Have you signed up to be a DIY MFA Radio Insider yet? This is an exciting new monthly newsletter, especially for our podcast listeners. Every month, you’ll get an email from our podcast producer with recaps of the most recent episodes, a curated Listening List of episodes on a particular theme, and other fun goodies we only share via email. Best of all, it’s free to join! The theme for May is Short Stories, and you can become an insider by signing up with your email at diymfa.com/insiders.

In this episode Amy Lea and Lori discuss:

• Why representation matters and how the romance genre is helping lead the charge. 
• How to use family dynamics to develop layered characters.
• Millennial identity and what they have changed about the dating scene.

Plus, her #1 tip for writers.

About Amy Lea

Amy Lea is a Canadian bureaucrat by day and contemporary romance author by night (and weekends). She writes laugh-out-loud romantic comedies featuring strong heroines, witty banter, mid-2000s pop culture references, and happily ever afters.

You can find them on her website or follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Set On You

Contemporary Romcom – A gym nemesis pushes a fitness influencer to the max in Amy Lea’s steamy debut romantic comedy.

Curvy fitness influencer Crystal Chen built her career shattering gym stereotypes and mostly ignoring the trolls. After her recent breakup, she has little stamina left for men, instead of finding solace in the gym – her place of power and positivity.

Enter firefighter Scott Ritchie, the smug new gym patron who routinely steals her favorite squat rack. Sparks fly as these ultra-competitive foes battle for gym domination. But after a series of escalating jabs, the last thing they expect is to run into each other at their grandparents’ engagement party.

In the lead-up to their grandparents’ wedding, Crystal discovers there’s a soft heart under Scott’s muscled exterior. Bonding over family, fitness, and cheesy pick-up lines, she just might have found her swolemate. But when a photo of them goes viral, savage internet trolls put their budding relationship to the ultimate test of strength.

If you decide to check out the book, we hope you’ll do so via this Amazon affiliate link, where if you choose to purchase via the link DIY MFA gets a referral fee at no cost to you. As always, thank you for supporting DIY MFA!

(Right-click to download.)

If you liked this episode…

Head over to iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Spotify, or Google 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!

The post Episode 409: Social Media Influencers and the Millennial Romance Novel – Interview with Amy Lea appeared first on DIY MFA.

Whether you’re writing romance, mystery, or literary fiction, when you’re incorporating romance into our work, the task is the same—to write a believable, engaging relationship that keeps readers turning the pages. (I write contemporary fiction, for example, but I write contemporary fiction that sometimes has romance in it, and so, of course, I want to do that well.)

So let’s talk about how to keep readers turning the pages with a heart-tugging romance—maybe even one that sticks with them long after they’ve read it. (I think about Rebecca Serle’s book In Five Years all the time, for example, and I read it well over a year ago.) 

Before we get into the tips of how to write a love story, I want to briefly tell you how I came to this advice, myself.

Learning How to Write a Love Story

Before I started publishing novels, I was a lawyer.

I had no time to write, and I’d been dying to be an author since I was twelve.

So I quit my law job only seven months after graduating from law school. I found a tutoring job on Craigslist, broke my lease to move to a cheaper apartment, and then the real work began.

I was going to write a book, but I didn’t know where to start. So I signed up for writing classes.

I took writing class after class on everything from how to write a short story to how to write a funny essay to how to write beautiful sentences. Six years into writing classes, I had managed to eke out my novel.

I was submitting it to literary agents—which is how you get a book deal from a publisher, typically—but, over and over, I was hearing “no.”

I couldn’t figure out why. So I choked up $3,000 I didn’t have and hired a freelance editor to tell me what was wrong with my book. And this editor wrote me a letter that changed my writing life.

Here is an excerpt from the letter, with the part I want to highlight in bold:

“You have the humor in spades. It’s the heart that you need more of. And heart demands deep work. (I should say here that I was really impressed to find as I was reading that the prose was near-flawless. On a sentence-to-sentence level, your writing is remarkable.) If you are serious about this novel, I want to encourage you to reshape it, to give your characters more love.”

My work needed heart.

This letter changed my entire approach to writing.

I felt exposed reading it, and I knew that she was 100% right. As she notes here, I’d mastered writing individual sentences, but that wasn’t enough—that wasn’t the heart of the story.

I hadn’t been showing up emotionally on the page because I was too worried about inciting incidents, themes, and foreshadowing to believe in the characters I was writing about. I was too hung up on writing devices to feel my characters.

I didn’t even open the attached manuscript with her line edits; I didn’t need to.

Over the next six weeks, I rewrote my draft yet again, but I showed up emotionally this time, and I wrote love into my story.

Within six weeks, I had a literary agent. And that was the version of my first novel When You Read This, that sold at auction in the United States and to major publishers around the world.

Again, whether your work is formally classified as romance doesn’t matter—the tips I want to share next will be useful if there is romantic love in your story, at all.

Let’s dive in! Here are my top four tips for how to write a love story.

Tip #1: Be brave enough to draw from your own experience.

The first tip I have for you today may sound obvious, but if you’re anything like me, it wasn’t always.

