Thanks to all of you who commented on Wednesday’s post with suggestions for future character interviews. I’ll be sharing some of those in the weeks to come since character interviews are one of my favorite things to write.
Janet mentioned Jocie from my Hollyhill books. That had me remembering about how much I enjoyed letting Jocie take over a story. In fact, I still let her write a post on her Heart of Hollyhill blog and after Janet’s mention, I re-shared one of those from a while ago when Wes took over for Jocie and wrote the post. Wes has to be one of the most fun characters to ever come to life in my imagination even though he had some serious background issues too. But his and Jocie’s Jupiter talk made writing those books so much fun.
When the third Heart of Hollyhill book, Summer of Joy, was about to be published, maybe republished since those books were re-issued with new covers, I did an online interview about writing them. I’m sharing half on this post and hope to share the second part Wednesday. So here goes. I hope you’ll enjoy seeing some of my writing journey to those stories.
A Book’s Cover – Inside and Out
A book’s outside cover aims to reveal the flavor of the story, but besides the outside package, you have an underlying “cover” in a story–the setting. A writer has to know where her story is playing out and find a way to invite the reader to live there a while too. So come along with me back to Small Town, America and see what started my Heart of Hollyhill stories, Scent of Lilacs, Orchard of Hope, and Summer of Joy.
A Writing Dream
First, let’s set the stage with a little writing history–my writing history. I’ve been writing since I was a kid and first fell in love with books. I wanted to write down my own stories. That was a big dream for a little country girl who had never met a writer and didn’t know the first thing about writing something others might read. But I loved words and stories. So, I got a notebook and pen and started. I did know that a writer had to write.
Sometimes the Lord blesses us and gives us the desires of our hearts. I sold my first story to a Sunday school leaflet in 1971 and then sold a few more stories to small magazines. Just enough to make me believe it was possible. Then I wrote my first novel and I forgot about writing short pieces. I was going to write books! Of course, the next step was writing a book that somebody besides my mother would read.
The Ups and Downs of a Writing Journey
That took me a few tries, but Warner Books published my first novel, a historical romance, A Forbidden Yearning, in 1978. I thought I was on the way. I was for a while. But most journeys have ups and downs, and my writing journey certainly has. More than once, I’ve had to re-invent myself as a writer. After my third historical romance was rejected multiple times because my writing was deemed “too clean” for the general market, I switched to writing young adult fiction and chapter books. That was fun–while it lasted. But then just as I’d been unable to sell my earlier adult novels, my young adult novels quit finding loving editors. For several years I trudged along through Rejection Valley. I wrote first one thing and then another trying to guess the market. I never was a very good guesser.
Enter Jocie and Hollyhill
At last, we come to Hollyhill. I decided I’d write one more novel before I gave up on my dream. I wouldn’t worry about editors or publishers or even readers. I’d write this book for myself and follow that basic writing advice to write what you know. Enter small towns and country churches.
I grew up on a farm, but when we went to town it was to a one Main Street town lined with parking meters. Churches sat on each end of town and in between were a couple of banks, two ten-cent stores, a hardware store, a grocery where you could trade farm eggs for groceries, three dress shops, a men’s clothing store, and a strip of poolrooms down on that end of the street where a little girl didn’t go. There was a barbershop, a newspaper office, two drugstores–one with a soda fountain, two restaurant grills, and towering above everything else the courthouse. But the most important building for me was up the side street across from the post office, the public library. Thank you, Andrew Carnegie!
Up top is a picture showing the door to the magic of reading. Our town has a new large and airy library now, but this was our first library. It had the most important thing – books!
Small Towns and Country Churches
I decided to set my story in my little town the way I remembered it during the 1960’s. It was the kind of town where when you walked down the street you knew everybody you met. Then, as in all small towns, plenty of eccentric characters were hanging around just waiting to be written into a story. I renamed the town Hollyhill and a good thing too. Heart of Lawrenceburg series just doesn’t have the same ring as Heart of Hollyhill series. I took the flavor of the little town I remembered and came up with characters that belonged on my Hollyhill Main Street. Even Wes from Jupiter fits right in the Hollyhill stories.
