Jacqueline C. Thomas - Romance Novelist

Archives for April 2023

The Lake Michigan Affair Ten Day Countdown: Fact #5- I Wrote The Lake Michigan Affair as a Practicing Catholic

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I want to share this fact for a few different reasons because I think it is important information. I’m not the first romance writer to set a story between a member of the clergy and a parishioner; there’s the Priest Series by Sierra Simone, and The Original Sinners Series by Tiffany Reisz. I mention these two in particular because they were also written by self-professed Catholics. And while both books are graphic, super dramatic love stories that certainly push the envelope, they are done in a respectful(ish) manner.

In my telling of Rosalie and Sebastian’s story I wanted to tell a love story where hearts connect first. Sebastian struggles with his feelings for Rosalie, and the commitment he has for the Church. Rosalie deals with her own feelings in this book, having broken her marriage vows with no less than the Catholic Bishop of Chicago. I set out to create a love story that while sexy, is sweet and as respectful as one can be in this situation.

Without getting too personal, I also wanted to set Rosalie’s life in a more conservative religious setting. I wanted to show the perils that I witnessed of a woman’s lack of agency in more conservative religious settings. I witnessed this situation happen to countless friends who were pushed into marriage young, and then spent the next decade or so having children one right after another, sometimes not by their choosing, but led by their religion. I have countless friends who went through this only to realize in their mid-thirties, that the church had pushed them into their lives, and while they thought they had agency, their current situation was the cause a lifetime of indoctrination. In this community, I witness first-hand how the number of children one had determined social status.

While I witnessed first hand some of the ugliness and sexisim that is held within more conservative religious communities, I did not write this book as a cautionary tale or as some sort of vendetta. I simply wrote a love story about two human beings who fall in love with each other against some pretty significant challenges.

The Lake Michigan Affair Ten Day Countdown: Fact #4- There’s a Pinterest Board for this story.

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I have this tradition of creating a Pinterest board for each book that I write. I think of it a lot like a mood board, because that is essentially what it is. Today, I am sharing the link to the Pinterest board for The Lake Michigan Affair to give a flavor of the book. I had to edit the board to be able to share it as I don’t want to give away any spoilers.

The Lake Michigan Affair is a dramatic romance, with super high stakes for all involved. With that being said, you can see that the story Rosalie and Bishop Sebastian Cole’s faith is a big part of this story, as are children and big families. Additionally, you’ll also see lots of great pictures of Chicago, that set the tone and mood of this story. Click the board below to see it all.

The Lake Michigan Affair Ten Day Countdown: Fact #3- The Italian-American Culture is a Big Part of This Story

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Homemade cranberry and pistachio biscotti is a Christmas tradition.

I wanted to highlight Italian American culture in Rosalie’s story because it is a big part of her story. She comes from a tight-knit Italian American community. As a proud Italian American, I wanted to highlight the value of family, and the respect that is held for elders, and in some small circles the reverence that is still held for the Catholic church. Rosalie is very much a product of her culture and upbringing, in a beautiful culture that is also toxic. The story shows how she is very much a product of her environment.

There are beautiful scenes in this book of celebration of family and food. Traditions are celebrated in the book in a truthful way. It was special to me to share my culture and the beauty of it and the not so pleasant things as well. As an Italian American I grew up in a culture where adults were the law, and respect for elders was never a choice, it was the law. There was also a strong reverence for the Catholic church. Celebrations were marked with food, family and laughter.

The Lake Michigan Affair will be available on April 14, 2023.

The Lake Michigan Affair Ten Day Countdown: Fact #2- The Book is Set in Chicago

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It is said to write what you know, and Chicago is my hometown. I never questioned where to set this story because it was always obvious to me, that this is a Chicago story. I feel like the city itself is almost a character in the book. There are so many Chicago landmarks that are key to this story.

Here is a list of some of the Chicago locations in the book:

The Lake Michigan Shoreline (Near North Ave. Beach): So many poignant scenes take place here. I’ve walked there a million times and when I think of Chicago, this to me is my city. While the scenes aren’t on the beach, they are on the paved trail at the beach, that provides the most spectacular view of Chicago. You can see the beach here. Also the view of the skyline on the front of the book was taken from this spot.

The Field Museum: One of the most important scenes in the book takes place in the Field Museum in downtown Chicago. An event is held here in the book and trust me, look up events at the Field Museum, the space is incredible for fundraisers, and weddings. You can visit their Instagram page here.