As fiction writers, it’s a given, to an extent, that we’re always drawing from life.

But sometimes we are hesitant to do this with romance writing, especially physical or erotic scenes rooted in attraction, where we’re trying to construct a degree of wish fulfillment for the reader, due to personal inhibitions.

We feel like our Sunday School teacher is looking over our shoulder and going to tell our parents.

But just like with other emotional experiences in life, this is where we mine for the good stuff—inside the secret chambers of our own emotional experience.

So if you’re feeling bashful or vulnerable, here’s something to remember: you’re writing fiction, and you don’t owe anyone any kind of answer as to what part of your own life the inspiration came from.

If a reader says, “Dang, Jessica, that hot scene—was that real? How’d you think up that?”, just smile and say, “I’m glad you liked it.”  

Tip #2: What are your character’s primary attraction drivers, and what makes this time different?

We’ve all heard the saying, “she’s/he’s/they’re my type,” right?

And if you’re unlucky, you’ve been told that you’re someone’s type…as you’re dating them.

There is nothing less appealing than thinking that someone wants to be in a relationship with you because you look or act like other people they’ve liked before, right? It’s objectifying; it removes personal uniqueness from the equation.

On the contrary, when someone is attracted to another person in a way that plays against their tendencies, our ears perk up. We pay attention. If it’s us, we feel good.

We think, huh, what’s going on here? There can even seem to be more potential validity to the romantic feelings—they hold more promise—because it’s the exception, not the rule.

A fun way to play with creating a believable love story that’s genuine and special is to play with this idea—to identify your character’s primary attraction drivers, so that you can work against them.

Ask: how is this love interest different from the love interests that came before? Brainstorm. Pick your favorite(s). Make this time different.

Tip #3: Love in real life is not one-dimensional—and real love is hotter love. Lean into complexity.

Often when we write romance into our stories, we are writing a kind of wish fulfillment for the reader—we want the reader to want to be in the shoes of a character who is experiencing the romance. We are hoping to offer that pleasurable experience.

But for the reader to have that pleasurable experience, they need to believe in the love story.

Readers are smart. You may have heard the adage, which I think is a great one, to assume that your reader is at least as smart as you are.

If the love story feels one-dimensional—if it’s all light and positivity—it’s going to strike the reader as false in some way. Maybe not false as in fictional or made up, but false in the sense that one character is idolizing another, putting them on a pedestal, willingly indulging their blind spots to prolong the romance. And that’s going to create space between the reader and the character, thereby making it harder for the reader to want to identify with the character.

Follow me?

For the enticement of wish fulfillment to work, the relationship must seem realistic. And for it to seem realistic, we need some degree of complexity.

So lean into the complexity—be willing to get into your character’s mind and heart and explore the complex feelings that come up there. Don’t worry; it won’t make your love story feel less deep—it will do the opposite. It’ll make it feel real.

Tip #4: What limits (perceived or real) can you explore to deepen a character’s longing?

The last tip about writing a love story here—we all know that what carries a story forward is tension, right?

I tell the writers I work with that when you don’t know what to write next, ask: what tension is the reader most nervous about at this point in the story, and how can I ramp it up even more?

In writing romance, leaning into that tension serves an additional purpose, which is that limitations and obstacles to the realization of romance tend to heighten longing.

Absence makes the heart grow fonder, right? So does forbidden love.

So what externally imposed—or at least perceived—limits could make it harder for these people to be together? How might you use limitations to infuse the longing in the story with even more energy, which the reader will feel?

Want some writing prompts for how to write a love story?

Those are my romance writing tips for you! I’ve written 10 writing prompts to help you write compelling romance stories in your work, and you can get them by going here and dropping your email—I will send them right over.

Tell us in the comments: What did you learn about how to write a love story?

Mary Adkins is the author of the novels When You Read This (Indie Next Pick, “Best Book of 2019” by Good Housekeeping and Real Simple), Privilege (Today.com Best Summer Read), and Palm Beach (New York Post “Best Book of 2021,” and “like a sandy beach, equal parts beautiful and uncomfortable” according to the Associated Press). Her books have been published in 13 countries, and her essays and reporting have appeared in the New York Times, The Atlantic, Slate, and more. A graduate of Yale Law School and Duke University, she teaches storytelling for The Moth worldwide and runs The Book Incubator, a program for aspiring authors. You can also follow her on Instagram.

The post How to Write a Love Story: My Top 4 Tips appeared first on DIY MFA.

The romance genre has positively exploded in the past few decades, particularly with the rise of ereaders and the ability to self-publish. Why? I think it’s because romance is something that almost all of us can relate to on some level. We like a book that keeps us in suspense, but also makes us feel good. 

The romance genre is comforting because there are certain things we can expect, even as individual authors strive to deliver those things in unexpected and fresh ways.

So, what are those things we can expect from the romance genre? Well, I’m glad you asked.

1. A focus on a romantic relationship.

This seems a bit like a duh, but it seems worth mentioning. You have to have a romantic relationship or the possibility of one in order to have a romance novel. This is because the romance novel is going to be all about how a pair of individuals gets together or how the established couple whose feelings have faded winds up rekindling that spark and staying together.

