Stories, Drafts & Concepts: Inside My Writer's Brain

Heather Burkett-Ocasio
10 minutes ago
5 min read

People often ask where my story ideas come from. The truth is, I have far more ideas than I'll ever have time to write. Some are just a sentence in a notebook. Others have entire worlds waiting for me to explore. Today, I thought I'd share a few of them...

The Peckers Series

Contemporary Romance

While you can already shop Peckers: The Pact on Amazon and Kindle Unlimited, did you know there are three more novellas planned for the series?

Book 2 in the series, Peckers: By Design, continues from Sierra's perspective. As the Peckers Restaurant slowly comes to fruition, Sierra must step up to design the ultimate guest experience. But with college graduation looming, two simultaneous school plays, and a handsome veterinary student vying for her attention, how will she get it all done?

The title of Book 3, Peckers: Standard Operating Procedure, is a tongue-in-cheek reference to the fact that absolutely nothing is going according to plan. This book follows Roxie as she helps run the restaurant while navigating her own confusing feelings towards a popular new character.

And, last but certainly not least, we end with Aunt Martha's story in Peckers: Into the Fire. As we conclude the Peckers series, Martha comes to realize that her time with the girls is almost over. What will there be for her to do when they're gone? Tentative at first, Martha eventually comes to realize she must jump headfirst "into the fire" to discover who she is truly meant to become.

The Snot Rag & Cheese Whiz Series

Contemporary Romance

The second series, Snot Rag & Cheese Whiz, made its debut on August 1st, with the companion holiday novella scheduled for release on November 1, 2026.

This series follows six-year-old Amber Hayes as she moves to the cozy, fictional community of Lilusa, Michigan. On her first day in the neighborhood, she quickly realizes she is the only girl on a block full of boys.

But Jeremy Bennett is different. When Amber encounters the neighborhood bully for the first time, it's Jeremy who comforts her—thus beginning the most defining friendship of their youth.

But time marches on, and years later the two are separated when Jeremy leaves for college.

When a wedding brings them both back to their hometown as adults, they're left wondering: will their childhood bond remain unbroken?

Kissed: A Toadily True Tale

Young Adult Fantasy Romance

We all know the story: princess kisses frog, frog turns into handsome prince, and princess and prince fall in love.

At least, that's what's supposed to happen.

But...what if it doesn't?

Desperate to escape an arranged marriage, Princess Tamsin takes a chance on an old fairy tale and kisses a frog.

And it works!

Sort of.

The frog becomes a man—but Robert doesn't remember being a prince. In fact, the only life he remembers is the one Tamsin just took him from.

Determined to undo her mistake, Tamsin joins Robert and her trusted knight, Leopold, on a perilous journey through the Witch's Woods in search of a way to send him home.

Because sometimes you have to kiss a few frogs before you figure out where happily ever after really belongs.

Three redheaded ladies looking right, superimposed over a map and scenery.

States of Grace

Multigenerational Historical Women's Fiction

This story idea first came to me over a decade ago.

It was the last book concept I ever had the chance to discuss with my mom before she passed in 2015, and my father was only able to hear the first five chapters before he, too, passed away in 2022.

Despite having a finished first draft, I simply couldn't bring myself to pick the novel back up after that. The grief was too real, and the task of revising felt too daunting.

But after publishing Peckers and Snot Rag & Cheese Whiz, my curiosity got the better of me. I reopened the draft for the first time this August and have started the overwhelming task of editing my 209,000-word magnum opus.

States of Grace follows the journey of three generations of women with the audacious goal of living in all 50 states. But beneath that, it's also a heartfelt story about the memories we make, the chances we take, and the relationships we build along the way.

Clinging To Andromeda

Contemporary Spiritual Romance

This story—originally called The Collective—was previously drafted as a way to explore my unconventional beliefs about souls, the afterlife, and reincarnation.

However, the story was missing something I could never quite put my finger on. It felt rushed and forced and, more importantly, it was missing its heart.

I've since scrapped that first draft entirely, but the premise has stuck with me. I still feel like it's a challenge I might like to tackle again one day.

The story begins with the meeting of Celeste and Andy, two women who feel inexplicably drawn to one another. As their relationship develops, they begin to realize there may be larger forces at work—and that their connection may extend far beyond the life they're living now.

Together, they'll have to unravel what is drawing them together and what it might mean for the souls they've been...and the people they're becoming.

Two bedrooms, divided, looking over the same starry night sky. A man sleeps on the left while a woman sleeps on the right.

In My Dreams

Contemporary Paranormal Romance

This story is still very early in the conceptual phase, but it's one I can't seem to stop thinking about.

Alora and Nox are both teenagers when a stranger appears in their dreams. At first, it's easy to dismiss as nothing more than that—a dream.

But then the stranger comes back.

Over the next five years, they continue to find each other in their dreams, slowly becoming less like strangers and more like confidants, friends, and something neither of them quite knows how to define.

But what happens when morning comes?

Who is the person they can't stop dreaming about—and why does waking up without them begin to feel so much like losing someone real?

Four gritty images: A man pouring liquor, a woman holding a gun, a woman and man's hands tensely gripping each other, a man's hands gripping iron jail bars.

Finding Independence

Contemporary Fiction/Ensemble Drama

Finding Independence is another story still in the very early design stages. Next to States of Grace, this may be the second most challenging story I ever tackle.

Partially inspired by the 2004 movie Crash, this ensemble drama follows five very different characters whose lives intersect in unexpected ways.

Beginning on July 4th and ending on July 4th one year later, we follow each character as they search for their own version of independence—from circumstances, relationships, expectations, and even parts of themselves that have kept them from moving forward.

Because sometimes independence isn't about standing on your own. Sometimes it's about finally finding the courage to change your life.

A densely wooded area with three figures in the distance. A timestamp says 00:04:38 at the top.

Right To Retribution

Psychological Thriller

In a modern justice system where victims are given an alternative to traditional sentencing, Anne Wrenshaw and her family are offered an extraordinary choice after her attacker is convicted.

Their decision will place victim, family, and offender on opposite sides of a deadly pursuit—and force everyone to decide where justice ends and vengeance begins.

Will her attacker survive?

More importantly...do we want him to?

As you can see, my brain is full of ideas and story concepts just waiting to be explored!!! Which premise piques your interest the most? Tell me in the comments!