I recently bought, and read, a Christmas romance novella. Yes me. I firmly believe writers can learn something from all genres, but we have to be willing to leave our comfort zones to do it. Here’s how I came to choose this one:

• I’ve read the author before, and thoroughly enjoyed her book.
• I’m really getting into short form stuff, and this is a novella.
• This story has a paranormal element, which is in my comfort zone.
• I write a lot of animals into my stories, and I wanted to see how this author handles an animal character.

There you have it. A thread or two of common ground, and a desire to learn something. This was more than a dissection of a fellow author’s work. I wound up really enjoying the story, and I think you will too.

I’m going to let the author, Mae Clair, tell you all…