Hilarie Burton Instagram – Fun fact: Back in 2020, my first book Rural Diaries was pitched as a scripted TV show. I’m sitting here mapping out chapters for my next book. Fiction this time. And while going through old files I found the pitch document for Rural Diaries. It felt good to fictionalize my own story….allowed for freedom and wish fulfillment and waaaaay more juicy drama. Haha. It was mid-pandemic and it didn’t sell. But I fell very much in love with these characters. Ira Gutner was in there, as well as a certain candy store. (😘 @samuelssweetshop ) The fictional counterpart to @hackettfarm1 was run by a wonderful couple based on @telferhackett and Ed Hackett, but named after my dear @bjohnson54 and @brucejohnson7413 while he still alive. A dashing and gruff actor steals the heroine’s heart and gives up his old life to live with her on a farm. Wonder who that was based on?! My very real village of Rhinebeck was cross pollinated with the old school WB shows of the early aughts and the sitcoms of my childhood. It was a fun experiment to work on. Stories of young women finding themselves always make me smile. There’s magic in living a life that feels like a good story. 💖