Romance Vagabonds

I am a world-class procrastinator, and one of my favorite ways to procrastinate is to read books and articles (paper copies and etexts) about how to write. There is certainly no shortage of information on the subject. Books in Print lists nearly 1100 books currently in print. The Internet offers even greater riches. If I google “how to write,” I get 34,900,000 sites, and even if I limit my search to “how to write a romance novel,” I am given well over 2.5 million sites.

Which of those 1100 books will offer me not just a way to procrastinate but also something useful to take back to my writing? Some titles I can rule out right away. I have no interest in reading advice on how to write resumes, suicide notes, or more effective emails, but I must admit that I am tempted by a book called How to Write Like Chekhov: Advice and Inspiration, Straight from Anton Chekhov’s Own Letters and Work. And Bullies, Bastards and Bitches: How to Write the Bad Guys of Fiction, a Writer’s Digest book by Jessica Morrell, definitely sounds like something I should check out. There is also the boldly titled How to Write It: Complete Guide to Everything You’ll Ever Write, which should surely have something helpful.

Which of the two million plus Google hits can I spend a brief time with and return to my writing reenergized? I know enough to avoid the site that promises I can write a bestseller in less than a month if I sign up for their course, but I am pulled in by fascinating pieces like Stanford Magazine’s article on romance writers Bella Andre and Jami Alden, both Stanford alumnae and Tess Gerritsen’s blog on her own adventures with romance novels. I’m glad I read both of the latter, but they don’t help me with my writing. The problem for me and for other aspiring romance writers is how to separate the wheat from the chaff. Doing so is a monumental task, and not one that I have either the time or the expertise to do, but I thought I would make a modest beginning by sharing with you from time to time some of the “wheat” that I have discovered.

Kernel #1: Annie Dillard, The Writing Life       

Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, Dillard’s lyrical account of her time spent living at the edge of Tinker Creek in the Blue Ridge mountains of Virginia, is one of those books that really was transformative for me, so I may have been predisposed to find The Writing Life appealing. But I think even if I had never heard of Annie Dillard that I would have appreciated this book that is both a discussion about writing and an illustration of precise, powerful prose. I am hooked from the opening paragraphs.

“When you write, you lay out a line of words. The line of words is a miner’s pick, a wood carver’s gouge, a surgeon’s probe. You wield it, and it digs a path you follow. Soon you find yourself deep in new territory. Is it a dead end, or have you located the real subject? You will know tomorrow, or this time next year.

“The line of words is a hammer. You hammer against the walls of your house. You tap the walls, lightly, everywhere. After giving many years’ attention to these things, you know what to listen for. Some of the walls are bearing walls; they have to stay, or everything will fall down. Other walls can go with impunity; you can hear the difference. Unfortunately, it is often a bearing wall that has to go. It cannot be helped. There is only one solution, which appalls you, but there it is. Knock it out. Duck.”

Her words seem addressed to me.

• I, who tell myself that I could be more productive if only I had a better place to write, hear her say, “Appealing workplaces are to be avoided. One wants a room with no view, so imagination can meet memory in the dark.”

• I, who tell myself that sticking to a writing schedule stifles my creativity, hear her say, “A schedule defends from chaos and whim. It is a net for catching days. It is a scaffolding on which a worker can stand and labor with both hands at sections of time.”

• I, who am convinced that the path I have chosen is too difficult for me, hear her say, “Writing every book, the writer must solve two problems: Can it be done? and, Can I do it? Every book has an intrinsic impossibility, which its writer discovers as soon as his first excitement dwindles.”

I love this book. It challenges me. It makes me want to write.

Do you find yourself overwhelmed by the sheer volume of information available in the 21st century? How do you separate the wheat from the chaff? What advice, on writing or on other interests, have you found inspiring or useful?

So, when I looked at the note I’d made for writing this post, it said “Something about French and Indian War.” I’m pretty sure that Manda gave me a more complete idea than that, but that’s what I had down.

The French and Indian War. Hmmm.

Called the Seven Years War in Great Britain!

Okay, so actually I couldn’t think of much to say about the French and Indian War. But while I waited for a bolt of inspiration to hit me I sat on the couch and helped my daughter watch HOUSE, MD. Now that got me to thinking–about anti-heroes.

When HOUSE first came out I admit I was somewhat surprised at the amount of women who found him incredibly sexy. Not because House the character wasn’t sexy, but because I’d watched Hugh Laurie play Bertie Wooster in JEEVES AND WOOSTER for years and was having trouble reconciling this sarcastic House with the goofy Bertie I’d known and loved.

