People often ask me where I get the ideas for my books. Ideas come from lots of places. Songs. News events. Dreams. What ifs. The possibilities are endless. No matter what the story is or how I discovered the idea, there is always a bit of real life in every story. I’m going to share some of them with you.
In the very first book I sold to Harlequin under the title, The Heart’s Homecoming, now reissued under the title, Second Chance Love, my heroine used a line that came from my husband who does not like country music. My heroine, who doesn’t like country music either, tells the hero as he selects music on her car’s radio, “My car doesn’t do country.”
The heroine in my book, A Match to Call Ours, the first book in my Front Porch Promises series, goes snow skiing with the hero and falls flat on her face the first time she gets off the ski lift. That happened to me in real life. In that same book, the hero’s twin daughters are the image of my childhood friend Rose and her Native American heritage.
In the fifth book of the Front Porch Promises series, A Song to Call Ours, the hero and heroine go to the Highland Games at Grandfather Mountain, North Carolina. That is something I did decades ago when I was in college.
In the last book in the Front Porch Promises series, A Place to Find Love, my hero and heroine take a business trip to Europe. I used our trip to Munich, Germany, Bruge, Belgium, and Amsterdam, The Netherlands, as a backdrop for their business.
Forty-some years ago, my husband took flying lessons, and on a solo flight he had to crash land his plane because a mechanic improperly hooked up the fuel hose. I used that scenario in my book, Hometown Dad, as the hero crashes his plane.
I don’t often set my books in “real places.” I usually make up a town near a real city, but in the first book in my Dalton Brothers series, Four Little Blessings, I used Amelia Island as the setting. We lived there for twelve years, and I loved the time I was able to spend at the beach. My characters take advantage of the beach on many occasions.
The Village of Hope is my latest series, and I created a fictional multi-faceted ministry that helps those in need. The ministry is set near Altanta, Georgia, and I used a couple of actual ministries as my inspiration for this fictional one. You might have noticed the hot air balloon in the top photo. In the second book in The Village of Hope series, the hero takes the heroine on a hot air balloon ride that takes them over the scenery north of Atlanta. Many years ago, my husband and I got to take a hot air balloon ride when we were in Napa, California, a thrilling ride.
In my latest release, Melody’s Resolve, the third book in The Village of Hope series, the hero loves to sky dive. We were at a football game some years ago where they had sky divers who were supposed to land in the stadium. As the divers jumped from the plane, one by one the shoots opened. Then one didn’t. Talk about heart in your throat. Then the auxiliary shoot opened. Relief. I used that in the book.
What is something from your life that you would like to see in a book? I will be giving away an ebook copy of either Four Little Blessings or A Match to Call Ours, winner’s choice, to one person who leaves a comment here. I will draw the winning name on February 28, 2023, at 9PM MST.
“Void where prohibited; the odds of winning depend on the number of entrants. Entering the giveaway is considered a confirmation of eligibility on behalf of the enterer in accord with these rules and any pertaining local/federal/international laws.”
Merrillee Whren is an award-winning author who writes inspirational romance. She is the winner of the 2003 Golden Heart Award for best inspirational romance manuscript presented by Romance Writers of America. She has also been the recipient of the RT Reviewers’ Choice Award and the Maggie Award for Excellence. She is married to her own personal hero, her husband of thirty plus years, and has two grown daughters. She has lived in Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Chicago and Florida but now makes her home in the Arizona desert. When she’s not writing, she spends her free time playing tennis or walking while she does the plotting for her novels.
I can’t think of anything in my life that would be interesting enough to be written about in a book. I had a better childhood than my adult life. I avoid drama and I hate confrontation, so it would be a boring story.
I love hearing how you mix little events or places into your stories! It’s always so interesting to hear how writers work.
I don’t think I’ve had many interesting things happen to me that would be much good in a book lol. I was lucky enough to go to the Amalfi coast in Italy for my honeymoon though, it was beautiful and I’d love to go back some day, I think it would make a lovely setting for a romance story.