Other stuff can be mixed in, like work because that’s part of daily life. But you’re not going to have a romance that’s mostly following a defense lawyer through a murder trial. You could have two opposing lawyers fall in love, but then the story would be more about that than the courtroom proceedings.

Also, a romance might focus on one couple (like Beach Read by Emily Henry) or multiple couples (like Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen). Though, there’s typically one main couple, whose fate you’re supposed to be agonizing over, that is the focus of the novel.

2. A conflict standing in the way.

Every novel has to have conflict and novels in the romance genre are no different. And there’s typically multiple points of conflict along the way. Many romance novels clock in around 350-400 pages, so it can’t just be smooth sailing.

Without getting too far ahead and ruining a future post, commonly the starting point of the two romantic interests is rife with conflict. They know each other and they hate each other (a la The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren) or they’ve tried being romantic in the past and it didn’t go well (like in People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry). 

Even if they’ve never met and it’s totally love at first sight, there has to be some kind of conflict that makes it not so easy to get together (they don’t realize that he dated her college roommate and it ended badly) or stay together (she finds out he started dating her on a dare).

3. A strong female lead.

Contemporary romance novels are frequently told in the first person and nobody really wants to read the musings of a meek narrator because they typically don’t do anything. Rather, we get strong females who take charge of their lives and their sexuality or their romantic situation. These females are the leading ladies of their own lives.

And even if we do start with a kind of mousy character, she’s going to come out of her shell. She is going to have agency. She is going to make decisions and take action. She’s not going to just sit by and let things happen to her.

This is important because literature hasn’t traditionally featured very strong female leads. They are either not present at all or are secondary characters who move around the male lead. I want to celebrate the strong feminist vibe that we get from the romance genre.

I want to pause here to acknowledge that while most romance novels feature a heterosexual couple, there is a growing market for LGBTQ+ romances that don’t feature a female lead at all. I will be discussing that in a later post about subgenres.

4. A happy ending.

You know the couple is going to wind up together otherwise it wouldn’t be shelved within the romance genre. These endings come in two different flavors: happily ever after and happy for now.

The happily ever after ending is your typical fairytale romance ending. They ride off into the sunset, get married, and usually have a family. However, as women have availed themselves of more options than just marriage and children, we have the happy for now ending. The happy for now ending implies that the couple has that happily ever after without actually walking them down the aisle. It implies hope.

And that’s really what the romance genre comes down to because that’s what falling in love is about: hope and optimism. Nobody falls in love thinking about the end (either a breakup or death). No, they fall in love thinking about the possibility of being happy. 

Tell us in the comments: What’s your favorite romance novel?

Lori Walker is the Operations Maven at DIY MFA. Though she’s fallen off the wagon as a writer, she’s hoping to return to writing essays (perhaps even a novel!) through her involvement with DIY MFA. She is also Launch Manager, Web Editor, and Podcast Producer for DIY MFA and a Book Coach. She resides in Smalltown, Oklahoma, with her husband and their cat, Joan Didion. You can follow her on Instagram at @LoriTheWriter.

The post Defining the Romance Genre appeared first on DIY MFA.

Have you signed up to be a DIY MFA Radio Insider yet? This is an exciting new monthly newsletter, especially for our podcast listeners. Every month, you’ll get an email from our podcast producer with recaps of the most recent episodes, a curated Listening List of episodes on a particular theme, and other fun goodies we only share via email. Best of all, it’s free to join! The theme for February is Romance, and you can become an insider by signing up with your email at diymfa.com/insiders.

In this episode Alana Quintana Albertson and I discuss:

• What inspired her to turn Shakespeare’s tragedy into a rom-com and how she pulled it off.
• How she kept raising the stakes for her characters, while keeping it realistic.
• Using world building to convey deeper elements of culture and community in her story.

Plus, her #1 tip for writers.

About Alana Quintana Albertson

Alana Quintana Albertson is a Latina bestselling romance author (her book Badass hit #3 in the entire Amazon paid store, she has had multiple novels in the top 100 paid store, and her Se7en Deadly SEALs romantic thriller serial has over one million views on the Radish fiction app). She has written thirty books and landed a three-book six-figure deal with Berkley Publishing for the upcoming Latinx romantic comedy series, Love and Tacos. The first book in the series, Ramón and Julieta, was recently optioned for television. Alana holds a Masters of Education from Harvard University and a Bachelor of Arts in English from Stanford University. She’s the former President of Romance Writers of America’s Contemporary Romance, Young Adult, and Chick Lit chapters. She’s the founder of the non-profit dog rescue, Pugs N Roses. She lives in Poway, California, with her husband, two sons, and too many pets.

You can find her on her website or follow her on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest.

Ramón and Julieta 

When fate and tacos bring Ramón and Julieta together on the Day of the Dead, the star-crossed pair must make a choice: accept the bitter food rivalry that drives them apart or surrender to a love that consumes them.

Ramón Montez always achieves his goals. Whether that means collecting Ivy League degrees or growing his father’s fast-food empire, nothing sets Ramón off course. So when the sexy señorita who kissed him on the Day of the Dead runs off into the night with his heart, he determines to do whatever it takes to find her again.

