A Chip Off the Old Block

by Melanie Dusseau from the August 3, 2020 issue

Tagline: While making a surprise tomato delivery to her elderly neighbor, Molly gets a surprise of her own when his dreamy son shows up to greet her.

Observations: I thought this story was summer itself. Check out how she made the season come alive in these quotes.

The early afternoon sun hit the patch of land full-on, warming her face as she tilted it toward the cloudless blue sky.

She placed both palms on the dirt and did something that always delighted her as a child: inhaled the scent of garden tomatoes. The earthy green fragrance bloomed around her and she thought about how happy her neighbor...was going to be when she brought him a basket of his favorite summer bounty.

She mentions cold lemonade. She's wearing cut-offs. There's a porch swing!

Don't forget about just writing a story that's seasonal and not attached to any particular holiday. I think this actually gives you a little advantage in that, once those holiday slots are filled, the editor will turn to stories that have more flexibility as to scheduling. But that's just a theory. :)