‘Tis the season for mistletoe, merriment, and meet-cutes! To celebrate the most wonderful time of year, we gathered five holiday romance authors who truly know how to deck the halls — and our hearts — with swoon-worthy stories. From snowy small-town rendezvous to festive flings that turn into forever, these authors unwrap the magic of love during the holidays. Grab a cup of cocoa, wrap up in your favorite cozy blanket, and read on to get a peek into their insights, inspirations, and one or two surprises that might just sleigh you!
Meet the 5 Authors of These Winter Wonderland Meet-Cutes
Tamie Dearen
Tamie is a USA Today bestselling author who writes sweet romance and hilarious rom-coms, including The Best Girls series and the Limitless Clean Billionaire Romance series. Real life is already full heartaches, so she gives her readers what they need: characters who always find their happily-ever-afters, no matter how difficult their paths.
Tamie is already living her own happily-ever-after in Texas with her incredibly romantic husband and two dogs. She might hate dusting and exercising, but she loves all things musical or artistic. When she’s not writing books, you might find her playing with her grandkids or drilling on someone’s tooth.
Camilla Isley
With an Engineer-turned-Author origin story, Camilla writes contemporary rom-coms, where every story she pens has a guaranteed HEA that will make your heart beat faster. Her characters have big hearts, might be a little stubborn at times, and love to banter with each other.
Camilla is a cat lover, coffee addict, and shoe hoarder. She’s a bit of a foodie, nothing too serious. Besides writing, she loves reading, cooking, watching bad TV, and going to the movies (with popcorn, please!). And by the way, she knows mosquitoes play a crucial role in the ecosystem, and she doesn’t want to starve all those frog princes waiting out there, but as a keen traveler, she could really live without them.
Kayla Martin
An avid reader and audiobook lover herself, Kayla loves to write swoon-worthy stories that pull at your heartstrings. Using her big family for endless inspiration, there is no shortage of hijinks and family meddling involved in each character’s story. With the support of her husband and the help of her writing assistant (a tuxedo cat named Neptune), she always understands the assignment: writing love stories that help you escape while also exploring different human experiences about sexuality, mental health, and everything in between.
Falon Ballard
Falon Ballard is the author of several great rom-coms and the co-host of the Happy to Meet Cute podcast. She has a new romantasy title coming out soon entitled Something Wicked. When she’s not writing a romance book, reading a romance book, or talking about romance books, try looking for her at Disneyland in California.
Emily Stone
Emily is the author of four novels (and counting): Always, in December, One Last Gift, Love, Holly, and A Winter Wish. Her life has been a tale of many chapters, with pages turned in places far and wide. From her childhood adventures in Germany to her adult sojourns across Africa, she’s wandered through the landscapes of Cornwall, London, and Wales. Now, her story finds her (at least for the current volume!) nestled in Bristol, England — though, who’s to say where the next plot twist might lead?
Her novels always look at complicated relationships and often deal with grief around the holiday periods. Emily’s Always, in December was partly inspired by the death of her own mother at age 7 and wanting to write a novel to reflect the fact that that grief never really leaves you. In her big, happy family tree, she has three sisters, three nieces, and one nephew — plus two adopted rescue ponies — to take care of when she’s not writing!
The Questions
What drew you to writing holiday romance? Is there something about the season that sparks your creativity?
Tamie Dearen: The holiday season is full of warmth and festivity. It’s the perfect backdrop for a romance story, especially if your characters have some heavy emotional baggage. The reader feels the strong contrast of the character’s sadness in contrast to the joy usually associated with Christmas.
In one of my books, Rescued for Christmas, the hero, Max, is a single dad who lost his wife to cancer. When he first rescues Amy from her wrecked car in the midst of a blizzard, he has no idea the changes she will bring about in his life. The snow-covered roads force them to spend the next few days together. Soon, Amy is baking cookies with his nine-year-old daughter, and he finds himself dragging out the Christmas decorations for the first time in five years. And when Max, an ex-country recording star, finds himself singing again for the first time since becoming a widower, does he realize he’s falling in love? The story could have happened in January, but the Christmas season heightens the emotions.