Anyhoodles.

The anti-hero. The nasty, sarcastic, sometimes down-right mean misanthrope that we love. Why do TV watchers—and book readers—love them so much? One reason is because the abrasive anti-hero can get away with saying and doing things that the rest of us only think about. House has no problem telling someone that they’re an idiot and we secretly agree. That can be amusing—and liberating. Another reason is that when the hero of a romance is a misanthrope, it takes that much more effort for the heroine to win him around. More effort equals a bigger emotional payoff for a romance reader—at least in theory.

In my latest book, To Taste Temptation (shameless plug: in stores now!) I’ve turned the concept of the abrasive hero on its head. It’s the heroine, Emeline, who is a bit, well, bitchy at times. Emeline has lost all her male relatives and has had to learn to rely solely on herself. She’s also a woman of strong opinion and a natural leader in society. But Emeline knows that strength in a woman isn’t a virtue—at least not at this time period—and secretly she worries that she’s unattractive because of it. Which of course makes it all the more poignant when the hero, Sam, tells Emeline he likes both her bitchiness and her.

Don’t we all want to be loved for our true selves, flaws and all?

Actually, I didn’t think I’d made Emeline all that mean, but boy have I heard from some reviewers who thought otherwise. That would be the downside to a slightly abrasive hero or heroine: you risk turning some readers off.

Anyway, Discussion Topics: What do you think about mean heroes or heroines? What’s too abrasive in a hero or heroine for you? Who are some favorite anti-heroes or heroines? Or, we can talk about the French and Indian War. I’m easy.

Cheers!
Elizabeth Hoyt
www.elizabethhoyt.com

Okay, Vagabonds, you’ve got your discussion question for the day! How about those anti-heroes (and heroines)? One lucky commenter will win an autographed copy of the Elizabeth Hoyt novel that started it all The Raven Prince!

Way back in the days BI (before internet), the way I decided which books to read depended on a couple of factors. First, it depended on what books my local bookstore had in stock. I’d wander the aisles of the romance section, looking for the all too familiar Signet or Zebra Regency logos, skimming the back covers to see if the story appealed, and if it did I’d decide to buy. I had a list of authors whom I’d read before and I’d keep an eye out for new ones from them, but I didn’t know anything about their publication schedule. Had no way of knowing when their next book was coming out. Just watched the shelves and picked them up if I was lucky enough to stumble upon them. Another way I found books was by checking the shelves of my local library. This is the way I found lots of my all time favorites: Patricia Veryan, Jane Aiken Hodge, Victoria Holt. (Okay, so it was a long time ago!!!)

The point I’m trying to make is that before we had the internet, our reading choices were limited by geography and in turn by the purchasing decisions of our local librarians and booksellers. Romances weren’t reviewed in my local newspaper and I’d never heard of Romantic Times. And, like a lot of romance readers I didn’t know anyone else who read romance like I did. So I couldn’t even depend on the recommendations of friends or fellow readers.

Fast forward ten years to today.

I defy you to name a romance novel that cannot be purchased from some vendor online. Whether it’s Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Books a Million, or EBay, just about every romance novel published in the last twenty years is available for purchase. And far from being left to go through each and every listing in each and every online store, romance readers can go to a variety of venues to find reviews for the latest books available. From list serves to bulletin boards to blogs to online review sites, you can read reviews to your hearts content. And all from the anonymous privacy of your own home.

But I wonder if all this information has changed the way that we as readers choose what to read.

Sure, there are some people who are not active in the online community, who still rely on the back of the book or whatever the bookseller buys, but for those of us who do participate in blogs or bulletin boards, I would wager that the internet has changed the way we choose books irrevocably.

I can’t remember the last time I just picked up a book off the shelf at the bookstore that I had no prior knowledge of. And now that my Auto-buy Author list has grown exponentially, I not only know when my favorite authors next books are coming out I usually have it marked on a calendar somewhere! I don’t even do that with my friends’ birthdays!!! (But then, I’m a crappy friend

I read reviews. I listen to what friends with similar tastes are reading. I look out for new releases that sound intriguing. I’ve found some of my favorite new authors this way. (Elizabeth Hoyt, for one, who is visiting us tomorrow.)And I wouldn’t go back to the old way of doing things for anything. I do sometimes miss the joy of serendipity–finding that wonderful new to me novelist just from reading the back cover blurb while standing in the bookstore aisle. But for the most part, I am happy with my newfound ability to make informed decisions.

