5 Bestselling Author Friends Collaborate to Publish Holiday Novella Collection

Julie Cantrell

When the pandemic wreaked havoc last year, it didn’t pause to celebrate the holidays. Families were impacted in many ways, with COVID-19 limiting travel, shopping, and gatherings around the globe.

 

That’s why four author friends and I joined forces to put a little “jingle-jangle joy” back into this Christmas season.

Our goal: to offer a positive, affordable escape and spark a little happiness for our readers.

The result: A novella collection, IT’S A WONDERFUL CHRISTMAS.

 

First things first

From the start, we wanted to bring together a team of authors who were kindhearted, hard-working, and passionate about writing for the fun of it.

 

The five of us had already been collaborating through Her Novel Collective and had developed healthy friendships as a group. Once the idea for this project was tossed into the air, we each came on board and next steps began to develop very quickly.

 

Teamwork is Key

Of the five writers involved, USA TODAY bestselling author Lynne Gentry had made the leap from her successful career as a traditionally published novelist to working exclusively in the self-publishing arena. As a result, she’d gained tremendous experience with advertising and marketing in the digital space.

 

We relied on Lynne to guide us through everything from price points to launch strategies to marketing plans, and her knowledge proved invaluable from the start.

“I enjoyed working on this collaborative project and found it to be a stress-free, creative release,” says Gentry. “It’s given us a social network with like-minded peers while also resulting in a collection we can all feel good about sharing with readers.”

 

Cross-genre author Kelli Stuart also brought self-publishing experience to the table, having kept one foot in the traditional market while releasing her own independent titles. With a list of well-proven resources, she led us to our talented formatter and cover designer Roseanna White and our gifted copyeditor Bethany Hockenbury. We couldn’t have been more pleased with those partnerships, and we all formed new professional relationships as a result.

 

Our “numbers guru” (and the only one of us who doesn’t think math is a four-letter word), author Allison Pittman became our accountant, managing the backstage details and keeping us all on track financially. (Thank heavens!)

 

In addition to our roles as authors, Janyre Tromp and I both work as editors, so we tackled the developmental and substantive line edits before Hockenbury took over for copyedits and proofreading.

 

“It was an honor to work with these amazing writers, both as a fellow author and an editor,” says Tromp, whose role as editor with Kregel Publications also equipped her with the skills to steer us through the production stages of this project.

 

With reluctance, I also took on the title of Ms. Bossy Pants to keep the project moving forward at every turn. Sigh … somebody must do it. In this role, I scheduled meetings, offered gentle reminders, and did a lot of cheerleading to maintain momentum for the team. (I tried not to be too bossy.)

 

Like magic, everything fell into place seamlessly, and we were all excited when novelist Susie Finkbeiner offered to write the foreword.

 

A uniting theme

We did overcome one major challenge at the onset: we each have established readerships across different genres.

 

Most collections focus on a very specific niche—small town romance, medical suspense, urban thrillers, etc. But we each bring such diverse views and interests to the page, we wanted to see what could happen if the theme allowed us room to play.

 

After brainstorming holiday traditions, we settled on the topic of film. “There are few things more unifying and joyous than cherished Christmas movies,” Stuart says.

 

Pittman agrees: “We've all become used to the Hallmark Christmas movies taking over the season, but the art of the Christmas-themed drama has been around since long before the greeting card company dominated our small screens. It's a Wonderful Life and Remember the Night hearken back to classic Hollywood films.”

 

Gentry also felt sentimental ties to old films. “It finally feels like Christmas when some of my favorite movies start to play,” she says. “Watching classics like Miracle on 34^th Street and White Christmas always launches me into the holiday spirit with hope and a smile.”

 

Stuart sums it up, saying, “Amidst the continued uncertainty of the world, we’re all looking for comforting, healthy ways to escape. Nothing works better than a film or story.”

Pulling it all together

Once we settled on classic holiday films, we each took that spark and let it lead us anywhere it wanted to take us. The result? An eclectic collection that includes everything from a Nutcracker inspired fairytale to a charming romance set in a Michigan castle to three heartwarming stories that take place right here in the south (can I get a hallelujah?!).

 

While I’d intended to stem my novella from It’s a Wonderful Life, the muse steered me toward the most unexpected of choices—National Lampoon’s Family Vacation! My 30,000-word novella doesn’t parallel the classic John Hughes’ film and it isn’t an adaptation, but it does explore similar themes by focusing on a quirky family with all sorts of differences and modern-day complexities. Then we see what happens when they dare to come together for the holidays.

