Tag: Romancing your story. writing romance

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Romancing Your Story

Knowing (and Meeting) Reader Expectations

All fiction readers come to their chosen stories with certain expectations.

A mystery reader expects a puzzle to solve.

A thriller or suspense reader anticipates tension and excitement and an explosive ending.

Fans of literary novels expect to get lost in world building, beautiful prose, and lovely descriptions.

Romance readers expect:

  • Well-drawn characters
  • On-the-page chemistry between the hero and heroine
  • Compelling reasons that keep the two apart until they wake up and realize they’re perfect together, leading to a
  • Satisfying resolution and a
  • Happy Ever After ending. Or at least a Happy For Now ending

Characters need to be compelling and feel like people we could be friends with in real life. They should have story goals that are known to the reader close to the beginning.

Give them a quirky trait to seal them as true-to-life characters. In The Princess Bride, Farm Boy Westley responds to Buttercup’s every demand with, “As you wish.” Darcy’s pride covers his growing feelings for Elizabeth Bennet in Pride and Prejudice.

Hero and heroine both need to grow during the story, overcome obstacles and learn something about themselves that helps propel them to the end of the story.

The recent release, Here With Me, by Mandy Boerma with Tari Faris and Susan May Warren, is a second chance romance. Both Sadie and David contributed to their break-up ten years ago. To get to their Happy Ever After, both characters must learn to overcome their weaknesses—David to communicate more clearly and Sadie to trust and accept help. David has a failure along the way, but he learns from it and becomes more determined to win Sadie, no matter how long it takes. Sadie feels betrayed and let down and it reinforces her resolve to handle everything alone. David’s persistence and care helps her learn that God can be trusted, and she should accept help when she needs it.

There are various kinds of chemistry romance characters experience. There’s instant attraction, the slow burn (Enemies to Friends, for instance), or awakening interest (Friends to Something More).

To keep readers turning the page, the story needs to have tension. Tension is not the same as conflict. An argument is conflict. So are competing goals. The best tension comes from something unexpected or unknown happening.

You create this by using things such as:

  • Subtext in dialogue
  • Weather or other external forces
  • A ticking clock (often used in suspense and thrillers but can also be put to effective use in romance. Maybe the heroine has to raise a loan payment and is running out of time. Perhaps the hero has to get a job or apartment to prove to the court he’s a worthy guardian)
  • Failure or the fear of failure

Other elements romance readers expect:

  • Witty dialogue/banter, especially with humor
  • The hero and heroine sharing lots of time on the page together
  • A unique setting. Rural town, mountain village, coastal settlement, or neighborhood in an urban area are often used.
  • Romantic gestures, large or small. Remembering she loves peanut butter cookies and bringing some to her at work. Or getting the whole community to support the unveiling of her big project in the town square.

Of course, the best characters need a compelling storyline and plot. They need shared goals as well as individual goals. They need conflict with competing goals. And it all needs to culminate in a satisfying resolution.

With all these elements, your readers’ expectations will be met with a heartwarming, compelling story and they’ll close the book with a contented sigh, satisfied.

The best reward for a romance writer.

Carrie Padgett lives in Central California, close to Yosemite, but far from Hollywood, the beach, and the Golden Gate Bridge. She believes in faith, families, fun, and happily ever afters. She writes contemporary fiction with romance. She recently signed a contract with Sunrise Publishing to co-write a romance novel with New York Times bestselling author Rachel Hauck that will be published in 2022. Carrie and her husband live in the country with their high-maintenance cat and laid-back dog, within driving distance of their six grandchildren.

You can find her online at:

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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 Save the Cat?
  • Three Act Structure or Four?
  • The Emotion Thesaurus or 1,000 Character Reactions?
  • Scrivener or Word? Or Google Docs?
  • Tropes or archetypes?

There are nearly as many methods, resources, and ideas about writing romance as there are romance novels. New writers are often overwhelmed by the vast—and sometimes conflicting—teaching they hear.

Friend, I see you. I am you.

In Ecclesiastes, King Solomon wrote, “the writing of many books is endless, and excessive devotion to books is wearying to the body.” In other words, there is always a new and shiny technique guaranteed to make writing your novel easier.

