The author's upbringing in Europe, with delightful old-fashioned Christmas traditions, inspired the creation of Tale of The Winter Lands. With Croatian as her first language and English as her second, after six years of writing, J.D. Bass successfully published a heartfelt story that will spread the happiness of the holiday cheer, and inspire kindness in the readers. Tale of The Winter Lands won Silver Medal in 2021 Readers' Favorite International Book Awards.