If you haven’t already fallen in love with Sheila Roberts’s books, her latest title is surely the one to make you swoon. The Road to Christmas is a warm and welcoming novel that will put stars in your eyes. Busy as she is, Sheila still made time to offer some advice to writers in the interview below.
What books do you recommend for an aspiring writer?
Here are books I always recommend: Writing The Blockbuster Novel by Albert Zuckerman, The Writer’s Journey by Christopher Vogler, and Writing The Breakout Novel by Donald Maas. Also, Creating Memorable Characters by my friend Melinda Curtis. Excellent tutorials.
What’s your Go-To source when you need inspiration?
Chocolate.
Do you create elaborate outlines for your books? If so, can you explain the process (briefly)? Or do you fly by the seat of your pants? If so, do you have any tricks you use to keep yourself from crashing?
I do plan how my story will go – I want to know the high points, the character arcs, and how it will end. I will make changes along the way, but I find that pre-planning saves a lot of headache and rewriting later.
What was the greatest challenge you faced when writing the book? How did you get through it?
The story turned out shorter than my publisher liked so I had to add scenes. I found that had to do as I want every paragraph and every page to mean something. I don’t want to simply pad the book.
If you have a writing ritual, can you share that here?
Alas, I don’t. I simply sit down with my laptop and get to it.
In what genres have you written, and which one of them gives you the most satisfaction?
I’ve written everything from devotionals to self-improvement. I love writing fiction, but I also love when a non-fiction book helps someone else in her life journey.
What one piece of advice can you offer to a writer who has yet to tackle the publishing world?
Don’t give up, hone your craft!
What one piece of advice can you offer to the more experienced writer who is having a bad day/week/year/decade?
You have my sympathies. I’ve been there, done that. Hang in there and keep writing. Don’t quit!
Do you have a funny/scary/quirky story about interaction with readers or other writers? We all want to know.
Haha. Well, you are often writing at breakneck speed so sometimes you change things along the way. You make boo-boos that don’t get caught. That happened to me with my book Small Change. At the beginning one of my main characters had a sister. I changed my mind and later on made her an only child, forgetting about “sis.” Until a confused reader contacted me.
“What can I say?” I joked. “She killed her sister.” Mistakes happen. We try our best but… well, like I said, what can I say?
Michelle and Max are not planning on a happy holiday. Their marriage is in shambles and the D word has entered their vocabulary. But now their youngest daughter, Julia, wants everyone to come to her new house in Idaho for Christmas, and she’s got the guest room all ready for Mom and Dad. Oh, joy.
Their other daughters, Audrey and Shyla, are driving up from California and hoping to meet a sexy rancher for Audrey along the way. What they don’t plan on is getting stranded on a ranch when the car breaks down.
The ones with the shortest drive are Grandma and Grandpa–also known as Hazel and Warren. It’s still a bit of a trek, and Hazel doesn’t like the idea of driving all that way in snow, but Warren knows they’ll have no problem. They have a reliable car–and snow tires and chains if they need them. They’ll be fine.
Surprises lie in store for all three sets of intrepid travelers as they set out on three very different adventures, all leading to one memorable family Christmas.
Release Date: January 21, 2026
Publisher: Harlequin (MIRA)
Soft Cover: ISBN:978-0778386568; 320 pages; $15.29; eBook $11.99
Amazon: https://amzn.to/3BOS5yL
Walmart: https://bit.ly/3UAwIZs
About the Author
USA Today and Publishers Weekly best-selling author Sheila Roberts has written over fifty books under various names, ranging from romance to self-improvement. Over three million books have been sold to date. Her humor and heart have won her a legion of fans and her novels have been turned into movies for both the Lifetime and Hallmark channels. When she’s not out dancing with her husband or hanging out with her girlfriends, she can be found writing about those things near and dear to women’s hearts: family, friends and chocolate.
Her latest book is the women’s fiction/romance The Road to Christmas (Harlequin/Mira, September ’22)
Visit her website at http://www.sheilasplace.com. Connect with her at Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Want to read more posts about books and authors? Just click here.
~You can share this post on social media or receive updates on new posts by clicking one of the buttons below~