So, for today’s blog, I’d like to take an informal poll. How do you choose what your next read will be (aside from picking the next thing off your towering TBR pile)? Are you a back cover blurb reader? Do you read online reviews? Do you listen to friends on bulletin boards? Come on Vagabonds, fess up! How do you decide what you’re going to read next?

Hi! I’m Alyssa Day and I’m thrilled to be here at Romance Vagabonds for the day. The lovely ladies asked me to write something craft related, and a subject near and dear to my heart is subplots. I manage to fit at least two subplots even into my novellas!! But they can be tricky and – worse – they can threaten to take over the main plot of the book. So if you like to write books that are more layered than 7-layer bean dip and more twist-y and turn-y than a labyrinth, read on. Oh, and feel free to ask questions in the comments, and I’ll be checking in during the day to answer.

As I’m sure you all know, the plot is the foundation that gives your story shape. If we think architecturally, and the plot is the frame of your house, then subplots can make the difference between a one-room shack and a multi-storied mansion of a novel.

I’m a big fan of mansions, myself.

I’d like to get you to think in terms of analytical tools to examine the structure of the plot and subplots in your novel. My hope is that you’ll gain a better grasp of how you can make your subplots work together with your main plot to create a better book.

In romance, our main plot is generally hero and heroine and their emotional journey to a HEA (happily ever after). But there’s an awful lot of stuff that can go on between the first introduction of your hero and heroine and THE END to make a satisfying read for the wonderful people who plunk down money to buy your book.

When you’re thinking about subplots, it is a good idea to keep in mind how they support the main plot of the book. You can never shoehorn in a subplot just because it seems like fun. (Well you could, but you’re going to wind up ripping out those pages.) Ideally, each subplot will connect to the main plot, connect to the goals of your protagonists, and resolve in such a way that it makes the resolution of your main plot that much sweeter.

IMPORTANT NOTE: [And this is my only MUST; the rest is do as you will, Your Mileage May Vary, etc. see below.]: Your subplots MUST flow organically from the main plot and be connected in some way to the central characters, even tangentially. If you can lift your entire subplot from the book, and it changes nothing in any other plot, there’s something wrong.

[Caveat: if you’re writing a series, some of your main subplots may arc over the course of more than one book. I’m doing this with my Warriors of Poseidon series.]

For this to be helpful, I would like for you to take a look at your work in progress, analyze your plot, and then ask me any questions you may have about the process.

[Second caveat: This is something that has worked in my books. None of that means that this is the way that you MUST do it. Or That My Way Is the Right Way. Or, even That My Way Is a Good Way for Your Process. The most I can hope is that some of the information I offer will be helpful in examining the way you plot your book. Because the most important thing about writing is that you protect your own process and your own voice. Okay, stepping down from soapbox. ]

Usually even people who do not outline a book will have a good idea of where the main plot of the book is going. For those of us who do outline, we may have only thought to outline the main plot of the book, and simply write in elements of any subplots as we go along. What I am going to suggest is that if you take the time to plot out your subplots as well, you may be able to avoid the “sagging middle” problem that I hear about so often on writers’ loops. Because when you have a clear roadmap for where your book is going, you can avoid that struggle that seems to hit a lot of people halfway through a book.

The main plot involves your hero and heroine, and the introduction of your main plot should be the very beginning of your book. The resolution of your hero and heroine story — the HEA — should be the final pages of your book. Any subplots should begin after the main plot begins and ends before the main plot ends. Your focus and major amount of time and energy in a book will always be on the main plot.

For example, when I plot my books, I generally have at least two, sometimes as many as four subplots of varying importance. I rank these in order of importance to the book, which determines two things for me:

1. how much time (in terms of pages/scenes) I will spend on each subplot, and,
2. when each subplot will begin and end.

To demonstrate, my main plot will begin first and end last. My first subplot will begin second and end second to last. My second subplot will begin third and end third to last. (I’m guessing you can see where this is going.) For those of you who are mathematically inclined, I do know writers who use spreadsheets and other tools to do their plotting. Spreadsheets scare me, unfortunately, so I write mine out on legal pads and note cards. If I’m using note cards, I use colored highlighters to designate separate plots. So the main plot note cards might have a green stripe down the side, the first subplot might have a pink stripe, and so on and so forth.

[For those of you who are terrified at the frightening lack of any life outside of geekdom that I must be living, all I can say is you’re right. However, I’m one of those people who loves to buy new pens and note cards and highlighters and play with them, which seems to be common among many writers, so some of you may be nodding your head in recognition.]

