If you like to read romance novels of all genres, join the writers of Romance Weekly as we go behind the scenes of our books and tell all...about our writing, of course! Every week we'll answer the same questions. Once you've read my blog, the link below will direct you to another. Tell your friends and feel free to ask questions or make comments. Our blog tour will be six months old on July 29th. To celebrate our first milestone, the authors of Romance Weekly are giving back some of the love. We have incredible prizes on offer, including a Kindle Fire and multiple romance libraries. Enter for free HERE! If you've joined me from Collette Cameron, welcome! Isn't her blog pretty? Now for this week's questions... How do you respond to someone calling your writing smut or demeaning your work in some other way? If someone is demeaning the romance genre as a whole, I usually just nod and smile and move on. Bad reviews of my own work can really sting, of course, and that's harder to let go. But in my day job, writing TV commercials, I work with clients who can have very definite ideas of what they want. I can't take it personally when they change something I have written. I think I have carried that attitude into my novel writing. If someone disparages my work, I first look to see if they may have a valid point. After all, I'm not perfect, and often negative criticism is where you can learn the most. If, after some consideration, I don't agree with their comment, I move on as best I can. When critiquing or beta reading, do you ever find the voice of the other author creeping into your writing? I haven't done that much critiquing or beta reading, so I can't say it has. I do know I have to stop myself from inserting my own writing style into my partner's work. As the amazing Jennifer Crusie says, “there are many roads to Oz”, and each way has its own merits. I can say I have learned a lot from the beta reading I have done – each author has shown me ways to make my own writing better. What’s one quirky thing you do or must have around you while writing? I can't write in silence. Which is a funny thing to say, because as I write this the house is very, very quiet! But usually I write surrounding by normal household noise – mainly because I don't have a separate office and write in my living room. I invite you to continue your journey around the Romance Writers Weekly blog with .... J.J. Devine!
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If you like to read romance novels of all genres, join the writers of Romance Weekly as we go behind the scenes of our books and tell all...about our writing, of course! Every week we'll answer the same questions. Once you've read my blog, the link below will direct you to another. Tell your friends and feel free to ask questions or make comments.
Our blog tour will be six months old on July 29th. To celebrate our first milestone, the authors of Romance Weekly are giving back some of the love. We have incredible prizes on offer, including a Kindle Fire and multiple romance libraries. Enter for free HERE! If you've joined me from Dani Jace, welcome! Now on to the questions! When writing your novel, do you know how it’s going to end before you write, or do you write from start to finish? I think this question is asking am I a plotter—a writer who plans out what is going to happen before she starts to write—or a panster—a writer who just starts writing and sees where the characters take her. I am definitely a plotter. I have spreadsheets that list each and every scene from the very first to the very last. This gives me an overview of the whole plot—and a false sense of confidence that I know what I'm doing, which gives me the courage to actually start to write the damn thing. I say a false sense of confidence because I have found in the three novels where I've used my scene spreadsheet, the finished book is often much different than the original plan. Characters take over, plots twists appear, minor characters take on bigger roles, etc. Also, I often find that, when the words simply aren't flowing, it's because I've kept too strictly to my scene spreadsheet, and I need to rethink where I'm going with the whole beast. In order to have a novel that “lives” it's important to be open to new ideas, new paths, so I try to open myself to spontaneity. How do the people you know impact your writing? Are you influenced by friends and family for your characters? I think it is impossible for a writer to NOT be influenced by friends and family, when it comes to making living, breathing characters. Just as every character has a little bit of the author, every character will share traits and talents with people we know. The only way to create sympathetic, believable characters is to study the people around you, see how they react to certain situations, and then use that information to make your characters real. Describe the hero in your current WIP in three words. Physical, taciturn, loyal I can't leave it at that, however. Nearly two decades ago, Justice Cooper survived a horrific bus crash that killed two hockey teammates, including his best friend. He now subconsciously atones for surviving the accident by taking care of others, including his paraplegic father, ex-wife and stepson. When he meets Charlotte Girardet, a vivacious, career-driven woman, his first instinct is to leave her to her goal-oriented life. However, he realizes much of her ambition rises from her own loneliness - and he recognizes her driving need to succeed is just another way of dealing with a loss similar to his own. So he sets out to fix her life—and in doing so, discovers his own healing. Now it's time to move on to Collette Cameron, Romance Weekly's award winning, Amazon best-selling, and multi-published historical author! I'm taking a week off from the Romance Writers Weekly - but that doesn't mean everyone is! Start your tour with Mishka Jenkins - she and all the other great writers of RWW are answering these three questions:
1. What’s your ideal hero: alpha or beta and why? 2. Do you have a male buddy or mate you use for confirmation or inspiration when crafting your heroes? 3. What does any hero have to do to win your heart? And don't forget to enter our Great Giveaway - prizes will be awarded July 29! If you like to read romance novels of all genres, join the writers of Romance Weekly as we go behind the scenes of our books and tell all...about our writing, of course! Every week we'll answer the same questions. Once you've read my blog, the link below will direct you to another. Tell your friends and feel free to ask questions or make comments.
Our blog tour will be six months old on July 29th. To celebrate our first milestone, the authors of Romance Weekly are giving back some of the love. We have incredible prizes on offer, including a Kindle Fire and multiple romance libraries. Enter for free at http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/ep75lsuzj/ If you've joined me from Jeana E Mann's blog, welcome! Now on to the questions! Have you always written Romance? If we are talking about novels, then yes. I am fascinated by how people meet, how they build lives together, so romance is the perfect fit for that. As well, when I read for enjoyment, I prefer novels that promise a happy ending. It is also why I enjoy mysteries. I want to feel uplifted and happy when I finish a book, and with those two genres I am guaranteed that! How do you deal with critiques about the romance genre? Generally, I smile and nod and move on. Here's the thing – people are allowed to read what they want. If you don't like romance, don't read it. Personally, I don't read horror, and probably never will. Of course, the flip side to that is, if you don't read a certain genre, you shouldn't criticize it. Unfortunately, people denigrate what they don't understand all the time, whether its books, movies, art or another human being. I don't feel the need to bang my head against a brick wall, attempting to change the mind of people who don't want to be changed. What’s the one thing about our genre you’d like people to know? Let's face it – there are some really, really poorly written romance novels out there, just as there are poorly written sci-fi, mystery and thrillers. But thinking people do not judge an entire genre by a few examples. The best romance novels are about people in relationships that help them grow and change and become better people. And what more valid and valuable story is there? Love doesn't just make the world go round – it makes the world a caring, tender place, where everyone is accepted for who they are. And for me, that's what romance is all about. Now it's time to move on to Fiona Riplee - enjoy! |