Writing this novel has made Hazel and Heather long for a return to the hand-written word. Skype chats and Google Hangouts became weekly powwows to flesh out plot snags and character arcs. Often, one would contact the other to explain a delay because the kids were sick, or the heating was broken, or some other crisis got in the way. Hazel and Heather navigated the pressures of juggling individual writing projects, and the demands of family life along the way as well.
Of course, having a writing partner demands a lot of trust and commitment. The process felt so organic the story flowed! She would respond in kind, sending her characters’ words over the e-waves. Several hours later, Heather would wake in the U.S. Hazel would wake up in Ireland, pen a letter from one of her characters, and wait for a reply.
The book was written through a literal exchange of letters. Letters were such a critical part of the war – the only way loved ones could keep in touch – so it felt right that LAST CHRISTMAS IN PARIS would be written as an epistolary novel. Four Christmases would come and go before the war was over and the soldiers returned home. It was this fact which led to the idea of a group of friends making plans for that Christmas in 1914 – plans which become horribly interrupted. The two had their first face-to-face meeting in a hotel room in Connecticut (amid much squealing), and after several days of trains, car rides, events, cocktails and laughs, became the best of friends.Īt the outbreak of war in 1914, it was famously declared that it would be over by Christmas. As Fall of Poppies was nearing completion, both felt there was more they wanted to say about the First World War and the idea to co-write a historical novel began to take shape, despite the obstacles presented by them living in different time zones, in different continents! When FALL OF POPPIES released in March 2015, Hazel traveled to the U.S.
The two hit it off instantly, and in early 2015, Heather approached Hazel about contributing to an anthology: FALL OF POPPIES – Stories of Love and the Great War. Hazel and Heather first ‘met’ in 2013 after being introduced online by their agent.
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