From idea to first draft

I've been thinking about this a lot this year....and feel like this is one of the hardest, if not the hardest, parts of my process of writing a novel.
Ideas, as all of us writers know, abound around us. Of course translating those ideas into a cohesive novel is another thing.
Yet for me, it's the conversion of that little spark into something meaty, something that deserves to be told is the hardest part. Over the course of the six and a half fulls, about ten partials, and countless first chapters, believe you me, they are really countless, I have learnt that the pre-work process, the process of fermenting of the idea is as important as the first draft itself. I'm always eager to start the shiny new idea, the great cute meet, the awesome first liner that just begs to be written.
Yet if I start writing too soon, without thinking through, I have found the hard way that I run out of steam about 3000 words in.
It's a better investment of my time thinking a bit, scribbling notes wherever I'm on whatever I can find at that moment about characters, their GMCs, their fears, their life lessons, and what it is that the antagonist or in our case, the hero or the heroine force the other main character to learn..
And by this point, the shine of the idea wears off a little, but the substance, the real grit of it begins to appear, and it is all I can do to get what I have in my mind on to the page...

What about you? Which part of the writing process is the hardest or the easiest for you, and why?

Dear Julia Launch Wave - Stop One

Welcome to the launch of Dear Julia, my latest release published under the name Rae Summers as part of the Love Letters series by The Wild Rose Press.

Following Sally Minx’s novel launch idea, Dear Julia launches with a ‘Mexican wave’ starting right here. By clicking on the links below each excerpt, you’ll be able to follow the wave across 8 blogs to read the entire first chapter - or you can click on the buy links at the bottom of this post to get your own copy!

You can also follow the wave’s progress on Twitter, using the hashtag #DearJulia. If you enjoy the story, feel free to tweet your comments and chat to other wave surfers.

I’m also running a contest on my Rae Summers blog. Answer one simple question about this story, and you’ll be entered to win a copy of Dear Julia. Entries close Sunday night, and the winner will be announced on Monday.

Have fun!

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The Blurb

The discovery of a long-lost love letter in a house she’s redecorating sends Rosalie Stanton on a quest to find its rightful owner.

Since his return from the Great War, William Cavendish has lived as a recluse. His peaceful existence is shattered by the return of the letter that once held all his hopes — and by its bearer, the irrepressible Rosalie, who bears an uncanny resemblance to his lost love.

As Rosalie sets out to lure William back into society, she realises that in him she might just have met her match.


Extract One

Dust swirled out in a thick, choking cloud as plaster and debris crashed to the floor. The cloud cleared, and Rosalie lowered her handkerchief from her face and coughed. In the yawning hole where the monstrous Victorian mantelpiece had been, a pile of broken bricks now lay in their own ashes. Something pale caught her eye amongst the rubble.
“What is that?”
One of the workmen bent to pick it up. “It’s a letter, miss.”
He handed her the envelope, and she wiped her handkerchief across its grimy face to reveal paper yellowed with age and a name printed in a neat, square script, a man’s handwriting: Julia.
Not just a letter. In one corner she felt the distinctive weight of something else. Curiosity growing, she turned the envelope over. No name or return address. She frowned. “It must have fallen behind the mantelpiece.”
The man shrugged, disinterested, and she forced her attention back to the room. “Clear the bricks, and tomorrow you can install the new mantel.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
They began the clean-up, and Rosalie moved to the window, holding the letter up to the light.
Against the sharp autumn sunlight she could see a shape silhouetted within the envelope. A ring. Even through the paper she could tell it was very old, delicate and ornately filigreed. And undoubtedly valuable.
That settled it. Whoever the letter had been intended for, it had to be delivered.

Anna sat at the kitchen table, shelling peas. She shook her head as Rosalie entered. “I hope you haven’t ruined that pretty dress.”
Rosalie looked down at herself. She was covered head to toe in a film of grey dust. She shrugged. “It’s just a dress. Look what we found.”
She held out the envelope to Anna. “Do you have any idea who Julia is?”
Anna shook her head and took the letter. “No idea. But Mrs. Wallace in the post office is sure to know. She knows everything about everyone around here.”
“Excellent idea. It’s the perfect afternoon for a walk into town.”
“Not in that dress, you won’t.”
Rosalie grinned. “I guess not. And I’ll have to wash my hair, too, before I go.”
“I’ll put some water to warm by the fire. Why your father couldn’t have got the plumbers in before we moved in, I’ll never know.”
It was a familiar grumble, and Rosalie laughed. “We’ve lived in worse places. And I’ll have this place
shipshape in no time.”
Anna rolled her eyes. “I have no doubt of that, Miss Rosalie. And the rest of the village too, I’m sure. Heaven help them.”

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For the next instalment, click here to go to fellow Minx Sally Clements’ blog. Don’t forget to tweet your feedback using the hashtag #DearJulia.