Something from my life to put in a book…hmm…how about coming home from Sunday night church service only to find out that a gate was left open, and now you have to round up a whole herd of black cows (in the dark) and chase them out of the blueberry patch without breaking said blueberry bushes or running into the greenhouses! :D
Hi Merrillee! Writing from gloomy rainy SW Michigan. As a reader, I often wonder about the author’s inspiration for her stories. As a daughter, wife, mom, Oma, and now retired teacher I often relate stories to my sons, grandkids, family and friends. Not sure I want them used in books. There are many stories, since I moved 20 times (2 countries, 2 states and 7 cities). Travel stories as I traveled coast to coast – 26 states and 9 countries.
Our family was robbed while traveling to Florida (in Savannah, Georgia) and in 1997 we had a devastating house fire – loosing everything. My parents were married at the beginning of the Berlin Airlift 1948. My aunt and her family escaped East Berlin 3 weeks before the Berlin Wall was built in 1961. My great Uncle Otto left a village near Kyiv, Ukraine at the beginning of WW1 to emigrate to the USA – 1914. Not sure those stories will be written about in books. Been nostalgic because on March 7, 1955 was when my family arrived in the USA from war torn Berlin.
Thanks for sharing. Best wishes. Looking forward to spring.
When we lived in England for 4 months while student teaching we would travel on the weekend. When we went to Lands End we missed our bus back to the train station. We also realized we were trying to hitchhike like Americans and just started laughing. I would never do this again but we did get a ride to the train station by a local who was laughing at our hitchhiking antics.
I’d love to see a book with the following in it!! This really happened to me! I received a text message early one morning on my old cell phone. My old phone, even though I told it to be on silent mode and not to give notifications from 10pm to 8am, would light up with a call or text during those hours. Well, early one morning, between 2 and 4am, that thing lit up. I can’t sleep if there’s a light on, and that thing woke me up. There was a message saying “Amy, I’m the one you met tonight at the bar. I’d like to meet up again.” There was more to it, I was irritated, and I deleted the message. Later, I thought of all of the fun I could have had if I’d texted him back!!! Not to actually meet him, but to really mess with him!!
When my husband was in the army in the early 1970’s, he was stationed in Okinawa. We lived there for almost 2 years. That was only 26 years after the end of World War 2 when there were some major battles fought on the island. It would be interesting to have a story of a couple living there and reflecting back to some of those battles and what the island and people were like then. Could even be one of those time travel novels were the heroine of the modern day falls in love with a soldier or resident of the WWII time and place.
Probably my experience during an exchange program in college. The mix of experiencing a new culture and all its challenges can be fun.
I’m not sure if I would want to it would be interesting book about my life with 12 sibblings
3 nieces and 3 nephews ages 2 and under my nieces are all my younger brothes kids and they are ages 2 1 and a day old and growing up with my aunt’s children cause when the pandemic closed down everything we couldn’t do anything so we just did lots of stuff with them as they live right next door to us.
Hi, wow! Secret sibling . Not entering this ebook giveaway, but thank you, I am not tech savvy at all, so I don’t read ebooks at all. Have a great week.
Hello Thank you for sharing the post! Love the story I don’t read ebooks either so please don’t enter me in the ebook giveaway Have a blessed day!
I would like to see something similar to what happened to me, the story of a girl who was bullied during elementary school and later in high school even if she changed schools. I dealt with bullying in different ways: physical, psychological and even being ignored with everyone pretending you don’t exist so I guess it would be sad.
I would appreciate it if the author refrained from giving the heroine any friends because I was all alone no one wanted to help me or be my friend no one to sit with at lunch or stand up for you I stood up for you alone. Then in my last year at 18 I went to a school where I was finally treated well and made friends, I was also able to stop being afraid of boys since until now they had only been mean to me…I really hated boys my age hahaha I was convinced that good guys were only around until my mom’s time.
Only in college did I heal all of that and become a Christian so it could be an YA clean story about my senior year of high school or a deeper new adult story and well some romance doesn’t hurt lol I’m still single but heroin can have romance even though I don’t right? haha
It was also interesting that when I was at school I took several photos with my new friends, my mom went to see my psychologist who had been treating me since I was 14 to show her that I was finally fine.The poor woman watching me cry in her office for 2 whole years and then talking to me for another 2.
