Not only do I enjoy writing when the weather outside is frightful, I must prefer writing stories set during the colder months as well. Heck, in Winter Howl, the season is practically a character (Cry Wolf takes place in the early spring, and Call for Blood will take place in mid-autumn…still avoiding summer like the plague).
Winter plays a huge role in the story, not just in representing how Renee sees herself, as a frigid, cold, distant person, but also as a contrast to Grant’s hot-blooded werewolf. One of the steamiest (pun intended) scenes was when Renee finally gives in to Grant after the first snowfall. She and he are surrounded by snow. She’s completely bundled up and he’s completely naked and unaffected by the cold because of his werewolf heat. Similarly, I set “Gravedigger” in the Wild West in winter, which subverted the western setting and complemented Ivory’s colder skin.
Most of the time, though, I suspect I set stories in winter as a little bit of wishful thinking. Arcanium is the only story so far set in the sweaty, sweltering heat of summer, a condition I know well as a Texan and suffer through nine months out of the year. I don’t want to have to deal with it in my fantasy world unless the heat is part of torture (hint, in Arcanium, it is). That’s why Stone & Chains is set in a Texas December. It’s not too cold, but it’s chilly enough to keep everything fresh and energetic instead of sapping everyone’s will to live.
There’s just so much about winter to enjoy with your honey, especially that feeling of being warm together when everything outside is so inhospitable. Isn’t that what “Let It Snow” and “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” are all about? There’s nothing better than trapping heat under the blankets when it’s freezing on the other side – the same unfortunately cannot be said for getting up the next morning, am I right?
Let me know in the comments, what season do you tend to set your stories and why?
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