Celebrity chef Julieta Campos has sacrificed everything to save her sea-to-table taqueria from closing. To her horror, she discovers that her new landlord is none other than the magnetic mariachi she hooked up with on Dia de los Muertos. Even worse, it was his father who stole her mother’s taco recipe decades ago. Julieta has no choice but to work with Ramón, the man who destroyed her life’s work—and the one man who tempts and inspires her.

As San Diego’s outraged community protests against the Taco King take-over and the divide between their families grows, Ramón and Julieta struggle to balance the rising tensions. But Ramón knows that true love is priceless and despite all of his successes, this is the one battle he refuses to lose.

If you decide to check out the book, we hope you’ll do so via this Amazon affiliate link, where if you choose to purchase via the link DIY MFA gets a referral fee at no cost to you. As always, thank you for supporting DIY MFA!

Link to Episode 395

(Right-click to download.)

If you liked this episode…

Head over to iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Spotify, or Google 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!

The post Episode 395: The Many Levels of Character and World Building in a Rom-com – Interview with Alana Quintana Albertson appeared first on DIY MFA.

In case you are not familiar, Tammy Lough is our romance writing columnist, so most of these columns will help you write better romance, especially romantic comedies, but there are some great words of wisdom in here for writers of any genre. 

Here are six articles (with a couple of bonus links thrown in) that represent the best of Tammy Lough…

Six Tasks for Pre-Writing Success

This article has advice that would serve writers of any genre. To me, this feels like a happy medium between being a plotter and a pantser. I, too, have plotted a novel to death and no longer seemed worth writing and I, too, have charged into a story with no plan whatsoever with equally disastrous results. Tammy’s six tips totally seem worth trying for my next project and I think you’ll find them useful too.

Why Consider a Romance Series?

Often, when we see a romance novel, it’s a part of a series. And this is great because it allows us to get to know characters or even places and follow them over the course of several stories. In this post, Tammy walks you through why you might consider turning a stand-alone romance into a series instead.

Let’s Create a Series Bible

So, Tammy’s last post persuaded you to write a romance series. Perfect. Now what? How do you keep all of the moving parts together? How do you organize a story, a setting, and characters across more than one book? Never fear! Tammy has your back. Bonus tip: this article is useful regardless of what genre you write. Organization knows no bounds.

Creating a Dynamic Romantic Hero

Every story—regardless of genre—needs strong characters because that’s one of the ways you get readers to become invested in your story. (The other is a good plot, of course.) In this article, Tammy offers advice on how to create a dynamic hero. Again, the focus is on romance, but the advice could be translated to any genre. 

Ten Rules for Writing Killer Romance

This is actually a three-part series. For your convenience, here are the links to part 2 and part 3 (told you there were bonus links!). This series walks you from A-Z for writing a romance novel. It helps you create great characters and craft a unique plot that will keep your readers begging for more! The best part is you can work through these steps multiple times as you write multiple romance books. Gotta love a blueprint!

How to Write a Romantic Comedy Novel

Romantic comedies are Tammy Lough’s jam! This is a two-parter, so here’s the link for part 2. Romantic comedies are definitely fun to read and, from the looks of it, fun to write as well! You know how it’s going to end, but the best part is seeing how the author gets the main characters there. Part 1 is all about the setup and part 2 goes into the nitty-gritty of the genre. Enjoy!

I hope you’ve enjoyed this round-up of the best of Tammy. She’ll be back in a couple of months with her next article and I cannot wait to see what she has to say!

Tell us in the comments: What is your favorite thing about romance novels?

Lori Walker is the Operations Maven at DIY MFA. Though she’s fallen off the wagon as a writer, she’s hoping to return to writing essays (perhaps even a novel!) through her involvement with DIY MFA. She is also Launch Manager, Web Editor, and Podcast Producer for DIY MFA and a Book Coach. She resides in Smalltown, Oklahoma, with her husband and their cat, Joan Didion. You can follow her on Instagram at @LoriTheWriter.

The post The Best of Tammy Lough appeared first on DIY MFA.

So let’s talk about what the Christmas romance tropes are:

“But since it’s Christmas…” 

When better to confess our feelings than on Christmas? But is it a tired cliché? Your readers will be expecting a character to divulge their secrets in a festive epiphany—and Christmas might seem like a useful plot device to make this happen. 

But consider how you could do this in a “new” way. 

Maybe your character goes to reveal their feelings but can’t bring themselves to. Or maybe they find Christmas confessions convoluted and would never admit their feelings, especially on a holiday. 

Maybe they get rejected because their love interest doesn’t believe them. What would you do if someone told you they loved you for the first time, just because it’s Christmas? Would you be flattered or think, do they mean it?

Consider these three main things when writing a romance trope: 

• Is it believable? 
• Is it truthful? 
• Does it reflect real life?

The Christmas or Office Party

Another way we are inspired to confess our feelings is through alcohol. Usually fed to our characters through some kind of Christmas or office party, and there are plenty of these at this time of year. 

Alcohol, or the kid-friendly version, festive spirit, gives us the opportunity to have our characters do things that are, well, out of character. 