IMPORTANT NOTE: If you are a total “no-outlines, no way!!” writer or “pantser” as some call it, you can still use this technique. Simply apply it to your work that is already written, rather than using it to plot ahead. Look at your book as written and analyze. So if you have some spare time and are so inclined, what I’d like to ask you to do is — and no freaking out, it does not involve note cards and highlighters — to look at any subplots in your work in progress. Ask yourself these questions:

* When does each of my subplots begin, and when does it end?
* Is the amount of time I spend on the subplot appropriate to its
level of importance to the plot?
* Does each subplot have a beginning, middle, and end?
If any of these questions lead you to concerns, then you know where you may want to make changes. See? Easy!!

I hope this has been a little bit helpful; I’m in the middle of revisions and even after thirteen published books, I still use this system to analyze my manuscript and make sure I’m on track!
best, Alyssa, www.alyssaday.com

How about you, Vagabonds? Are you a pantser or a plotter? Do you have a system in place for analyzing the structure of your novel or are you making it up as you go along (and there’s nothing wrong with that!). For all you readers, what are some of your favorite subplots and secondary characters? One lucky commenter will win a copy of Alyssa’s latest in the Warriors of Poseidon world, the anthology novel Shifter which also features sections from Angela Knight, Lora Leigh and Virginia Kantra.

Conference season is in full swing! Vagabond Manda already made an appearance at the Silken Sands conference and many of our Vanette/FanLit/Pirate friends were at the Chicago Spring Fling. Networking, pitching, meeting online friends face-to-face - it’s going to be a busy, fun, and productive summer for many of us.

Where will you find Vagbonds this conference season? Lindsey will be at the Lori Foster Readers & Writers Get Together June 6-8 in West Chester, Ohio. It’ll be my first time at this super fun (and conveniently local) event that attracts authors, editors, agents, industry professionals, and fans for professional networking and casual fun.

Elodie, Lindsey, and Manda will be at RWA National! I’m a first-timer, but thankfully I have Elodie, Manda, and other friends to show me the ropes. Don’t miss my workshop with the fabulous (RITA nominated!) Diana Holquist, “The Down and Dirty Guide to Making Your Own Book Trailer Video” (actually, do miss it - speaking in front of people I know will make me more nervous!) and look out for us as we take San Francisco by storm. We’d love to meet up with some of our gypsy pals. Who’s interested in an RV get together?

What are your conference plans? Where are you headed this year, and what will you be doing there - workshops? Pitching? Meeting your fave authors? Anyone have conference advice or tips to offer? And I’d love to hit another conference in the fall - where will I find kindred spirits?

Not able to make a conference this year? Tell us about any other summer travel plans!

Want to know where else you can meet some of your favorite authors? Right here at RV, of course! Tomorrow, we welcome Alyssa Day. This Thursday, May 8, Elizabeth Hoyt is back! And we’ve got other fabulous guests lined up for the rest of the month, including Diana Cosby, Julia Spencer-Fleming, and Sydney Somers.

And I admit it! I know I should be ashamed and there is a tiny part of me that feels a teensy bit ashamed, but for the most part…I’m not.

Before I lead you too far astray, no, I did not cheat on a paper, exam, or assignment. Instead, I cheated and went to the McDonald’s in the Wallyworld where I grocery-shopped after my aerobics class last night. I did not buy much. I swear! I only got a Diet Coke and french fries, but it was soooo naughty. The irony of the situation is that I nearly never go to McDonald’s. It just is not my “thing.”

Perhaps I should elaborate on my cheating situation. Because this is about more than just cheating and eating out one night. It is about a lifestyle change I made a couple of months ago. I decided that stopping and grabbing something for dinner on the way home from school is about more than just adding inches to the waistline. It is about slowly but surely depleting my limited financial resources. And so, I made a resolution. No, not one of those absurd, “I’ll never keep this in a million years” New Years resolutions. Actually, this one was more like a “March” resolution. It started right around the time that I started attending the Power Mix class one of my colleagues teaches in our athletic center and so, it seemed like a good time for it. Well, that and I was going broke on our minuscule salary…

And it has worked. Phenomenally, if I do say so. I don’t know if I have lost much weight in the change, but I know that my bank account has not lost as much weight as it was. Plus, I have found that it has been amazingly easy to cook for myself. One of the reasons why I struggled with this is that coming from a large family, I was trained to cook for 12. 12 to 1 is a big change—believe me. And so, I set a pattern throughout my MA, especially since my home was so far out from my job and school. It simply was easier to do the quickie thing on the way home from school/work and worry about the consequences later. (Incidentally, I was in a job that paid marginally more than the current one—and it made a difference when I carried on that behaviour in my new home and job.) Now, I work in school and live 10 minutes down the road from my home. And I have figured out the secret to cooking for 1—bring any leftovers to school for lunch and if I have extras, share with my colleagues!

