Say Aloha to Love

by Eileen Buffone from the January 26, 2026 issue

When a snowstorm derails Lauren's tropical trip, she's disappointed. But her handsome best friend Cody arrives to cheer her up--and sparks fly.

Observations

This was a cute friends-to-lovers story centered around a cancelled trip to Hawaii. I have a trip to Maui scheduled for November later this year, and since I live in Southern California, beings snowed in isn't something that will happen to me. LOL

It's fun to see a plot that isn't a first meet.

Considering how short these stories are, I think Eileen did a great job showing the friendship morphing into something more. Here are some of those moments.

He looked into her eyes. "...I always love seeing you smile."

As they ate and talked, she felt the energy between them shift...but something felt different today--there was a spark.

Lately, Lauren had been noticing his attentive eyes and strong hands more than usual. At times, she noticed his muscles flex...

...Cody slipped his arm gently around her shoulder. Butterflies paraded through her stomach. Oh my.

Photo by Colby Stolpa via Flickr CC License

Almost Home

by Millicent Porter Henry from the January 12, 2026

During a snowy night, a work call gives Marnie the chance to rewrite the ending she always wanted.

Observations

We've seen romance writer heroines before in Woman's World, but have never gone behind the scenes to one of the tasks necessary for an indie author who publishes her own work and doesn't go through a publisher. Getting cover art is one of those tasks. I liked the slight foreshadowing here:

Why did the drawings of a man and woman on a bluff overlooking a river seem familiar, like she'd actually been there?

And I absolutely loved the ending. I was getting to the last paragraph and found myself wondering if we were going to get back to the apple pie and the twins. Obviously, we did and it was so funny.

Photo by Timothy Vollmer via Flickr CC License

Love in the Air

by Alice Benson from the January 9, 2026 issue

When Greta headed on a skiing trip, she didn't expect to make a connection with a fellow skier--and it was the sweetest winter surprise!

Off the Cuff Observations

Details in the first paragraph--the dazzling glitter of the snow, the jolt of the ski lift, and then that smooth glide--bring me right back many years ago to when I used to ski. 

There are a lot of words dedicated to the man's appearance. This is purely an author's choice when writing a Woman's World story. In my Basics class in the section on how to write short, I advocate minimizing physical descriptions. Readers have good imaginations. You don't need much to sketch out a character's looks. However, painting a picture of what the character looks like can be a good thing, especially if, as I suspect, this chin dimple becomes "important."

Okay, the ex-boyfriend also had a chin dimple. I immediately think Greta's motto is now "Beware the cleft chin." LOL. 

So they're stuck on the lift and are finding out they have things in common. Nice.

Ha! The cleft chin is mentioned again. I expect a third mention at the end of the story to bring things full circle. It's kind of funny, isn't it? That a tiny physical feature can be a central motif in the story?

I like the suggestion that they race and that the loser buys drinks. 

So, looking back, the majority of the story is showing them connecting and having things in common. This will show up over and over in Woman's World stories for good reason. These are the basics of a loving relationship. We readers need to believe the couple has a good chance for happiness together. 

Also, I was wrong about mentioning the cleft a third time. I really thought the last line would be about the cleft. LOL

Photo by Jonathan Cutrer via Flickr CC License