Using this as a device means you can create situations where your characters are vulnerable about how they feel. It also allows you to create a storyline where the two leads get together but are still unsure about how the other feels about it the next day. Was it all just because they were drunk or got swept up in the moment? It leaves room for misinterpretation—a classic tool that all romances use. And maybe you’re thinking: ‘I don’t want to use misinterpretation if it’s an overused device’. 

But once again ask yourself, is it realistic? Maybe you wouldn’t get up on stage and sing karaoke to your crush, but you might not believe them if they said they liked you too, after a few drinks.

Post-Break-Up

Picture this: A woman, sitting alone in Starbucks, Pret, Cafe Nero, maybe she’s drinking a Pumpkin Spice Latte, maybe it’s a black coffee. It doesn’t really matter. What matters is that she’s alone. And what’s the only reason a woman gets coffee alone? That’s right, she’s just had her heartbroken. 

Post-break-up is a great place to start a romance story as it begins your story with conflict. But is it too predictable? Are we tired of the hopeless female lead whose life can only be fulfilled through romance? Yes, probably. 

Heartbreak is one of the most relatable emotions we can write about, almost everyone has experienced heartbreak in some way, so draw on those memories, experiences to write about those moments in a concrete and honest way.

Nowhere to Go for Christmas

Another classic trope, which leads off of “the broken-hearted” trope is nowhere to go for Christmas. This could be because of a recent break-up or a strained family relationship but it will make your lead more interesting to their love interest, as they’ll be an air of mystery about it. In a way, this is a hard trope to avoid as it opens up your protagonist to have free time over the holidays. 

So how can we make it fresh? To repeat a mantra, consider realism—many people have fine relationships with their families but still choose to spend Christmas alone. This could be a statement about the character and add to their particular personality and view of the world. 

Maybe they’re working over the holidays—this could lend itself to roles in the emergency services which could be also used as a tool to create the “meet-cute”. 

Stranded

Instead of broken-hearted, maybe your main character is just broken-car-ed 

This is the stranded trope, which can be written in two ways: 

1. A character’s car/vehicle breaks down and is rescued by someone and ends up having to spend Christmas with them.
2. Two characters become stuck or stranded together e.g. in a snowstorm. 

This is a great way to make a romance happen between two characters who “hate” each other (of course, we know that hate is actually attraction). 

Think about opposing characters—how can you make this dynamic super fresh and modern? 

One suggestion, start with your lead—write their character map—and then write a completely opposite character map. These are your two protagonists. 

Pretend Relationship

Stereotypically, holidays can be difficult for single people. At this time of year, in particular, there’s a social expectation to be in a relationship, to have “a date” for events. This is where the “pretend relationship” trope comes in. 

Two single people agree to pretend to be in a relationship for the holidays—whether that’s for one party or the whole two weeks. 

This can go one of two ways, they fall in love with each other or it works to create conflict between one of those characters and their true love interest. However you spin it, the outcome will be when the truth comes to light. 

How can we turn this trope on its head? One way of making this fresh is to think about how the “pretend relationship” comes out. Miscommunication can be a tiring and overused trope and maybe it’s high time our characters were a bit more honest. What if your character just told the truth? That could make a great piece of conflict and drive your story forward.

Mistletoe

What’s it all building up to anyway? Christmas stories are usually fairly family-friendly, which means what we’re leading up to is the kiss. And what’s a great instigator for that? Mistletoe. A magical plant that makes people kiss, what could be a better plot device than that? 

But bear in mind, is a forced kiss really romantic? What are some more romantic ways your two leads could kiss?

An audience has come to expect, and enjoy, these tropes particularly in the sub-genre of Christmas so it’s not wrong to use these tropes. In fact, it’s almost impossible not to. Remember “no idea is an original idea” so don’t feel put down about using these tropes. 

Our advice

Think about quality over quantity. That means don’t use all of them. These tropes aren’t a list to tick off, but a jumping-off point for ideas. Try just using one or two and see where the story takes you. 

Extra tip: 

The best romances are based on truth—so think about the most interesting romantic story from your own life, whether it’s tragic, funny, or just plain romantic.

Lily Ruaah is a Content Writer for PublishingPush.com, which Patrick Walsh founded in 2014. PublishingPush.com is a self-publishing company based in the UK. Patrick started the company because he didn’t feel like the current publishing strategies were fair on authors. Writing, after all, is an art form, not a commodity; and he wanted to give everyone the chance to get published.

The post But Since It’s Christmas: Making Christmas Romance Tropes Fresh appeared first on DIY MFA.

Growing up, Tammy had dual-career goals, she wanted to be a nurse and a writer. When she was three she played nurse to her dolls when they got sick, fell off her bed, or broke their bones. She also began writing poems and stories and never stopped.

In later years, when multiple sclerosis forced her to leave her career as an intensive care nurse-manager, she came back to her writing with the same passion and drive she brings to everything. This past year, Parallel Pathways published her first romantic comedy and debut novel, Lacey’s Deception.