But still, last night…I cheated. The temptation was too great and I found that it has been an age since I was out and grabbed even just a “snack” to eat. But my subconscious still feels the effects of my cheat. I am less concerned with the Diet Coke than with the fried french fries…which, in case I haven’t mentioned, were fried. Not to mention the money drain having a little cheat-fest is. I figure my pennance will be a trip to the athletic center tomorrow between the end of teaching and a meeting I have at 1 to swim. I am okay with this one. At least it is a healthy pennance. And I have no plans to dine out anywhere for some time, yet.

I do not worry so much that this little cheat will make me rationalize other cheating my life. I do not plan on cheating on my taxes—I do not make enough money to do this anyway. I do not plan to cheat on a paper or an exam—that just would be stupid and a waste of my time. Or plagiarize another romance author—ditto on my last comment. I worry that I might cheat on eating completely unhealthy again and wasting money.

The bright side to all of this is that I know I can recognize the cheat when it happens. And I hope it will keep future ones down to a minimum. (My waistline and my bank account both thank me for this.) 

Will I cheat again? Likely. Will it be wasted on McDonald’s french fries? Hopefully not.

So, what about you? Anybody working on a plan in their lives and find that they cheat sometimes? Diet? Book? Not watching telly? How do you deal with it?

A song ain’t nothin’ in the world but a story just wrote with music to it.
                                          Hank Williams, Sr. (1923 - 1953)

I am a child of rock & roll. Paying a visit to the local record shop and deciding which two 45 RPMs I would buy was a Saturday ritual of my preteen years. It wasn’t easy to choose from among the latest hits by Chuck Berry and Elvis and Fats Domino, and I confess that part of my love for rock & roll was rooted in my parents’ hatred of the music. My parents loved big band music, Southern gospel, and country–especially country. I hated country on general principles; it was my parents’ music. But my prejudice against country music persisted long after my teens. My cherished vinyl had been replaced by four-track tapes, which in turn had been replaced by cassette tapes, which had been replaced by CDs before I could bring myself to admit that country was worth my attention and my dollars.

The two qualities that converted a first-generation rock & roller to country music fandom are the genre’s strong narrative and its unabashed emotional appeal.

Pick the top country songs of any year, and you will find an abundance of story songs. I don’t use the term “story” loosely either. These songs have a definite narrative arc, clearly delineated characters, and real conflict that is resolved, although not always happily. For example, Mac Davis covered a lifetime and made a social statement in his song “In the Ghetto”:

As her young man dies,
on a cold and grey Chicago mornin’,
another little baby child is born
In the ghetto.
And his mama cries.

Martina McBride, who told a USA Today reporter that country music is “like a great novel,” created controversy and raised awareness of domestic abuse when she recorded Gretchen Peters’s “Independence Day”:

Well, word gets around in a small, small town.
They said he was a dangerous man,
But Momma was proud, and she stood her ground.
She knew she was on the losin’ end.
Some folks whispered, some folks talked,
But everybody looked the other way.
And when time ran out there was no one about
On Independence Day…

On a lighter note, Tom T. Hall’s “Harper Valley PTA” made Jeannie C. Riley the first female country singer to have the same song top both country and pop charts. Evidently a great many people found appealing the story of a single mother “socking it to” a bunch of small-town hypocrites.

Matraca Berg and Gary Harrison’s “Strawberry Wine” (recorded by Deana Carter) evoked youthful memories for thousands of women.

He was working through college on my grandpa’s farm;
I was thirsting for knowledge and he had a car.
I was caught somewhere between a woman and a child,
When one restless summer we found love growing wild
On the banks of the river on a well beaten path.
Funny how those memories they last

Like strawberry wine and seventeen.
The hot july moon saw everything;
My first taste of love, oh bittersweet,
Green on the vine
Like strawberry wine.

And Carter’s revelation that James Denton (Mike on Desperate Housewives) was her first love and her touchstone for the song, offered a lucious image for the “hero.”

