As I mentioned when I blogged about Orphan Black, I believe great Tv shows can teach us about great writing–whether on-screen or off. I have a huge crush on Jane the Virgin right now, and a lot of it is because it’s a show that shows great confidence in its writing. I discovered Jane the Virgin, … [Read more…]
I’ve long planned my reading–kept a TBR list, led two book clubs, read books in thematic clusters–and I thought other readers did, too. But one of the things that has surprised me about the Writers Who Read series is how many of the writers interviewed, most of them big readers, don’t consciously plan their reading. I think spontaneous, … [Read more…]
Though I’m mainly a romance writer, I’m writing a horror story this fall. I’ve long been drawn to ghosts and gothics, and it’s been a great experience. Here are ten reasons why all romance writers should try writing in a genre like horror occasionally. (Of course this all comes with the caveat that seasoned horror … [Read more…]
Our Writers Who Read series continues this week with young adult romantic comedy author Tellulah Darling. I highly recommend her book Sam Cruz’s Infallible Guide to Getting Girls. It’s hilarious and fun, and I love the voice of the male character. Who are you? Tellulah Darling noun 1. YA romantic comedy author because her first kiss sucked … [Read more…]
This month I’ve been tagged by a fellow author in a blog hop where I answer questions about my writing process and then tag three more writers. I was tagged by the lovely romance writer Rebecca Brooks, who wrote about her writing process here. Here’s a bit more about Rebecca: Rebecca Brooks lives in New York … [Read more…]
Today I’m welcoming a guest post by debut romance novelist Rebecca Brooks, author of the erotic romance Above All. When my debut contemporary erotic romance Above All was published this month, I was in touch with several reviewers who wanted to know more about the book. Does it have a happy ending? (Yes!) Is there anything … [Read more…]
Today I’m welcoming romance author Carol Rose. Carol, a Romance Writers of America Golden Heart finalist, has written twenty contemporary romance books–her latest which is Thankfully Yours. Here are her thoughts on heroines (and heroes!) we love. Thanks for joining us, Carol! She may be testy when she’s on her period and she may not have … [Read more…]
Recently my friend Jenny Vinyl sparked a discussion on our reading and writing group asking how we “audition” books. This came from a recent episode of the Bookrageous podcast where Paul Montgomery used “auditioning” as a term to describe how readers decide which novels to pick from the vast cast of books waiting to be … [Read more…]
You know the old USDA Food Guide Pyramid, the shape that specified the amounts of grains, vegetables, and oils Americans should consume daily? I’ve been wondering if we can adapt a similar concept for reading–at least for those of us who like to consciously plan our reading, or maybe just the next book or two. … [Read more…]
I loved this recent post from Jeff Goins, The Wrong Reasons to Write. Goins makes a lot of good and interesting points here–the difficulty in writing for just money or fame, in particular–but what really has stuck with me about this post was the bit at the end about making the reader the focus of … [Read more…]