It’s certainly true that my Christmas
books have become amongst my most successful. 
This year
Christmas Wishes makes its debut in the UK at the same time as
Let it Snow and The Christmas Promise go into
paperback in the US and Home for the Holidays is released in
Canada.
There are new releases in Italy and Germany too. All have beautiful,
festive covers and tempt readers with foil titles and shimmering highlights.
Holiday romances are satisfying to write.
All kinds of conflicts seem worse if
you add ‘… at Christmas’.
Who’d want to lose their job at Christmas?
He was told
his friend had died at Christmas.
The joyful parts seem better!
They fell in
love at Christmas.
He learned he was to be a father at Christmas.
With any book
I have a schedule and there are a host of deadlines for the first draft, the
structural edits, line and copy edits, then the proof read … then, bam, we’re
into the marketing. This means a period of pretty intense activity when my
publishers put out their advertising and we all hit social media, people ask me
to sign the book as a gift, it appears in listicles of gift ideas or what to
read this Christmas in magazines and blogs and it features on glossy flyers for
book stores. It’s great but it’s hectic, especially when I’m usually thinking of
next year’s winter book and doing edits on next year’s summer book.
 |
| Sue in Sweden |
Luckily, I have an active imagination and
somehow I can still think myself into one climate while living in another, just
as I can think my way into one country while living in another. Photographs help
a lot so my folder of pictures from last December’s trip to Sweden was open all
the time. A Christmas book every year is a way of life now but I still look back
to a November several years ago when I was at a book signing and other authors’
Christmas books were being snatched up by avid Christmas-gift shoppers. And I
thought, ‘Hmm. Maybe I ought to write one of those …’
Learn more about Sue on her website: http://suemoorcroft.com
8 comments:
Being "Queen of Christmas" has worked quite well for you, Sue. Here's to more success this year with Christmas Wishes!!!
Thank you very much, Sarah. 😊 I couldn’t pick anything more fun to be ‘queen of’.
Certainly agree..the Queen of Christmas Romance!
Sue, loved the picture of you in a parka in the snow. I'm sure it helps you think about Christmas when you are slathering on sunscreen and drinking iced tea. Loved that juxtaposition that you get to live with each year. How long does it take you to write one of you holiday stories?
Sorry for the delay in commenting. I've been glued to the news here in the USA as election results have been coming in since Tuesday.
Sue,
I like the idea of having the season you are writing for in pictures on your laptop! you are truly the queen of Christmas, Love your book covers and good luck on sales.
Christmas stories are certainly a great sale during the season, and good for backlist even out of season. You are in great company for those who tend to write their Christmas stories in the middle of summer so they are ready to go for the fall. Congratulations!
Thank you very much to Aspiring Author :-)
Judith: I suppose each book takes about six months, as I write two books a year (one summer, one winter). However, in reality, it's more of a rolling process. For example, right now I'm promoting Christmas Wishes, editing my next book (Under the Italian Sun) and planning my winter 2021 book. I try hard to work these tasks around each other in a way that isn't too disruptive but it's not always possible. I think many people in the world have been glued to your election results. I hope you got the one you wanted.
Diana: many thanks! I'm very lucky with my covers and have little input except to say, 'Yes, lovely!' unless there's some factual problem. I leave it to the experts. It's interesting to see how covers vary from market to market. I think it was this time last year I talked about that on RTG.
Maggie: thank you very much. Luckily, I got used to writing the other season when I worked for magazines. :-)
Thanks for your comments, everybody.
Sue, it was last year when you guested with us you showed us the differences in covers in the various markets including some changes in language. That was a fascinating post also. Hope you'll join us again next year!
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