Even the country songs that are not pure story songs have a strong narrative line. I am amazed by how much country lyricists can reveal about characters in just a few words. Consider how much these lines from legendary songwriter Bob McDill’s “Amanda” (made famous by Waylon Jennings) reveal about the singer’s disappointment with his life: “I got my first guitar when I was fourteen. / Well, I finally made forty, still wearing jeans.” Then there’s Brad Paisley and Kelly Lovelace’s touching tribute to stepfathers in which the singer, looks at his own newborn and remembers the man who became his father:

Lookin’ through the glass, I think about the man
That’s standin’ next to me,
And I hope I’m at least half the dad
That he didn’t have to be.

Just as important as the story is country music’s emotional punch. One critic, who argues that reporters could learn something about storytelling from country music, notes that unlike hormonal-driven pop music, country music “goes straight for the heart.” Sometimes the emotion can be manipulative, but at its best, country music reminds us in a cynical age that it’s OK to love our country, admit our heartbreaks, and share our big dreams. The reminder matters. The honest feelings of Alan Jackson’s post 9/11 song, “Where Were You When the World Stopped Turning,” earned praise from EW.com for accomplishing “something normally reserved for poetry: It describes a vivid variety of the manifestations of grief, from sorrow to rage to depression to political activism.”

Only in country music with its fearless celebration of themes that touch the heart could a song like “Where Have You Been?” become #1. The song, recorded by Kathy Mattea and written by her husband, Jon Vezner, and Don Henry, tells the love story of Claire and Edwin, who for sixty years “never spent a night apart” until they ended up in a hospital “in separate beds on different floors.” That last stanza grabs me by the heart every time:

Claire soon lost her memory
Forgot the names of family
She never spoke a word again
Then one day, they wheeled him in
He held her hand and stroked her hair
In a fragile voice she said,
“Where’ve you been?
I’ve looked for you forever and a day
Where’ve you been?
I’m just not myself when you’re away.
No, I’m just not myself when you’re away.”

My rambling tribute actually does connect to romance writing. When I reach a dead end in my writing, I find in country music a frequent source of inspiration. Once I needed a scene to move my H/H from the bedroom back to the outside world where unresolved conflicts awaited them, I had trashed a dozen attempts at the scene when I gave up. I took a break and listened to Keith Urban’s Golden Road CD. I was particularly struck by these words from “You Look Good in My Shirt”: “And maybe it’s a little too early / To know if this is gonna work. /All I know is you’re sure looking / Good in my shirt.”

A scene unrolled in my head. I could hear Max (my hero) speaking. I started writing furiously and ended up with exactly the scene and the words I needed. One paragraph I especially like:

“Morning kisses, he thought, were in a class of their own. Their promise was different from the hot rush of moonlight passion, gentler somehow, less dreamlike, anchored in a reality as warm and sustaining as the sunlight that caressed their bodies.”

Thanks, Keith!

There is a Kris Kristofferson song that seems to me the perfect opening scene for a romance. I’ve been thinking about it a lot lately. It’s a book just waiting to be written.

Here Comes That Rainbow Again

The scene was a small roadside café:
the waitress was sweepin’ the floor,
two truck-drivers drinkin’ their coffee,
and two okie-kids by the door.
“How much are them candies?” they asked her.
“How much have you got?” she replied.
“We’ve only a penny between us.”
“Them’s two for a penny”, she lied.

And the daylight grew heavy with thunder
and the smell of the rain on the wind.
Ain’t it just like a human?
Here comes that rainbow again.

One truck driver called to the waitress
after the kids went outside,
“Them candies ain’t two for a penny.”
“So what’s it to you?” she replied.
In silence they finished their coffee,
got up and nodded goodbye.
She called, “Hey, you left too much money.”
“So what’s it to you?” they replied.

And the daylight grew heavy with thunder
and the smell of the rain on the wind.
Ain’t it just like a human?
Here comes that rainbow again.

So, gypsies, are there any country music fans among you? Do country music lyrics remind you of romance novels? For you writers, have you ever been inspired by a country song? For you readers, would you read a book with a country singer/songwriter hero?

One of the great things about belonging to the romance writing community is the wonderful support systems we build up in our various little groups within the larger community. A few months ago, I realized I was eligible for PRO status with RWA (this basically happens if you have had a full manuscript rejected by an agent or editor and I’m lucky enough to have had BOTH!) And one of the perks of PRO status (besides not having to compete as an amateur anymore–shudder!) is belonging to the PRO List-serve. The list is a place where PROs can go and ask questions about the submission process, like does Harlequin use computer word count or page word count (both, it turns out), questions about agents and editors, and questions about craft.

Last week, one of the PRO members gave the rest of us a heads up that the non-finaling Golden Heart scores were winging their way through the postal system coming to a mailbox near you (me? us?–*scratches head, shrugs*) I had actually forgotten that RWA would be sending the GH scores out so I was a little excited by the news.

