From Snowstorms to Storylines: A Cozy Winter Romance Interview with Double Booked Author Sara Coombes

Music Vibes: Ready for Christmas-Tabitha Meeks

I originally met Sara through a Facebook group in 2020 when I first started Beautiful Disaster Lit. She & I were in a scam of a Facebook group for those wanting to start up a blog. Neither one of us got real help or support, but somehow we found each other & have been long-distance writer friends, supporting one another through life's writes & rewrites. Sara has inspired me throughout my writing journey. She had talked about writing a book from day one, so it was exciting to see her in the process of publishing her first book—definitely not the last. Double Booked is a cheesy, feel-good Christmas book, the perfect cozy winter romance, that I was gladly going to read. It didn’t disappoint! Sara sat down with me for an interview & I hope that if it’s your type of book, you rush to order it, Christmas or not, for an endearing winter read.

A: Life didn't go as Megan had planned. How has your life gone differently from your original plan?

S: Life doesn't ever go as planned. When I was younger, I was a ballerina & I thought I would be dancing forever. Then I decided to teach & did that for a while, & started school counseling & I've done that for about 11 years. During COVID, I started editing books & last year I had surgery & I was sitting at home, thinking, "Maybe I could write a book."

Then she made it happen! She is truly inspiring.

A: You had a different idea for a book when we first met. Is that still in the works?

S: No, I did write it, but that was more of a personal project for me. I don't think I'll ever publish it. It was more cathartic for me, I think it's good that I wrote it & I'm glad that I did.

A: What other writing projects are you working on?

S: I've kinda started the second book of the Lake Tahoe Christmas series, but I'm in the beginning phases of trying to figure it out. I haven't really told many people this yet, but I've started putting ideas on a page for a book; the genre will depend on how the characters come out of my brain while I'm typing. (Every writer can relate to this! The characters build themselves.) It won't be Christmas-based, but still in the setting of Lake Tahoe. It will follow a woman who has been through multiple failed relationships & she's trying to figure out if she wants to try again.

A: I can completely relate to that!

S: I will be reaching out to friends to get some lived stories.

A: OH, I have plenty of those! I can help with that! When do you think that might come out?

S: I'm hoping to bust it out & get it to an editor sooner rather than later. When I got the idea, I was hoping I'd get it out by summer, but I have a lot of editing projects for the spring, so I'm super booked with those. I'm hoping this summer I can work more on it. I don't want to release it too close to the next book in my series, but if I can do it for fall, that would be fabulous. If not, I'd like to try for next Spring.

A: I'm excited to read it!

A: What inspired the book Double-Booked, let alone the series?

S: Tahoe winter, last November, I had just had surgery, I was home for a few weeks & I was home reading books & I thought, "You know, I could do this! Surely I could write a decent book, right?"

A: More than decent!

I had originally started a different book a few months prior, more geared toward my high schoolers, but life happened & I set that aside. Instead of going back to that, I was sitting at home, watching the snow dump outside. I thought, "I need something to lift my spirits right now. I was home, I was alone, it was stormy outside & I said, "I'm going to write a sweet, 'make you happy, give you a warm hug' type of book. So that's what happened.

A: I loved it, I couldn't put it down.

S: Aww, I'm so glad. It was fun & it was supposed to be fun!

A: Yes, it's a very good book & I didn't know you were writing it, but we have kinda been following each other for six years now, so I HAD to read it.

A: In the book, Megan mentions her vision boards when she writes. Do you have a similar process?

S: Sort of, yes. I did a lot of research for photos, looking for the right house, which doesn't necessarily exist in this town, but it does in my mind. I would have pictures posted on my computer of that. I didn't put them in one place, but I do have a new program I'm writing with now, so I will probably have something for that. I'd have pictures of the characters & different locations, etc. That's definitely something that is helpful.

A: I love that. I never thought of doing something similar for my writing. I'm going to have to give it a shot.

S: I'd seen other people do it, so that's what gave me the idea for her to have that as part of her process in the book. I never really did it, but I looked up pictures & had that to go with what was in my mind. The vision board for this book mostly lived in my head, but I'd like to have a legitimate vision board.

A: What would the vision board of your life look like?

S: Well, front & center would be a picture of myself or a female on a beach with a laptop.

A: Goals!

S: I would love to retire early & write & edit to our hearts' content.

A: I want that for both of us! (She's guna get there long before I do, but she is such a literary inspiration. She just does it!

A: I'm excited to see what's in store for the crew in the next book of the series, coming in the fall of this year. How many books do you plan to have in the series?

S: For sure, 3, but it depends on what other side characters I fall in love with. I have ideas for six, but I don't know if it will go that far.

A: Are you planning on that being a once-a-year type of release?

S: With a full-time job & coaching, I think that's realistic. I would like to have been able to do two at a time, but it's not going to happen, at least not this year.

A: You do have a lot on your plate, but it's still amazing that you still wrote & published your book.

A: Can you give any teasers for the next book?

S: Well, it may be obvious or not, but it will be based on Presley & Brock. I am still trying to determine how the story will unfold, but it will definitely be a happily ever after that has football & Tahoe involved.

A: Thank you for that. I fell in love with those two.

S: They were fun, I think I had more fun with them than Megan & Carter, honestly.

A: The reveal at the end with the two was awesome!

S: Yes. I'm going to have a good time figuring out how to get those two together. I have some ideas.

A: I know that you did a book signing at one of your local libraries. Do you have any similar events planned?

S: I don't right now. There is a bookstore in Truckee, California, that's not too far from Lake Tahoe. A lot of skiers come up from there. My school librarian has been awesome; she actually put the first Double Booked signing together for me, but she lives in Truckee & wants to get me connected with some people. Though maybe I can do something during the winter as we get snow within the next couple of months. Otherwise, definitely, October- November I'll be pushing Double Booked again & doing reveals & things for book 2.

A: I am so excited to see everything that you are working on come to life!

You can purchase Double Booked on Amazon at https://a.co/d/fbwUSxC

You can follow Sara on Instagram: @sara_coombes_author

Website: https://saracoombesbooks.com/

Thank you for spending some time with me & Sara. If you haven’t already, please support her by reading Double Booked—it truly is a cozy, heartwarming read, Christmas or not. I’d love to know which author you’d like to see featured next, so feel free to share. Thank you, always, for your support, & don’t forget to subscribe to stay connected.

🖤💋💨