Write What You Know - or Know What You Write?

I have always been told, write about what you know. But when I first started writing, I  didn’t listen. I began my writing career with my central character as a wedding planner. ‘How hard can it be to write about a wedding, and all the little details that go into planning one? I thought. WRONG. The more I researched weddings, the more I realized how daunting, time-consuming and over-whelming they were.

So what did I do? I decided to become an actual wedding planner…for research purposes only, I told myself. But what I didn’t count on, was falling in love with the job, and all the delightful people I got to work with, if only for a short time.

Everyone from my friends, to my family, to my author friends, told me, “You must have so much material to work with, it must be so easy to write your books.” Yes and no. I found myself becoming so protective of my couples that it’s actually harder for me to write my books, because I shy away from anything that might betray professional discretion.

Above is one of my favorite brides and venues.

Does that mean I never use real-life experiences in my books? No. If they are charming and harmless events, I “change the names” but do use a version of some weddings.

The exception is one bride.. She was charming on the phone and throughout all our planning interactions…until her wedding day. She just plain drank too much, as did most of her family and bridal party. She was sadly belligerent. Two weeks after the wedding, she asked for a full refund, or she would write a ‘one-star review’ for me. I responded, “I won’t refund your money or be extorted.” She wrote the promised negative review, but eventually, the service I used took it down.
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My love of weddings has only grown through the years, as well as my love of writing. My husband has begged me to ‘slow down,’ but I don’t think I can. Last season, my team and I planned and ran thirty-eight weddings!
  
Below is one of my favorite cakes of the season!

If you love weddings and a good mystery, try the WEDDING PLANNER MYSTERY SERIES.
Book # 1 – WEDDING BRIDE AND DOOM
Book # 2 – SAVE THE FATE
Book # 3 – UNVEILED SECRETS

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Mary Karnes, a college English major and former teacher, is the mother of four who raised her family through six corporate moves. She always dreamed of being an author and dabbled with writing throughout the years. Once the children were grown and out of the house, she started a wedding planning business, while simultaneously chasing her dream of being a traditionally published author. Her ‘Wedding Planner Mystery Series’ was born, with her business providing delicious subject matter for her books.

Mary resides in New England with her husband, Ken, and her mini-dachshund, Lucky. She is hard at work on something a little different, a stand-alone domestic thriller. Her door is a revolving one, with her children and grandchildren visiting frequently.