But does it really?

Thinking about a story, outlining a story, plotting a story is not the same as writing the story. No matter the method or process, writing a novel requires BIC (Bottom in Chair) time. And fingers on the keyboard, typing.

Writing is what makes us writers, not the number of craft books on our shelves.

Joanna Trollope said, “I have more books than I’ll ever read, and I keep buying more books. It’s the one addiction I have.”

I have bought (and then given away) enough how-to books for a writer to furnish a small library. If someone I like recommends a book, I snap it up, set it on top of my already close-to-toppling TBR (To Be Read) Mountain. And there it sits until I can’t take its reproachful cover glaring at me any longer and I place it on a shelf with its other abandoned siblings.

Then I plant myself in front of my computer, place my fingers on the keyboard, and get to work. 

Until my story stalls, yet again, and I run to the newest shiniest craft book on my shelf searching for the secret sauce that will make my story stand out and get noticed above the estimated 2.2 million books published each year.

The answer to how do we make our stories unique:

  • Be original.
  • Be familiar.

Contradictory, right?

Not really.

Readers want stories they relate to.

This accounts for the various and popular tropes. All readers have personal preferences, and this extends to tropes. They may like marriage of convenience stories, enemies to friends, friends to more, secret baby, fairy tales retold, and so on. But even with familiar tropes, readers want something new and original and fresh. 

I have a friend who used to say she wanted to be the next *insert Big Name in publishing.* Our critique friends kept telling her that was impossible. Not because her writing wasn’t good enough, but because she was shortchanging herself and her readers by not being the best writer she could be, instead of a pale imitation of someone else.

She listened, wrote a book from her heart, and it found a publishing home. Making her writing transparent and vulnerable made the difference.

I still buy craft books. I even read some of them. But I’m far enough along on this writing journey to trust that I can write stories worth reading.

So can you.

Carrie Padgett lives in Central California, close to Yosemite, but far from Hollywood, the beach, and the Golden Gate Bridge. She believes in faith, families, fun, and happily ever afters. She writes contemporary fiction with romance. She recently signed a contract with Sunrise Publishing to co-write a romance novel with New York Times bestselling author Rachel Hauck that will be published in 2022. Carrie and her husband live in the country with their high-maintenance cat and laid-back dog, within driving distance of their six grandchildren.

You can find her online at:

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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 group. I read a selection from a romantic suspense where the heroine receives a package from a stalker. In the padded envelope was a dead bird.

My workshop leader/writing teacher/mentor complimented the writing and plot twist, then asked me a question.

“What kind of bird was in the package?”

(I had no idea.) “Hmmm. A little brown bird. A sparrow?”

“Why not say sparrow instead of bird?”

“I don’t know.” (This shows how much I needed to learn.)

“Authenticating details are part of what takes good writing to great writing.”

It took me a long time to understand what my mentor was saying: specificity makes the scene come alive for the reader. “Bird” could mean anything from penguin to turkey and your reader pause to wonder just how big that package was. A sparrow evokes a specific image.

What are some ways to add depth and details to our story worlds?

  • Choose the specific over the general, such as buzzard rather than bird, rose instead of flower. But don’t go so far into specifics (unless it’s vital to the plot), that the reader must pause and research what a long-wattled umbrella bird looks like (black, short-tailed, with a head crest. The males have long wattles).
  • Weather can help set the mood. It’s hard to describe a suspenseful scene if it’s a bright and sunny day. Are the clouds dark and menacing, full of rain? Or white and puffy, moving gracefully across the sky?
  • Food. Is your character eating fries out of a bag while driving their Mini Cooper or leaning over a sink, eating a ham on rye sandwich? Or sitting alone at a long table in an ornate dining room with candles and green cloth napkins to eat a bucket of chicken?
  • Music. What’s playing in the car or in the café? Does a song evoke an emotion in your character?
  • Smells. A steak sizzling on the grill elicits a different expression than driving by a dairy farm. (Trust me, it’s not pleasant.)
  • Clothes and fashion. In the movie Grease, when Sandy’s attire changes from Peter Pan collar blouses and skirts to black leather and off-the-shoulder tops, the viewer knew instantly she was telling Danny she was willing to change to fit into his world.
  • Accessories. Does he wear pearl stud cufflinks and a matching tie pin? Does she wear an armful of bracelets or a colorful necklace?
  • Props. If they scribble a note to say they’re meeting a friend for coffee, do they use a fountain pen, a broken crayon, or a highlighter?

