Was it difficult to sell a publisher on this idea?

JR: It did take a lot of perseverance to find a home for it until it landed in exactly the right place—on our editor’s desk at National Geographic. Her passion for literary travel and trivia rivals our own—she once even considered selling an organ to buy the home of Max Perkins, Hemingway and Fitzgerald’s legendary editor, when it came up for sale!—and she was full of wonderful suggestions to incorporate into the book.

Since both of you have worked and written in this business, what review meant the most to you?

JR: There were many, many nice things said about the book by reviewers, and we were pleased to receive this comment from legendary travel writer and editor Don George: “Novel Destinations is a book after my own heart.”

How was the collaboration process on this project?

SMS: Writing can be a very isolating profession, and we were thrilled to be able to collaborate on a project. While we divided up the material early on and each took responsibility for individual sections, we regularly exchanged drafts for feedback, so that the end result was a stronger, very cohesive book in terms of style and tone.

How long did it take you to research, write and put this book together?

SMS: It took us a whirlwind ten months to research and write, including traveling to some of the destinations featured in the book.

In your research for this project, what surprised you the most?

SMS: What surprised me the most is how each place really does have a different story to tell about the writer who lived there—like Mark Twain’s Connecticut mansion, where the design and décor reflect his love of travel.

JR: One of the funnier things that surprised me was the number of men visiting the Jane Austen Centre in Bath! I’m not sure if all those would-be Mr. Darcy’s are Jane fans, or were there humoring their significant others. What also constantly surprised me is how popular even some of the more remote and obscure literary houses are, like the George Bernard Shaw house in England’s Hertfordshire countryside. It’s truly off the beaten path, yet when I visited last year, the parking lot was nearly full. It’s wonderful to see so many people soaking up our literary heritage.

Can you each share your feelings when you first held a retail copy of NOVEL DESTINATIONS in your hands?

SMS: It seemed surreal then, and it still does. Truly, the fact that Joni and I were able to take our hobbies of reading and travel and use them for the basis of a book was a dream come true.
JR: And I felt really proud that we had achieved such a major accomplishment. Although I worked in the book publishing industry for many years, I never imagined that I’d end up on the other side of the desk as the author of a book!

Do you have another book project in the works that you can share with us?

JR: During our travels, we became intrigued by the stories surrounding the places where famousartists found inspiration and so there may be well an Artful Destinations to look out for in the future.