 

The spirit of Christmas

“I love the variety in the collection and hope readers will enjoy exploring stories that may be different from what they typically read,” Tromp says.

 

“Yes,” echoes Pittman. “We hope we’ve succeeded at delivering something for everyone.’

 

Regardless of faith, age, or story preferences, we want readers to find a little holiday happiness between these pages, and we hope this book leads to a WONDERFUL Christmas for all.

Julie Cantrell is a New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author whose work can be found at: www.juliecantrell.com. Connect with all five authors (and more) at HER NOVEL COLLECTIVE

Another Side of Southern Writers, Part Two

by Gary Fearon, Creative Director, Southern Writers Magazine

In my last blog post I shifted gears slightly to introduce you to books written by some of the staff writers and contributors at Southern Writers Magazine. Their interviews and instructional articles appear in each issue, but many are also authors in their own right, and I'm gratified that so many of you have enjoyed getting to know their works.  Today, I'm proud to brag on the rest of our respectable regulars:

Vicki H. Moss

Like many of our staffers, Vicki has been a vital part of the mag from the very first issue, sharing expertise and writing up awesome author interviews with a strong and witty voice. Her passionate personality permeates her many other projects including blogging, poetry, speaking, and teaching writing classes, and her book How to Write for Kids Magazines While Working on a Debut Novel is a smart guide to making extra cash in a fun market.

You'll want to keep an eye out for her soon-to-be-released Writing with Voice. It's already getting rave advance reviews from no less than bestsellers Lee Smith and Emily Sue Harvey. I'm jealous because I haven't gotten my copy yet.  You can visit Vicki at www.livingwaterfiction.com

Julie Cantrell

Literate and lovable, Julie Cantrell is truly a champion for the cause of communication. A speech-language pathologist and literacy advocate, her debut novel Into the Free was an international bestseller and received two Christy awards. She and Lisa Wingate team up for The Writer's Jar, a popular feature in each issue of Southern Writers, where they engage in lively conversation with Southern authors.

Julie's latest novel, When Mountains Move, is a Carol Award winner and, like its predecessor, has been recognized as a top read of the year by USA TODAY. Her eagerly anticipated third novel, The Feathered Bone, will be out this November.

www.juliecantrell.com

Lisa Wingate

Lisa is a former journalist, inspirational speaker, and the author of over twenty novels. Her national bestseller Tending Roses is now in its 19th printing. Lisa graced our very first issue with our first Last Word back in July 2011, and has been a favored friend of the mag ever since.  Her feature The Writer's Jar with Julie Cantrell became a Southern Writers staple in July 2014.

Lisa's current series, Carolina Heirlooms, continues in September with her next release, The Sea Keeper's Daughters, available for pre-order now.

www.lisawingate.com

Shelly Frome

After an illustrious career as a professional actor, film critic, and a professor of dramatic arts emeritus at the University of Connecticut, Shelly is now a full-fledged Southerner and shares his vast insider's knowledge of the theater via his current series on screenwriting. Anyone who finds the psychology of story fascinating appreciates his astute insights, which is why I own pretty much everything he's written on the subject. 

The author of several nonfiction books including Playwriting, The Art and Craft of Screenwriting, and The Actors Studio, Shelly is also an acclaimed mystery writer whose latest novel, Tinseltown Riff, has all the cinematic flavor of a good Hollywood whodunit. His latest crime novel, Murder Run, will be released in a couple of weeks.

www.shellyfrome.com

Edie Melson

If you've taken social media seriously in the last few years, you've come across Edie Melson, a leading voice in the blogosphere. She is co-director and faculty member of numerous writers conferences, and her writing website The Write Conversation is a resource referred to regularly by both beginning bloggers and experienced world wide webbers. As our Social Media Director, Edie cuts through all the noise and spells out the means to having a successful author platform.

Her book on social media and networking techniques, Connections, is a must read for anyone who wonders "How much time must I spend on Facebook and Twitter when there's this book I'm trying to write?"  Hardly a week goes by that I don't recommend Connections to someone who ends up thanking me later. Simply put, Edie makes it easy. 

http://thewriteconversation.blogspot.com

C. Hope Clark

One of the most common things authors tells us they struggle with is writing dialogue. But C. Hope Clark has tongues wagging thanks to her frequent articles on just that subject. The founder of FundsforWriters.com, Hope reaches over 40.000 readers each week with advice on markets, grants, contests and much more, and her book The Shy Writer Reborn: An Introverted Writer's Wake-Up Call, has ignited many an author's ability to promote themselves with confidence.