I’m one of those odd birds who don’t really get upset by contest scores. Everybody has different taste and I know that there will be people who don’t like my writing, just as I don’t like every published authors’ writing. Though some judges comments on my various contest entries have made me laugh or roll my eyes I am pretty much able to read the comments, process them and than move on. And sometimes I even take their advice. I’m not sure why I am like this, though I suspect it has something to do with a confidence in my own writing abilities. I know I’m not the greatest writer who ever lived, but I also know I don’t totally suck. So, if some contest judge doesn’t like my entry, I’m less likely to feel down about it than to be pragmatic and think “well, she just doesn’t like my voice.” I’m just a pragmatic person. Love me or hate me. I’m gonna keep on truckin’.

So, when I opened my GH scores, I was surprised to find myself…surprised. The good news was that I got a 9 from one judge. (The scores can range lowest to highest from 1 to 9.) The bad news was that I got a 4.5 from one judge and a 5 from another. The other two were 7.somethings (I can’t remember and am too lazy to look ‘em up.) What surprised me wasn’t so much the scores themselves, it was the utter lack of feedback. Apparently someone tried to sue (or did sue) RWA over her RITA or GH comments several years back so RWA took away the judges ability to comment on the entries. So, I have no idea WHY any of the five judges gave the scores they gave. Maybe 4.5 hated my hero. Maybe 5 thought it was great but by her personal score-o-meter 5 was highest (yeah, that’s a stretch, I know). The only score I didn’t really need comments for was the 9, though even there it would have been nice to know what exactly she liked about my story.

Someone on the PRO loop said that having a wide range between highest and lowest indicates a strong voice. I’ve never really thought about it, but I guess I do have a strong voice. At least, I think I do. But one thing that was stressed over and over again on the loop was that these scores should not define you as a writer. If you final, then it’s wonderful and exciting and we will cheer you on at Nationals, but if you don’t, then you don’t need to hang up your quill and call it a day. The Golden Heart is a contest with judges who are human just like the rest of us. And the luck of the draw is what determines which five judges you have read your work. On one day you might get five people who love your writing. On another day, five who hate your writing. (Or that East German judge who will do all in her power to thwart you!) The important thing, is that you enter it at all. It’s tough to put your work out there. But it’s even tougher to get your scores and keep on skating.

And I treasure that 9. Even some finalists didn’t get a 9. Not too shabby for a first time novelist.

Oh, and last week was eventful for me last week for another reason. After spending the latter part of the week staring at my scoresheet and muttering “WTF?” I got an email Friday night notifying me that I’d finaled in the Smoky Mountain RWA’s Lauries Contest! Maybe there’s something to that strong voice argument after all…

So what about you guys? How do you respond to criticism of your work? Do you get upset by contest judges comments or do you take them with a grain of salt? Have you ever gotten great advice from a contest judge that helped you push your writing to the next level? Non-writers, do you have any experience with putting yourself out there to be judged? Tell us about it. Inquiring minds want to know!

Today’s Headline: Pirates and Gypsies band together to talk submitting to chapter newsletters! Be sure to stop by Romance Writer’s Revenge to get Hellion’s personal (and more experienced take) on becoming a notorious pirate of the chapter newsletter circuit.

It doesn’t take 100,000 words for you to have a chance at print. If you can write no more than a couple of pages of relevant, coherent text about writing romance (say, kind of like a blog!), you can probably write something for a chapter newsletter.

Chapter newsletters are hungry for content, as you may be aware if you belong to any kind of chapter loop. Articles on anything relating to romance - writing, reading, publication, promotion, interviews, industry news. It’s a great way to get your name out there and to impress the world with your fabulous and creative thoughts (I know you have them! I see you in the blog comments). And maybe even drive a little traffic to your website or blog.

Hellion will be talking more about how to create that standout article that will draw the interest of readers everywhere, but what do you do when you’ve written it?  Well, like any piece of writing, you should polish it till it shines and get some feedback from trusted friends. But after that…

Submit!

It’s not as intimidating as submitting to an agent or editor, and you probably won’t have to wait as long for an answer.

Your first stop should be your local chapter, if you belong to it. They’re predisposed to like you, and usually eager to have local contributors. Plus, that’s usually the first step to getting into the newsletter circuit. All the chapter newsletter editors have their own listserv where they share and swap content. With your permission, the editor of your local newsletter can get your article in front of editors from dozens of other chapters.

