb this tree.

SLO Courthouse ( : me)

And a bonus shot: the San Luis Courthouse. It actually does have a super brief mention in book one (it’s down the street from the library), but more significantly, if you’re following the Kristen Smart case (and the incredible Your Own Backyard podcast by Chris Lambert), this is where the 22 days of preliminary hearings all took place, and where (God willing!) justice will finally be served when the trial of Paul and Ruben Flores begins in April 2022. Kristen has been gone for 25 years. It’s time for some justice for the Smart family!