If you look up the word “Americana” in the dictionary, don’t be surprised if the definition reads: Franklin, Tennessee. Its downtown features a quaint town square, a quintessential Main Street lined with shops and restaurants, and even a 1930s theater with red neon. But the icing on the cake? A novel-turned-Hallmark-television movie in the city’s list of credits.
“It’s charm. There’s no question that it’s charm,” says Joel Tomlin, describing the lure of Franklin, located some 20 minutes south of Nashville. Joel and his wife, Carol, own Landmark Booksellers in the Franklin downtown historic district, and their lives were fodder for author Karen Kingsbury’s romance novel The Bridge. Continue reading or enter below for your chance to win a signed copy.
The best seller was made into a Hallmark movie about a fictional bookshop with the same name as the title, and was inspired by Joel and Carol’s real-life opening of their store in 2005 when they became empty nesters. Joel says not a day goes by that he doesn’t greet out-of-town visitors looking for “the real Bridge.”
Karen, who lives in nearby Brentwood, Tennessee, spoke with us about this inspiration behind The Bridge, as well as some of her own experiences with charming Franklin, featured in our July/August 2021 issue. The author will be hosting her first writers’ conference this June at Franklin’s newest luxury hotel, The Harpeth—right next to Landmark Booksellers, where signed books will be available for conference attendees to purchase. Karen has also teamed up with Southern Lady to give two lucky readers copies of The Bridge—both an autographed novel and the movie on DVD. Enter to win through June 23 at 11:59 p.m., and continue reading for musings from Karen.
SL: Tell me about the real-life inspiration behind The Bridge. How did you discover Landmark Booksellers?
Karen: In the spring of 2011, I was visiting the Nashville area on a book tour, and my editor at the time, Becky Nesbit, took me to downtown Franklin. “Prettiest street in America,” she told me. That warm afternoon as we set out, I saw immediately that she was right! Then she took me into Landmark Booksellers—and my life would never be the same! I fell in love with the warmth and light of the place, and I had a wonderful conversation with Joel and Carol Tomlin, the store owners. When I learned the history of the place and how it had served as a hospital for Civil War soldiers, I was even more enthralled. I left that day imagining how awful it would have been if the store had been wiped out in the 2010 Nashville flood. Would they have recovered from something that devastating, especially with their old and collector’s books making up so much of the stock? Within a week, I came up with a story that wouldn’t leave my heart. The Bridge, I called it. Charlie and Donna Barton became my fictitious store owners, who had lost everything in my imaginary flood. A few years later, it became a two-part hit Hallmark movie series: Karen Kingsbury’s The Bridge.
SL: What made you want to set a book in Franklin?
Karen: When visiting Franklin, I fell in love with the place. We had been considering leaving the Pacific Northwest, and during that book tour, my husband and I realized we’d found a new home. Our only daughter was dating Kyle Kupecky, a Christian musician from Nashville, and he was on the verge of proposing. By July of 2011, we’d all moved to Brentwood and spent much of our free time in Franklin. Kyle proposed to Kelsey in front of Lulu’s (now White’s Mercantile) on Main Street. I have a little studio next to Landmark Bookseller’s where I now do much of my writing. As for The Bridge and the inspiration for the story, that part was easy. Franklin is the sort of place that represents what life should be like. People care about their neighbors and look out for each other. One example: During the first months of the pandemic, Landmark Booksellers considered closing its doors permanently. This is a store that needs foot traffic, and with all of life shut down, they almost didn’t make it. But two things happened: my readers rallied around the store, and local news spread the word. In a matter of weeks, more than 5,000 copies of Someone Like You, my spring 2020 book, sold through Landmark Booksellers. The overwhelming response kept the Landmark doors open. Since the space at Landmark was too small for this undertaking, my family and church friends gathered at my house to help sign, package, address, and stamp each of those packages—very much like what happened in my book, The Bridge.
SL: What are some of your favorite things about Franklin—some that made it into the book and some that didn’t?
Karen: I love the arts community. That’s something that made it into The Bridge—the idea that there are local venues with open mic nights and local musicians sharing their talents. My character Ryan sings at an open mic night at The Bridge to help raise money for the store. I think this sort of thing could actually happen at Landmark. Clearly, the blend of real life and fiction was very close when writing The Bridge. I also love the beautiful walks and local outdoors options—the parks and lakes. My characters made great use of those as well. Same with the local shopping on Main Street!
SL: What do you think makes Franklin such a special place—the ideal setting to enhance such an enchanting story?
Karen: The charm of Main Street in downtown Franklin was something that created the perfect setting for The Bridge. It wasn’t just that my townspeople wanted to save The Bridge in the fictitious story—they wanted to save downtown because downtown wouldn’t be the same without The Bridge. It is the same with Landmark Booksellers. It is part of the landscape of downtown Franklin, and no one wants to lose that. The building fronts along Main Street are in many cases more than two hundred years old. We can’t go back in time, but we can come very close when we visit downtown Franklin. The same was true for the street where The Bridge was set.
SL: What are some of your favorite Franklin destinations you’d recommend to a reader?
Karen: My top Franklin destinations have to include:
- Main Street, downtown Franklin. Top of the list has to be walking downtown Franklin’s Main Street. Spend a day strolling both sides of Main Street and shopping at the unique storefronts and boutiques. Stop for a malt at Kilwins and lunch at Merridee’s or Gray’s on Main.
- Puckett’s in downtown Franklin. Plan your dinner at Puckett’s just off Main Street, where you eat the best Southern food and listen to one of the many talented local artists while you dine.
- The Factory, just north of downtown Franklin. In what was once an old factory, there are dozens of artsy and unique shops at The Factory. Five Daughters Donuts and Honest Coffee Roasters are two of the must-stop places. Whenever friends or family visit us, my kids always take them there!
- The Antique Mall in downtown Franklin. Antique shopping just off Main Street in downtown Franklin is another favorite way to spend an afternoon. The Antique Mall is run by the friendliest people, and you can shop for hours, drifting from one room to the other and getting lost in the artifacts of days gone by. Here you will always find a treasure or two to bring back to the people you love.
Exclusive Karen Kingsbury Book and DVD Giveaway
Two lucky readers will receive an autographed copy of Karen’s novel The Bridge, along with the DVD of its film adaptation. Enter to win below through June 23 at 11:59 p.m.
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