Anything that adds visual detail to your scene will help your readers know and “see” your characters. An engaged reader is one who keeps turning the page. Exactly what we want.

Carrie Padgett lives in Central California, close to Yosemite, but far from Hollywood, the beach, and the Golden Gate Bridge. She believes in faith, families, fun, and happily ever afters. She writes contemporary fiction with romance. She recently signed a contract with Sunrise Publishing to co-write a romance novel with New York Times bestselling author Rachel Hauck that will be published in 2022. Carrie and her husband live in the country with their high-maintenance cat and laid-back dog, within driving distance of their six grandchildren.

You can find her online at:

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Writers Chat

Writers Chat Recap For February, Part One

Writers Chat Recap

Writers Chat, hosted by Johnnie Alexander, Brandy Brow, and Melissa Stroh is the show where we talk about all things writing, by writers and for writers!

“Because talking about writing is more fun than actually doing it.”

Let Me Entertain You with Larry J Leech II

While we long to use our words and stories to help the reader deepen or develop their relationship with God, readers like to be entertained. They want something that will make them chuckle, or smile, or experience a full-on belly laugh. But using humor can be risky. The wrong joke at the wrong time or a misinterpreted comment can frustrate, or even disgust, a reader. You certainly don’t want either of those to happen.

Watch the January 30th Replay

Larry J. Leech II, editor-in-chief and acquisitions editor at Bold Vision Books, shares five tricks for adding humor to your writing. Larry has spent more than 40 years working with words. After a 23-year journalism career, Larry moved into freelance writing and editing in 20004. He has ghostwritten 30 books and edited more than 400 manuscripts. His freelance clients have won more than 70 awards in the last eight years.

Novel Marketing Conference Recap with Johnnie Alexander and M.N. Stroh

Writers Chat cohosts Johnnie and Melissa (M.N.) are joined by surprise guest Kathy Brasby to talk about their experiences at the recent Novel Marketing Conference, hosted by podcaster extraordinaire Thomas Umstattd Jr., in Austin, Texas. This first annual conference focused on marketing for both fiction and nonfiction authors. One of the key benefits to was the opportunity to network with a terrific group of talented authors and industry professionals.

Watch the February 6th replay

Putting Romance in Every Genre with Daniel Kaplan

In this episode of Writers Chat, AutoCrit coach and workshop creator, Daniel Kaplan, leads the discussion of exploring the delicate art of blending heartfelt romance with complex storylines. How do you ensure that your love interest is more than a mere object of affection and avoid the pitfalls of contrived relationships that can derail your story? Daniel discusses strategies to sidestep these common errors, creating romance that amplifies your narrative’s impact, enriches character development, and captivates your audience from start to finish.

Watch the February 13th replay

Creator of 24 writing workshops and multiple courses for AutoCrit, Daniel Kaplan is passionate about dynamic education presentations and coaching authors. With over a decade of experience, his mission is to demystify intricate artistic concepts and make them accessible to everyone.

Writers Chat is hosted live each Tuesday for an hour starting at 10 AM CT / 11 AM ET on Zoom. The permanent Zoom room link is: http://zoom.us/j/4074198133

Categories
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, different generations may converse using the same words, but not realize that the definitions of the words have changed. Basically, we’re using the same vocabulary, but different dictionaries.

Imagine anyone from our current world saying, “My mouse needs a battery and my streaming service has been freezing.” We know exactly what they mean. Someone from a hundred (or even fifty) years ago would likely ask, “What kind of rodent did you train to eat batteries and how could a river/creek/stream freeze?”

To narrow the historical divide a bit, a Boomer or Gen-Xer probably has a different definition of words such as marriage, gender, or furry than a Millennial or Gen-Zer. I know we’ve run into this when talking to our grandkids. We’ve had to ask lots of questions and have them define terms to be sure we’re talking about the same thing. Even emojis may have meanings ascribed to them that are not what you think. 😉

What does this have to do with writing romance?

