Creating and Maintaining a Small Town Setting and Characters in a Series

Nan Reinhardt, author of the Four Irish Brothers Winery series and the Women of Willow Bay series

My first novel, Rule Number One, was set in the big city where I live, but most of the action happened in the microcosm of a near-downtown neighborhood that was being revitalized. So, big city, but with the flavor of small town where a neighborhood bar was the place to meet and the hero and heroine walked to the gym and restaurants and their places of business. The next four books were a series set in a fictional small town on the shore of Lake Michigan.

Although Willow Bay was inspired by the real town of Frankfort, Michigan, I loved inventing the village, the main street, the businesses, the historic lighthouse, and the bay and beach.

However, I didn’t include a lot of secondary characters—townspeople—in the Women of Willow Bay stories. Most of the secondary characters were an active part of the story and each one became the heroine of her own story in another book. 

The Four Irish Brothers Winery series took place in the same type of small town, but in those books, the setting itself has nearly become a secondary character. The little town of River’s Edge, Indiana, is based on the Ohio River town of Madison, Indiana, and I’ve had the time of my life populating it with quirky and fun characters.

Most of them are purely from my imagination, but friends/family may see a little of themselves in Mac Mackenzie, the Paris-trained chef who owns the local diner and cooks amazing dishes or in Dot Higgins and her sister Mary who own the quilt shop. Guitar-playing Duane is the local sheriff and Paula Meadows owns the Bread & Butter bakery, happily keeping all the townsfolk in bread, doughnuts, and pies. Janet at the yarn shop and her sweet kitty, Fiona, were inspired by a dear friend at my church, as was Noah, who owns the hardware store.

In River’s Edge, the River Walk is the place to meet-and-greet during any season. You might run into any one of the Flaherty brothers and their families on a warm summer evening or see Harley Cole, the nursery school teacher, rowing her kayak down on the river. Chances are good that Mateo Santos and his stepdad Aidan Flaherty are up on the deck of the River Queen showboat, singing lustily as they put on a new coat of white paint, scrub the decks, or wash windows in preparation for the new Showboat Summer season.

You could have a craft beer at Hutchins House, the oldest still-operating tavern on the river and have you stopped by the restaurant at the new Cotton Mill Inn? The hotel just opened in the newly renovated nineteenth-century cotton mill that overlooks the river. They’ve got a fabulous menu.

If you’re looking for a hike or a picnic among the cliffs and waterfalls of southern Indiana, the state park is just up the hill, and on the way up, you’ll pass Four Irish Brothers Winery. Stop in, taste some wine, and enjoy a snack on the deck overlooking the vineyards. There are several department stores and chain restaurants up on the highway, but if you looking for authentic pizza, head to Mario’s—his is the best—and check out all the great shops in town, you’re sure to find the perfect gift for that special someone. 

You get the idea—when you invent a setting in a romance novel, make it a place you’d love to be, a place where you could find an HEA (happily-ever-after). River’s Edge is a town I’d love to live in.

Craft background characters who fit in with the ambiance of your town and who are likeable. Every character is inspired by someone I know or someone I would like to know. It’s okay if they’re quirky, but remember, don’t let them take over the story. 

Mac Mackenzie appears in each Four Irish Brothers Winery novels and readers love him, even though he is window dressing for the real story.

Giving handsome Mac a love interest in Book 2 was fun and worked so well that we’re all following along to see what will eventually happen with him and super-sophisticated Carly Hayes, who starts out as sort of a not-nice person in Book 1, but grows and evolves in Books 2, 3, and 4.

The same thing is happening with a little romance that has developed between Noah and Dot. Having their own stories brings background characters to life, and you can do it with just a moment or two of interaction with your main characters. 

Setting and background characters are what bring your story to life as it flows along behind the romance between your hero and heroine. It’s where you can break out of the expected storyline or personalities of your main characters and really have some fun. So don’t be afraid to let them evolve and to build on your setting and background characters as you write a series. Readers become invested and be back for more!

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About Nan Reinhardt

Nan Reinhardt is a USA Today-bestselling author of romantic fiction for women in their prime. Yeah, women still fall in love and have sex, even after 45! Imagine! She is a wife, a mom, a mother-in-law, and a grandmother. Nan has been a copyeditor and proofreader for over 25 years, and currently works on romantic fiction titles for a variety of clients, including Avon Books, St. Martin’s Press, Kensington Books, HarperCollins, and Entangled Publishing, as well as for many indie authors.

 

Although she loves her life as an editor, writing is Nan’s first and most enduring passion. Her latest series, Four Irish Brothers Winery, includes A Small Town Christmas, Meant to Be, Christmas with You, and the newly released, The Baby Contract, all from Tule Publishing. Nan is busy at work on a new series for Tule Publishing that takes place in the same small river town as the Four Irish Brothers Winery stories, so stay tuned!

Visit Nan’s website at www.nanreinhardt.com, where you’ll find links to all her books as well as blogs about writing, being a Baby Boomer and aging gracefully…mostly. Nan also blogs every third Tuesday at Word Wranglers, sharing the spotlight with five other romance authors and is a frequent contributor the RWA Contemporary Romance blog. She also contributes to the Romance University blog where she writes as Editor Nan.

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THE BABY CONTRACT

She wants a baby…he wants a family

Firefighter and paramedic Tierney Ashton has always been a bold adventurer, but at thirty-four she longs to embark on a new adventure—motherhood. But who will be the father? Although financially challenging, a sperm bank appears to be her best option. That is, until she shares her dream with her long-time pal, Brendan Flaherty.

Government analyst and world traveler Brendan Flaherty returns home to River’s Edge to help out at his family’s thriving winery and his brother’s new community theater. He also plans to finally achieve his lifelong goal of writing a novel. But when Tierney shares her wish, Bren offers to be her baby daddy—with one condition. Marriage.

It seems like a perfect contract, but will love get in the way?

Links to the book:

Amazon | Barnes&Noble | Kobo | Apple | Tule

Tags: featured, women writers

Category: Contemporary Women Writers, How To and Tips