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Romancing Your Story

Romancing Your Story
A Trope with a Twist

Readers, particularly romance readers, love stories that feel familiar—shorthand for they use tropes—but also seem new and bring a…
August 23, 2024
Romancing Your Story
To Thine Own Self Be True

Plotter or Pantser? Or Plottser? Outline or just start writing? Index cards or story map? The Hero’s Journey or…
May 23, 2024
Romancing Your Story, Writing Romance
A Rose By Any Other Name (Authenticating Details)

Once upon a time, when I was new to fiction writing, I brought a chapter to my weekly workshop/critique…
February 23, 2024
Romancing Your Story
Same Vocabulary, Different Dictionary

I recently attended a conference where one of the speakers talked about how, because of cultural and societal shifts,…
May 23, 2023
Romancing Your Story
What’s Your Type?

So many personality types and traits and tools to figure them out. The Enneagram Myer Briggs The OCEAN Model…
February 25, 2023
Romancing Your Story
Why Are Christmas Romances So Popular?

I’m sure you’re aware of all the Christmas romance movies that Hallmark airs on television before Thanksgiving into the…
December 23, 2022
Romancing Your Story
Why Are Christmas Romances So Popular

I’m sure you’re aware of all the Christmas romance movies that Hallmark airs on television before Thanksgiving into the…
November 23, 2022
Romancing Your Story
Can Your Male Character Still Be the Hero in Your Romance Novel?

The current writing trend is to have strong, independent female characters. These female characters can run a business and…
September 23, 2022
Romancing Your Story
How Candlelight Brings Out the Romance in Your Characters

What is it about candlelight that makes a candlelight dinner so romantic? First of all, did you know that…
August 23, 2022
Romancing Your Story
Food, Feeding, and Romance

Have you ever wondered why a guy gives the girl he’s romantically interested in a box of chocolates? Or…
July 23, 2022
Romancing Your Story
Developing the Leading Man and his Lady

The man and woman who will fall in love in your romance story are your most important characters. Therefore,…
September 23, 2021
Romancing Your Story
Make it Personal

One of my favorite movies is You’ve Got Mail. When Joe Fox attempts to apologize to Kathleen Kelly for…
August 23, 2021
Romancing Your Story
Hole-Hearted to Whole-Hearted and How to Get There

What hole is in his heart? What hole is in her heart? This is where your romance story begins.…
June 23, 2021
Romancing Your Story
Walk on By: Secondary Characters

Secondary characters are the seasoning in your story soup. Who can be secondary characters, or sidekicks? Often, they’re the…
May 23, 2021
Romancing Your Story
Humoring Your Romance

I always say that a book that can make me laugh and cry is an outstanding book that will…
March 23, 2021
Romancing Your Story
Emotional Logic, Or How to Keep Readers From Throwing Your Book Against the Wall

The basis of every good story is conflict. As writing teacher extraordinaire James Scott Bell often says, “Happy people…
February 23, 2021
Romancing Your Story
Does Setting Matter in a Romance?

The short answer is YES! While falling in love can happen anywhere, the choice of your setting sets a…
January 23, 2021
Romancing Your Story
What Do Your Characters Want and Why?

What drives your character? What is his or her motivation for pursuing their goals, whether it’s defusing an atomic…
November 23, 2020
Romancing Your Story
The Romance Promise

Every book written begins with a promise. No matter if it is fiction or nonfiction, there is a promise…
October 23, 2020
Romancing Your Story
Should Your Romance Contain a Trope?

In case you’re unfamiliar with the word trope, let’s define it. A trope is a character trait or plot…
September 23, 2020
Romancing Your Story
Romantic Tension

In the romance genre, it’s a given that your hero and heroine will end up together for a happily…
August 23, 2020
Romancing Your Story
The Romance Point of View

Point of view (POV) is essential in all forms of fiction to describe the action as the character experiences…
July 23, 2020
Romancing Your Story
Romancing Your Genre

In today’s world of literature, no matter what genre you read, you are likely to come across romance. I…
June 23, 2020
Romancing Your Story
Location. Location. Location.

When I first visited upstate New York several years ago, I kept getting the feeling I’d been there before,…
May 23, 2020
Romancing Your Story
When All Seems Lost

The Black Moment. The Crisis. The Breakup. There are many titles for that moment when all seems lost. No…
April 23, 2020