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.