But what if you don’t have a local chapter? Or don’t belong to a chapter with a newsletter? Many local chapters accept submissions from non-members. Check out the list of local chapters on the RWA website, and visit their pages to see their newsletters and find contact information. When you’re not a member, it’s usually standard (and polite) to query the editor first - make contact to let them know who you are, what topic you plan to address, and what your experience is.

Also remember to do your homework and target the right audience. Many chapters have their newsletters online. Check their recent issues. If they’ve just done a piece on writing tips from Captain Jack Sparrow, your pirate guide to writing may not be the best topic. Try gypsies. Or ninjas. Or look out for a newsletter that hasn’t covered your topic as recently. There’s always room for more pirates on the seas and gypsies in the caravan.

And don’t think you have to shoot small! Romance Writer’s Report (the RWA magazine) is also looking for new voices and fresh content. You can even get paid (or get a free half-page add) for your efforts. Check your RWR (page 46 in the most recent edition) for more information. It’s standard to query the editor with a summary of your periodical experience and the topic you wish to address.

Tell (and read) all about it! Anyone got a great chapter newsletter to recommend? Another place to have your writing advice published? Anyone thinking of submitting something? What topics would you want to write about. And which of your favorite Vagabond blogs need to be distributed to the world at large? Don’t forget to check out the Romance Writer’s Revenge for more discussion of this topic.  

One of the highlights of this time of year is opening my mailbox to find my Entertainment Weekly Summer Movie Preview. Though I don’t see as many of the big summer blockbusters as I used to, I still love to get the lowdown on what I’ll have to look forward to in the coming months. But these days it’s not just movies I’m looking forward to this summer, but books! So I’m going to do my best to present the RV Summer Book Preview, probably leaving out lots of awesome books that I know our gypsy friends will fill in for me.

MAY*

Yay for May! It’s a month of new starts, featuring some of our fave Vagabond homgirls. Elizabeth Hoyt kicks off her exciting new Legend of the Four Soldiers series, we get the first of Julia Quinn’s long-awaited Dukes of Wyndham books, Loretta Chase turns her focus from Carsingtons to fallen heroines, and Toni Blake joins the Avon Contemporary Romance line.

Also in May:
Dark Desire After Dusk by Kresley Cole
His Dark and Dangerous Ways by Edith Layton
Hotter After Midnight by Cynthia Eden
My Immortal by J.K. Coi
Not Another Bad Day by Rachel Gibson
Scream for Me by Karen Rose
Secrets of Surrender by Madeline Hunter
Soul of a Highlander by Melissa Mahue

JUNE*

June heats things up with Vicki Lewis Thompson’s latest, the third book in Eloisa James’s Desperate Duchesses series, and Jenna Petersen’s new courtesan story. Plus it’s the release of The Power of Love Anthology, featuring twelve fabulous authors (and with proceeds going to a battered women’s shelter)

Also in June:
Damien by Jacqueline Frank
Highland Knight by Cindy Miles
The Ideal Wife by Mary Balogh (reissue)
In Bed with the Devil by Lorraine Heath
Lover Enshrined by J.R. Ward
Overnight Male by Elizabeth Bevarly
The Trouble with Moonlight by Donna Macmeans

JULY*

July is filled with books form some of this year’s delectable debut authors. Joanna Bourne and Sherry Thomas both have follow-ups to their much-talked-about first books and Kimberly Killion makes her debut.

Also in July:
Flirting with Trouble by Elizabeth Bevarly
Immortal Kiss by J.K. Coi
Into the Shadows by Christina Dodd
Love’s Magic by Traci E. Hall
Never Romance a Rake by Liz Carlyle
Out of Time by Samantha Graves
Seduced by the Storm by Sydney Croft
Sweet Talk by Susan Mallery
Tribue by Nora Roberts
Trust Me by Brenda Novak
Turbulent Seas by Christine Feehan

AUGUST*

August must still be a long way off, as I couldn’t find many covers up yet for August books. But at least we have a new Victoria Dahl. Someone fill me in on what else I’m missing!

Also in August:
The Edge of Desire by Stephanie Laurens
Into the Flames by Christina Dodd
Some Like it Wicked by Teresa Medeiros
Sweet Spot by Susan Mallery

*As Jenna Petersen has so astutely pointed out, Avon releases come out the last Tuesday of the month, and thus are officially considered releases the month after I have listed them. What can I say? I don’t want to wait a day longer than I have to for these books.

What summer releases have I missed? What summer books (romance or otherwise) are you most looking forward to?