This week on the Romance Writers Weekly Blog, Clair Brett asks: What do you find most difficult about writing what you write? It could have to do with certain scenes, plotting, dialogue, whatever trips you up. How do you approach those things? If you joined me from Leslie Hachtel, welcome! There are few writers that would disagree with Dorothy Parker’s famous quote: “I hate writing, I love having written.” For me, this might be overstating things slightly. I don’t hate writing, although some days I’d rather go to the dentist. The thing is, not writing makes me fidgety and restless. So having written something is better than not writing anything. I am most comfortable writing dialogue. I think that comes partly from creating television and radio commercials for three decades. Those advertisements are written for the ear—to be said out loud, not merely read silently. It’s the same for natural sounding dialogue—it should read like a transcription of someone’s words (without the uhms, ahs, and stutters, of course). Because I write romance, the ending of my stories is never in doubt—there will be a happy ending. Any tension and conflict comes in how that happy ending is achieved. Rational human beings have a problem, talk things out, and come to a compromise. This does not make for a riveting romance. There have to be troubles and problems along the way, not just between the two main characters but in the world around them as well. My biggest problem is letting my characters solve things too easily. Since I like my hero and heroine, I tend to want to fix things for them, when really I should be their worst enemy. This issue usually crops up in what many writers call “the saggy middle.” Setting up the conflict in the first third of the story is fun. Solving the conflict in the last third is satisfying. But what keeps the conflict going in the middle third? The proof is in that pudding—unless the conflict is solid and realistic and organic, the middle falls apart. That’s where I’m at with my current work-in-progress. My hero and heroine are in their late forties, and both are gun shy about relationships. Since neither of them are idiots, it only makes sense for them to talk things out. If they do that, though, the book is over far too quickly, and with far too little drama. Luckily, they are on a quest together, so I can use that to throw obstacles in their path. I just have to make sure they don’t clamber over those obstacles too easily. I'm off to think of a new torture for my characters. Be sure to hop over to Jenna Da Sie to find out what she has trouble with. After all, misery loves company LOL!
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Writing is the ultimate stay at home job. Especially since the internet came into being, there’s very little reason to leave the comfort of your writing spot. This week on the Romance Writers Weekly Blog Hop, A.S. Fenichel asks: Tell us about where you write, edit or create. Do you have a special place? Do you need a cup of tea or coffee? Set the writer scene for your writing time. Up until this year, my writing place was on the couch in our living room, using a lap desk my son made in woodworking class. But when I left my career in television production to spend more time on my writing, I set up this little corner of the family room as my office. My new routine means I can write first thing in the morning, so I start with a cup of coffee (although it’s usually cold before I remember to drink it) and a bottle of water close by. I put a playlist on Spotify (lately it’s been a station that plays Delhi 2 Dublin and like-sounding tracks) and after a quick check of emails and social media (I can’t write until I make sure there’s no business I need to take care of) I get my daily quota in. I am by no means particular about where I write, though, and often find a change of scenery can bounce the creativity to a new level. My second favourite place to write is in the backyard next to your pond, but I’ve written on our boat, in our holiday trailer, beside rivers, and overlooking golf courses. To me, that’s one of the best things about being a writer – the ability to do it wherever you like! What about you? Is your creativity portable, or do you need a special place for it? I’d love to hear about it, so leave a comment below and I’ll be sure to reply. Then, hop on to Elizabeth Schechter and see what her writing space is like!
On Romance Writers Weekly, we can talk books (especially romance, of course) all day long. This week on the Blog Hop, A.S. Fenichel says: Other than the genre you write, what kind of books do you love to read and why? If you joined me from Leslie Hachtel, welcome! I have to be honest – the vast majority of my reading is romance in one way or another. I don’t like to read books that make me cry (even those that friends say “But it’s in a good way!”) or that leave me feeling depressed about the state of the world. I like to know a happy ending is coming, or that the bad guys will lose, even before I read page one. But Andrea’s question is “other than the genre you write,” so that means I can mention anything other than contemporary romance, right? I don’t have to stay away from all romance, do I? 😊 In that case, my favourite genre to read is historical romance. I love Regency, but also Victorian and even as “modern” as the 1960’s. If you’re looking for great reads set during the Space Race, check out the “Fly Me To the Moon” series by Emma Barry and Genevieve Turner. It’s fantastic. Other historical authors I love are Eloisa James, Courtney Milan, and Julia Quinn. Stepping away from the romance genre entirely, my favourite stories are mysteries and detective novels. I have a lot of comfort reads in this genre, including Dick Francis, Robert B. Parker, Rex Stout, and Dorothy L. Sayers. The most recent author in this genre I’ve read is Ian Rankin. It might be time to find some more current reads in this area – if you have a suggestion, leave it below! Next on your hop is Caro Kincaid, author of historical romance! See what else she likes to read here!
