Reading your Writing

The popularity of the Noir at the Bar series shows the value of public readings, even for those of us who are not poets. It can give a writer exposure to people who might not pick up his work to read it on their own. The kind of fans you make when you meet in person tend to be more solid, planks in your author platform. And, at least for me, it’s great fun. But not everyone is naturally good at it. This week I’ll offer some helpful ideas.

First, remember that listening is different from reading to yourself. When you are listening, long descriptions and exposition don’t hold your attention well. So choose your reading selection carefully.

Also keep in mind that the people in your audience are not there to be educated about your writing. They have come to be entertained. They don’t need to understand the entire plot, they don’t need to meet every character in your book, and they surely didn’t come to be impressed by your sweet turns of phrase.

What works well is a scene. Pick one with sharp dialog and plenty of action. And it’s best to find a scene with only two or three characters. When you’re listening it’s hard to keep track of a long list of people who are new to you anyway.

When choosing a selection to read ask yourself, is this piece emotionally engaging?  Humor works well. Otherwise, find something with suspense, intrigue, and lots of conflict. If you can’t appeal to the audience’s sense of humor, appeal to their hearts, or to their curiosity.

For your reading to make sense, you may have to set it up with some back story or explanation about the characters. Don’t let this eat into your available time. If you find it will take you a minute to prepare the audience for your reading, I’d suggest you find another section to read.

Most reading venues have time limits. Five minutes is common. Even if they don’t, shorter is always better. If you are offered more time, consider finding two short sections to read and chat a bit in between.

And If you ARE one of several readers with a solid time limit, make sure you stick to that limit. Not only is it rude to go over your time limit, it will prompt people who organize such events to stop inviting you. How can you be sure? Practice your reading several times, timing yourself.

I have more good ideas for live readings, which I’ll share next time.

More Essential Elements of Romance Novels

To succeed in the romance genre you have to have two great lead characters and you have to get them together in one of the ways readers are already comfortable with. But there are a couple of other things you have got to get right if you want that book to sell to a publisher OR to readers.

For one thing, you have to be very careful in building those intimate love scenes. I’m not talking sex scenes necessarily, but all physical intimacy: kisses, hugs and those almost-did-it scenes. Some romances will have hard R-rated scenes. Aside from out-right erotica, a lot of urban fantasy style romances can be pretty raw. Some, like YA romance and most historical romances, skip sex completely. All the rest keep it PG, or maybe PG-13.

But whether it’s an erotic scene or jus a passionate kiss, it has to be written with care. These scene need to have lots of buildup to make the readers anticipate the encounters eagerly. And please avoid romantic language filled with those silly euphemisms that can turn your work into a laughable parody of real romance writing.

How do you get it right? I suggest you read romances and look very closely at those intimate scenes you feel are well written. The more you read, the more you emulate your writing heroes, the better you’ll get.

Almost as important as those scenes is to respect your secondary characters. Remember, when your heroine or hero is agonizing over a confusing conversation or trying to decide if they will see that other person again, they will want to ask someone for advice. That friend, roommate or coworker is absolutely critical to the story. Characterization of the main couple is important of course, but it is the coworkers, neighbors, family, friends and jealous enemies (and “frienemies” that bring the story to life. Those people place your couple in a real world. 

It’s good for each of your lead characters to have a best friend, that person they turn to for support. They are often a little quirky, very likeable and serve as a sort of Greek chorus for the main couple. Just don’t make them TOO interesting. They shouldn’t overshadow the hero and heroine. But develop them well. After all, one of them could easily be the star of your next novel. That can make for a great sequel, since your readers already know the cast and the overall setting. If this plan works for you, you’ve got a series on your hands.

Get these things right and you will have written a romance novel that no publisher will want to turn down.

Getting Your Romantic Leads Together

For the last couple of weeks I’ve been talking about the process of writing a great romance novel. Once you have your characters in place, the next challenge is getting them together in a way readers will enjoy. The best ways are probably the most popular. Either the pair know each other but just don’t see each other in a romantic way or they just don’t like each other. Your job as a writer is to change that in a fun way.

If you’re moving them from friends to lovers it works best when there’s a big project or a major conflict holding their attention. Distracted this way they won’t notice how good a fit they are or how much they really like each other. That’s why they don’t get together until the very end.

To move from enemies to lovers the couple should conflict in some basic, essential way. Maybe one’s a total extravert while the other is an introvert. Or how about the spoiled rich kid who can’t relate to the hard working single parent? (switch the genders and you’ve got the movie Overboard.)

Want to challenge yourself more? Take them from enemies to friends, and then to lovers.  It is, I think, the most realistic approach. The two lead characters hate each other when they meet. As they get to know each other they become friends and finally fall in love. This approach allows for a real connection between the two, and leave space for lots of tension.  One well-known example would be Pride and Prejudice.

If you created a romantic hero with serious psychological scars the story can be about the heroine helping him heal. It’s a ready source of conflict. And the damage from the past can endanger the future of their relationship. But in the process he can show her how valuable she is, and her potential as a healer. In the end they both realize how valuable their time together is, which leads to romance.

Reunion is also a popular romance approach, where the hero and heroine get back together. The pair could be separated for a long time, but there are other more interesting devices. What if one of them suffers from amnesia and just doesn’t remember their past partner? Or maybe some supernatural event has separated them. The fact that they find each other again can be seen as proof that they are fated to be together, true eternal soul mates.

What happens after you use one of these familiar plans to bring the couple together? I’ll have some tips on how to proceed next week.