by Liz Johnson
The funny thing about Christmas books is that they are rarely written during the holiday season. Authors are generally left to create all the merry and bright for their stories from memory, to evoke the sentiment and joy of the season from scratch. Not a pumpkin spice latte or gingerbread cookie to be found to inspire a writer’s Christmas creativity.
I started writing Meddling with Mistletoe in June. In Phoenix.
If you’ve never had the pleasure of visiting the Arizona desert in the summer, just imagine how your Christmas ham feels baking in an oven. It’s roughly the same experience. For months on end.
So, there I was, in the middle of a heatwave, staring at a blank page, searching for an elusive snippet of holiday cheer to write my book. I’m not going to pretend it was easy. There’s something about cold weather and glistening snow that makes the Christmas spirit more readily available. The twinkle lights and snuggling together on a cool evening make the romance feel closer than usual.
After a few days of minimal progress on my book—with my deadline looming—I thought I better get creative to get myself in the mood. I tried blasting the A/C and pointing a fan right at me. I tried listening to Christmas carols on an endless loop. I tried wrapping a scarf around my neck. (Far too warm.) I even tried sipping hot chocolate. (Also too hot!)
I knew the characters—at least, I was pretty sure. And I basically knew what was going to happen—or so I thought. But the surface level will only get a writer so far.
And for me, it was about three pages.
Finally, I admitted that I was going to need to dig deeper than cooler weather and the usual trimmings of the holiday season to find the inspiration for my book.
One day as I sat down to write, I turned on my usual carols. Closing my eyes, I listened to the words. Usually, I turn on music and use the rhythm of the music to propel me forward without really listening to the lyrics. But that day, I heard what the writer of the old carol was saying. “O come, o come Emmanuel.” Emmanuel—God with us. The writer longed for the Son of God to appear and rescue the captives.
Jesus did that. He fulfilled all the prophecies and came to His people. And He’s still with those who put their trust in Him.
As I sat in fresh wonder and awe at that truth, I realized that one of the characters in Meddling with Mistletoe was already set up to need that same reminder. Betrayed by the woman he loved, my character Daniel believed that he was better off alone. He’s always understood numbers, but people are a lot harder. It’s easier for him to do life by himself.
But that’s not what God intended—for any of us. God loves the world so much that He sent His Son. That He sent Emmanuel! He longs for a relationship with us and wants us to know we’re never alone.
Suddenly I knew where Daniel’s story was going, and how to get there.
I didn’t need a Christmas setting or cold weather to write it either. I didn’t need all the trappings and trimmings of the holidays. I only needed to sit afresh in the wonder of God’s love.
And I didn’t have to wait until December. The good news of Christmas is that its promises are available to us all year long. Even on the hottest day of an Arizona summer.
About the Author
Liz Johnson is the New York Times bestselling author of more than twenty novels, including The Red Door Inn, Beyond the Tides, The Last Way Home, and Summer in the Spotlight, as well as the Georgia Coast Romance and Prince Edward Island Dreams series. She works in marketing, makes her home in Phoenix, Arizona, and daydreams of spending Christmas on PEI. Learn more at LizJohnsonBooks.com.
About the Book
While preparing to enter culinary school, Whitney Garrett works in the kitchen of the Red Door Inn. The inn is busy with holiday guests including a store owner’s perpetually single nephew Daniel. When Daniel’s aunt enlists Whitney’s help in making a Christmas match for him with another guest, Whitney starts to think that she just might be his perfect match.
Did You Know?
The decline of mental health in Americans is prevalent, particularly among the youth. Though the pandemic highlighted the problem, our young people remain vulnerable. Carl Fleischer, a child and adolescent medical director notes, “The rate of suicides among young adults has been much higher than it has been historically….” Here are some reasons why and how we can help:
Kids sometimes don’t believe they make a difference. When a person lacks self-worth, they lose a passion for living. The universal question of “Who am I?” has never been more relevant. Proverbs 29:18 tells us without a vision, people perish.
America’s affluence can also quench the desire to set goals. With so much material wealth, it is easy to fall into a “Solomon syndrome.” I have everything, so why set goals and seek dreams? “I have seen everything that is done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and a striving after wind” (Ecclesiastes 1:14, ESV).
Christians possess a powerful antidote for purposeless: God’s Word. When children grow in the knowledge of God’s love and purposes (Psalm 139:13-14 and Psalm 119:105), they can be confident of their value. Ephesians 2:10 teaches that God has good plans and purposes for everyone.
Every child has a priceless value, and their identity as children of God makes them special.
-Joan C. Benson and Marjorie Wingert, Who Am I?
Why I LOVE My Local Christian Bookstore
“Shopping in a bookstore is exciting because you know you're going to find something special and lovely to get lost in. It's like searching under the tree at Christmas for the presents with your name on them—and what's more fun than that?”
-Linore Rose Burkard, Forever Lovely: A Regency Time Travel Romance