Tammy is a mom of two sons and grandma to three adorable grandchildren. She writes a monthly column, “On the Back Page with Tammy,” for Saturday Writers, a Chapter of the Missouri Writers Guild, and is an active member of the Romance Writers of America and South West Writers. She is also the Romance Columnist for DIY MFA.

In this episode Tammy Lough and I discuss:

• How mistaken identities can be a vehicle for humor, especially in a rom-com.
• Why she thinks the middle can be the best part of the writing process. 
• What role the rule of three plays in building the tension and humor in her novel.

Plus, her #1 tip for writers.

About Tammy Lough

Growing up, Tammy Lough had dual-career loves. A nurse and a writer. When she was three years old, all of her dolls got sick so that she could play nurse. When she was older and played with Barbie dolls, they repeatedly fell off her bed, broke bones, and required her nursing skills. In second grade, she began writing poems and stories and never stopped.

In later years, when multiple sclerosis forced her to leave her career as an intensive care nurse-manager, she picked up a pen and wrote a medieval romance novel. Parallel Pathways recently published her first romantic comedy, Lacey’s Deception.

Tammy is the mom of two sons and grandma to three adorable grandchildren. She writes a monthly column, On the Back Page with Tammy, for Saturday Writers, a Chapter of the Missouri Writers Guild, and is an active member of the Romance Writers of America and South West Writers.

You can find Tammy on her website or follow her on Twitter.

Lacey’s Deception

When hellcat tomboy meets wickedly handsome rancher, sparks fly—in more ways than one.

Lacey Autumn Kendall doesn’t want no stinking man. Hell no. Maybe she shoulda stayed in jail till rot set in like Pa threatened. Sure beats getting dumped in Montana to suffer lady-lessons shoved down her throat by Pa’s teacher-sister, Aunt Molly.

When Lacey steps from the stagecoach she darn near feels bad when she hears her aunt done passed away and is taking a dirt nap outside the little white church with the red steeple. Oh, and Lacey inherits auntie’s homestead if she marries before turning 20 and she’s—gulp—19. Sheesh!

When Brandon Lee Chandler meets Lacey standing on the dusty street of Miles City, he desires three things: Shut her the hell up; buy her land with its rich promise of gold; and press her full, seductive lips to his flaming kiss of desire. This muscle-ripped cowboy will do anything to own her land. She’ll do anything to keep it. The two are oil and vinegar swirling in a dizzying sizzle of sexual tension. Despite himself, Brandon discovers he also wants this vixen for his own.

Mayhem ensues in this delightful romp through 1873 Montana as Lacey takes on a passel of jobs to earn money and lickety-split gets fired from every darned one. But Lacey’s deception could cost her not only her land and her life but also the man she didn’t think she wanted. Guess what? She wants him more than hot possum stew on a frigid winter night. You betcha.

If you decide to check out the book, we hope you’ll do so via this Amazon affiliate link, where if you choose to purchase via the link DIY MFA gets a referral fee at no cost to you. As always, thank you for supporting DIY MFA!

Link to Episode 386

(Right-click to download.)

If you liked this episode…

Head over to iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Spotify, or Google and subscribe so you’ll be first to know when new episodes are available.

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Until next week, keep writing and keep being awesome!

The post Episode 386: The Art and Craft of Writing a Romantic Comedy – Interview with Tammy Lough appeared first on DIY MFA.

Here are five tips that I always follow to nail writing love scenes:  

1. Include plenty of foreplay.

Just like in real life, it’s important for characters to build up to sex/intercourse. Sex won’t feel believable to readers if the characters don’t warm up enough. Start off with neck kisses, a hot makeout, heavy petting, mind-blowing oral, anything to show that your characters are in the mood. 

Writing good foreplay will also help readers feel more invested in the story because they’ll actually believe your characters are hot for each other. 

And remember: foreplay isn’t just physical. It’s also stuff like naughty texting or dirty talking or a sexy look exchanged in a crowded room. Anything to amp up the heat of the moment and convey that these two characters are fiery hot for one another and dying to get it on. 

2. Lay it on thick with emotion.

Having your characters express how they’re feeling while they’re being physically intimate with one another marks a huge step in the narrative. It shows them being physically and emotionally vulnerable at the same time. And it often represents a huge moment in the plot. They’re taking their relationship to a whole new level with this act of physical intimacy, and it feels all the more special when they’re able to voice their emotional connection with each other in this moment too. 

Whether the characters are confessing their love or admitting that they really, really like each other or that they been fantasizing about this hot moment for ages, they all serve the same purpose: they’re being open and honest with one another by talking about their feelings, and that heightens the intimacy of the physical act of sex. 

3. Don’t forget about protection.

I’m the kind of writer who wants to be realistic and responsible when writing love scenes, and contraception is part of that. 

It doesn’t have to be some long, drawn-out discussion about birth control or condoms. It can just be a quick mention of a character grabbing a condom from their wallet or nightstand. Or something as simple as mentioning foil ripping in the middle of an especially hot scene. Or a character mentioning that they are on the pill, have an IUD, etc. Just something that establishes the characters are practicing responsible behavior in the midst of sexy times. 

4. Add a bit of awkwardness.

Again, this plays into the realism aspect of my stories. Not every love scene goes off without a hitch from start to finish—and that’s okay. A bit of awkwardness can actually be endearing and make your characters even more lovable and relatable. 

