Cynthia Hickey
Cynthia Hickey pulled off quite a surprise in her novella A Christmas Castle. When Annie, a mail order bride, arrives in Arizona to meet the man she’s married by proxy, the situation turns a little awkward: the man is dead and has left behind an orphaned daughter!
It’s hard to imagine how anyone could turn such a beginning into a romance!
“I was surprised by how much Annie cared for a man she never met,” Cynthia laughed.
The author of numerous romances ranging from historical to contemporary, Cynthia loves the 19th century, “especially anything to do with pioneers and cowboys.”
A Castle Christmas idea
The idea for her A Christmas Castle came from thinking about dugouts and what it would be like to live in what is basically a hole in the ground. “Thankfully, I’ve never had to live in one,” she said, noting she had to do research on a form of housing frequently used when Arizona was settled.
Library of Congress photo
“The germ of the story was contentment and the reason for the season. Most people today would have a hard time being content and celebrating while living in a hole in the ground.”
Her heroine had obstacles, and it only got more complicated for her hero (a handsome neighbor) who didn’t want to spend any time in such a small, cramped spot underground.
Cynthia has some wonderful photos of dugouts along with insight into the historical writing process on her blog today: http://www.cynthiahickey.blogspot.com/
Annie, however, is determined to celebrate Christmas the right way, with a Christmas tree. Trying to fit it in provides a humorous scene.
Cynthia would like to have been there in the story, however, “especially when the characters discovered that loves makes any home a castle.”
Like them, she’s learned to be content in whatever situation God has placed her.
Who is Cynthia Hickey?
While Cynthia lives near Phoenix, she needed to do research to authenticate her story. “I’ve been to Tucson, but not far into the desert where the ranches are, so I had to research the Tucson weather. Even that two-hour drive can change things. Who knew it sometimes snowed in Southern Arizona?”
Similarly, she doesn’t think she’d make a particularly good Arizona pioneer, “I like my air conditioning.”
The great-granddaughter of the first white baby born in NebraskaTerritory, Cynthia comes from a family that owned a stagecoach stop. She hopes someday to write a story based on her family’s history.
Meanwhile, she’s making memories at Christmas with her own family which includes seven children and five grandchildren. “On Christmas day, we start off with a prayer and a toast, then put something in Jesus’s stocking that only we can give him. Later that day, we meet everyone for dinner and White Elephant gifts. The season is a big deal for us as we celebrate the birth of Christ.”
Have you ever had to squeeze a Christmas tree into tight quarters? Click to Tweet
I loved reading about the dugout home. I can’t imagine trying to fit a Christmas tree in there. Determination makes a lot of things happen!
We have a smallish tree so I have never had trouble fitting it in. Sometimes it has been difficult to fit Christmas into the budget.
It obviously must have been a small tree! 🙂 Maybe even just a branch . . .