My inspiration character was a young girl named Jocie whose father, another viewpoint character, is a preacher. So, it was time to go to church. My church. The church my husband and I got married in. The church we still attend. A little country church that is over two hundred years old. I know that church. I remember how it was in the Sixties when there was no air-conditioning or padded pews and church mice sometimes ran out of the piano in the middle of hymns to surprise the piano player. The members were like family. Many of them were actually kin to one another, and sometimes there was a squabble in spite of the way they all loved each other and the Lord. That’s the kind of church I let David pastor.
And so I was on the way with my setting and my characters. Come on back on Wednesday night or Thursday to read Part 2 of my journey to the fictional world of Hollyhill.
What kind of town did you grow up in? Small town? Big town?
Giveaway
The giveaway for River to Redemption is still going on. And now I’ll make it a choice of that book or one of the Hollyhill books, Scent of Lilacs, Orchard of Hope, Summer of Joy, since I’m sharing about those too now. To enter, just leave a comment on this post. Deadline to enter is midnight EST 02-15-2025 and you have to be at least 18 to enter. The winner will be notified by email and 1st name and last initial posted here on Sunday, February 16th. Not many entries yet. So a good time to throw your name in my giveaway drawing hat to have a chance to win an autographed copy of one of my books. A comment on a new post before the deadline gets you an extra entry.
Comments 30
I grew up in the same general area that my Mom grew up in as a young girl. It wasn’t a small town, but the area was familiar and beautiful. It still feels like home, even after all these years and all the changes to the area.
I grew up a little ways from you in Lexington. It has certainly grown even bigger since I left there.
Please entee me in your gjveaway! I loved the Hollyhill series and hope someday you’ll go back there to write a fourth.
I’m from a small town in Georgia. Although it isn’t so small that everyone knows everyone, it has a similar feel. 😉
I grew up in many towns, as I’m from a military family. I loved moving, new beginnings, making new friends, going to new schools, etc.
I grew up in the country, the town where we did most of our business was pretty small. Unfortunately it’s not a place I think of with nostalgia. To end on a positive note, the church we attended is the inspiration for a novel that I plan on writing some day.
Thank you for sharing your experience! I’ve found that writers sharing their experiences is more helpful than some of the advice that’s typically given to new authors.
I grew up in the country. Our nearest larger town was about 8 miles away where we went once every two weeks to buy groceries and another smaller town was in the other direction that we went to only now and then to a hardware store, clothing store, or the bank. Since we only had one car and my dad drove that to work. we stayed at home a lot. When I was about 11 or 12 the bookmobile started coming around to our house in the summer months, I really enjoyed that.
I grew up in a town (Glencoe Ky) that was very much like Hollyhill. It was a mile long from one end to the next. It had a 4 room school house (1st grade, 2nd/3rd grade, 4th grade, and 5/6th grade). One main street and a handful of small streets, a general store and 3 churches that were packed every Sunday. Everybody walked to school. Everybody knew everyone and no kids did anything to get into trouble because the parents would know before you got home. We had a yearly carnival that drew folks from all over the county, and there was almost always a popup baseball game being played. Fun memories!
I grew up in a large city that was the twin to another large city and an even larger metropolitan area with many large suburbs. But I’ve always loved visiting small towns. There is something really special about them. I love shopping in the stores and always find things I don’t see in city stores. And i really love eating in those little cafes! The burgers, fries and shakes there are the BEST!
Reading your writing journey is very interesting. Thank you for sharing it, Ann!
Ann, you & I grew up in the same town, & we must have had about the same experiences. As I’m now old, I look back fondly on all the places you mentioned. Well, most of them. I was never allowed to venture down to the pool halls 😅. I did have a love for the books in that library & the bookmobile that delivered books to school. Since writing was never my strong point, I gladly settled to read. It’s been a passion all my life & know it will always be. Keep on writing Ann, & I’ll continue to read! P.S. Hollyhill series are my favorite.
Author
Hi, Wilma. So fun to hear from someone whose hometown is the same as my hometown. It was great growing up in a small town. Well, near that small town since I grew up on a farm. I love reading too and don’t think I would have ever become a writer with any books published if not for my library visits that opened up so much of the world of words to me.