Rosalie’s Parish Church: Chicago is full of gorgeous robust Catholic parishes throughout the city. Rosalie’s parish is an amalgamation of lots of Catholic parishes. Her parish is not named after any one parish in particular but I wanted it to feel very Chicago in nature, and the anchor of Rosalie’s community.

Rosalie’s Neighborhood: As I said earlier, Chicago is a city of neighborhoods, each with their own culture and flavor. While Rosalie’s neighborhood is made up, you can still find pockets of tight-knit neighborhoods like hers. She lives in a mostly Italian-American neighborhood, full of old worker’s cottages.

UIC Hospital: While I don’t think I ever mention the hospital by name, I always assumed that Richard (Rosalie’s husband) practices medicine here.

There really are too many places to mention but I hope you enjoy learning a little bit about Chicago in this book.

10 Day Countdown to the Launch of The Lake Michigan Affair- Sharing 10 Facts About the Book.

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Today marks the 10 day countdown mark for the the release debut of The Lake Michigan Affair on April 14th. To mark this countdown. I will be sharing a fact, excerpt, and interesting tidbits about the upcoming book. Each day I will share something new to get you all ready for debut day!

Fact #1: The Lake Michigan Affair was written during Nanao-Wri-Mo 2017

If you are not familiar with NanoWriMo it stands for National Novel Writing Month and is held annually each November. The premise of the program is that you have one month to write a novel. You can write at your own pace and log it on their webiste. This program is completely free, and through the month of November there are usually local meet-ups where authors can share, support and kick off the month together. If you want to learn more about this awesome program, look into it here.

The Lake Michigan Affair would be my second book that I’ve written. I knew that I wanted to write a romance with a power imbalance, and the nuances contained therein. I first thought that I this would be a story about a woman having an affair with a political figure, but as I mulled through it, I got a better idea of the character of Rosalie and I just knew that it had to be a priest that she falls for. However, it had to be bigger, not a parish priest, and that is how I came to settle on the character of Sebastian, being a Catholic Bishop of Chicago. I remember having the characters in my head at my first ever NanoWriMo meet-up. As the other authors went around the circle and shared what they were working on, my heart began to beat in my throat. As a Catholic, in a predominantly Catholic community, I knew that just the mention of the subject matter could result in serious backlash. So when my time came I simply said, “it’s about a woman who is in a terrible marriage and finds love through an affair.” That was enough to satisfy the group.

For the next month, I wrote like a mad woman. I had my characters, and I knew how I wanted the book to end but the rest came to me as I wrote. I completed the novel in the month of November thus “winning” NanoWritMo 2017. The book that I ended up with at the end of that month is not the book you’ll see in ten days. There have been wonderful revisions where the characters have revealed more of themselves, their desires, and their wish for a happily ever after.

The Last Steps are Always the Hardest

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Doesn’t the old adage go something like it’s the cobbler who’s wife never has shoes? I work in public relations and marketing for a living, and yet when it comes to preparing a marketing strategy for The Lake Michigan Affair, I feel like I’m a deer in the headlights. Ugh what? Marketing, what is that? A book, what is a book? How do you market a book? I find myself having this conversation at minimum three times a day right now, especially in moments when my attention is required or bedtime.. fun, fun.

A strategy is coming together, and the landing page for the book is now set up on this website for it. The whole thing is so odd to me, that I wanted this book to be published for so long and suddenly here we are. If I’m being totally honest it is the last few steps to get this book out that I am finding to be the hardest. It’s not a crippling fear that people won’t like it, because I know taste is subjective. I’d love to use the excuse that I’m just so damn busy, between my career and homelife, but I absolutely hate that excuse too. Maybe it’s just that these last few steps really are difficult.

I am very lucky to have my husband helping me in this endeavor as my publisher. He’s written and published several books though our website Anglotopia and my main cheerleader in bringing my work to market. I am so grateful for his help because while I do know how to lay out a book in InDesgin, I’d rather cut my front lawn with my teeth, LOL! I hate stuff like that, and he’d very good at it.

So here we are just about ten days out from launch and still so much to do! In these next ten days this is where words and plans turn into action to get this book out the door, and off to a great start! It is time to prepare Sebastian and Rosalie for success.

Not quite time to raise a glass yet!