Camilla Isley: The holidays just have built-in drama. There’s just so much potential for mischief at this peak chaos time of the year — last-minute shopping, family reunions, and expectations. Throw romance into that mix, and suddenly you’ve got fireworks on top of fairy lights. The season gives me this perfect mix of sentimentality and stress, and for my characters, that means ample opportunities to embarrass themselves and somehow fall for each other while covered in tinsel. And with mistletoe hanging around every corner, “accidental” kisses aren’t just likely — they’re practically seasonal requirements.
What sparked my first Christmas book, A Christmas Date, was that all-too-familiar dread of going home solo in December. There’s nothing like holiday gatherings to make you hyper-aware of your singleness, especially when you’re up against the sibling who’s already got life figured out or, even worse, that high school nemesis who still sees your relationship status as prime gossip. At one point, it’s just easier to hire a fake boyfriend for the month, isn’t it?
Kayla Martin: As an avid reader, I love the holiday season and reading books to match. Holiday romances are always so cozy, and I adore the hopefulness of them. I wasn’t originally planning on writing a holiday romance so soon in my writing career, but when inspiration strikes, you don’t say no!
Falon Ballard: I have always loved reading holiday romances, and I really wanted to sit down and write something that was fun and funny, something light-hearted, and something that was full of all the tropes I love so much as a reader. Actually, when I first wrote Right on Cue, it was a holiday romance and because of my publishing schedule, I had to change it, so when I got the opportunity to write All I Want Is You, I jumped on it!
Emily Stone: Do you know what? I didn’t actually start out to write holiday romances. I wrote Always, in December, my first novel, without fully realizing that holiday romances are almost their own genre! But after writing my debut, it seemed natural to keep writing about the holidays. I think the festive season can throw up lots of emotion. It’s a happy time for a lot of people, but it can also be stressful for some, sad for others, and create a lot of pressure to be seen to be having a good time. This can be really interesting to explore in a book and lends itself to lots of complicated relationships, which is what I like writing best.
What does your creative process look like? Pantser or plotter, rituals/special writing places, or can you write anywhere? Does your creative process look different around the holiday time?
Tamie Dearen: I’m definitely a pantser. I’ve tried and failed at outlining. My characters never do as they are told, so I have to wait and see what happens. I can write anywhere, but I do have a favorite spot, in my window seat, looking out at the lake.
My holiday time is so busy that I get very little writing done. I have to steal moments late at night and give up sleep to get words in. But the time I spend with family during the holidays fills my emotional tank and provides inspiration for future stories. All of my books have scenes based on real experiences with my family and friends, so my writing benefits even when my word-count suffers.
Camilla Isley: I’m mostly a pantser with a dash of plotter thrown in when I’m feeling responsible. I like to think of my creative process as one of those tangled strings of holiday lights — you never know which color bulb’s going to flicker on next, but somehow, it all lights up in the end. My latest Christmas novel, This Is Not a Holiday Romance, required a bit of planning since it’s the first in a trilogy. So, I had to set up the story arcs for the next couples and make sure the supporting characters intrigued the readers besides the main couple. My creative process doesn’t change that much around the holidays, except maybe for an increased chocolate and Mariah Carey intake.
Kayla Martin: I’m a plotter all the way! I plan everything from my characters’ type of shampoo to their star sign. My Google calendar is a big asset when planning the timeline of my books, so I know when everything happens. When it comes to writing, I don’t have a home office setup, so I mostly write on my couch with my cat in my lap. When it comes to the holiday time, my process doesn’t look any different. In fact, I almost have more time to write compared to summer activities.
Falon Ballard: I am a notorious pantser, much to my editor’s chagrin! When I sit down to work on something new, I have a fairly good idea of the major plot points, but my main focus in the beginning is character. I feel like I always know my characters well before I start drafting and I sort of let them lead the process. Typically, I write at home in my office, but I occasionally need a change in scenery, so I’ll venture to a local coffee shop. I actually do that more during the holidays because my kiddo is home from school, which makes it hard to focus on writing at home.
Emily Stone: I am a plotter to the extreme! I envy those people who can just sit down and write and see where the characters take them — I need to know where I’m going. Of course, some things change in the process or at [the] editing stage, but by and large, I have the whole thing mapped out before I start. I use Scrivener, which is software just for writers. I’m not very technologically minded, so I haven’t even uncovered half of what it can do, but I love it and wouldn’t change how I write now.
