THE PERFECT SENTIMENTAL GIFT
Early in the movie (could also apply to books, but this is a classic movie staple), heroine says “When I was nine years old, I saw a hummingbird land on a fence post and it made me forget I was an orphan for a few minutes.” Hero absorbs this factoid. Even if he wasn’t right there to hear her make this remark, he sniffs it in the air somehow and, on Christmas day, surprises her with a glass hummingbird. Her eyes well with tears. So do mine. He was listening! He pays attention to her! :’) I LIVE FOR THIS STUFF.
SNOWWWW
My favorite holiday settings are snowy ones. Warm weather is lovely, but toward the end of the year, I want to see characters lying on the ground making snow angels. Throwing it at each other. Making heart eyes at one another while their house party trickles into the late hours, oblivious that snow is burying their vehicles. Piling up specifically outside the front door, so that nobody can leave, maximizing forced proximity time.
I love how a snowy setting sparkles, the snowman-building contests, the gazing up into the sky with tongues out, catching a snowflake. Going out and chopping down a Christmas tree. Bonus points if they’re wearing flannel.
IT’S COLD, LET’S SHARE THIS BLANKET AND SOME FEELINGS
And light some candles while we’re at it. If the electricity goes out, we have this enormous fireplace to keep us warm. Getting snowed in and losing electricity is the perfect set-up for Only One Bed, because they MUST use body heat to generate warmth. Introduction to Spooning 101.
MOOD LIGHTING
There’s nothing like switching off the regular ceiling lights only to plug in three miles of softly-glowing fairy lights and Christmas garland. Will it make your eyes sore when you sit in an armchair trying to read by this very dim light? Yes. Is it worth it for the cozy aesthetic? Definitely. If you can see your book without squinting, you’re doing it wrong. This lighting is ideal for main characters who’ve been friends since childhood, and who, late one night close to Christmas, meet each other’s eyes and suddenly see each other in a new ~light.~ They almost kiss, but break away with an awkward laugh to go knit hats. (The kissing comes later, once the hats are finished.)
THE FOOD
I love vicariously sitting down to stuff my face with holiday buffets almost as much as I love actually sitting down to stuff my face with holiday buffets. It’s the reason I torture myself with guzzling back-to-back episodes of Great British Bake Off – I know I’ll never make a cake like that in real life and I need the fantasy. I love a fictional meal with big families around the holidays. Please share, in delicious detail, every single side dish. Are there air pockets in the rolls? What’s the cookie situation? How many dipping sauces are available? Do the characters eat pumpkin pie correctly, with a ratio of one part pumpkin pie to two parts whipped cream? I need everyone to be holding mugs of either 1. Hot chocolate 2. Eggnog 3. Cider. At ALL times. One hand is for hot chocolate, the other is for accidentally brushing against a love interest, casting sparks. Melts my heart.
Cookies! Fairy lights! Snow! Personalized gifts! These are a few of my faaaaavorite holiday things, and that’s why I incorporated them, very heavily, into my holiday romcom, Just Like Magic.
Just Like Magic is available from Amazon and Bookshop.