This week on the Romance Writers Weekly Blog Hop, Leslie Hachtel asks: Spring is just around the corner. What are you most looking forward to? If you joined me from Clair Brett, welcome! Let’s be honest – what isn’t there to look forward to about spring? Especially in these days of physical distancing (I hope you and your family are staying safe and healthy!) the advent of spring is even more to be longed for. Here in Northern BC, just because the calendar says it’s spring doesn’t mean the weather agrees. We’ve had some lovely sunny days, but most nights are still well below freezing, which means the daytime melt isn’t enough to rid our lawns of snow. I’d love to be outside cleaning gardens and prepping for planting, but I can’t even see most of my flower beds yet. And as I write this, the sky is low and threatening, with the promise of more snow to fall today. For me, the best part of spring is turning off the furnace and opening all the windows in the house to blow out the fug of winter. Tradition is Mr. C and I turn on The Gypsy Kings and toast the new season with a beer in the backyard. Only then it is truly spring! Be sure to hop on over to A.S. Fenichel and see what she’s most looking forward to. Andrea has a brand new book out (It’s doing really well on the Amazon charts, so congratulations are due!!). If you enjoy historical romance, you should be sure to check it out! https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B081KSTK2N Left standing on the side while their contemporaries marry into society, four young ladies forge a bond to guard each other from a similar fate . . . Finishing school failed to make a proper lady of Penelope Arrington. But as a Wallflower of West Lane, Poppy has a far more vital role—she and her three best friends have made a pact to protect each other from the clutches of dangerous, disreputable men. So when one of them is about to be married off to a duke sight unseen, Poppy makes it her mission to divine the prospective husband’s true character. If only she didn’t require the aid of London’s most unsuitable rake. Rhys Draper, Earl of Marsden, has known the headstrong Poppy since she was a young girl naïve to the ways of men. To her eternal chagrin—and to his vague amusement—they have been at odds over the memory of embarrassing first encounter all these years. Now, with his services in need, Rhys sees a chance to finally clear the air between them. Instead, he is surprised by the heat of their feelings. If the two do not tread carefully, they may end up in a most agreeably compromising position . . . A couple weeks ago, I was reading (as one does) and I came up with a great idea for the blog hop. I decided to ask: What’s your favourite book that “no one” has heard of? That’s a tongue in cheek way of asking you to name your favourite book that isn’t a classic or by an author that consistently sits on the best seller lists. It can be fiction or non-fiction. I blithely added the topic to the list, and promptly forgot it. So when it came up in rotation, I had a bit of a panic attack. Luckily enough, I remembered the book I wanted to mention! Whew! If you joined me from, A.S. Fenichel, welcome (BTW, Andrea has several books on sale if you are looking for new reading material during your self-isolating). I know of dozens of romance writers whose books haven’t hit any bestseller lists but who write engaging, wonderful stories. But I’d hate to miss anyone, so I’m going to mention two non-romance books to avoid making a faux pas. The book I was reading when I came up with the topic was SOCIAL CRIMES by Jane Stanton Hitchcock. When her husband dies, New York socialite Jo Slater is shocked to learn that he left his sizable estate to a mysterious French countess. Obsessed with recovering her place as queen of New York, Jo concocts an audacious scheme of revenge. Can she pull it off? When it was first released it hit the bestseller lists, but I was unfamiliar with Hitchcock’s work. It’s hard to pin down genre-wise—it has a women’s fiction vibe, but is wrapped around in a mysterious plot. All in all, I enjoyed it enough to mention here, though I wouldn’t say it is my favourite in this category. That distinction goes to WORD NERD by Susin Nielsen. Twelve-year-old Ambrose is a glass-half-full kind of guy. A self-described “friendless nerd,” he moves from place to place every couple of years with his overprotective mother, Irene. When some bullies at his new school almost kill him by slipping a peanut into his sandwich — even though they know he has a deathly allergy — Ambrose is philosophical. Irene, however, is not and decides that Ambrose will be home-schooled. Alone in the evenings when Irene goes to work, Ambrose pesters Cosmo, the twenty-five-year-old son of the Greek landlords who live upstairs. Cosmo has just been released from jail for breaking and entering to support a drug habit. Quite by accident, Ambrose discovers that they share a love of Scrabble and coerces Cosmo into taking him to the West Side Scrabble Club, where Cosmo falls for Amanda, the club director. Posing as Ambrose’s Big Brother to impress