Hope is the author of the Carolina Slade mysteries Lowcountry Bribe, Tidewater Murder and Palmetto Poison. Her newest series, The Edisto Island Mysteries, begins with Murder on Edisto. For lovers of Southern intrigue, nothing is finer than to be in Carolina with Hope.

http://fundsforwriters.com

Steve Bradshaw

Steve is one of the newer contributors to the magazine, but someone who's been around the (writer's) block. A forensic investigator, biomedical founder-president/CEO, entrepreneur, radio talk show host, Steve was the youngest field agent for the Medical Examiner's Office in Texas history, investigating 3,000 unexplained deaths and 300 homicides. There is no dearth of death in Steve's background, which uniquely qualifies him to instruct on the mechanics of mayhem in Southern Writers.

His personal experience with the grisly and gruesome also lends chilling authenticity to his Bell Trilogy of mysteries, which include Bluff City Butcher, The Skies Roared, and Blood Lions. www.stevebradshawauthor.com

In my previous post I was also proud to feature Susan Reichert, Chris Pepple, Jessica Ferguson, Londa Hayden, W. Terry Whalin, and Sara M. Robinson, but the Southern Writers family hardly stops there. We consider the 900+ authors who've graced our pages our extended family, not to mention every subscriber to the magazine and every visitor who comes here to read Suite T. Thanks to one and all for your role in making the writer's community an amazing place to be.

When I Fell in Love with Writing

by Julie Cantrell

I heart writing. I do.

It all started when I was a girl in bare feet and braids. I would climb my backyard cedar tree with my blue unicorn journal in hand. There, I would escape to those fragrant limbs and drop my deepest feelings down on paper.

I was a typical first-born child with a self-centered universe, so my earliest entries were about boys and friends and family. Gradually, those thoughts reached farther and deeper. I began writing about war and politics, suicide and abortion, alcoholism and drug abuse. I watched the people in my community and I observed their choices. I wrote about those behaviors and patterns. I questioned everything on those pages, exploring the world around me and processing what I thought about it all.

I soon began to experiment, trying my luck at poetry. I wrote letters to friends. I wrote letters to loved ones. I wrote letters to my future self and to long-gone icons. Most of those letters never made it past my diary, but I wrote them nonetheless.

Then I wrote stories. Fictional tales filled with imaginary characters. I entered worlds far beyond any I had seen. I became a missionary, a soldier, a convict. I wrote from the point-of-view of an old man, a homeless mother, an orphan in the underground tunnels. Inspired by an eclectic mix of authors ranging from Kate Chopin and Judy Blume to John Steinbeck and Harper Lee, I explored the universe of possibility. I discovered the power of infinite creativity and spent more time in my character’s thoughts than I did my own.

Before I knew it, I was no longer writing about boys. I had fallen madly, deeply, passionately in love with writing. I wanted to understand others who weren’t like me. Writing allowed me to walk in their shoes, to think as they thought, to see the world as they did. Writing gave me all the answers to the “what ifs” and “why nots” that plagued my teenage mind.

Today, I still escape into these other worlds every chance I get. Writing, creating, exploring --- this is my fix. It’s how I think. It’s how I navigate the twists and turns of my life. It’s how I feed my artistic hunger.

Now that my first novel (Into the Free) has been released, I am feeling the overwhelming thrill of hearing others talk about my characters as if they really exist. It’s fascinating to hear people discuss this world, these stories, that were plucked from my brain and pressed to a page.

Do I love writing? Yes. I do. I love it so much I don’t want to ever lose it. I love it in the way that little barefoot girl in the tree loved John and then Paul and then Mike. Only better. As if my whole being would erupt if he chose someone other than me. I heart writing. It’s true. I do. And I still have my unicorn journal to prove it.

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Julie is a sleep-deprived mom of two spunky souls; a wacky wife who tends to burn dinner; a frazzled friend who wishes she had more time for chats; a first-generation organic farmer with dirt on her jeans and hay in her hair; a pal to all things furry; a teacher of students learning English as their second language; a certified speech-language pathologist; a frenzied freelance writer; a voracious volunteer; and – as of February 1 – a newbie novelist.

We invite you to connect with Julie online at Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, her blog and her website.