I’ll try to keep writing and for sure, like you, will keep reading. Glad you enjoyed my Heart of Hollyhill books. Those Hidden Springs mysteries are Lawrenceburg settings too. The last one was inspired by the Ripy house on South Main.
My dad was career Navy so I moved a lot! Some suburbs of cities, some small towns.
I do envy people who have deep roots in a place. I think of that as being a secure feeling.
Author
Career Navy or other branches of service to keep a family on the move. Sometimes that’s the same with preachers and coaches maybe too. I have a niece married to a football coach and they have moved to different school and jobs many times. But my niece does have roots in that she grew up in one place. It’s her children that have had the moving experience in their young lives.
While you might envy those like me who have stayed in virtually the same place all my life, I might think about how you have had so many different places to get to know and all the new experiences that surely made you stronger. Still, my roots do go deep here on my farm.
Loved reading about your ups and downs. The writing life is not easy. But I think writing for yourself and writing a story that honors God is important. I always love your settings and enjoy reading your old stories as well as your new ones.
Author
Thank you, Shelia. Some people have a smoother path writing than others, but mine has definitely has some ups and downs. The best part is always the stories that do find a way out of my head to out to readers. And old stories aren’t really old if they find a new reader. 🙂
I grew up in a suburb of a city in southern California.
Author
Way different than my growing up place, Diana. But Southern California was surely a beautiful place to grow up.
Village in Pennsylvania.
Author
When you say village, Deborah, it brings up all sorts of lovely images in my imagination.
I’ll have to look for the Hollyhill series! I haven’t noticed them before.I absolutely loved River to Redemption! And I’d love my own copy so I could read it again! God Bless!
I didn’t mention i came from a big area the Quad Cities and when my husband went into ministry at 47 we moved to small towns in Kentucky! This is how found out about you Ann! Our last town was Dry Ridge which is pretty close to your farm but ministry has brought.us to Missouri so we can be.closer to family sorry i did 2 entries but I had to answer the question and I love small town living!
Hello Lynne,
I’ve lived in Grant County Ky these past 48 years. If you’re ever back over this way visiting, stop by the old William Arnold log cabin in the middle of Williamstown and say hello! I work there now that it’s open to the public most days April-Nov.
Isn’t it great that fans of Anne’s books have these accidental encounters?! 🙂
Wish I could’ve met you when I was living there! I’m 10 hours away in Missouri now
Author
I’m so glad you loved reading my story inspired by Louis, Lynne. Sounds as if you have lived in several places. That’s the life, sometimes, of a preacher and his family as they follow the calling of the Lord. Glad you being in Kentucky got you to reading my stories. And it would have been fun to meet you while you were in Kentucky. I’ve always liked the name Dry Ridge for a town. I should use it in one of my books. Hope you are liking being in Missouri close to family. That always makes a place better.
I did meet you! At Joseph Beth in Lexington! You signed Angel Sister!
I’m in a middle size town. We aren’t the smallest around, but sure aren’t the biggest, either! We have grown in population a lot since I was little, as a cow pasture was made into a mall years ago, and were quite a few orange groves. Our main road used to be a two lane, now it’s four, and a lot more roads that were two are now four, as all of the cities are growing in population. Most of the boundaries are still the same, but they sure are cramming things into those spaces!
Author
Sounds as though your area has done a lot of growing, Trudy. So has ours with a bypass taking the main road away from going through our town. You have to want to come there now or you can just zoom on past. Stores and schools have popped up all along the bypass. Those stores and school took over the farms that used to be there the same as yours.
I grew up in a small town. We had a bank, pharmacy, grocery store and police station. Also a barber and a few small stores. We had to go to a neighboring town for other items.
Author
Sounds as if your small town was even smaller than my small town, Mary. I forgot to mention the police station in my little town. I guess because it wasn’t on Main but up one of the side streets. We did have a policeman who had the job of checking the parking meters on Main. They took nickels as best I remember. Maybe it took pennies too. Been a long time ago and I’m not sure.
Small town in Kentucky.
Author
Kentucky small towns are the best, Dana, but then I might be a little prejudiced. 🙂