About the Book

Book: A Canine Christmas

Author: Jennifer Sienes

Genre: Christian Contemporary Romance, Christmas Fiction, and Southern Fiction

Release date: November 18, 2024

What do you get when you mix a mail carrier, a monstrously large canine and his surly owner, and a mysterious death?

Amelia Hutchinson can’t seem to find her place in the world. Or maybe she’s just watched too many Christmas Hallmark movies. But come on, how come Aurora Teagarden and Hallie Dean get more exciting careers and all Amelia gets to be is a mail carrier? Not to mention, she’s living in her sister and brother-in-law’s guest house and the only man she could find was one who didn’t appreciate the purity ring her daddy gave her.

Rayce Jasper just wants to sell his late granddad’s farm and throw away the painful past that comes with it as soon as possible. But the memories of the man who betrayed him, a ditzy mail lady, and a strange request put a kink in his agenda.

As Rayce’s and Amelia’s worlds collide, neither of them can deny that God must be weaving His own Christmas story for the two of them.

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About the Author

Jennifer Sienes holds a bachelor’s in psychology and a master’s in education but discovered life-experience is the best teacher. She loves Jesus, romance and writing–and puts it altogether in inspirational contemporary fiction. Her daughter’s TBI and brother’s suicide inspired two of her three novels. Although fiction writing is her real love, she’s had several non-fiction pieces published in anthologies–two in Chicken Soup for the Soul. She has two grown children and one very spoiled Maltese. California born and raised, she recently took a step of faith with her real-life hero and relocated to Tennessee.

More from Jennifer

I’m often asked where inspiration comes for my books. Does it start with a character or a setting or maybe something from my own life? The answer is, “Yes.” Each of those have sparked story ideas. A Canine Christmas is my fourteenth book, but it’s the first (and possibly last) novel/novella motivated by a dog.

You would think it would be my own canine that inspired one of my books—but that’s not the case here. I have a short story in Chicken Soup for the Soul: Life Lessons from the Dog titled “Soul Sniffer” based on my late Bichon Friese, Einstein. He was also in Providence—and his name was Dashiell. I have another short story in Inspire Joy titled “Canine Redemption” about Cheyenne, a rescue dog we had for a short time. But an entire book? Never.

It started with my granddaughters’ Cano Corso, Porter. The biggest (and I mean that in every sense of the word) baby I’ve ever encountered. He’s massive, and yet hides behind eight-year-old Kennedy at the slightest loud noise. His size alone is enough to intimidate the average person, but he doesn’t have a mean bone in his body. However, he wasn’t the only inspiration for this Christmas novella.

The setting was influenced by my affinity for old family farms and historic cemeteries (of which there are over 33,000 in the state of Tennessee.) Add a ditzy mail lady who has an intense fear of dogs, and a disgruntled man trying to put his past to rest, and A Canine Christmas was born.

This is romance through and through, and it was a pure joy to write. I hope you’ll come to love Amelia and Rayce as much as I did—and of course, Porter, the canine matchmaker.

Author Interview

Are you a one project at a time author or do you have multiple projects going at once?

When it comes to writing books, I’m a one project at a time author. I can’t juggle more than set of characters and setting at any given time, unless editing my previous novel while writing my latest one counts. However, I also have a podcast and a weekly blog post, so if those are counted as projects, I’m a multi-tasker, as I’m sure most authors are.

How has your life experience helped in your writing journey?

Wow, this is a loaded question. The short answer is that it was a very long, hard season that launched my writing career. The first book I wrote (that was actually published) was inspired by my brother’s suicide—Providence. My second book was inspired by my daughter’s near-fatal car accident and resultant brain injury—Illusions. Those are only two of the many tragedies that occurred during that particular season. All of them taught me how to write at a very deep, emotional level. God uses everything we go through for His glory and our good. I truly believe that.

How do you relax after a long day of writing?

I have more hobbies than hours, so if I have a long day of writing, I like to spend time practicing piano or working in the garden or refinishing a piece of furniture. Sometimes taking a walk with my husband and my dog Casper. Or reading. There is never a time when I ever think, I’m bored.

Who is your favorite author? Why?

I have two authors that I consider excellent writers and inspirational story tellers, however, neither of them write for the Christian market. Jodi Picoult and Kristen Hannah. They both have such depth to their characters and are unique in their storylines. I always said I want to be Jodi Picoult when I grow up.

What do you need in your writing space to help you stay focused?

I am easily distracted by noises when I’m writing. For that reason, I work best if it’s quiet. When that’s not possible, I will listen to instrumental Christian music with my air pods to drown out any disturbances. I have found that my focus is much better if I leave my phone in another part of the house and turn off all the notifications on my computer.