her, Cosmo is motivated to take Ambrose to the weekly meetings and to give him lessons in self-defense. Cosmo, Amanda, and Ambrose soon form an unlikely alliance and, for the first time in his life, Ambrose blossoms. The characters at the Scrabble Club come to embrace Ambrose for who he is and for their shared love of words. There’s only one problem: Irene has no idea what Ambrose is up to. I met Susin at the Surrey International Writers Conference a few years ago. This in no way influences how much I enjoyed this book. It is juvenile fiction at its best—clever and witty and uncondescending. I strongly encourage you to check it out. Now it’s time to move on to Jenna Da Sie and see what her favourite “unknown” book is! I hope you are staying safe and healthy during this global crisis. As the world practices self-quarantining and social distancing, the ability to escape into your imagination has never been more useful. This week on the Romance Writers Weekly Blog Hop, Jenna Da Sie asks: What fictional characters (from tv, books, movies) would you be friends with if you could? If you joined me from Leslie Hachtel, welcome! Making friends is a risky business. Even if you like someone after a superficial interaction, you can still be disappointed when the relationship deepens. But sometimes you just know someone is going to become a good friend…and it’s like that with fictional characters, too. Has anyone seen the Netflix mini-series of Dracula? I really enjoyed this retelling of the old tale, and my favourite character was Sister Agatha Van Helsing, who investigates Dracula in the first two episodes. She was snarky and intelligent and fearless, just what I want in a friend! I have met so many wonderful characters in the pages of books that fixing on one or two to be friends is nearly impossible. I’m a huge fan of Jennifer Crusie, and her female protagonists are right up there when it comes to women I’d like to spend time with. Courtney Milan also writes amazing women. If I had to narrow down which of her characters I’d like to be friends with, I think I’d choose Miranda Darling from Unravelled. She’s scrappy and loyal and fiercely independent. Besides – Smite Turner is one of my all time favourite male characters, so I’d get to spend some time with him, too! Speaking of male characters, there’s no reason why I couldn’t be friends with them, either. In that case, I think I might pick Spenser, from Robert B. Parker’s amazing series. He’d be a great man to have at your side if you ever got in trouble! What about you? Which fictional character would you like to call friend? I’d love to hear from you in the comments (I promise I’ll reply back). Now hop over to the instigator of this topic, Jenna Da Sie! The middle of February in Northern British Columbia is about the time I have to start reminding myself that winter will not last forever. When the ground is covered in four feet of snow it can be hard to remember was grass looks like. So, when it was my time to set the topic for the Romance Writers Weekly Blog Hop, is it any wondering this is what I came up with? Do you get the winter doldrums? How do you deal with cabin fever? If you joined me from A.S. Fenichel, welcome! The good news is we’ve been having a very mild February, so getting out and about hasn’t been too difficult, and true cabin fever hasn’t set in. There have been years when all we can see outside our ground floor windows is a narrow strip of sky because, between the snow on the ground and the snow that slid off the roof, it is piled so high it blocks our view. I’m lucky that I love to read for many reasons, but in the depths of winter it is truly a blessing. I can escape to Regency England or Australia or outer space whenever I want. When I do get too twitchy to just sit and read, jigsaw puzzles are a good option. Usually we only do them in December and early January, but we have been known to bring them out to get through the final dregs of winter. Now that I’ve left my career in broadcasting and am focusing on my writing, I think I may have to come up a few alternate activities. With no day job to go to, there is no reason to get out of the house some days, and when the weather is bad even less incentive to do so. Luckily we have a dog that requires daily walks, and cold and snow doesn’t seem to bother her at all. Bundling up and getting out into the fresh air (even if it does crisp your nose hairs) is always a good way to blow out the cobwebs. How about you? What time of year gets you down the most, and how do you get through it? Be sure to continue your hop with Clair Brett! Clair and I each have a contest you might be interested in joining! I’ve teamed up with 80 fantastic authors to give away a huge collection of Contemporary Romances to 2 lucky winners. The Grand Prize winner also gets a BRAND NEW eReader! You could win my novel, ALLEGRO COURT, plus books from authors like Lorelei James, Piper Rayne, Mia Kayla, and more. Enter the giveaway by clicking here! Clair is also taking part in a BookSweeps Giveaway with other historical authors. That means you have another chance to win another