I have moved around a lot; I haven’t actually been living in the same place longer than 18 months since I was 18, so I have learnt to write from anywhere, and I’m not too fussy about it. I love writing in cafes! The distraction and noise around me make me focus, and there’s something indulgent about writing with a cup of coffee next to you. But it’s not wholly affordable to work from a café every day, so I spend a lot of time writing at the kitchen table, on the sofa, or even in bed. It’s very much the same any time of year!
How do you approach creating chemistry between your main characters, especially when a sense of urgency or magic is tied to the holiday season?
Tamie Dearen: A holiday setting provides opportunities for characters to interact in fun and unexpected ways that provide plenty of chemistry. In my holiday romance, Best Intentions, Collin takes his roommate’s place and dresses up in a realistic Santa costume, complete with colored contacts. The department-store-Santa job gives him the perfect opportunity to talk to the woman he’s been pursuing, albeit with a complete disguise and a fake accent. Olivia, the woman he desires, has been avoiding him at all costs, believing he was only pursuing her out of sport. (To be fair, his past behavior has given her strong evidence for her belief.) With their repeated disguised encounters, Olivia starts to fall for Collin, all the while thinking she’s falling for his roommate.
Chemistry? You can’t believe how much fun it was to write a kissing scene in the department-store break room where Olivia gives in to her feelings and lets “Santa” kiss her, not realizing she’s kissing the enemy. Collin’s Santa-Claus glasses are definitely steamed up. But then, just when it’s getting good… Well, you have to read it to find out what happens.
Camilla Isley: I love to be mean to my characters, and I’m all about building chemistry through tension and banter. Enemies to lovers is my favorite trope to write — it’s like giving them a beautifully wrapped present that they absolutely don’t want to open. I love to watch them squirm as they’re reluctantly drawn together.
And forced proximity at Christmas is guaranteed. With all the snowball fights, “oops, only one bed” scenarios, and “pretend to be my date at my nosy aunt’s annual eggnog-fueled holiday party” dilemmas, I set up situations where they’re forced to see each other differently. Chemistry grows when they let their guards down in those quiet holiday moments, sharing parts of themselves they usually keep hidden. And sometimes, like in A Christmas Caroline, I pour some actual magic into the mix. Who doesn’t need a visit from a mischievous Christmas Ghost every once in a while?
Kayla Martin: The sense of urgency/magic of the season wasn’t a big worry for me, since the novella is so short everything came together rather quickly. To build chemistry between my characters I work on creating who they are individually to figure out how they would react to each other. One of my favorite things to write about is the progression of how small accidentally touches turn into longer deliberate — and romantic — touches. In Sprinkle All the Way, there is also a past between the two characters which was fun to explore.
Falon Ballard: For me, it’s all about the tension. It’s not necessarily the kiss or the first time they have sex, but it’s all those moments when they WANT to but don’t let themselves. That brush of a hand or the press of standing shoulder to shoulder — those are the moments I live for!
Emily Stone: I read a lot! I think there are so many brilliant authors out there who do chemistry so well, and so when I’m about to start a new novel I spend some time reading or rereading some of my favourite authors for inspiration. I think counting down to the holidays and, like you’ve said, that sense of urgency or pressure that sometimes surrounds the festive season, can be a helpful tool to ramp up the chemistry — but for me, characters come first. If I can get the characters right in and of themselves, then I focus on that, and try to let them lead the chemistry. It’s something I’m always working on and trying to improve!
In your book, are there any holiday traditions or customs that you’ve incorporated that hold special meaning for you? Do you think these traditions are universal, or do they offer a unique lens on your characters’ relationships?
Tamie Dearen: Our family has a lot of holiday traditions, many involving foods. We have certain treats only during the holidays. And on Christmas morning, we make a special cinnamon coffee cake, light a candle, and stand around the table and sing “Happy Birthday to Jesus.” It’s such a strong tradition that we even continued via FaceTime when part of the family was living in Spain. I believe most readers have strong emotional attachments to their holiday traditions and love reading books that include such traditions.
My newest release, St. Nick and Me Are Mint to Be, includes one of our own special family treats — Chocolate Mint Brownie Bars. In the book, Reid has given up most of his family’s Christmas traditions after losing them in a tragic accident. Syanne finds his family recipe and stays up late to make this special treat for him, hoping to bring back some of his Christmas joy. As a bonus, the book includes the actual recipe.
