This week's challenge comes from Victoria Barbour. She asks: If your life was a romance novel, what subgenre would it be, and why would your hero be amazing? Also, what would you call it? Can you write a blurb for it? If you joined me from Kathryn Renard, welcome! There's no getting around it – the genre of my life is strictly contemporary. No ghosts or dragons, spies or assassins, dukes or duchesses in sight. And while angst-ridden lives make for the best romance novels, I am very thankful that mine is generally happy and fulfilled (I say "generally" because I am superstitious – don't want to jinx anything!). The reasons my hero is amazing are legion. We met at our local TV and radio station broadcast centre more than 28 years ago, where I was a writer/producer of commercials and he was the production cameraman. We still work together today, although our roles of changed. In fact, he's now the General Manager, something I am very proud of! We are often asked how we can live and work so closely together. I won't speak for him, but as for myself – I can't imagine life any other way. At work, I respect his talent, skills and dedication, and at home – well, he's my best friend. Here's my shot at the blurb that would best describe our lives leading up to our engagement. Too practical – or cowardly – to try and make a living as an author, she backs into a career in broadcasting. When she's offered a job at her hometown's small television station, she takes a deep breath and dives in, despite the fact she's only been trained in radio. He's fascinated with television production, and has already worked his way up from a part-time control room job to cameraman. But his dreams don't stop at this northern town's minor market station, and a newbie producer who doesn't know a white balance from a rack focus isn't going to stop him. Neither of them are looking for an office romance. Then why does working together feel like something so much more? I guess because it was more – as evidenced by 25 years of marriage this May. That wasn't as hard as I thought it might be! But Marc Stevens, whose up next, might have a bit of a challenge – considering he's a fictional character. How does a made up man write a blurb about his real life romance? Check it out here.
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Today on the Romance Writers Weekly blog hop, J.J. Devine asks: What inspires you? Music? Reading? Movies? People in your life? Situations in life? What gets you motivated to sit down and write? If you joined me from Leslie Hachtel, welcome! A great way to get inspiration is to ask "What if?". I saw a sports blooper where an NBA player trying to save the ball ran over a waitress delivering beer to courtside seats. What if he's horrified by what he did? What if he seeks her out afterward to apologize? What if she's a single mom who despises the whole professional sports scene? What if there are sparks neither of them can ignore? Long road trips inspire me. I'm usually in the passenger seat, so I have lots of time to dream and wonder. Signs are great for discovering new and unusual names. In fact, my hero in When Time Falls Still, to be released this spring, was named after "Justice Motorcycle Repairs."
When it comes to being motivated to sit down and write, a bright and warm summer day calls me into the backyard to write in the sun. Alternately, a cold and snowy winter's day gets me snuggling with a blanket on my knees and my fingers on my keyboard. For most days, however, I need my inner voice to guilt me into writing. I'm with all the other writers who have said "I don’t like to write, but I love having written!" I can enjoy my day so much more when I've finished my daily quota! How does S. C. Mitchell get inspired? He's your next stop on the blog hop! Welcome to the first Tuesday Blog Hop of 2016 with Romance Writers Weekly! I'm kicking off the new year by asking my fellow RWW members about firsts (doesn't that seem appropriate?):
Choose your top three "First" memories and write about them. Suggestions are: First book you remember reading (or being read to you). First romance novel you fell in love with. First "big" trip. First love/kiss. First pet. First Christmas/other holiday. Once I started thinking about this topic, the ideas came fast and furious. So many great firsts in my life – so hard to only pick three! I decided I had to narrow it down to reading and writing. Here goes: First Time I Believed in Myself as a Writer: I've always been a voracious reader, which led to English and Creative Writing being my favourite lessons in elementary school. But it wasn't until Grade 7 when I can truly remember thinking I might have a talent for story-telling. I still have the story on which my teacher wrote his belief that I should try and sell it to a magazine. The memory of that note still makes me warm and gooey inside. First Time I Wrote "The End": My first published work, Mountain Fire, was a long time in the making. With a job, a young family, and only one computer in the house, it was hard to find time to write. But then in December 2010 my husband bought me a laptop for Christmas. A few months later I finished the first draft of Mountain Fire. The sense of accomplishment I had was tremendous. At that time, I didn't even care if it ever was published – I had set a goal for myself "to write a book" and I had done it! First Book I Fell in Love With: This was an easy one - Anne of Green Gables. It's been a while since I've re-read the story of Anne-with-an-e, but I think it's safe to say that I've read the entire series so many times I'd need my toes to count. Gilbert was my first book boyfriend, and the vivacious and free-spirited Anne a girl I longed to meet in real life. Best of all – for a young girl dreaming of being a writer, to know that a Canadian woman wrote one of the best loved characters of all time was a true inspiration. And speaking of awesome Canadian women writers, your next stop on the hop is with Victoria Barbour. Which firsts did she decide to share? |