Writer’s Desk with Melody Carlson
Melody Carlson is one of the most prolific novelists of our time. With more than 250 books published and sales topping seven million, Melody writes primarily for women and teens. She’s won numerous honors and awards, including The Rita, Gold Medallion, Carol Award and Romantic Times Lifetime Achievement award. Melody makes her home in the Pacific Northwest. When not writing, Melody likes to travel, bike, garden, read good books, and enjoy the great outdoors.
Connect with Melody on her website, Instagram, BookBub, and Facebook.
More about All Booked Up
When preserving precious memories means welcoming unexpected changes, Riva finds that her heart has room for so much more than she imagined.
Widowed empty nester Riva Owen lives in the Victorian house that’s been in her family for three generations, but finances have become a challenge she can no longer ignore. Her daughter is pushing her to move, and after considering all her options, Riva knows selling would be the smartest course. But she just can’t bring herself to leave decades of memories–and her cherished library filled with hundreds of books.
When she pursues an alternative–opening her home to women like her who need a room to rent–Riva is unprepared for the mix of personalities and peculiarities of her new housemates. She is even more unprepared for Marcus, the handsome and handy older brother of one of her new tenants. The possibility of finding love again feels overwhelming, even as her tenants seem to have romantic schemes of their own.
Warm your heart with a story of found family, book lovers, and a second chance at love.
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Q&A with Melody Carlson
ARCF: Can you share a little about All Booked Up and the inspiration behind this story?
MC: This story literally evolved from a conversation I had with a friend in my home library. My bookshelves are seventeen feet tall and about twenty feet long. My husband was very ill and at end of life when a well-meaning friend asked me what I would do if/when I was widowed. Would I sell my home and get something smaller? I looked at my very full bookshelves and sighed. “Then I’d have to pack and move all these books,” I told her. Of course, that seems a bit silly now, but I was worn out at the time and dealing with hundreds of books, collected by my husband and me over the course of 46 years was overwhelming. Later the idea came to me . . . what about a lonely widow who needs to sell her home for financial reasons, but can’t let go of a generations’ old library—and so she takes in random women boarders to pay her bills. What could go wrong? Well, everything for starters.
ARCF: What do you love most about the main character in this book?
MC: I suppose I relate to her being widowed and still dealing with grief. It’s such an unpredictable and unwanted journey. So watching her face it, often with the help of friends, probably proved therapeutic to me. And I loved watching her evolve, taking risks, making new relationships, and building a new life. I also loved her love of books!
ARCF: Can you give us a little peek into the bookshop setting — is it based on a real place?
MC: It’s not really a bookshop, but a lovely old library. It was started by her grandfather, an attorney and voracious reader, but it’s got an old-world feel—with dark wooden shelves, beautiful volumes, big comfy leather chairs, bulky tables to hold drinks or books. Just very cozy and welcoming. My library has a similar, but very different, feeling to it. To me, the spines of many books is like an art form.
ARCF: What’s something unexpected readers will find in this story?
MC: The way the characters (single women of a certain age but differing circumstances) seemed destined to battle it out, but eventually get to know and understand . . . and even support one another. A surprising sisterhood evolves that I found encouraging.
ARCF: If the heroine had a favorite book on her own shelves, what would it be?
MC: Probably a Jane Austin book. She often refers them to her female friends in hopes they’ll have some kind of personal takeaway. She probably likes Emma the best.
ARCF: How does this book reflect your own love of books and bookstores?
MC: To be honest, as much as I love bookstores, they intimidate me! And this book, as I mentioned, is about a home library—so I’ll answer like that. I LOVE libraries—of all sorts, from mega public libraries, to small town ones, to school libraries, to mobile libraries, and even the tiny street-side one in my neighborhood. I love the idea of sharing books, and I often joke with friends that when (if) everyone gets rid of their books (like so many do) I will still have a lending library just in case eBooks should fail or the Internet crashes or some other technological “tragedy” that suddenly makes real books valuable.
ARCF: What genre would your main character never read — and why?
MC: Horror or thriller books. She wouldn’t be able to take the stress of a read like that. She probably liked them as a child – most kids do. But as widow who’s been through some hard things, she would definitely avoid them.
ARCF: What’s one quirk or habit your protagonist has that you secretly share?
MC: She wants to help people so badly that she could easily step over the line and step on toes, but she is training herself to hold back and be patient enough to allow people to solve their own problems.
ARCF: Who was the easiest character to write — and who gave you a little trouble?
MC: Riva (the protagonist) was easy because in many ways she was like me. Kitty was probably more of a challenge because I really didn’t like her and she wasn’t the sort of person I’d welcome into my life. Although Kitty needed someone like Riva to help straighten her out. But that woman was, well, a piece of work!
ARCF: Can you tell us about a moment while writing this book that made you smile?
MC: When Kitty got stuck in her room with her ‘sprained’ ankle. It seemed just punishment, but then I actually smiled when the other women tried to help—which sometimes worked, and sometimes didn’t.
ARCF: If this book had a soundtrack, what would be one song on the playlist?
MC: I’d like it to be a cheery Irish dancing tune – since Fiona’s band often performed in the book. Or maybe a heartfelt one that they might be sitting around, after to lovely outdoor summer dinner, listening to . . . like when Fiona plays her fiddle or penny whistle. Maybe it would be O, Danny Boy.
ARCF: What do you hope readers are still thinking about long after they finish the last page?
MC: When readers finish this book, I hope they will continue to explore who they are, what God has created them to do or be, and how they balance that with their life choices. I hope they come away with a renewed faith and ability to trust and wait on God when God seems silent.
ARCF: Are there any fun literary references or Easter eggs hidden in the book for book lovers to catch?
MC: Any Jane Austin fan will probably notice some similarities of certain characters and the interactions between them that feel reflective of Sense and Sensibility or Pride and Prejudice or Emma.
ARCF: What message or feeling do you hope readers walk away with after turning the last page?
MC: Perhaps the hope that grace goes a long way towards building lasting relationships.
ARCF: And finally, can you share what you have coming up next?
MC: Right now, I’m creating a sequel to last year’s WELCOME TO THE HONEY B & B, which will be coming soon. I’m calling it Welcome Back to the Honey B & B. And in September 2026, my new Christmas novella We Wish You a Messy Christmas will release. It’s a fun one!
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