Goodreads asked Jodi Thomas:

Where did you get the idea for your most recent book?

Jodi Thomas I’ve driven the roads from Jefferson, Texas to Dallas many times. But this time, in my mind, I was making the journey in a wagon with outlaws determined to kidnap my cargo, the little girls.

The story came alive in my mind and I laughed then cried, then fell in love with my characters. I learned to survive in the untamed land and fight off outlaws.

I drove as the story played out in my head. In three hours I’d covered a month by wagon while fighting storms and hunting for my supper every night.

By the time I stopped in Dallas and pulled into a hotel, my head was packed. It took me two months to write it all down and I think “Father Goose,” (in THE COWBOY WHO SAVED CHRISTMAS) the story of one broken soldier and a runaway woman risking their lives to save five little girls may very well be my favorite short story ever.

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