When I started putting this retrospective together, my goal was to look back at each story and give you a little background or insight as to what was going on when I wrote it. But alas, for the first time, I’m stymied. It’s been a long time, guys, and in truth, I really don’t have the slightest idea what I was thinking about or going through that led me to the composition of this story. It’s a shame, too, I really like this one, and it seems to be one of the ones that my readers connected with the most. Wish I remembered how I got the idea. In the original Long November eBook, I wrote that this story was a way to sort of double down on my notion that Christmas Eve is the best night of the year for a miracle, and I’ve gotta admit, that feels pretty on-brand for me.

Christmas 2006: Helper