As a lifelong reader of fiction, the concept of writing a story about books and the magic that takes place inside a publishing house was more than a little intriguing. The multifaceted process of how a seedling of an idea goes from an author’s imagination to a drafted manuscript to a final product worthy of a mass print never ceases to amaze me—and I’ve been a published author for over a decade now! Truth is, I learned so much in the months I spent researching and revising my newest release, THE WORDS WE LOST.
When the initial spark behind The Words We Lost caught fire in my imagination, I knew I needed my protagonist, Ingrid Erikson, to be an experienced acquisitions editor as it was imperative for her to have both a professional and personal attachment to the editorial community. From there, I also knew I needed to create a fictional publishing house which I located in San Francisco, California, and named Fog Harbor Books. (The reason behind why my new three-book series is titled the Fog Harbor Romance series). Throughout the writing process, I was able to ask my editors at Bethany House Publishers for their input regarding what really happens during those book-pitching meetings, as well as what the unique legalities are concerning intellectual property rights, and then a BIGGIE: What happens to a manuscript if the author passes away before its publication? Spoiler alert: If you want to know the answer to that one, you’ll just have to read my book to find out!
Other noteworthy research for The Words We Lost includes a destination near and dear to my heart: Port Townsend, Washington. This old Victorian seaport town located on the Olympic Peninsula on Puget Sound quickly became the perfect setting for the majority of this angsty and atmospheric second-chance love story between an editor in search of a missing manuscript and a hotel manager who refuses to let go of the woman he lost five years prior. Port Townsend holds the allure, mystery, wonder, and palpable romantic tension I hope every reader will experience the moment Ingrid steps off the ferry.
This story within a story is like nothing I’ve penned before as clues from the past will soon become their guiding light for the future. This healing journey in search of closure is one I pray will resonate with many readers as it’s often on the other side of heartache that we find what’s truly missing: hope. Sometimes the most rewarding journeys we take—in books and in life—are the ones that lead us home.
A Fog Harbor Romance
A Clean Romance
Three friends. Two broken promises. One missing manuscript.
As a senior acquisitions editor for Fog Harbor Books in San Francisco, Ingrid Erikson has rejected many a manuscript for lack of defined conflict and dramatic irony--two elements her current life possesses in spades. In the months following the death of her childhood best friend and international bestselling author Cecelia Campbell, Ingrid has not only lost her ability to escape into fiction due to a rare trauma response, but she's also desperate to find the closure she's convinced will come with Cecelia's missing final manuscript.
After Ingrid jeopardizes her career, she fears her future will remain irrevocably broken. But then Joel Campbell--the man who shattered her belief in happily-ever-afters--offers her a sealed envelope from his late cousin, Cecelia, asking Joel and to put their differences aside and retrieve a mysterious package in their coastal Washington hometown.
Honoring Cecelia's last request will challenge their convictions and test their loyalties, but through it all, will Ingrid and Joel be brave enough to uncover a twice-in-a-lifetime love?
Romance Contemporary | Christian [Bethany House Publishers, On Sale: April 11, 2023, Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 9780764241185 / eISBN: 9781493440719]
Nicole Deese’s eight humorous, heartfelt, and hope-filled novels include the 2017 Carol Award Winning A Season to Love. Her 2018 release, A New Shade of Summer, was a finalist in the RITA Awards, Carol Awards, and Inspy Awards. Both these books are from her best-selling Love in Lenox Series. The first book in her upcoming contemporary romance series with Bethany House Publishers is set to release in early 2020.
When she's not sorting out characters and plots of her own, she can usually be found reading near a window overlooking the inspiring beauty of the Pacific Northwest (most often while sipping a sparkling water). She lives in small-town, Idaho with her happily-ever-after hubby, two towering-over-her pre-teen sons, and her princess daughter with the heart of a warrior.
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