Here is the full list of participating blogs:

Stop 1 – you are here!
Stop 2 - Sally Clements
Stop 3 - Rachel Bailey
Stop 4 - Scarlet Wilson
Stop 5 - Olivia Miles
Stop 6 - Jennifer Shirk
Stop 7 - Suzanne Jones
Stop 8 – the last stop, at my blog.

Thank you to all these lovely ladies for hosting me today!

Dear Julia is on sale through Amazon, Amazon UK, AllRomance eBooks and The Wild Rose Press. You can find out more about this novella here.

Author Spotlight - Rosanna Leo

We have Rosanna Leo here with the minxes today to tell us all about her latest release which is a sexy story about Love with a Greek God - a real one! So with no further ado, here are the Minxy questions, and Rosanna's answers:

What is your writing process?

That is a great question! For the most part, there is always one key idea that gets me started (i.e. a character/plot line).  I tend to do a bit of birdseye plotting in my head, and write a few chapters to see where the characters want to go.  I like to have a basic outline, but always want to have room to change and grow.  I’m not the type of author who has every detail planned before I start writing.  I’ve tried that tactic and it doesn’t work for me.  I prefer to leave myself room to branch out in different directions.  That being said, I always have a goal in mind. 

Everyone who writes knows it's not easy - what methods do you use to keep at it on days when it would be so much easier to go shoe shopping?

Luckily, shoes don’t grab me as much as other women!  Because I work part-time outside the home, I know there are only so many hours during the week that I can devote to writing.  Therefore, I’m able to stay focused.  If it’s a writing day, it’s a writing day. No question…and no shoes, unfortunately!

Keeping fit: Do you have an exercise regime to counterbalance all those hours sitting at a computer?

Oh, wow, I wish I could say I did!!  Actually, when I do get to work out, I love using the Wii Fit.  I’ve even made little Mii characters based on my characters- how sick is that?   I also love a good run.  I try to run around the block once a year.  After that, I’m good.

Do you believe in writer's block? 

Absolutely!  And I’ve definitely been affected.  I’ve always been able to write something, but I’ve definitely had moments in which I had no idea where my stories were going.  I knew the end goal, but not how to get there.  It’s very frustrating when a story stalls.  I tend to back off from the WIP for a bit, reread and edit, and eventually everything falls into place. 

Have you ever used an incident from real life in a book? 

If so, did it get you into trouble? LOL!  Nothing that’s gotten me into trouble so far!  No, I’ve never used anything verbatim from a life experience, so to speak.  My stories always have little tidbits from my life included, but not anything that would embarrass anyone other than me! 

In what way is being a published writer different to how you thought it would be? 

I am amazed at the amount of support and love in the writers’ community.  That, I never expected.  I’ve always worked in the art world and that world can sometimes be a backstabbing place.  I expected that of writers as well.  They surprised me with their genuine enthusiasm for others and their level of friendship and support.  And romance authors are the best! 

Promotion is no longer a dirty word. In what ways do you strive to reach more readers? 
I could not function without Facebook and Twitter.  They are my “go-to” promo tools and so easy to use.  However, I’ve recently connected with others on Pinterest and Triberr and they are really fun to explore as well.  There is also something to be said for involving the people you know in your promo campaign.  I work at a public library and my librarians have been so incredibly supportive of my work. 

What is your top promo tip for other authors? 

Do your homework.  There is no sense spreading your name all over a website if it doesn’t reach your target audience.  Get to know others in the business and learn from them. 

What did you learn while writing this book? 

How much I still love Greek mythology!  These are the stories that inspired and intrigued me as a young girl, and they still do.  Who wouldn’t fall in love with a tempting Greek god?  They’re gorgeous, sensual and totally Alpha!  It was so fun to immerse myself in their world for a time.  

What was the most fun part of writing this book? 

I have to say, I love writing my love scenes.  LOL!  When I started writing romance, I thought the sex might make me a bit squeamish, but I got over that pretty quickly.  I discovered there is a real rhythm and flow to writing love scenes (no pun intended) and I find they tend to write themselves.  You just have to be invested in the moment and in your characters, and it comes naturally! (Again, no pun intended!) 

And just for fun: what would your hero’s honeymoon destination of choice be? 

Greece, of course!  Eryx is a Greek god, and proud of his culture.  And my heroine Maia is a statue conservator, specializing in Greek statuary.  She is also obsessed with Greece and its myths.  I think Eryx could take Maia on a Grecian holiday and they could make love in all the old ruins! 

Conservator Maia Douglas is an expert on ancient Greece and its mythology. She would never tell anyone at the museum where she works, but she's always had a secret crush on the mythical Eryx, Greek god of love. There is nothing she loves more than to tend to her favorite statue of him, and her nighttime dreams are filled with luscious images of Eryx making love to her.