It can even serve as an opportunity to provide some comic relief, which can be a fun and lighthearted way to break the tension in the middle of such a hot moment. 

Some of the awkward moments I’ve included in love scenes are clothing mishaps and being interrupted by loud noises/phone calls/family members/friends/coworkers/pets. 

5. Always establish consent.

I’m of the opinion that when you write sex, you should always establish enthusiastic consent. It doesn’t have to be an awkward conversation. Consent can be very hot. 

For example, here’s an exchange between the two main characters in my new romance On Location that establishes consent: 

My hand stills against Drew’s stomach. “So…you like the way I’m touching you right now?” 

He grunts another yes. 

Slowly, I run my hand up his stomach, relishing the way each hard line feels under my palm. I stop on his chest, just over his heart, which is thundering inside of him. A quiet pant falls from his mouth. 

He swallows. “You can do whatever you want to my body, Alia. Asleep, awake. Any time, any place. You have my permission.”

I tilt my head up, until our faces are barely inches apart. “I’m so attracted to you, Drew. Like, you have no idea.” 

His half-smile turns full. It’s so bright it cuts through the darkness. 

“It’s been a struggle not to drool over you while we’re shooting.” I tap my fingers against his chest, quietly delighting in the way his hard mass barely budges. 

“It’s been the same for me. You’re beautiful, Alia. Every time I look at you, I feel like a creep because I can’t stop staring. I still can’t believe we ended up here.”

My heart melts in my chest. Whatever blip in the universe that resulted in us seeing each other again, I’m thankful for it. 

He cups my cheeks with his hand. Closing my eyes, I hum. 

“I’ve been trying not hardest not to pull you aside so we can finish that kiss we started that night we met.” 

“We can finish it now.” 

See? Super cute and very sexy conversation about consent. And not one bit clinical. It’s clear Alia and Drew have the hots for each other and are aching to go to town on one another. 

I hope these tips help you with writing love scenes that are exciting and believable.

Sarah Smith is a copywriter turned author who wants to make the world a lovelier place, one kissing story at a time. Her love of romance began when she was eight and she discovered her auntie’s stash of romance novels. She’s been hooked ever since – most recently with her books Faker (2019) and Simmer Down (2020). On Location comes out Fall 2021. When she’s not writing, you can find her hiking, eating chocolate, and perfecting her lumpia recipe. She lives in Bend, Oregon, with her husband and her adorable cat, Salem. Learn more at https://www.sarahsmithbooks.com, or you can teach her here on Twitter and Facebook!

The post #5onFri: Five Tips for Writing Love Scenes appeared first on DIY MFA.

One reader told me she loved my book, however, she could never leave a review because she didn’t want her family and friends to know she read “those kind of books.” As an author, it’s motivating to see how much the dynamic has changed since then. 

With an increased demand for books in the erotica genre, it is important for authors to meet or exceed the reader’s expectations. Not only does it give us the opportunity to exercise our creative freedom, but it keeps audiences intrigued and thirsting for more. 

Here are a few tips on how to write sex that sells!

Know Your Genre and Subgenre

Some people think you can just write a sex scene, slap the “erotica” label on it, and BOOM! instant erotica bestseller. 

There’s more to it than that. 

Like with any genre, you have subgenres. And erotica is no different. Therefore, you must first decide the angle of your story and make sure you know how to work within the parameters of that genre or subgenre. 

For example, I now write in the erotic romance subgenre which is slightly different from erotica. What’s the difference? The erotic romance genre explores the various aspects of a relationship, the emotional, mental, as well as the physical. While erotica may focus on just the sexual aspects, erotic romance tells a love story that encompasses all of the dynamics. 

Other subgenres to consider are erotic thriller, erotic suspense, erotic fantasy, etc. 

Knowing your genre and applicable subgenres will provide the necessary guidance on exactly how much, or how little, to emphasize the sex throughout your story and readers won’t be disappointed. But beyond that, there are certain techniques you can develop to write sex that sells.

Bring the Passion off the Page

Have you heard the phrase, “it’s all in the details?” Well, that certainly applies when you set out to write sex that sells. 

Writing a sex scene is an art because you really have to use your words to make that scene come alive. This is where it’s even more important to develop all of the senses. Not only what is being seen, but what is being heard? Is there music, moaning, applause? What about smells, candles, incense, peppermint on his breath. Think about touch, is his skin wet with sweat, smooth, rough? Is the sex on crisp, satin sheets, a cold counter in the kitchen, or the gritty sand of the beach? Taste… well, I’m sure you get the picture. 

All of these details will stimulate your audience. They won’t just read your scene, they’ll experience it. 

Find Your Inspiration

What really seems to help strengthen your sex scenes, is if you’re in the mood (or if you’re not, you hopefully get there by the time you finish the scene). 

There are different ways to get yourself to that point. One trick I like to use is music. Music will help put you in the right frame of mind so you can effectively transpose those same feelings on the page. 

