Since our first-born was an infant, I’ve sought connections with other women in a similar life stage. Mothers of Preschoolers meetings were my lifeline. Twice a month, I could count on adult conversation, a safe place for my child(ren) to be, laughter, and let’s not forget coffee and a hot breakfast. I learned so much from those meetings and forged valuable relationships. The biggest lesson I learned? I am not meant to mother alone.
Every time we try something new: whether it is a great big endeavor like parenting or writing a book, we need people in our corner. Folks cheering us on, sharing their wisdom and sometimes even giving us tough love. So when I set out to chase my dream of writing a novel, I went and found others who had achieved success. Writing can feel very solitary and lonely at times, particularly if you’re just getting started and haven’t taken the big giant leap of finding an avenue for sharing your work.
But in this crazy awesome world of social media, a tribe of like-minded writer peeps is just a tweet, post and a pin away. There are so many writers eager to share their wisdom and lessons learned. I have one completed manuscript under my belt that I’m getting ready to pitch, another one started and yes, I’ve received that dreaded rejection letter … and lived to tell about it. In fact, it’s what inspired this month-long series. For the next thirty days, I would like to share pithy bits of wisdom I’ve gleaned from other seasoned romance writers and social media experts. These are valuable insights that I wish I’d found before I ever put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) as the case may be. While my preferred genre to write is a clean, wholesome romance with a low-level of heat, I feel these tips are applicable to anyone setting out on the journey of crafting great fiction.
I entered the first chapter of my current work in progress in Harlequin’s So You Think You Can Write contest a few weeks ago. Half the fun of entering this particular contest is reading other submissions and offering encouraging words to fellow contestants. It’s terrifying to post your work on a public forum, but the flip side means finding a wonderful, generous community of writers wrestling with the same questions and struggles. We are not meant to labor over our craft in solitude all of the time.
I hope you’ll join the conversation as we share lessons learned along the way in this journey of writing a must-read romance. You won’t want to miss my big announcement regarding a fantastic giveaway later this month. I’m kicking things off this week with this incredible infographic from the master of story crafting, Mr. Stephen King. Thank you to how to make my blog.com and to be read books for posting this on their sites and sharing on Pinterest, as well.
How about you? Please share your favorite tip on the craft of writing … or the title of your favorite rom-com flick.
Several years ago I actually wrote a romance but I filed it away. You have encouraged me to dig it out and work on it.
I will be following along with your posts.
I do believe you just made my day, Bev. Thanks so much for following along. Happy writing!
I am slowly awakening to the reality that most of my stories have a strong Romance element.
Having been raised to scorn the genre, I am fighting off a bit of identity crisis, and compromising through keeping my reading list (and the details of my writing) mostly to myself.
I love the idea you have here and am eager to follow along.
Hi Amy,
Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts. I think the lines between romance and women’s fiction are a bit blurry. I read a lot of women’s fiction and fairly tame romance, both in the inspirational and general market, and can’t always tell the difference. An editor and publisher will say it’s the frequency of the hero/heroine’s interaction and the motivation behind the conflict, I suppose. I don’t like to read ‘bodice rippers’… the really steamy stuff isn’t for me. It’s hard to ‘label’ our work, or have someone label it for us. I’m glad you’re going to follow along this month. I look forward to hearing more of your comments. Happy writing!