They say when you start publishing, you should pick a genre and stay in it. If you’ve been following me since the beginning of my writing journey, you know how difficult it has been for me to fit my work into one genre. I struggled for literal years with the decision to steer Knightess into Historical Fiction or Romance. It still sits on the line. I’ve gotten better about keeping my books in one clear genre, though now I’ve done a 360 and am about to publish a book that is neither historical nor romance. How could I do this to you? Bad author. Bad.

The truth is, the story of The Last Farm begged to get out of my head. I thought about it for months. Every time I drove somewhere, I’d see another warehouse being built. I overheard the conversations among family members about how they are going to preserve the farm for the next generation. Those conversations are often difficult and cause friction. I’ve witnessed multi-generational farm families torn apart by questions of succession. Long story short, my creative mind kept superimposing everything I’ve witnessed onto a set of fictional characters who could open the kitchen doors to show the world the complexities of the decisions being made every day across the country.

And that’s the other thing. As the story formed and I started talking about it with people in other states, they kept reiterating that the issues I saw in Pennsylvania were things they were witnessing, too. This is a national issue. A complex issue. And though I tackle many of the questions in the book, I don’t have all the answers. I do know it was a story that needs to be told.

The historical element still runs strong in this book. I could not show the scope of the decision to develop without discussing the centuries of history that came before. There are also a few different love stories woven in. I suppose I am a romantic at heart. You see farmer Bill mourn the beautiful relationship he had with his wife, who has passed before my tale begins. His adult grandchildren are also in search of their own happily ever after loves.

Thus The Last Farm emerged. The genre may be Contemporary Small Town Fiction, but it encompasses all the things I love to write about. I hope you love it as much as I do.

eBook now available for preorder. Print preorder coming soon!