Just like sex sessions are different, so are the scenes you write. If my characters are sneaking in the restroom stall at work to have sex, my pacing may be more hurried and urgent. So, my music will reflect that tone to evoke those emotions. Whereas, if my lovers are celebrating their wedding anniversary in their honeymoon villa, my music may be more relaxed, romantic, and slow. 

Picture how you would visualize the scene if it were on-screen in a movie or TV show. What type of music would play? That’s your playlist for the scene. 

Music is just one way to inspire, but there are others as well. Perhaps you need to watch a porno or eat a certain type of food known for being an aphrodisiac. You can light candles, take bubble baths, dim the lights, or even use your partner to stoke those flames. 

However you decide to find your inspiration, don’t be afraid to do what works to awaken those feelings within yourself so you can, in turn, awaken them in your reader. 

Have Fun With It

This is where you can really stretch those creative muscles of yours. Have fun with it. Let your personality shine and don’t feel compelled to shy away from certain opportunities to really heighten the peak of your scene. 

One of my catchphrases is that I like to “entertain, as well as educate.” Even if I haven’t personally experienced certain sexual liberties that I write about, this is my chance to experiment. 

For example, I’ve tapped into more of the unconventional erotic romance, which has opened the door for an even wider range of narratives, such as non-monogamous relationships (polyamory, swingers, etc.). This is because I love learning and writing about new things that set me apart from other authors. And because it’s so much fun for me, that is what shines through and makes my books that much more engaging and enjoyable.    

HAPPY WRITING!

Briana Cole is an acclaimed author known for exploring unconventional relationships and making readers question all expectations about love, lust, and monogamy. Her newest book is Couples Wanted  (Kensington). An Atlanta native, Cole graduated cum laude from Georgia Southern University and is a proud member of the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority. In addition to being a published author, she is also a motivational speaker, sex educator, and actress. Her motto and ultimate drive toward success is a famous quote from Mae West: “You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.” Connect with Briana online at BrianaCole.com, and on Facebook, Goodreads, Instagram, and Twitter @BColeAuthor.

PS—Check out this guest post about writing your story fast that Briana wrote for DIY MFA.

The post Making Love to the Page: How to Write Sex that Sells! appeared first on DIY MFA.

Debbie is the author of many books including: It’s Better This Way, A Walk Along the Beach, Window on the Bay, Cottage by the Sea, Any Dream Will Do, If Not for You, and the Rose Harbor Inn series. Thirteen of her novels have been New York Times #1 bestsellers, and five of her beloved Christmas novels have been hit movies on the Hallmark Channel. The Hallmark Channel has also produced the original series Debbie Macomber’s Cedar Cove, based on her Cedar Cove books. With more than 200 million copies of her books in print worldwide, Debbie is a leading voice in romance and women’s fiction.

In this episode Debbie Macomber and I discuss:

• How our subconscious comes out in writing and directs the topics we explore.
• The balance between writing light Christmas stories and still providing substance.
• Why she began her book with a series of letters and flashbacks mixed with the present.

Plus, her #1 tip for writers.

About Debbie Macomber 

Debbie Macomber, the author of It’s Better This Way, A Walk Along the Beach, Window on the Bay, Cottage by the Sea, Any Dream Will Do, If Not for You, and the Rose Harbor Inn series, is a leading voice in women’s fiction. Thirteen of her novels have reached #1 on the New York Times bestseller list, and five of her beloved Christmas novels have been hit movies on the Hallmark Channel, including Mrs. Miracle and Mr. Miracle. Hallmark Channel also produced the original series Debbie Macomber’s Cedar Cove, based on Macomber’s Cedar Cove books. She is also the author of the cookbook Debbie Macomber’s Table. There are more than 200 million copies of her books in print worldwide.

You can find Debbie on her website or follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

About Dear Santa

Lindy Carmichael isn’t feeling particularly joyful when she returns home to Wenatchee, Washington, for Christmas. The man she thought was “the one” has cheated on her with her best friend, and she feels completely devoid of creativity in her graphic-design job. Not even carolers or Christmas cookies can cheer her up—but Lindy’s mother, Ellen, remembers an old tradition that might lift her daughter’s spirits. 

Reading through a box of childhood letters to Santa and reminiscing about what she’d wished for as a young girl may be just the inspiration Lindy needs. With Ellen’s encouragement, she decides to write a new letter to Santa, one that will encourage her to have faith and believe just as she’d done all those years ago. Little does Lindy know that this exercise in gratitude will cause her wishes to unfold before her in miraculous ways. And, thanks to some fateful twists of Christmas magic—especially an unexpected connection with a handsome former classmate—Lindy ultimately realizes that there is truly no place like home for the holidays.

In Dear Santa, Debbie Macomber celebrates the joys of Christmas blessings, old and new.

If you decide to check out the book, we hope you’ll do so via this Amazon affiliate link, where if you choose to purchase via the link DIY MFA gets a referral fee at no cost to you. As always, thank you for supporting DIY MFA!

Link to Episode 381

(Right-click to download.)

If you liked this episode…

Head over to iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Spotify, or Google 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!

The post Episode 381: Writing and Publishing a Christmas Novel – Interview with Debbie Macomber appeared first on DIY MFA.