Monday, December 16, 2013

Christmas Release Series 2013: Mistletoe Magic by Terri Weldon



Terri Weldon

An early Merry Christmas to you, dear writers! Annette here. Today we have our final Christmas release post of the year with a debut author. I'm excited to introduce Terri Weldon to you. She and I worked together at White Rose Publishing to bring her novella, Mistletoe Magic, to publication. Read on to learn some behind-the-scenes secrets even I didn't know. And watch for Terri's second visit to Seriously Write coming up Thursday with Dora Hiers. Enjoy!

Welcome, Terri!

How did this project take shape?

Well, originally Mistletoe Magic was supposed to be part of a compilation of novellas with three other authors. Unfortunately, things didn’t work out. At first, our proposal was overlooked and then the next year we were told they weren’t taking submissions.  So there I was with a completed Christmas novella on my hands. I have a couple of friends who are PBG authors and they suggested I submit it to Pelican Book Group. Now I feel like this is where God meant for my debut to be published. 

Please share some themes of your novella:

The main theme would be trust the Lord to fulfill the desires of your heart. We humans can make quite a mess when we try and do God’s job for Him.

What makes your project stand out from other Christmas titles?

My hero is a dentist. I actually had someone tell me they planned to buy the book because of that tidbit. Also, it involves an online dating service. Something you don’t see much of in fiction.

Tell us one interesting fact about your novella.

It features a Christmas character that is not normally in novels – Rudolph’s girlfriend. The majority of Christmas books focus on Santa Claus or Frosty. Now, obviously, I’m not talking about the spiritual aspect.

What’s next for you as an author?

I firmly believe my writing is in God’s hands, so it is hard to know exactly what will happen next. But right now I’m revising a romantic suspense novel. Totally different from Mistletoe Magic in genre and tone, but I love both romantic suspense and romantic comedy so I hope to be able to write both types of books.

What else would you like to share about this project?

I loved writing this novella! Annette, you were a joy to work with as an editor and made the novella so much stronger. Mistletoe Magic is a romantic comedy written to give the reader an hour or two of Christmas enjoyment. Originally I intended for it to be a standalone title, but I’ve really been toying with the idea of making a return trip to Winslow, Oklahoma and seeing what happens.

Thanks so much, Terri. I enjoyed working with you on it as well. Such a fun story! Thanks for visiting Seriously Write this week.

Merry Christmas!

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Mistletoe Magic
Misty Winslow is determined to find her prince charming. She meets the man of her dreams through an internet dating service. Or is he? Because the new dentist in town sets her heart a flutter. It's love at first sight for Tyler Davenport, but before he can finish his first root canal Misty is involved in an exclusive online romance with Wes99. Tyler begins to get jealous of Wes99, his online persona! Soon he's pulling out all the stops to woo Misty. As Christmas approaches, Wes99 and Tyler both ask her to meet them under the mistletoe. Which man will she choose?


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Terri claims her regular life is pretty mundane, but refrains from saying dull! She and her sister Cynthia share a house in Oklahoma. They’re the best of friends and have many of the same interests. She enjoys gardening, reading, and shopping for shoes (a habit she really needs to break). She has three dogs—a lovable mutt and two adorable Westies. She volunteers as her church librarian—she actually gets to shop for books and spend someone else’s money. Plus, she gets to introduce people to Christian fiction. Terri is a member of ACFW and RWA. Mistletoe Magic is her debut novella.