BRANDS CROSSING

When I first began writing the novel that eventually became Thicker Than Water (Brands Crossing Series) my intention was to create an entertaining romantic suspense about Kate O’Donnell, a young singer/musician/songwriter.  Determined to create a music career without the help or interferance of her influential Texas family, Kate moved to Nashville. There she met Phillip Norwood, a successful computer game developer, and fell in love. A family crisis forces Kate to abandon her career and romance and move back to Texas to investigate a mystery that endangers her family.

It was to be a simple romantic suspense with interesting characters and plot. Nothing complicated. Or so I thought.

As I wrote the story, I found myself fascinated by the fictional town of Brands Crossing which was founded in the 1800s by Kates ancestor Brand Kincaid.

To make a long story as short as possible, I became obsessed with the history of the town and its residents.

And the book became very complicated.

As a result of all the research and world-building, I spent seveeral years completing the novel. When I finished, I realized I had enough information, plot  and characters characters for several books.

And so began the Brands Crossing series.

I blame William Faulkner for this. I have always loved his books and appreciated the way he built the fictional spot of Yoknapatawpha County in Mississippi and populated it witht the interesting characters who appeared in his novels. I don’t claim to have W.F.’s literary skills, but I share his interest in building a place and characters that need more than one book to get to know them.

If you’re interested, I’ve added some pages in this category about the history of Brands Crossing, it’s historical and present-day features and the families who continue to make it an interesting place to visit.

Hope you’ll reading about it as much as I did writing about it.