Karen Rose Smith | Reunions and Settings

At my high school reunion, I reconnected with women I'd once confided in as we attended classes and dances and shared dreams.  Guys who'd once seemed unapproachable were now easy to converse with.  Time and experience seemed to have given most of us a kinder perspective.  That reunion gave me the idea for my Reunion Brides series.

We all have memories from high school.  It was a time in our lives different from any other.  Young and inexperienced, we looked at the world with a purity and clarity we might never have again.  In all of these books, I use those memories as back story.  At these heroes and heroines fifteenth year reunion, those memories play a huge role in what happens next and the romance that takes root at that reunion gathering.

I have set these books in the fictional town of Miners Bluff in northern Arizona.  Readers have asked me why I chose that setting and how I choose any setting.

In my first few books, I chose the town where I grew up to be my backdrop for many reasons.  Garnering local publicity was a big one.  But I believe I mainly chose it for familiarity.  I knew what shops and businesses were located downtown.  I had a host of suburbs to choose from.  The town was large enough so I could weave in anything I needed.  Most of all, I knew it so well I could concentrate on all the other elements necessary to sell those books.  Years later when I set a more expansive book there that dealt with the 1970's, I realized my heart was in my hometown and that shone through whether or not I'd realized the fact in my earlier books.

Sometimes I pick a particular setting because of my hero or heroine's background or career path.  If I want to write about a venture capitalist, I could choose Chicago or New York City.  A trauma surgeon would lead me to a more heavily populated area where a small town doctor would be involved with fewer patients over their lifetimes.  If I select a large city, I still create a community of characters because friendships and family bonds are critical in my novels.  A hometown gives my hero or heroine roots.  On the other hand, if my character is a newcomer, he or she can feel estranged from the residents, or see this place with a sense of exploration.  A hero or heroine can shade a reader's opinion of the setting.

A fictional setting is often the easiest to use.  I can give the town a flavor all of its own.  My street names can be picturesque or utilitarian.  I can build a hospital with a specialized NIC unit or create a lake for boating.  Anything and everything I will need for my plot can be a product of my imagination.

For this series, Finally, sometimes I choose a setting that is become as important as any character.  Miners Bluff is former copper mining town near Flagstaff.  Forests, canyons and mountains are infusing the books with their own special magic while I write.  My heroes and heroines are surrounded by a natural beauty that infiltrates not only the descriptions but the imagery I use as well.  Because this is one of my favorite destinations that fills up my creative spirit, my feelings about the area seep into the emotion and conflict.  This setting becomes a character in itself.

My memories from high school and more importantly my feelings about them are multi-faceted from not feeling popular to having a close-knit group of supportive friends. So I easily tapped into emotions from that time as well as from high school reunions and the friendships I've kept because of them. My emotional, creative and spiritual response to the awesome scenery is this section of our beautiful country also seeps into the fabric of my Reunion Brides series.  The first book, HIS DAUGHTER...THEIR CHILD, will be released in February.  I hope you can fall into these plotlines and find them as compelling to read about as I did to write about.

Thanks for letting me blog here with you today.  Have a wonderful day.

Karen Rose Smith