First I have to say I not sure when you are drawing as this isn’t a leap year and I had to laugh at the 29th (I have friends who have been married 59 years on that date).
Being in a lift with a sports star would be interesting in a book. I have been in a lift with a few cricketers. Mostly I didn’t speak but one from South Africa we had a conversation. Another time after being to the cricket (cheering for a different state team to the state I am in) I was in the lift with some interstate Basketball players I had no idea who they were and they were interested in the cricket. It was when I exited I realised they were from an interstate team that were playing the local team (our national basketball league)
I was in the lift with a presenter of a national morning tv show. I was never a fan and the time in the lift (he didn’t talk but was quite arrogant) confirmed my opinion of him.
I was in Alice Springs Airport flying back to Adelaide when we had to evacuate the airport it was said there was a bomb threat. (It was when the first gulf war had started). so we were in the heat outside. Turns out it was some of the Royal Airforce planes coming in and everyone had to be out of the building. It was scary not knowing what was happening and not being told what was happening.
Hi Audrey,
You never know. Something in your life might be more interesting than you think.
Hi Ruthie,
The Amalfi coast is indeed beautiful. We drove it while we had a stop on a Mediterranean cruise several years ago. It would be a lovely setting for a romance.
Hi Elizabeth,
Rounding up cows in the dark would definitely be a challenge.
Hi Renate,
Getting robbed and having a house fire are both exciting in a not so good way. You mentioned people escaping from places torn by war. In my book, Hometown Promise, my hero’s grandfather had escaped from East Germany.
Hi Lori,
Yes, hitchhiking can be a little dangerous, especially these days.
Hi Trudy,
That is funny. You could’ve had a lot of fun with that.
Hi Bonnie,
That could be an interesting plot. World War II seems to be a popular subject for books these days.
Hi Priscila,
Experiencing a new culture is definitely a challenge.
Hi Kendra,
That’s a lot of children.
Hi Alicia,
I could be interesting to explore finding out that you have a sibling you didn’t know about.
We just returned from a two-week trip. One of the times I get to read is when we travel, so I love to read on my iPad. I have a whole library full of books on there to choose from. I love ebooks. I don’t have to worry about trying to find a place to stuff books to read. We took a trip in 2008 before ebooks and ereaders were popular. I packed several paperbacks. Unfortunately, my luggage was on the tarmac during a downpour, and everything in my suitcase got soaked, including the books. You know what happens to books when they get wet. So glad not to have to carry those kinds of books anymore when I travel.
Lilly,
I’m so sorry that you were bullied, but I’m glad you became a Christian and found friends and found healing.
Hi Jenny,
Thanks for pointing out my date error. That should’ve been February 28. I’d better change it. That is interesting that you were in the lift several times with sports stars and celebrities. One time my husband and I were at a hotel and in the lift with a half dozen basketball players from the Golden State Warriors. They were so tall.
My dog at the time saved me from the fire that started in the unit next door. He work me up from a sound sleep. He never did that before. He would not leave my side. He hated to be on a leash, yet he sat for me to put it on him while we walked across the street to my Mom’s house. There was a gentleman who had woke up my Mom. He told her she needed to get up her daughter needed her. There is so much more to this story, but this gives you a bit. Thank you for sharing. God bless you.
cooking
Hmm, my life has been pretty normal and not exciting, so I’m not sur if there is anything in my life that would be interesting in a book.
I enjoyed learning how you put together book locations and events to create such interesting stories.
I have to say I did feel short with the basketball players. I also think they realised I had no idea who they were. I was just so excited my team had won.
When I went to the city to watch cricket I was often in the same hotel as some of the teams. Which is how it happened.
Oh in Hawaii I when I flew to one of the other islands we had a prisoner on the plain which was also interesting.
(right now another day in Feb would be great)
I’m not sure there’s much about my life that would make am interesting book, but I enjoy reading books with so many different experiences.
Just the every day struggles of day to day life :)