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special ebook Feature: Insights and Excerpts of Carly Phillips The Infinite Appeal of Small Towns
A Step in the Right Direction
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The Heartbreaker—Excerpt
The Playboy—Excerpt
The Infinite Appeal of Small Towns
by Carly Phillips
small towns have always held a special appeal for Americans. They form the very heart and soul of the country in everyday life and in fiction. Why? Probably because many of us live that small town life and even those who don’t recognize that at its core, small towns represent simplicity and escape from the pressures and hectic pace of big cities and everyday living. This appeal was underscored by the popularity of American illustrator Norman Rockwell (1894-1978), especially with his 322 covers for Saturday Evening Post . His paintings of everyday, usually small-town people almost always tell stories, often humorous ones. His use of careful observation and technical skill portray homey incidents, well-defined character, and a wealth of supporting detail. As an author, that is what I aspire to accomplish with the written word.
Most of my books deal with families but with the Chandler brothers and Yorkshire Falls, I undertook small towns at their best—the ideal of home and hearth, of being able to go back to where you started and begin again, even if you were born and bred in the city. Small towns represent a space where everyman can escape the pressures and grind of everyday life. They are a place where life proceeds at a slower pace and where the things we take for granted mean more—such as the glow of a fading sunset or the whispered conversation with a loved one on the proverbial porch. At its heart, small towns are a place where honesty shines through. Since practically everyone is supposed to know everyone else’s business in a small town, little remains undercovers and what does, runs deep.
Yorkshire Falls began as just another small, upper New York town in my imagination, but it developed into far more. For the Chandler brothers trilogy, it became a theme that threads the brothers together beyond just family ties. For youngest brother and globetrotting journalist, Roman, in The Bachelor , Yorkshire Falls represents the small-mindedness and boring existence he wants to escape in his early years, only to discover later that having roots makes him stronger. That, which he ran from at a young age, represents hearth and home later on.
Middle brother and town cop, Rick, in The Playboy , sees the town as a place he loves and protects, but can’t truly be a part of until an outsider shows him how to overcome his past.
Chase, the eldest and editor/owner of the town newspaper, in The Heartbreaker , has dedicated his life to the newspaper his father owned, making him the heartbeat of the town, but discovers that he can’t continue to live for everyone else. Yet no matter what, the brothers live and love in their small hometown.
Then of course there are the unusual characters we come to know and love as part of the fabric of Yorkshire Falls. They are the unique pattern woven into the tapestry of a small town that make home, unlike any place on earth. There are Pearl and Eldin, an elderly couple who’ve lived together for so long, that no one can remember them apart, and yet they’ve never married. There is also Samson, the town eccentric, whose heart of gold makes him richer in friends than anyone else—as much to his surprise as everyone else’s. You’ll also find Raina Chandler, the meddling mother whose busybody antics are the root of the Chandler brother’s adventures and whose style is the epitome of every small town mother who has made a career out of arranging the lives of the people around her.
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In different ways these characters all represent the dynamics that push away and yet draw us back time and again to small towns. Readers will continue to gravitate to small town settings because of the wealth of feeling and dimension that they offer. For good or bad, the American psyche is wrapped around the idea of small towns. I hope you’ll come and visit my small town of Yorkshire Falls in the Chandler brother’s books and discover the appeal for yourself.
Copyright © 2002 Carly Phillips
A Step in the Right Direction
by Carly Phillips
Like the arrow keys on a computer which move my manuscript up or down, forward or back, taking a new step in my writing career was filled with possibilities. I started writing category because I love Romance and the shorter genre. I still do and so, my category career continues. But as is human nature, I wanted to try something different. Enter Warner Books and the opportunity to write single title romance and take my career in a new and challenging direction. How did I handle the experience and what have I learned as a result? Because I am a writer, I think those computer arrow keys provide a perfect analogy.
A Step Forward:
More characters and more space to develop them! More plot, if I choose. In The Bachelor , I opted for a panty thief to spice things up. More, more more! I was in writer’s heaven.
A Step Backward:
Entering a new genre was like starting over again with that first sale. New editors, new expectations, and all new rules culminating in that dreaded word, revisions! But with the right editor, the experience was challenging and I came through learning much about my writing, myself and the things I can accomplish.
By the time I worked on my second single title, The Playboy , I’d learned many lessons and was able to apply them with confidence. Less revisions and much praise! That step backward was a worthwhile trip!
A Step Sideways:
Move those computer keys left or right, the direction doesn’t matter. While I was writing, sometimes I felt like I was treading water without making headway—especially since I went from writing a 230-page manuscript to a 400-page manuscript. With the help of a supportive critique partner and family, the books did get written and from treading water, I’d reached the finish line!
I’m now *this* close to seeing my book in print and on the bookstore shelves. I’ve learned about promoting single titles and how different and more time consuming that job is than promoting category.
I’ve learned to think more about budgeting my money for promoting (note, I didn’t say I DID budget).
And I’ve learned to treat my publisher as a partner in having the book do well. But the most important thing I’ve discovered on the road to publishing a single title is that every step taken is ultimately, a step forward.
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Copyright 2002 AOL Time Warner Book Group.
CHAPTER ONE
Chase Chandler walked out of the gate into Dulles International Airport and inhaled deeply. Each breath of air outside his hometown of Yorkshire Falls, New York, presented true freedom. At last.
“Hey, big brother!” His youngest sibling, Roman, pulled him into a bear hug. “Welcome to D.C. Good flight?”