I’m so excited for people to finally see Winter Rain! It was a story that took a while to write,
and I always used to say that the reason for that was that my characters were a
little shy. That’s the way I think of my
stories—my characters tell them to me and I write them down. But as I found my way through the story of Winter Rain, I discovered that the
sometimes difficult road it led me down had nothing to do with shyness.
The story centers on Isabel, a gifted but shy musician and
singer who is called back for a reunion with Shiloh Ridge, the band she played with
six years earlier. She is hesitant to go
back, as are other band members, and through a series of flashbacks, it becomes
evident as to why.
When she initially landed a gig playing with Shiloh Ridge, Isabel
was almost immediately drawn to Spencer, the most rugged and talented in the
band, and he to her. They shared a
moment together in which they dance slowly at a party thrown by Thomas, the
band’s lead singer, and learn they have much more in common than music. However, before their relationship can even
take shape, Thomas makes a claim over her, even teasing her (maybe) by telling
her he’ll hire her if she goes out with him.
This was the easy part, probably because it was the romantic
part. The ideas were coming fast and
strong, like they do when we’re telling a good story we like to someone. The building friendship and attraction
between Spencer and Isabel, their first romantic meeting, was enjoyable to
tell, so it wasn’t difficult. It was
fun. I loved it, just like I loved the
characters. All good things must come to
an end, however, and Isabel Spencer, and Thomas’s story was no exception.
Isabel tries to like Thomas while unbeknownst to her, he
begins cheating on her with an ex-girlfriend.
Meanwhile, the friendship and attraction between her and Spencer grows. But Thomas isn’t giving Isabel up without a
fight. His intense jealousy at Spencer’s
natural musical talent makes him all the more possessive of Isabel and leads to
a confrontation that renders each of them forever changed.
This is where the story became difficult to write. I knew something bad had happened between
these three people, bad enough for them to separate without the thought of
seeing one another again, but . . . what was it? I didn’t know, and the characters weren’t
telling me.
Tragic things are sometimes harder to talk about. I can’t help thinking about a scene in the film Frankie & Johnny, when Michelle Pfeiffer
is trying to tell Al Pacino about what her ex-husband did to her. She begins, but can’t get the words out, only
tears and hand gestures to imply her devastating past. Long story short, he is patient with her, understands,
and because he does, and so do the viewers.
In the end, that’s the way I think of Isabel and
Spencer. It wasn’t that they were too
shy to tell me what had happened years before, it was that it was difficult,
maybe too difficult to get the words out right away and what was needed on my
part was patience. I’m glad I had it
(like I had a choice! J),
because once they told me what happened to tear them apart, I fully
understood. The trouble was, could time and
the unburdening of painful secrets heal them enough to bring them back
together?
My hope was that they would.
As with many of my characters, I fell in love with them and if I told
their story in a way that gives it justice, I feel as though my readers will,
too.
Happy reading, whether it’s my book or another!