eReader and more than 55 historical romances. Check it out by clicking here! Why is it that celebrations and special food go together? I imagine it hearkens back to when an abundance of food was a sign of prosperity. This week on the Romance Writers Weekly Blog Hop, Jenna Da Sie asks: Do you do a holiday cookie exchange? If so, what cookies do you make? If you don’t, what treats do you and your family make for the holidays? If you joined me from Elizabeth Schechter, welcome! This topic came at a particularly opportune time. I had already planned to do baking this weekend (which is when I write and prep my blog). So I can share a photo with you of my endeavours! First off – I am not much of a baker, so holiday cookie exchanges are not in my plans. But that being said, the only time of year my family can depend on me to do any baking at all is Christmas. I have two main traditions - butter tarts and what we call chocolate haystacks. Both of these are traditional recipes from my dad’s side of the family. Butter tarts is actually a misnomer – they should be called margarine tarts. 😊 But the one time I made them with butter I didn’t like them as much. Chocolate haystacks are a coconut/oatmeal macaroon-style no-bake treat (so right in my wheelhouse!) A couple of years ago I adventured in the world of using yeast, and attempted a Portuguese sweet bread made traditionally only at Easter and Christmas called massa. That Christmas my mother-in-law was having health issues and didn’t think she’d be able to make it, so I googled the recipe and baked a couple of loaves without letting her know (in case it was a total bust). It actually turned out quite well, and I have made it since. But I’m just the backup plan – if my mother-in-law can, she still makes it for everyone. 😊 How about you? Do you have holiday baking traditions? Share your recipe in the comments below if you like, then hop over to A.S. Fenichel for her Christmas treat plans.
It’s one of my favourite types of hops today! This week, Leslie Hatchtel says: Two days until Thanksgiving. Share your favorite Thanksgiving recipe. If you joined me from Caro Kinkead, welcome! In Canada, we celebrate Thanksgiving the second Monday of October, so we're gearing up for Christmas already, and good recipes for a crowd are always welcome. One of my new favourites is an easy-peasy side dish. You can make it in the oven, but I use the slow cooker, especially if I'm making a lot of it and need the oven for other things. Cheesy Broccoli Casserole (makes 8 servings, very easy to double!) 1 boxed stuffing mix 1 can mushroom soup ½ can Cheez Whiz 6 cups of broccoli (either frozen and thawed, or fresh and pre-cooked just until crisp) Make stuffing as per directions. Mix soup and Cheez Whiz. Place broccoli in greased casserole or slow cooker. Pour mixture over top and stir well. Spread stuffing over top to make a crust. Bake in 350 degree oven for 30 minutes (or slow cooker on low for 3 hours) or until heated through. So easy and yummy. No one minds eating their vegetables this way! :) For another new recipe, head over to Leslie Hachtel, who instigated this hop today! Thanks to everyone who purchased CROSSROADS CORNER - I truly appreciate your support! |
Leslie also had a new release this November. Congratulations! "Freed From Morocco" is Book Three in the Morocco Series is now available on Amazon. Kidnapped and taken to Morocco, Lady Olivia prays for someone to come and save her. Help appears in the form of Tristan, the man she loves. He disguises himself as an English ambassador in order to rescue her, but he is betrayed. Now, she must find a way to help him. Can they escape? And will they ever be free from the clutches of the sultan? |
If flash fiction wasn’t challenging enough, this week Jenna Da Sie has tasked us with writing MICRO flash fiction!
Write 250 words with a genre of your choice. The location is a tunnel and the object is a flower.
Here's my contribution. 😊
I yawn and stretch, scratching my belly as I blink the sleep out of my eyes. The space around me is warm and cozy, but I’ve spent way too much time here lately. Spring is stirring in my blood, sparking energy in my nerve cells, burning the dullness of winter from my brain.
A faint glow catches my eye, and I move toward it. Peering around the corner, I see a round circle of brightness—the sun at the end of a tunnel. I am drawn irresistibly to the warmth, and my notice twitches with the scent of newborn flowers.
I poke my head out of my burrow cautiously, wary of hawks, coyotes and other vicious marauders. Green sprigs of grass form a waving hedge around the entrance to my home, and for a moment I just savour the end of the long dark. Then I scurry out for the first feast of the new gopher year.
Maybe it’s the onset of winter here in Northern BC that has me thinking of spring already. What do you think of my furry little story? I’d love to hear from you in the comments. Then be sure to hop over to Leslie Hachtel and see what she came up with for Jenna’s challenge.
Want to get swept up in a dashing adventure? Check out Leslie Hachtel's BOUND TO MOROCCO!