Camilla Isley: I love weaving in classic holiday traditions — tree decorating, hot chocolate by the fire, mistletoe lurking in unexpected places — because they create this perfect setting for romantic tension and humor. There’s something so universal about these cozy rituals, yet I find they bring out unexpected sides of my characters, letting their personalities shine. I also have a personal weakness for ugly Christmas sweaters, so naturally, they make an appearance or two.
Traditions like these connect us, but they also reveal how my characters handle nostalgia, family expectations, and those small, intimate moments that bring people closer during the holidays. And since Christmas is all about chocolate, in one book, Fool Me Twice at Christmas, I had the entire story revolve around a family-owned chocolate factory in a small, snowy fictional town, a festive dream come true, basically.
Kayla Martin: Since my two characters have a past, I worked in my tradition of starting the season movies with Home Alone. Then, when they reunite, they watch it again for that familiarity as they get to know each other after eight years apart. Then, I worked on creating moments between them that will eventually turn into traditions for them.
Falon Ballard: For Jess and Nick in All I Want Is You, their holiday celebrations look a little different each year, which I think is sometimes the case when you’re balancing multiple families or when distance is involved. I think for me, the most important part about the holidays is being with the people who are closest to you, and that can be in many different shapes and forms and still feel like tradition.
Emily Stone: All of my novels hold some kind of tradition for the main characters, something they do that is special to them. In Always, in December, the main character Josie always writes a letter to her parents to post before Christmas, one she knows they’ll never read. In One Last Gift, it’s about a treasure hunt that the main character Cassie does every year.
In my most recent novel, A Winter Wish, Lexie has a “wish jar.” Every year, she makes a wish, writes it down, and puts it in her jar, though over the years she’s stopped hoping for these wishes to come true. It’s not something I do, but it’s important to Lexie and was a way in to figuring out her character. So, these are all very specific to the characters themselves, and how they celebrate the holidays, but in A Winter Wish I have incorporated lots of traditions all over the world, as Lexie learns about lots of different holidays over the course of the year.
What do you think makes a holiday romance stand out in a competitive market?
Tamie Dearen: There are thousands of holiday romances out there, and after a while, all the stories start to sound the same. But my readers know I always try to put a fresh spin on the old tropes. I love to give the reader a surprise. Yes, they know the hero and heroine will end up together with their happily-ever-after, but they don’t know how they will get there.
In Jingle Bell Rock, the hero, Drake, participates in a daring rescue of the heroine, Marki, a princess being forced into an unwanted marriage. That the royal wedding is happening on Christmas Eve means our hero, a hot, rockstar drummer, must dress up in a too-tight Nutcracker toy-soldier costume, complete with a red coat and pants with gold piping. Readers love that he’s willing to do whatever it takes to save the woman he loves, even if it means humiliating himself. And those surprise twists keep the readers turning those pages.
Camilla Isley: First off, a great holiday romance cover is like wrapping paper for the story — if it doesn’t have that extra sparkle, it’s not doing its job. But once they’re inside, the story needs to deliver on that promise with a fast pace that pulls them in from page one. I want readers to feel like they’re being whisked away to a winter wonderland, no matter what season it is.
And, of course, the heart of it all is the banter. Banter creates the spark, the tension, that “will they or won’t they” magic. When you nail that back-and-forth chemistry, readers can’t help but root for these characters to get their holiday happily ever after. But before the HEA, I put my characters through hell, striving to find new, hilarious ways to make them suffer. Like in Home for Christmas, where I had two large families crammed into a single cabin after a spectacular double-booking mishap and the two main characters falling in insta-hate. The tagline of the book says it all: Would you share a bed with your enemy to save Christmas?
Kayla Martin: Holiday romances hold a special type of magic in them. They’re cozy, quiet, and hopeful. Essentially a Hallmark movie on paper. The predictability of the romance genre and a happily-ever-after are something that people count on to make them feel safe, and that’s almost turned up in a holiday romance. People read holiday romances to feel that coziness and love of the season. And at the end of a long year, it’s definitely needed.
Falon Ballard: I think there’s a little more freedom to write something that is more extreme, which makes it so much fun. You can be super cheesy or incorporate magic; you can throw every single trope into the mix. You can get away with things in a holiday romance that wouldn’t necessarily work in a rom com or contemporary romance.
