by Sasha White

There was a time when Canadian writers were asked to make sure their stories took place in American settings. The reasoning was that the U.S market is so much larger than the Canadian one and readers want to read what they know. Also, most large publishers are based in the United States. I knew when I set BOUND in small town British Columbia that I might be asked to change it, and I was thrilled when my editor never mentioned it at all.

Chadwick, the setting for most of BOUND, is a fictional town in British Columbia. It could be any one of many small towns in the Okanagan Valley. Even though I personally lived in Kelowna for ten years and love the beautiful city with all my heart, I wanted Chadwick to be even smaller than Kelowna. More like Pentiction or Summerland. These cities are small, built in the nooks and crannies of a beautiful valley that is full of orchards, vineyards, and retirement homes. There’s a college that is growing and tons of outdoor activities like hiking, mountain biking and waterskiing. However, for a young woman in her early-mid twenties, there really isn’t a lot of action. Especially if you’re known as the “good girl” and you don’t want to be known as the “bad girl” or “wild child.”

Katie is that girl. She’s always a good girl. She likes to please people and doesn’t like to cause waves. But it’s starting to get to her. She dreams of getting out of that town, no matter how much she loves the mountains, the casual wildlife, and the locally brewed ciders. (And let me tell you, I myself have an addiction to Okanagan Ciders, and suffer from the lack of them in the restaurants and bars in Alberta!)

Buildings, houses and businesses are often built on the side of the mountain. If you’ve grown up there, you can’t go anywhere in your small town where people don’t know you, so as soon as they get a drivers license, kids start hitting the surrounding towns when they want to have a little more excitement, and less trouble or gossip about their fun.

This valley gets into your heart. The people are warm and super friendly and the setting is fantastic. While I moved away for work and to build a better career, I know in my heart that when I’m ready to settle down, it’ll be somewhere in the Okanagan Valley. I’ve met a lot of others my age from the Valley in my travels, and they all agree. It’s great to get away and experience a bit more…but every single one of us plan to move back.

After all, home is where the heart is.

Now let’s talk! Leave a comment, and you could win a copy of the PURE SEX anthology, which contains one of my stories with another Canadian setting.