Welcome again to USA Today Bestselling author Nancy Naigle, who's talking about her latest homey, comfy, small town read, What Remains True.
About the Book:
Working at a little shop on Main Street in a small town is exactly the break that executive Merry Anna Foster needs following her divorce. She’s made a bet with her ex-husband that she can live on the amount of money she’s giving him in alimony. If she can do it, then Kevin will have to stop complaining and leave her alone. But after three months of this new life, will she even want to leave Antler Creek?
Adam Locklear, bull rider and owner of the local feed store, is having the best year of his rodeo career. He’s also a bit distracted by the pretty new neighbor living in his old bunkhouse. Then an old girlfriend shows up with a surprise - and leaves five-year-old Zan—the daughter Adam didn’t know he had—in his care. Does the future hold a life even better than what Merry Anna and Adam had each dreamed of?
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REVIEW: Remember that TV makeup commercial that starts, "Easy, Breezy...?" That's this book. A fun, breezy, summer read you won't put down until the last page. It's easy to get caught up in Merry Anna's world as she adjusts to a new life in a quaint small town, the type of town we'd all like to run away to! You're gonna love seeing how it all turns out! 5 stars!
What inspired the story?
The small town of Antler Creek, which I first wrote about in Christmas Angels, had been popping up in my mind over and over again. I loved the characters, and the barn quilt trail, it was just such a great place that I couldn’t resist setting a new story there with new characters and old friends too.
What made you decide to set the book in the rodeo world? How did you research the details?
I’m a huge rodeo fan, not just bull riding, but all of the events, but bull riders are facing great danger when they get on the back of the big bull. I’ve had first-hand conversations with bull riders, and I was excited to bring that experience to readers who may not know that much about it. In my research about injuries I was surprised that there are a few sports doctors in the sport who used to ride broncs or bulls, and that just possibility made my character even more interesting. The most surprising thing was my personal experience with mutton busting. That’s when kids ride on the back of a sheep. It’s hilarious to watch, and I’d seen it as a spectator hundreds of times, but my stepson actually competed in the mutton busting a few years back and let me tell you…it’s terrifying when it’s your loved one out there! Even on a sheep.
Is there a favorite area for you in a small town you like to write about? Why?
Small towns have personalities, traditions, and most everyone knows everyone else’s business. I feel like the town itself is another character.
Who/what inspired the main character - and her fun renovating neighbor?
My characters are never based on people I know, but rather characteristics that make them unique or engaging. Tara, the fun renovating neighbor, is a widow who is very handy with tools and I just love that she’s taken on this huge project. She’s a little old school, so her friendship with our heroine Merry Anna is perfect timing with technology as she tries to shop online for the special lighting and other things she needs for the house. She and Merry Anna have a really lovely friendship.
What is the takeaway you hope to leave readers with?
That even when we think we know exactly what we want and are laser-focused on the goal, life has a way of changing our direction. It’s a story of change, adapting and pivoting when things go haywire. It’s also a story of friendship.
Do you plan on another book with any of your main characters - or even the sub-characters?
Yes! I love this town. There will most definitely be more stories set in Antler Creek. There could even be a wedding coming soon. The cast of characters is growing and there are countless holidays, traditions and stories to tell.
And... what's next?
I have two more books coming out in 2022. They are both on pre-order now.
Mission: Merry Christmas (releases 9/6) is a Christmas novella with a Caribbean setting.
The Wedding Ranch (releases 12/6) is women’s fiction about family, forgiveness and second chances.
Is there a certain other interest or hobby you're drawn to?
I don’t quilt. I love anything crafty though. The last few years I have been painting barn quilts. Barn quilts can be found all across the nation. There are websites that list barn quilt trails across America and I’ve been on several across the nation.
These aren’t quilts like grandma used to sew, which by the way I love and am so envious of the talent that quilters have! These are quilt-like geometric designs that are drawn on plywood and painted with exterior paint. You affix them to your barn, outbuildings, house, fence or if you’re like me and running out of buildings I’m painting some small 12x12 barn quilts to hang under my mailbox.
I first became interested in them when I wrote the first Antler Creek book, Christmas Angels. Since then, I’ve taken a few classes and painted a bunch of them! It’s such a relaxing craft, and if you mess up, you just paint right over it. I like forgiving art, lol. Readers have been asking me to do a video how-to about it. It’s on my list of to-do’s. So stay tuned.
* Thanks again, Nancy, for visiting and sharing some of your world with us!
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