Everything. Because words matter.

As writers, we need to remember dialogue comes from inside the character. This means that character’s past experiences, their hurts, talents, flaws, everything in them will color how they view life, what they think about things, and what they say.

A man who grew up on a Wyoming cattle ranch will think about a grilled steak differently than a guy from Manhattan’s Upper East Side. But what a fun twist would it be if the cowboy really knew about wine, too? If he had an amazing palate and could pair any food with the perfect wine it could be his super-power.

A woman whose father walked out on her and her mother may be slower to trust men than the gal who grew up with a bunch of brothers and a dad who took her out for donuts every Saturday. For the first woman, it would be a huge step to agree to a second date with a man who accidentally stood her up the first time (due to a misunderstanding). Her agreement would probably be timid, an “Okay, maybe, I guess.” While the second woman would be more able to shrug off the unintended rejection and accept with more enthusiasm. “Sure, let’s try again.”

Dialogue should sound organic and natural to the character.

But don’t fall into the trap of having a character from the South drop their g’s or use exaggerated accents on the page. It be distractin’. Doncha know? Instead, use speech patterns and idioms to create the conversational style you want.

When I wrote a novel set in Tennessee, I consulted several websites listing Southern expressions. Some I used, and some I tweaked for my purposes. One of my favorites, and one that’s often cited as making a reader laugh out loud was, “Well, butter my backside and call me a biscuit.” The actual saying I found was, “Butter my butt and call me a biscuit.” I thought my character would rather refer to her backside, and it kept the alliteration of the b’s, so I changed it to suit my character and my story.

Used wisely, dialogue and word choice can deepen your story and create characters who come alive in the mind of the reader.

Carrie Padgett lives in Central California, close to Yosemite, but far from Hollywood, the beach, and the Golden Gate Bridge. She believes in faith, families, fun, and happily ever afters. She writes contemporary fiction with romance. She recently signed a contract with Sunrise Publishing to co-write a romance novel with New York Times bestselling author Rachel Hauck that will be published in 2022. Carrie and her husband live in the country with their high-maintenance cat and laid-back dog, within driving distance of their six grandchildren.

You can find her online at:

Categories
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 New Year. Christmas romance novellas and novels also show up on bookstore shelves and on social media sites and can easily been found on Goodreads and Amazon between Thanksgiving and Christmas. So, what is it about romance stories that take place during the Christmas holiday that glues people to the television set or to the pages of a book?

I believe there are three reasons people, and particularly women, can’t get enough romance stories set during the Christmas holiday, and we’ll look at these one at a time:

1) The Magic of Christmas

This is a secular concept where you can make a wish upon a star or send a letter to Santa to get what you’re looking for. Christmas has been touted as a time when dreams and wishes come true, if you just believe in Santa Claus delivering your much wanted item to your door while you sleep on Christmas Eve, or believe in wishes coming true simply because Christmas is advertised and promoted to be magical. I already mentioned the Hallmark movies, but there are classic movies that include Christmas romance as well, such as White Christmas and Miracle on 34th Street. All you have to do is believe in the Magic of Christmas and you’ll find love.

2) The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

When people are generally happy and will give you a cheerful greeting on the street. When people are feeling more generous and are more willing to lend a helping hand or provide something for someone in need. Nonprofit organizations send out flyers or have tables in store foyers seeking donations to help the needy. Christmas music is played over store loudspeakers or via church bells in the local town, and on the radio. Most people think of a chill in the air and the beauty of a freshly fallen sparkling white snow on the ground, and snuggling by the fire in the fireplace drinking hot chocolate. So many wonderful happy pictures are painted in her minds through the music, movies, books, and advertisements of the Christmas holiday, when even the Grinch and Ebenezer Scrooge find room to be generous, loving, and happy.

3) Jesus Christ, the Savior

To those who know and believe the Word of God, this is the best and most important reason to celebrate Christmas. We believe that God sent His one and only Son to earth around the time that Christmas is celebrated. Why? Because God saw that people needed a Savior – a way to be reconciled from their miserable sinfulness to God, the one who is the only source of true love. Jesus Christ – the true meaning of Christmas, the one who not only brought and offered love, but who is the very embodiment and example of real, true love. He came to live among us and show us how to love one another and how to live with the hope of one day spending eternity with Him, Jesus, the one who laid down his life for each and every one of us; the one who showed us that real love is sacrificial and priceless, and this is the kind of love we all hope and long for.

