Princess Claus and the Great Escape

by J L Gillham

  He looks down at his feet as he kicks something I can’t see.

  Then I shake my head. An entire year of agony thinking the boy I had feelings for wasn’t trustworthy. I sigh and touch the charm dangling from the necklace. “It’s beautiful, but you shouldn’t have. It’s too much.” I lower my hands to my sides.

  “Not for the girl who saved Christmas.” There is confidence in his voice.

  “You mean the girl who almost ruined Christmas.” My cheeks burn.

  “Make no mistake, you may have had a part in its almost not happening, but you still saved the day. And...” He trails off, shoving his hands in his pockets. After a deep breath, he glances at my necklace.

  My hand goes toward it reflexively, then I grasp the snowflake charm. He covers my hand with his. I can’t help but glance back up at the spot where the mistletoe used to be. When my gaze returns to Finn, I see his eyes move from his hand still covering mine to meet my eyes. Then he looks up, most likely to see what I keep searching for.

  I realize I need to stop focusing on where I am and instead focus on who I am with. I’ve got an amazing family, friends, and a boy who might just love me as much as I know I already love him.

  I also realize I need to stop relying on objects for my happiness. A snow globe, a sleigh to escape on, mistletoe. As I stand on my tiptoes, I lean forward.

  Finn looks at me. There’s a wide smile on his face and fire in his eyes, enough to melt all my fears. He tilts his head down.

  We both get lost in our first kiss, and I realize I can finally follow the advice Finn gave me the day at the beach. I stop trying to force things to happen. And I let the snowflakes fall where they may.

  Links

  The Snowflake Alphabet Graphic

  http://bit.ly/snowflakealphabet

  The Snow Globe Prison Music Video

  http://bit.ly/snowglobeprison

  The Story Behind the Story

  As an author, I pay close attention to those random words and ideas that make a brief appearance on the stage of my mind then run off into forgetfulness. One day, the two words “Princess Claus” made their debut. I instantly wrote them down and imagined what life would be like for Santa’s child, and what if she was a girl?

  At the time, I’d never heard of that story idea and I could only find one out-of-print book that was remotely related. So, I started brainstorming.

  Why a princess? There’s something about the typical princess locked in the castle story that resonates with so many of us. Otherwise there wouldn’t be tons of books based on the idea.

  Technically, Santa isn’t a king. So, Noelle is called Princess Claus as a nickname. (I decided to go with Noelle, a version of the name Noel, to make her more unique.) However, her story so closely resembles that of a princess. There is a legacy she inherits she doesn’t want and a realm to rule.

  Then I thought, what would it be like to live in Winter Wonderland? How would Santa keep the rest of the world from discovering it? That thought led me to the magical dome covering Santa’s home in the series I created.

  What if the future Santa, Princess Claus, had never and could never leave Winter Wonderland? After spending some time chewing on a princess-like character stuck under a glass dome in Winter Wonderland, I imagined Princess Claus calling home her “Snow Globe Prison.”

  I’d already had the idea to create original music to go with my books, and those three words would be a great title. As I drifted off to bed one night, some of the lyrics danced between thoughts and dreams. Since my husband was asleep, I shot out of bed and went into another room to write. After a few minutes, I’d scribbled down the first draft of the song. And, I loved it!

  The evolution from song title to finished professional recording was a slow process. First, I found the right person to turn that original draft into a polished one and write the instrumental part. One of my friends, Emily Havens, was perfect. She agreed to rewrite the lyrics and play the keyboard for the recording. I asked her teenage daughter, Charis, to sing the song, because I wanted it to sound like it really could be the teenager Princess Claus belting out the words.

  Next came the recording process. This was important not only because I wanted to use clips of the song for ads, but also because of the audiobook available winter 2020. What better format to showcase the song?

  I love creating bonus content for books. So, while the story was being edited and the song recorded, I worked on graphics like The Snowflake Alphabet I mention in the book. On my website you can see book-related secrets to decode using the colorful snowflakes.

  The talented Molly Phipps at We’ve Got You Covered Book Designs agreed to make a song cover that looked similar to the book cover she’d done. By the time the book was ready to publish, every aspect of the song was ready, too.

  When I came up with this series idea, I was knee deep in a nine-book young adult fiction sci-fi/romance. I’d already spent years doing the research and made it halfway through writing book one. The Princess Claus series was originally planned on getting some of my writing time after the entire sci-fi series was done.

  However, I decided to apply for a trademark for the name Princess Claus. In doing research to see if someone else might already be using it, I searched for Santa’s daughter. I came up with Disney’s movie, Noelle. At the time it was still being made and there were no advertisements out.

  Figuring I needed to get my Santa’s daughter story out first, or at least during the same winter season as Noelle and Frozen Two, I moved my Christmas stories to the top of my writing list. And, I can’t believe how much fun it was to work on.

  I plan on writing more books in this series. The next one, Princess Claus and the Snow Globe Mystery, takes place right where Princess Claus and the Great Escape leaves off.

  I’m already working my way through the two short-story prequels Sabotage by the Future Mrs. Claus and The Kidnapping of Mrs. Claus. These take place twenty years before Princess Claus is born and share how her parents fell in love.

  I hope you enjoyed reading about my version of Winter Wonderland as much as I enjoyed writing it. If you would like to check out my writing and travel adventures (featured in my videos and blogs Adventures in Authoring), get exclusive content, and find out about upcoming projects, make sure to become one of my Book Bonus Club Members by going to:

  http://jlgillham.com/favefan1

  You can also follow me at:

  https://www.instagram.com/jlgillham/

  https://www.facebook.com/AuthorJLGillham/

  JL Gillham

  What’s next for Princess Claus?

  Now that Ebenezer’s attempt to ruin Christmas has been foiled, Princess Claus realizes it’ll take an entire army of elves to save next Christmas. That’s when she comes up with the idea of The Elf Games, a way to train up locals from the neighboring town to compete and become Santa’s newest helpers.

  But, while everyone works to restore Winter Wonderland to what is was before Ebenezer’s destruction, the evil elf entices Noelle with the promise of answers to questions she can’t stop herself from asking.

  Will the path to knowledge lead to Christmas being ruined once and for all?

  Find out in

  Princess Claus and the Snow Globe Mystery!

  Dedication

  Dedicated to my collaborator in crime, Erica Lindsey. We’ve almost gotten kicked out of more castles than I can count, been chased by black swans, and traveled the world in search of the perfect photograph. I couldn’t have done this book without you. And, I wouldn’t have wanted to.

  To Mom and Dad for the years of support and encouragement.

  Special thanks to:

  The team who helped bring to life the song Snow Globe Prison including Jon, Emily and Charis Havens, Justin Cody and Ethan Low.

  My husband, Jerrad, and our two amazing kids, JJ and Phoenix, for all their patience while I talked on and on about Winter Wonderland.

  Blossom Downing for her stories about growing up in Alaska and s
haring about the culture of the Alaskan Natives.

  My fantastic editor Lindsey Marcus.

  And the book and Song Cover Designer

  Molly Phipps at https://www.wegotyoucoveredbookdesign.com/

  Copyright © 2019

  This is a work of fiction based on stories of Santa Claus found in the public domain. Names, places, characters, and incidents are either a product of the author’s imagination or, if real, used fictitiously.

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law.

  Phoenix Cry Publishing, LLC

  www.JLGillham.com/