How our characters speak says a lot about who they are and what kind of romance the book will be. But finding the right voice and making each character’s word flow unique while keeping it believable and interesting is a tangle of intricacy. Come find out how other writers make their dialogue gripping and not a snoozeville of “hey, how are you?” This Sunday 4pm PT / 7pm ET.
Love at first sight is sometimes how it works out, but not always. The meet cute of our lovers’ first encounter makes a big difference in hooking your reader. But coming up with gripping ideas every time isn’t easy. How do you make you meet cute’s stand out and fill them with enough excitement to spark a romance that propels an entire novel? Come share with us Sunday 4pm PT / 7pm ET
This week’s chat on Nov. 26th is all about writing the kind of characters that jump off the page and take on a life of their own. Here are some of Robin Lovett’s thoughts on how to work for that goal.
Great characters who I remember and stay with me long after I’ve read the book vary in a lot of ways. For the most part, they’re books I love as a whole. I love a book primarily for its characters.
But no two people love exactly the same type of characters. Though there are archetypes (a model that some characters are based on, i.e. hero, antagonist, villain, mentor, etc.), the true variety of characters is as limitless as there are people in the world. Though, I think there are a handful of things that most memorable characters have in common. Continue reading
This Sunday’s #rwchat topic is about Stealing Time To Write and how difficult it can be to find writing time amidst our busy schedules. Here’s Robin Lovett’s strategy for planning her writing when real life threatens to steal it away.
I’m pretty lucky. For the most part, writing is my addiction of choice. When I run out of things to write, that’s when I have a problem. I also love deadlines. When someone is waiting for my work and likes it so much and believes in it so much they’ve contracted me to write it, I get even more excited.
But that doesn’t mean that life never gets in the way. Or edits come back with a half-rewrite (!) and eat a month out of my deadline to write the next book. So I make plans, honest plans, because if they’re not honest, they won’t work. Continue reading
This week’s chat topic is writing series proposals! #RWchat co-host Robin Lovett talks here about the skills needed for writing proposals, and why they’re necessary for authors to learn.
Before writing the book, starting with the blurb and synopsis is my new favorite way to do things.
Now that I know how, that is.
Most of us, when we write our first book (or two) haven’t yet learned how to write a blurb or synopsis. But once you’ve learned how, once you’ve figured out how to concisely communicate your book’s contents in condensed format, it makes writing the book inevitably easier.
Graphic by Alexis Daria
A romance is a romance no matter where is takes place, right? It’s timeless. So does setting really matter? Without a doubt, yes. Where and when a novel takes place is vital to the plot and characters. Setting can create tension, add wonder and even serve as a character in the story. It can supports a novel, makes it richer and unforgettable.
Come chat about how you do your settings and learn how others do it too. Sunday 4pm PT / 7pm ET.
The RWA national conference is in Orlando, FL, next week! From Wednesday, July 26th—Saturday, July 29th, a lot of #RWChat members will be there. Alexis Daria and Robin Lovett will be there, too. We’ve got FOUR #RWChat get-togethers planned so we can meet up and support each other. Big writing conferences can be exciting, yet daunting, experiences, so let’s help each other stay connected, inspired, and energized.
(For those of you who haven’t heard of the Romance Writers of America national conference, here’s the link if you’re interested in checking it out for next year.)
WEDNESDAY July 26th 8:00 P.M. Hang out! Come get your #RWChat BUTTON! We’ll be handing them out so we all know who our #RWChat friends are the whole conference. Location TBD—check Twitter! We’ll be in one of the restaurants/bars at the conference hotel.
#RWchat buttons!
THURSDAY July 27th 8:00 A.M. Wake up! Our first ever LIVE in-person #RWChat session. We’ll discuss how we set goals for the conference and how to stay focused and flexible when there’s so much to do. (Don’t worry, we’ll finish by 8:25 A.M.—in time for the 8:30 A.M. sessions to begin!) Location: Room Oceanic 4
FRIDAY July 28th 3:15 P.M. Check-in! We’ll meet and do a LIVE chat to assess how our conference goals are going so far and what plans we’d like to make for the final day. Location: Room Oceanic 4
SATURDAY July 29th 12:30 P.M. Wrap-up! We’ll chat about how to take everything you’ve learned at the conference and apply it at home. Location: Room Northern Hemisphere Salon E1
For those of you who will be there, we can’t wait to see you. For those of you staying home, we’ll be tweeting as much as we can to share it with you, and we’ll try to stream some of the live sessions. 🙂 Keep an eye on the RWchat Twitter and Facebook accounts!
Graphic by Alexis Daria
Next week we’re going to celebrate the awesome community that is you, #RWChat-ters! Come chat about the dependable support and empowerment in our creative community.
See you next Sunday 4pm PT/ 7pm ET!
Graphic by Alexis Daria
Writing the book can be hard, but sometimes hardest part is what comes after: selling it.
How do we entice readers / editors / agents to buy our books? How do we pitch our books in person with a pitch, a blurb or a query? And how do we make sure the openings of our books are enticing enough to hook readers into the whole thing?
Join us to talk about it next Sunday 4pm PT / 7pm ET!
~Robin Lovett
Graphic by Alexis Daria
How’s the year going so far? A lot has happened this spring and so far this summer. Come chat with us about your successes and your struggles. We’ll check in with our expectations for the year and reassess our goals for the rest of 2017.
Join us Sunday 4pm PT/ 7pm ET on #RWChat.
Romance Writers Chat 