One of the coolest things about living in Coastal North Carolina is all the neat towns. Many authors will suggest that you write about what you know. I, on the other hand, will tell you to write about what you have learned. It is easy to take for granted the places we live. There are so many local events that pass by unnoticed.
When I decided to take the docent training at The Beaufort Historic Association it was with a book in mind. I love Beaufort. It is close enough to where I live that I can travel there frequently, yet far enough to make me research. What I learned in the training was the backdrop of the town, its history and so many little details about the historic district that I wished I lived close enough to not only train as a docent, but also volunteer. I knew the moment I walked out the door the last day that this special site was indeed the place to set my series.
When choosing a local setting the reader may anticipate some fiction about the location but not a whole lot. If you decide to write a story that takes place in a real location and in the present, then you need to make sure that people who have been there can recognize it. Choose things that will not change, or things that are not likely to change for a very long time.
I have had several local readers tell me that they were picking apart my details and were very pleased. They could tell I put in the work to describe the location. This is important because if you write a book about a place where local people visit, live, and treasure, you better make sure to get the details right. They will either support your book or tear you to shreds and the latter is a very bad thing. Now if you change the name of a restaurant or store, that is one thing, but the core historical facts, those better be right.
The Art of Ethan is the first book in The Beaufort Series. It is published by Tease Publishing LLC and is part of a three book series. The story is meant to be read as if you are picking up the book and the action is happening today. It is about Grace, a school teacher who has not come to terms with her mother’s death. She is stuck in a rut but she can’t see it. Everyone around her does, and they are all worried. She loses her position as the cheerleading coach at the high school, she has a serious case of writers block, and her cousin Megan is getting married and wants her to be sewn into the dress! If that wasn’t enough, Megan decides to come to NC to visit with her fiancé and his brother Ethan.
Ethan is an artist who inherited his grandfather’s gallery in New York. He is a guest lecturer and one of NY’s hottest bachelors. There’s just one thing, he is fed up with lying, scheming, high maintenance diva’s, and has sworn off women. Then he meets Grace, and for the first time in a long time he actually has to work for a woman’s attention. The more she refuses him, the more he wants from her.
Add to the mix a stalker, an ex-boyfriend, an ex-girlfriend, and a fire, a wedding, and a couple pregnancy tests and you will see why Grace didn’t stand a chance.
Some of my favorite scenes in this book are the ones set in Beaufort. There is something magical about the house, the beach, and the town. Which is why the next two books in the series brings more people to live there!
Thank you for reading, and hopefully you will be inspired to check out your local historic association and re-discover some really great things about where you live!