Romance
Saving the World, One Romance at a Time
Often I will receive submissions of novels tying in an element of mystery and suspense with romance. Writers targeting the romantic suspense market will find difficulty in placing this type of story. Why? Because romantic suspense readers have certain expectations that won't be met with a mere element of mystery and intrigue.
In my experience trying to sell and market romantic suspense, I have …
To Romance or Not to Romance
According to St. Teresa of Avila’s biography, the battle over romance novels has been going on at least since the 1500s:
Teresa's father was rigidly honest and pious, but he may have carried his strictness to extremes. Teresa's mother loved romance novels but because her husband objected to these fanciful books, she hid the books from him. This put Teresa in the middle -- especially since she …
First Lines in Fiction
The opening words of your novel may be all a prospective buyer will read before making their purchasing decision. Are yours an opening salvo; an opening punch; or an opening sigh, easily dismissed? They will also be the first words an agent or an editor reads when they see the sample chapters you have pitched. Every story starts somewhere. Even “once upon a time” is a beginning. I thought it would …
Should I Write Genre Fiction for an Established Line?
Sadly, Heartsong Presents is no more (shut down in 2014). It was a very popular line of Christian romance novels published by Barbour Publishing. However, when I was a young mother with school-aged children, I appreciated the fact that I didn’t have to market my books when I wrote for Heartsong. Instead, Barbour mailed books to subscribed readers every month. The books sold themselves. They did …
What is Inspirational Romance?
Our guest blogger today is Angela Breidenbach. She is a Montana author & Christian Authors Network president, is the host of Lit Up! on Toginet Radio and Apple Podcasts. Angela went back to college for genealogical studies w/specialties in English & Scottish Records. She’ll graduate in 2019 as a professional genealogist. Find her at: AngelaBreidenbach.com …
Beyond the Hook: Writing Sympathetic Characters
The first page may be promising. The opening chapters may be engrossing. But a reader might still abandon your book if it doesn’t deliver. How can you keep your readers going? Sympathetic Characters Some writers are talented in creating sympathetic characters from page one. Perhaps Page one occurs during a fire, when the characters have lost everything. Or the heroine has been abandoned by a …
Researching Your Historical Novel
Angela Breidenbach is a bestselling author of fiction through the ages with most of her books set in Montana. She’s the host of Lit Up! on TogiNet.com and iTunes about great entertainment from books to movies. Visit Angela and her fe-lion personal assistant, Muse, posting comedic conversations with his Writer on social media, entertaining fans just for fun. Please find her web site …
Trade Fiction Versus Category Fiction: What’s the Difference?
Often I’m asked, “What’s the difference between a trade book and a mass market category book?” Great question! Here are some primary differences and as always, the exception proves the rule. Trade books are: About 95,000 words in length, varying between 85,000 and 100,000. Trim size called “Trade Paperback” is usually 5.5″ x 8.5″ Not restricted by the rules of any category …
Should I Push Romance into my Story?
Whenever I go to a conference, I am privileged to hear about a wide range of stories and ideas. I always want the writer to succeed in marketing work to editors, so often I’ll ask how much romance the story has. Sometimes it has quite a bit. Other times, not so much. One writer told me that a male character was “intrigued” by a female character, but that was the extent of that thread, and more …