Today we’re doing something a little different. I have here with me in person, author and DIY MFA Romance columnist, Robin Lovett!
Robin is the author of two dark, sexy, romance novels, and is a super advocate for the romance genre. Her next series, of three dark stalker suspense romances, releases this summer through St. Martin’s Press Swerve, beginning with Stranger.
In our interview, Robin and I dive into the rarely spoken of domain of sex in romance writing, and tease apart the numerous craft elements of this complex and often overlooked genre.
In this episode Robin and I discuss:
- Why sex should or should not be included in a romance novel, and how to craft sex scenes the right way.
- How to create tension and faster pacing by switching back and forth between the hero and the heroine.
- How to craft a sympathetic anti-hero your readers will want a happy ending for.
- How to use the inner conflict within a character—the wanting and not wanting—to create steamier love scenes.
- What the business and legal aspects of romance writing entail, and how organizations like the Romance Writers of America (RWA) champions the genre.
Plus, Robin’s #1 tip for writers.
About the Author
Robin Lovett writes dark, sexy contemporary romances, and her next series releases this summer through St. Martin’s Press Swerve, beginning with Stranger.
Robin enjoys writing romance to avoid the more unsavory things in life, like day jobs, housework, and personal demons. When not writing with her cat, she’s busy embracing untamable curly hair and adventuring in the outdoors with her husband.
She’s a super advocate for the romance genre and co-host of #RWChat, a weekly Twitter chat for romance writers. You can check out her monthly writing column on DIY MFA. She is represented by Rachel Brooks of the L. Perkins Agency and can be happily reached on Twitter @LovettRomance. To learn more about Robin and her books, visit her website at www.romancelovett.com
Stranger
Warning: This book is a scorching, intense romance novel featuring an anti-hero out to get revenge against the trust-fund woman whose family destroyed his life.
This isn’t supposed to be a love story. She doesn’t want him to sweep her off her feet, and he is far from her knight in shining armor. He wants to ruin her life. But even the simplest plans for revenge can go wrong.
Check out this teaser…
I like the way he watches me, this man I don’t know. It’s something I’ll never confess to, never tell a soul. But with one look of those penetrating eyes, I feel as if he’s unwrapped me, turned me inside out, rubbed away at my trust-fund-holding, good-girl exterior until I’m raw and exposed.
He looks like he wants to destroy me. Like he wants to obliterate me and my shallow, perfect life until there’s nothing left.
And once I meet Logan, I want him to.
I hate Penny Vandershall.
I hate her money and her family and her privilege. I hate her innocence and her smile and her shine. I want to annihilate her lightness and consume her with my darkness, my anger, my red-hot rage until there is nothing left of her.
I know the truth about her, the truth that will make it easy to bring her down. To ruin her for good. But through the blinding haze of my hatred, my burning need for revenge, she’s starting to get to me. She looks at me in wide-eyed fear, like a girl approaching the tiger’s cage. And yet she refuses to walk away; edging closer until she can meet the beast who wants to rip her apart.
And even though I set out to ruin her, she may be the one to destroy me.
If you decide to check out Stranger—or you’d like pre-order Deceiver and Keeper—we hope you’ll do so via these affiliate links where if you choose to purchase DIY MFA makes a small commission at no cost to you. As always, thank you for supporting DIY MFA!
Link to Episode 151
(Right-click to download.)
If you liked this episode…
Head over to iTunes, Stitcher Radio or Google Play and subscribe so you’ll be first to know when new episodes are available.
Also, remember that sharing is caring so if you know anyone who might enjoy this podcast, please tell them about it or leave us a review so other listeners will want to check it out.
Until next week, keep writing and keep being awesome!
