The Heroine is the Key

As I continue to work my way through edits on this novella, I've been thinking a lot about the romances I love to read. I read pretty widely, so it's tough to just boil it why something works for me. Attributing it to "accuracy in historicals" or "really hot sex scenes in contemporaries" kind of falls sort.

Then I realized I know exactly what all of my favorite romances have in common. It all revolves around how the author treats the female character in the context of the relationship. Let me break it down for you:

1) The heroine has a strong sense of who she is.

My close female friends all have one thing in common: they know who they are outside of their relationships.  I look for the same thing in a heroine. I wouldn't want to see a friend lose herself in a relationship. Same goes for my heroines. I want to read about women who can define who they are outside of the hero.

2) Female economic independence.

One of the best classes I ever took was called the History of American Women taught by Professor Victoria Brown at Grinnell College. She told me that patriarchy survives when a woman is forced to be economically dependent on a man. It's a simple but powerful idea.

I find myself drawn to heroines who have some degree of economic independence from the hero - even in historicals. It's a tricky line to walk because you never want to be anachronistic, but money complicates relationships. There's nothing wrong with reading books about women who must marry a marquis to save her family, but I'd rather see her come to the relationship with some financial options (even if they aren't great ones). I want her to have a chance at coming to the relationship as an equal.

3) The hero must respect the heroine.

I have no interest in reading books about men who belittle the women in their lives.  It's not a show of masculinity.  It points to a lack of human decency.  This is the reason that I will likely not continue reading certain popular romantic erotica series. Works for some people. Doesn't work for me.

4) The sex is unequivocally consensual.

Consent is a big deal.  There are a lot of old school romances that use rape as a device to move a relationship forward (see Sarah Wendell's Beyond Heaving Bosoms for a full breakdown or check out her excellent website).  Thankfully these books mostly died off in the 80s.  However, there is still a lot of grey area in romance novels.  I think that the heroine and hero should both express their mutual consent during sex scenes like in, you know, real life.

I have no interest in writing a sex scene where someone is fearful.  I have no interest in reading them either. That's not sexy.  What is sexy is trusting your partner enough to ask them to do more adventurous things with you and acknowledging that you are both consenting adults who have had a conversation about boundaries.

5) Compromise.

My family, friends, and really anyone who has the misfortune of talking to me for long enough knows that I cannot stand it when a heroine gives up her entire life for a hero. I find books where one person blindly abandons life ambitions unrealistic and problematic.  It all goes back to respect and maintaining one's identity as I mentioned above. Compromise is a realistic part of every relationship. No matter how crazy pants the book is, the relationship has to ring true.

So that's me. I'm curious to hear your thoughts. Do you have any themes among the books you like to read? Any triggers that set you off and make you want to throw a book against a wall? Comment away!

Inspiration Everywhere

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I'm stepping back from revisions on my sports novella and letting this draft percolate this week. When I'm in the middle of first revisions I feel like my world sometimes closes down. Now is the perfect time to resurface and look around for inspiration.

For the last two weeks NYC has been taken over by Banksy fever. The semi-anonymous street artist has been painting nondescript walls in the 5 boroughs under the cover of darkness. There is something about this subversive, witty art that I find particularly inspirational. If you're a fan of Banksy he makes you think. If you don't get it, you aren't afraid to say it.

Justine Bottles took this picture of a Banksy installation in Woodside, Queens. A man tries to wash away the graffitied phrase, "What we do in life echoes in Eternity." I love the imagery and the contradiction.

What inspires you?

Write Anywhere

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It took me four years to write my first novel.

Actually it would be more accurate to say it took me four years of starts and stops to write my first novel. I kept picking up the book and putting it down. I was in graduate school when I started it, and I'd been working for three years when it finally went off to agents.

My book would suffer when I would couldn’t find the time to sit down to get a solid block of writing in. I would push my manuscript aside if I felt overwhelmed with work, relationships, living in New York, everything.

Finally I got serious. I finished the book, and I went through edit after edit until it started to look like the romances I read. I decided I would never again push writing aside. I was going to make it a priority.

How exactly was I supposed to do that? How are any of us supposed to do that when we're always swamped. It doesn't matter whether you work, raise children, or care for ailing loved ones. Time is precious.

This is my big secret: you make time for the things you want to make time for. If what you really want to do is write, you can find the time to do it.

This isn't a post about balance. Honestly, I'm a little sick and tired of people telling me I'm supposed to write, hold down a job, dedicate time to my relationship (when I'm in one), work out, cook beautiful meals, and still be social. When I'm in the middle of a draft, balance is the last thing on my mind. I go to work. I eat whatever I can make quickly. I sleep less than I probably should. I write whenever I can. My friends are used to me declining about half their invitations because I'm writing. I have very understanding friends. I try to make it up to them when I resurface for breath after a draft.

Last January I found an article I've long since lost about a NYC-based writer who works on the subway. I should do that, I thought.

Into my purse went a notebook and a pen. I promised myself that for at least one leg of my daily 45 minute commute to or from the Bronx I would scribble.* I've always thought of myself as a skeleton first drafter who does her best work during edits. The words didn't have to be good the first time they go on the page. They just had to be there. I could fix them later.

For a couple weeks I stuck to my plan. On my commute I would write. At night I would transcribe the handwritten pages and pick up where I'd left off. Wash. Rinse. Repeat. At the end of those two weeks I had close to 30,000 words of a first draft. I was stunned. Clearly I'd hit on something.

This is what I've realized since then. Fitting in writing time whenever I can isn't just about hitting a daily word count. Something happens when I transcribe from paper to computer screen. The words flow better. Perhaps it's because I'm not starting cold. Whatever the reason, it's the best feeling.

