We’ve been having some winter weather in Oregon. A little snow on Saturday which quickly turned to sheets of ice in Portland. And an ice storm on the North Oregon Coast. In December, I joked with my sister that all I wanted in January was a snowy cabin where I could write and read. I got my wish the last four days, and it was my own home in Portland. Schools have been canceled–even mine where I teach remote classes and it looks like with another storm bearing down on us, a few more no school days are coming. We don’t handle snow well in Portland–the city has two snow plows and we don’t salt or sand, so any type of snow event shuts the city down until the temperature warms up.

This month, I am drafting my next holiday romance which will be out this October, Sweetheart Santa. I’m knee deep in the reshaping draft which is where I take the fast draft and mold and shape it into a story. The manuscript will go to my developmental editor at the end of January. Sweetheart Santa is the story of bakery owner, Sasha and her ten-year-old son, Tyler’s Dad, Greg, who wants to buy the crumbling Cranberry Bay marina as an investment. The story uses the secret baby trope and has been one of my most challenging to plot in the Cranberry Bay series. It’s hard to keep babies secret in this era of technology! I’m sure my developmental editor will have a few plot suggestions!

I did get out one day between storms to walk to my local coffee shop. After I discovered I don’t own winter snow boots only fashionable boots which work great in the rain but have no grip, I hoped my tennis shoes would work, and took a very careful walk along slippery sidewalks. I made it and enjoyed working on my next chapter while sitting in a warm and cozy coffee shop surrounded by a lot of other people who enjoyed getting out there!

I also spent some time during the snowy days working on watercolor cards which I send to my students throughout the semester.

And of course, I’m reading. One book on my snowy days reading pile is, The Heroine’s Journey by Maureen Murdock. Murdock’s Heroine’s journey focuses more on the internal journey of a character than the traditional hero’s journey which is externally focused. The heroine’s journey is actually the struggle for both my hero and heroine in my current work in progress, something which I didn’t realize until I started reading this book. Both have accomplished external achievements but are missing love, belonging and connection. There is also a workbook which is helpful for those working through this book for a personal heroine’s journey.

The other book I’m reading is, The True Love Experiment by Christina Lauren. I bought this book last summer and hadn’t gotten to it yet. My sister challenged us in our Mother/Daughter book group to read a book we wanted to read in our to-read pile. So I chose this one. I’m a fan of Christina Lauren’s books. They are usually fun, light and quick to read. This book is the story of a romance author who has lost her ability to write romance due to her own disillusionment with romance. (Something I have been able to relate to at times!) She is cast in the lead role of a reality TV show in which she is supposed to find the perfect match. Of course, her true love match is the producer of the show–someone she is not supposed to fall in love with! It’s a perfect read for snowy, stay-at-home days!