As a believer in Jesus Christ, I have found The Nativity Story movie, written by Mike Rich, directed by Catherine Hardwicke, and released in 2006, from which I used a picture above, to be my absolute favorite Christmas movie of all time. Though it does not include a typical romance, I think the way Mr. Rich depicted the relationship between Mary and Joseph was so perfect and touching. So, if you’re looking for inspiration for writing a romance story, you might want to consider watching this movie and paying attention to the interaction between the characters of Mary and Joseph.

No matter which of these reasons is your reason to seek and enjoy Christmas romance, they all have a “feel good” sentiment, which is what romance readers want. That’s what I believe makes Christmas romance stories so popular—all people want to be accepted, loved, and happy. So no matter which of the reasons above is your reason for watching Christmas movies, listening to Christmas music, or reading Christmas romance novels, you will find the magic of Christmas is love.

Kelly F. Barr lives in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. She is married and has three sons. She writes historical romance. She has also been a blogger for ten years, and every Friday, you can find her Flash Fiction stories posted for your reading pleasure. She loves her family, including the family dog, books, walks, and chai lattes.

You can find her online at:

Website: kellyfbarr.com

MeWe: KellyBarr8

Categories
Writing Romance

Who’s Behind the Mask?

Upon doing a search for romance novels that include a masquerade, I found that many romance novels include the word “masquerade” in their title, and Goodreads has a list of 1,147 books that include a masquerade in the story, but not all of the 1,147 have the word “masquerade” in their title. Many of them do not look like something I would read as I only read clean and/or Christian fiction, but I just wanted to point out how often masquerades are used in romance novels.

I remember reading only one book that included a masquerade, but I was very caught up in the masquerade and found it intriguing that the gentleman revealed his name to the woman from the start. However, she did not know him, but knew a bit about him as he was from a royal family. In addition, another man comes and interrupts their conversation to ask her for a dance. This man only reveals his first name to her, and so begins a battle for the female character’s heart.

I have heard of other romance stories where the romance begins at a masquerade as well, but neither character reveals their identity and each is left wondering who it is they have found an interest in, as they have no knowledge of the person’s name or what they look like. This begins the romantic plot of the story.

After finding so many romance books that include a masquerade, I have reached the conclusion that a masquerade is a popular romance trope. Because the masquerade often includes anonymity on the part of one character or the other, it brings to mind another popular romance trope—when one character or other has amnesia, usually temporary.

There is also a very famous romance story, the original being released in installments in a Paris newspaper over the course of five months, from September 23, 1909 through January 1910, before being published as a novel just two months after the last installment appeared in the Le Gaulois. This story also included anonymity because of a mask—Le Fantôme de l’Opéra (The Phantom of the Opera) by Gaston Leroux first published as a novel in March 1910, later made extremely popular by Andrew Lloyd Weber’s Broadway musical.

Another popular story that includes a type of anonymity between the male and female characters is Beauty and the Beast, where the man has become a beast because of an evil spell cast upon him. Most of us are most familiar with the Disney version of this story. However, there is speculation that it originated in 2nd Century CE in an ancient Roman tale. Other claims say that the original Beauty and the Beast was written by Gabrielle-Suzanne de Villeneuve in 1740, and the most popular Beauty and the Beast story is said to have been written by Jeanne-Marie LePrince de Beaumont in 1756. All three of these stories are different from each other and different from the Disney one we all know and love.

Tropes are very popular in romance novels and these are just some examples of how you can take a popular trope, such as a masquerade, and tweak or twist it a bit to still create a romance trope that begins with initial anonymity.

Kelly F. Barr lives in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. She is married and has three sons. She writes historical romance. She has also been a blogger for ten years, and every Friday, you can find her Flash Fiction stories posted for your reading pleasure. She loves her family, including the family dog, books, walks, and chai lattes.

You can find her online at:

Website: kellyfbarr.com

MeWe: KellyBarr8