Thursday, May 30, 2019

When Fiction Mimics reality @PeggyJaeger #RomanceGems

Three years ago my lovely daughter was in the wedding party of one of her best friends and sorority sisters from college. The bride hailed from one side of the country, the groom, the other. Where to have their ceremony so that all could participate proved quite the question for them.

They decided to have a "destination" wedding, but the destination was in the continental US so that both families could attend without breaking their bankbooks on air fares, exorbitant hotel fees and the thousand other little wedding costs that pop up. They chose a venue where they could have the marriage ceremony, the reception, the afterparty, and where  the guests could stay, all in the same place. My daughter jokingly called it "a one-stop wedding."

It's amazing how something like that simple statement can spark an idea.

The moment she uttered those words a new book series jumped into my mind. By that afternoon I had a vague outline of a three book arc. By the next morning, a detailed synopsis of each.
The very next day I started to write the first book in the series.

I envisioned a small New England town ( hey, write what you know, right?) and a family who owned and operated a bridal business. 3 sisters. One is the wedding planner; one is the JP/Officiant; one owns the Inn where the receptions occur, the guests stay, and the couple can be married in a beautiful gazebo.

A Match Made in Heaven was born. Now, before you think this is a Christian or Inspirational romance, know that it's not. The name HEAVEN is the town in New Hampshire I invented for the sole purpose of the books.

Book 1, DEARLY BELOVED, was released in November 2018, with books 2 and 3 coming this year and 2020.


It's been such a blast writing this series. I love the sisters, I love their feisty 93 year old grandmother, Nanny Fee, and I lovelovelove the men I've paired the sisters with.

Again, as a writer I'm always looking for story ideas. It's so nice when one falls into my lap, fully formed. You can view all my Pinterest ideas for the book on my Pinterest boards:
Cathleen & MacIzzy's shower, Maureen & LucasMaureen's Aprons, Nanny Fee,  O'Dowd,

Oh, and BTW, the book's dedication is to that happy couple:


For Shanel and Isaiah—
it was your beautiful wedding that sparked the idea for me to write an out-of-town wedding series. Blessings and Happiness on you both, for always. 


See you next month ~ Peg

16 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. My daughter assures me the wedding was fabulous ( BTW the one's in my book series are, too! Heehee)

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  2. I love weddings. People are always happy—or at least pretending to be—and there's cake and champagne! What's not to love? Much easier being a guest than a wedding planner which must be a high stress job. All those emotional meltdowns to deal with and the stress of having everything perfect, which all brides seem to want. Looking forward to reading Dearly Beloved!

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    1. Joan - I go for the cake, everytime!!! Hee Hee

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  3. This sounds like a “gimme” book. A book that almost writes itself. We all get them from time to time...but it sounds like the whole series is a gimme! And this couple was brilliant to come up with a destination that made it easy for everyone. They are off to a great start.

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    1. 3 years into the marriage and they are still so over the moon in love!!!

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  4. I love the story behind the story. Of course, you know I love this book too! My niece just got married in an apple orchard on the NH/Vermont line. That beautiful country atmosphere is amazing like in Dearly Beloved. I love when inspiration hits and it's so perfect!!

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  5. Fantastic idea you ran with! What's next?

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  6. Kathleen - that's the 64 million dollar question, isn't it? hee hee

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  7. Love the sound of the series. And the first book was just a delight! :) Can't wait for the next.

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  8. I expect you'll get a lot of inspiration in the month of June. You can write for decades about weddings. I still remember the Run for the Brides that they did at Filene's in Boston and went to with my daughter. What an experience! Can't wait to see more of yours.

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    1. Nora, alas, Filene's is gone, isn't it. Too bad.

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  9. Destination Wedding, I love those that word pairing! I wonder if it's already a title for a series...

    That's so cool of the bride and groom to agree to such a happy compromise for the guests! I hope everybody had a lovely time.

    p.s. this is my new name now (formerly Lavender Periwinkle -- Facebook made me change it so I came up with something that I like even more) :)

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    Replies
    1. I love your name. It's fun, flirty and memoriable!!!

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