While I was working on my latest novel, one set in the the Virginia Highlands—a mountainous region with soaring views and deep restful valleys—I had an unexpected fact checker.

I had written in a late spring storm. As an earnest novelist, I am always cognizant of “verisimilitude”—the requirement that demands that everything in a book ring true, that scenes and situations are believable, and that a reader will readily accept every part of a story as credible.

Although the storm was a necessary plot development, I worried that readers might “pshaw” over snow in spring—especially readers who are not used to the fickleness of Western Virginia, where, more than any other part of the Commonwealth, Mother Nature is often a teenage girl, prone to wild mood swings, dramatic winters, and stunningly beautiful springs.

So I worried. But then, this happened….

It snowed. In April. The 18th to be exact. After a gorgeous spring-like Easter. The redbuds were in full bloom and my front yard was peppered with miniature daffodils. Look closely and you can see them peaking out of the snow!

Anyone living in Virginia, especially the western part, understands that spring, summer, autumn, and winter are often confused over their traditional duties. February can be warm or bitter. December can be golf weather—or a snowboarder’s delight. Even the summer months can be moody and changeable.

By the next day, the snow was mostly gone, but I am reminded that sometimes the unexpected can become the affirmation—the unexpected fact checker—a writer needs. Because sometimes, truth does seem unrealistic—and this gives writers lots of wiggle room.