Emily Stone: Gosh this is a hard question! I think it’s SO tough — and seems to get tougher every year. I’m always incredibly grateful when someone buys a book of mine and never take that for granted. I know a lot of people are drawn to mine because of the covers — something which I can take absolutely no credit for! And it really does mean a lot when readers post about the books on social media. I know a lot of people have found my books that way.
Burning Bonus Questions
What is your favorite bookish present you’ve ever received?
Tamie Dearen: When I wrote my first book, Her Best Match, I did it for fun. I brought each chapter I wrote to my office to let my staff read it. They would wait impatiently for me to write the next chapter, and we talked about the characters like they were our friends.
That Christmas, my daughters watched me as I opened a big, wrapped box. Inside was the surprise of my life — a box of paperbacks with my name on the cover. They had designed a cover and published my book for me. I’ll never forget the thrill of seeing my name on a book for the first time. That was the beginning of my publishing career and the best Christmas present ever!
Camilla Isley: More than a bookish gift, it was a book loan, when my mom handed me a copy of Harry Potter and said, “I found this at the library, you should try it. I think you’re going to like it.” That book is where my entire obsession with reading and writing comes from. On a less momentous note, my best friend last year gifted me a cute mug that reads, “Do not disturb — characters are fighting.”
Kayla Martin: I’m big on being cozy, and over the year I’ve received several bookish crewnecks that I love wearing while I read with a cup of hot chocolate and a blanket.
Falon Ballard: At this point in time, my family and friends know to give me gift cards because there is no way anyone else could be expected to keep track of my reading lists, but when I was a kid, I used to love getting books for Christmas. I was a voracious reader. My favorites were The Babysitters Club books, and I would read them over and over until a new one was released. When I got to open new books on Christmas, it was the best!
Emily Stone: My sister made me some earrings designed to look like my first novel, when it first came out, if that counts. My dad also bought me a first edition, very, very old book for my 30th birthday, which was cool.
What are your favorite holiday movies, TV specials, and books?
Tamie Dearen: I love to watch all the corny Hallmark Christmas movies, even though you know exactly what will happen sixty seconds after one begins. We also enjoy the old classics like It’s a Wonderful Life and A Christmas Story. But one of our favorite Christmas movies is by Veggie Tales: The Toy that Saved Christmas. The best part is “Oh Santa,” the silly song in that movie, and our family tradition is to sing along.
Camilla Isley: For rom-coms, I’m going to pick two newer ones because we all know about Love Actually and Bridget Jones. So, Holidate and Love Hard. For family movies, I’ve roped my son into adoring Home Alone, so we rewatch it and the three/four — how many are there? — sequels every year. The Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Lighting is always nice to catch, and as for books… recent-years Christmas favorites are In a Holidaze by Christina Lauren and Let It Snow by Beth Moran.
Kayla Martin: My favorite holiday movies are The Holiday and Home Alone; every year my husband and I watch Home Alone while building the Lego house from the movie. My favorite holiday TV show is Dash & Lily. I love the energy and the dynamic in the show, and I love rewatching it every year. My favorite holiday books are In a Holidaze by Christina Lauren, 10 Blind Dates by Ashley Elston, and Kiss Her Once for Me by Alison Cochrun.
Falon Ballard: This is so hard because there are so many! But I think my all-time favorite holiday movie is While You Were Sleeping. I’m also a big fan of White Christmas. For books, I love In a Holidaze by Christina Lauren, A Merry Little Meet Cute by Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone, and In the Event of Love by Courtney Kae.
Emily Stone: I love Love, Actually and The Holiday. I don’t have set TV specials that I return to, but it is fun when there are reruns of Christmassy episodes showing! I like to read a new holiday book each year — so there is always lots of competition for a favourite! I do love One Day in December by Josie Silver, and I thought Holiday Romance was a lot of fun. Everyone on Instagram raves about Lovelight Farms. I really must get to it this year!!
Merry Dreams Ahead
We’re so grateful to Tamie, Camilla, Kayla, Falon, and Emily, for giving us a glimpse into the magic behind their holiday-ever-afters. Their books remind us that love, like the season, is full of surprises and sparkle. We can’t wait to see how their stories continue to bring warmth and wonder to readers everywhere.
Check out Tamie Dearen here.
Check out Camilla Isley here.
Check out Kayla Martin here.
Check out Falon Ballard here.
Check out Emily Stone here.
Want to hear from more romance authors? Explore the twisted minds of dark romance’s finest in our exclusive interview here!
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