A lightbulb here. A lightbulb there. Ideas come and go. They spark and die. How do we hang onto them? Organize them? How do we make them more than ideas but characters with full backstories and plots with compelling tension?
Come tell us how you organize your ideas and learn how others do it too. Sunday at 4pm PST / 7pm EST!
~Robin Lovett
Graphic by Alexis Daria
A long career, a successful one, will shift and change as we grow as writers, but knowing how to navigate those changes isn’t easy. Whether it’s a shift in subgenre, a change in pen name, a switch from indie to traditional to hybid and back – the best way to learn it is to hear from other romance writers who’ve done it.
Come discuss with us how you’ve done it or bring questions to learn how. See you Sunday 4pm PST/ 7pm EST on #RWChat!
~Robin Lovett
Graphic by Alexis Daria
The growth and development of a hero or heroine through a novel is as important as the plot itself. There are as many journeys or character arcs as there are people in this world. But there are lots of tropes and patterns that we can build our characters on. What are your favorite character arcs? Which ones have you used and which ones are you looking to explore?
Join us, Sunday 4pm PST / 7pm EST!
~Robin Lovett
Graphic by Alexis Daria
Originally published on DIYMFA.com
When shit goes down in our lives, how do we keep writing? At best, we lose our ability to focus on our work. Sometimes it makes us question our work—question whether what we have to say will be relevant. Or at worst, become afraid to write what we write.
There’s no more tragic fear for an author than being afraid to give voice to her story because she fears persecution for it. And that’s what one of my friends said to me recently. She was terrified that her work would be misinterpreted or even ridiculed.
We all have ideas about what we want to write but having the courage to write it is often not so easy. We worry what others will think, if anyone will read it, if agents and editors will want to buy it. But writing afraid is no way to write at all. So how can we write with fearlessness? How can we get in touch with the courage to write amidst the pressure to do it well?
Join us Sunday 4pm PST / 7pm EST!
~Robin Lovett
Graphic by Alexis Daria
Image by Alexis Daria
A novel isn’t a page turner without conflict. Conflict is what keeps us on the edge of seats worried about what will happen next. But managing conflict as a writer–planning it, producing it, keeping it–is an exercise in stamina. Beginning a novel with enough conflict to last until the end isn’t easy. Add in the struggle to keep the conflict ball in the air chapter after chapter, it takes a lot of practice.
Conflict stems from two main sources:
Balancing external and internal conflict is like walking a tight rope. There has to be enough external conflict to keep the over arching plot moving without stalling. But there has to be enough internal struggle to keep the reader emotionally engaged in the stakes till the end.
We love our characters and the temptation to make things easier for them, to help them fall in love sooner, reach that happily ever-after faster, is possibly the worst enemy of our story. If it’s too easy for them, who wants to read that? There’s no reason to keep turning pages. But if we torture them and employ my favorite technique from James Scott Bell, “What’s the worst that can happen?”, then we come up with the kind of books we can never get enough of–even after the HEA.
Join us for our chat on conflict Sunday at 4:00 pm PST / 7:00 pm EST.
~Robin Lovett
Image by Alexis Daria
It’s NaNoWriMo season which means lots of us are slogging away at putting thousands of words on a blank page every day. Creating something out of nothing can be exhausting. Do you prepare with an outline or fly by the seat of your pants? If you plot, how do you cope when things go off track from the plan? If you’re a pantser, how do you deal with the inevitable scary moment of “I have no idea what happens next?”
Come share with everyone how you cope with the challenges of writing from scratch. And hear how others manage it too.
See you 4pm PST / 7pm EST!
~Robin Lovett
Four Ways Blogging Can Boost Your Author Brand
by Eliza David
Writing romance is time consuming. The drafts, the revisions, the writer blocks, the plot bunnies – it can take over your life. So why should you invest more time writing in a blog?
Although writing diverse romantic fiction is my first priority, my blog is a crucial component of my platform. I consider it my space beyond my novels. It supports my brand and boosts my profile. Here are four ways to make blogging an integral part of your author arsenal as well: Continue reading
Graphic by Alexis Daria
We’re all supposed to blog. Everyone says we should have a blog. But blogging is such an intricate process it’s practically it’s own sport. So how do we get in the game?
If you’ve been blogging for years, come share your skills. If you’ve never written a post, join us and learn.
See you Sunday at 4pm PDT/ 7pm EDT!
~Robin Lovett
By Kate McMurray
At RT in 2017, I’m going to be teaching as part of the pre-conference writing workshop, which I’m pretty excited about. I’ve been teaching at conferences for a few years now, and I really enjoy it. Presenting a panel or workshop at a conference is a great way to get in front of readers or share knowledge. I got my start at small conferences and have worked by way up to panels and workshops at the big conventions like RT and RWA.
So here’s how you put together a stellar workshop proposal.
Romance Writers Chat 