The last few years have seen a steady increase in winter holiday books that center non-Christian traditions. This is awesome, because it means romance is continuing its effort to better reflect the diversity of its readership.

Books like Lighting the Flames by Sarah Wendell, Eight Kinky Nights by Xan West, Eight Nights to Win Her Heart by Miri White, and The Matzah Ball by Jean Meltzer are just a few of the great Hanukkah romance novels readers can now choose from. But as is often the case with newer romance ideas and themes, it can take a while for them to ripple out into other sub-genres. Which is why this list of Hanukkah writing prompts leans toward the genres not currently as well represented in currently released Hanukkah romances—fantasy, paranormal, Western, sci-fi.

Strap on your writer's hat, put your favorite winter playlist on, and hit the keyboard, whether it's for 100 words or 10,000.

1. Trope: Fated mates Sub-genre: Paranormal romance Setting: Small town

   MC1: Golem MC2: Sculptor Premise: A lonely sculptor spends the first night of Hanukkah working on a figurine, the idea for which came to them in a dream. But when the figuring becomes a golem, the sculptor finds the perfect person to spend not just the next seven nights with, but the rest of their life. Prompt: Write the scene when MC2 walks into their pottery studio and finds the figurine they left to dry the night before has transformed into the lover of their dreams.
   

2. Tropes: Childhood friends, forced proximity Sub-genre: Historical romance Setting: English countryside

   MC1: Lady's maid MC2: Stable hand Premise: MC1, accompanying her cold, cruel lady to a Christmas house party in the country is forced to search for a place to sleep when the tavern where they've stopped for the night runs out of beds. But things turn in her favor when she ends up sharing the a bed of hay in the stables with MC2, the boy she always had a crush on but who left before she could confess her feelings. Sharing a single blanket, they talk and touch late into the night, and by the time the sun rises, have rediscovered the connection that it turns out they both always felt. Prompt: Write the scene when MC1 walks into the stables to ask for a bed and is rendered speechless when she sees MC2's head poking above one of the stalls.
   

3. Trope: Grumpy/sunshine Sub-genre: Western contemporary romance Setting: Small town in Colorado

   MC1: Sunshine kosher vineyard owner MC2: Grumpy wine critic Premise: MC2 hasn't celebrated Hanukkah since their mother died; instead, they work, touring the country's best vineyard. But when their editor sends them to review a kosher vineyard, they find themselves in the company of a vintner who helps them rediscover the beauty of the holiday, and sharing it with people they love. Prompt: Write the scene when MC2 tries MC1's wine for the first time, and MC1 tracks the way MC2's tongue slips out to catch the stray drops on their bottom lip.
   

4. Trope: Fish out of water Sub-genre: Sci-fi romance Setting: Alien planet

   MC1: Alien MC2: Kosher bakery owner Premise: MC2 has 500 sufganiyot to make by 5 p.m. for their town's annual festival of lights, which celebrates Hanukkah, Diwali, and Christmas. But just as they're heating up their fryer, MC1 appears in their kitchen, saying they've been sent from another universe to help them accomplish their mission. MC2 is glad for the help, but MC1's assistance extends past the donuts, giving MC2 the tender, loving, sexy care they've been craving. Prompt: Write the scene when MC2 tries to show MC1 how to fill the donut after frying, and MC1 ends up covered in cranberry-orange jam.
   

Don't forget that if you'd like the vibe of any of these prompts, you can get your very own Hanukkah romance concept, complete with character and sub-plot summaries, here! And until next blog post, happy reading and writing!