One day, the peace at Maia's beloved museum is shattered when a new director arrives. A man who looks exactly like her image of Eryx. As Maia watches, he manages to upset her ordered museum world, at the same time he inflames her with unwanted desire.

Maia does not know that her new boss is actually the god Eryx, disguised as a mortal so he may work in antiquities. Although he is the god of love, he has forsaken his sexual nature because of a curse that has killed any woman he's dared to love. Though he fights it, Eryx is drawn to Maia with a force he's never experienced in a thousand years. But can he convince her of his true identity? And can he protect her from a vengeful goddess who seeks her destruction?

You can pick up Rosanna's book at:
Liquid Silver Books
Amazon
AllRomance eBooks

Thanks for being Minxy today, Rosanna!

Princes and Princesses

It's the Queen's Diamond Jubilee - the perfect excuse for a royalty based blog post. And I have a question. Is Royalty Romance live or dead?

Royalty Romance. The reluctant prince, the princess in trouble. Unexpected heir to the throne, conceived in a moment where the prince dallies with a commoner, without revealing his royal pedigree...

So - back to the question. Alive or dead?

Here's my pros:
First, because I love location, there's the opportunity to create a country, because it's impossible to use a real one.... the typical royalty romance kingdom is hot (that's a must for me, anyway) and beautiful. The writer and reader alike can be sucked in to this mysterious kingdom and it's people.

Second, a royal price or princess have a strong inner conflict - after all, being royal brings with it its own challenges, and we've seen those again and again. Everyone can identify with how tedious it is to be a reluctant heir to the throne, constrained by duty and honor. Or be:
1. Forced into a marriage of convenience with another royal (for the sake of the country)
2. Not allowed to do things commoners can (like go out into the world) due to being controlled by a bossy King.

Third, there's usually an easy excuse for flashing lots of cash around, lots of private jets, beautiful homes, sparkling jewels, and excellent clothes.

Here's the cons:
First - predictability. If we're dealing with a prince, we know that however he starts, returning to lead his country is going to be in there somewhere. And princesses always get there own way, so although there may be problems along the way, it can be pretty much guaranteed that she'll get her HEA.

Second - unreality. In life, princes and princesses in Europe can do what they like, mostly. In real life, there are princesses who have run away to the circus - had multiple affairs, and married who they like without constraint.

Thirdly - country building. With a completely fictious country it can be difficult to see how that country fits in to the world. Is Starnovia part of Europe? If so, is it in the Eurozone, and how is it coping with the financial meltdown of the Euro? If it's in Europe and this isn't an issue, are we totally in fantasyland?

My answer to the question posed at the top, is that I think Royalty Romances struggle today because the fairytale princes and princesses of yesteryear don't really exist any more, and so there has to be a suspension of disbelief in order to really be sucked into the story. In the same way that marriage of convenience plotlines can be dated, as there are so many other options than a forced marriage available today, that they can seem contrived.

What's your take? I'm ready to be contradicted!!

The Hot Pink Typewriter

Today we welcome our friend Olivia Miles (debut Harlequin Special Edition author) to the Minxes blog to chat up her new blog venture.

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First off, a very big thank you to my Minx friends for inviting me to post today and spread the word about the new group blog The Hot Pink Typewriter: A Romance Writing Sisterhood.

As some people in the romance writing community know, Natalie Charles and I have been best friends since we were 14 years old, and we knew each other long before then from our annual stints at a local children’s theatre camp. We’ve been reading and critiquing each other’s work for years, and it wasn’t until about a year ago that we discovered just how tight knit and supportive the romance writing community is. As writers, we spend so much time living in our own heads, sitting alone at a computer, and it inspired us to see so many writers reaching out and encouraging one another on a shared dream.

We decided to create Hot Pink for this exact reason--as an outlet for aspiring writers, and a gathering place for all members and fans of the romance genre. We pulled on board Victoria James, a close friend that I actually met through the Harlequin community boards, and began brainstorming ideas for the “sisterhood.” It was important to us that we brought together a group of writers who are not only talented, but who also represent different sub-genres of romance: Natalie writes romantic suspense, Lindsay Pryor writes paranormal, etc. We wanted a well-balanced group that will bring unique insight to the table: some of us are new authors, others are in the submission stage, some have agents, and all of us are passionate about our craft.

We’re hoping that by starting The Hot Pink Typewriter, we’re giving back to the community that so greatly inspired us, lifted us up, and cheered us along the way. We hope to do the same for other romance authors out there, not just by promoting within our own group, but also by extending ourselves to all the wonderfully welcoming individuals we continue to meet on this journey.

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You can find Hot Pink Typewriter here.

And please also check out our very own Maya Minx's blog for the account of her recent trip to the hallowed M&B halls in Richmond.