I've now written in bars waiting for dates because I am always, always early. I've scribbled in a Florida hotel room packed with 3 other women getting ready during a wedding weekend. My notebook comes out on the bus, in the back of cabs, and on airplanes. On trips home my family is used to seeing it during slow football games and while we're all lounging outside. I've even got sand in the thing from days at the beach. I'll write wherever I can lay my notebook flat.

How do you find the time to write? Do you block out time, or can you snatch a 15 minutes here and there like I do? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

*Of course there are hidden dangers in writing on the subway. I was so absorbed while writing this post on the train that I missed my stop and wound up 5 stations away on the express train. A small sacrifice in the name of getting things done.

A Change of Scenery

photo-1 I'm happy to be writing this blog post from my parents' backyard in Los Angeles. After a crazy summer with few chances to stop and catch my breath, I needed to get away from life in New York. When I want to relax and not worry about anything more pressing than when to walk the dogs or what to make for dinner I come here -- my home away from home.

Taking a vacation from my day job at the TV station doesn't mean I took a vacation from writing. Into my suitcase my trusty binder full of manuscript pages and outlines went. My iPad, a Moleskein I carry everywhere, and a ridiculously high number of pens made the trip too. The big deal isn't that I brought all of these things with me.  Instead it's that I promised myself I would actually use these tools. I haven't always been so good about making good on that.

Around this time last year I decided it was time for an author grow up moment. It was time to start treating writing as a full-time job. My friend Mary Chris Escobar has a great blog post about this. She's decided to own the phrase, "This is not your side hustle." I couldn't have said it better myself.  This isn't my side hustle.  This is my second career.

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Now I write on the subway to and from work. Sometimes, when I can squeeze in a lunch break, I take my iPad upstairs and do a little work in the cafeteria. I used to worry about my coworkers getting curious as I've decided not to start telling them I write until I had something to show for it (ie "My book is coming out next Fall," etc.). It turns out that most people aren't observant enough to notice.  This routine makes my writing goal -- five pages, five days a week -- a bit more attainable.  Sometimes I make it.  Sometimes I don't.  Sometimes it's complete drivel and I later leave the page bleeding with edits.  What matters is that I always sit down and write.

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Because I spend most of my days writing around my work schedule, going on vacation means plenty of unstructured time to work. It also means time to think. Saturday afternoon I took myself on a solo drive up the coast. I stopped somewhere over the Los Angeles County border in Ventura, and got out to put my toes in the surf and have a long think. I also brought that notebook I mentioned earlier with me. Good thing I did because as soon as my feet hit the Pacific the floodgates opened.

I now have a solid idea of the next characters I want to write about. They're taking shape in my mind, and I'm loving the process of getting to know them. At the same time, I'm barreling through the last third of what I've come to think of as "My sports novella," although it's starting to swell to novel-length proportions.  We'll see in revisions if it shrinks or grows.

I'm making my way back to New York Tuesday morning, so I'm saying goodbye to the luxurious, unstructured days of writing I've been enjoying.  It's just another thing I'll miss about leaving California along with the sunshine, family, and two rambunctious puppies who always make it interesting.

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When I'm Stuck

I've been a writing machine since I got back from RWA in early July.  I've been working hard on a new novella that I couldn't be more excited about.  It has a second chance at love and a secondary sports storyline.  Until two weeks ago the words flowed easy as can be.  Then I got stuck. When I'm not writing romance novels at my kitchen table, I'm a TV news producer.  That means I'm constantly writing for work.  I can proudly say I've never had writer's block in my professional life, but that's hardly surprising.  That world is deadline heavy, and there are no opportunities to dither.  If you don't write, you don't get paid, and momma needs new shoes.

Fiction writing has not always been so kind to me.  I used to fall victim to writer's block just like most people.  I would sit in front of the dreaded blinking cursor, stressing and stressing that I couldn't figure out what part of my story came next.  It was awful.

Then I realized this made no sense.  If I can avoid writer's block when I'm cranking out news copy each and every day, why can't I do avoid it when I'm writing romance?  The content might be different, but the process?  Not really.

Last week I felt writer's block trying to sneak up on me as I typed away at the kitchen table.  Immediately I deployed the two weapons I've learned work best for me.

1) Get over linear writing and write through the block.s0706554_sc7

I used to feel that if I wasn't pushing the story forward by churning out pages and pages of chronological action I was doing it wrong.  Now I sometimes set my timeline aside and work on whatever scene is knocking around in my head.  If that scene jumps to the very end of the novel, so be it.  The point is that I'm still writing.  My novel is still growing.

2) Change how you physically write.

A couple of years ago I learned that the most powerful thing that I can do to kick-start my writing is change how I put down words on the page.  I can't explain why, but for some reason moving from the computer to good old pen and paper is like magic.  I can't write as quickly as I type, and slowing down seems to really help.

Here's the one catch: I only use one kind of pen.  The Pilot Precise V5 Extra Fine Rollerball Pen in black is my weapon of choice.  For editing I use the red version of this pen.  The architect in my life says that everyone in his industry uses these for work because they create a fine line with rapid drying ink.  I use them because they feel right.  To each her own.

What tools to do you use to fight off writer's block?

Ready for RWA?

20130716-144823.jpgI'm not a terribly impatient person, but travel gods willing I will be at my very first Romance Writers of America conference in less than 24 hours. 24 very long hours. You see, Atlanta will be my very first RWA. I'm a little nervous, but the thought of meeting other romance writers and becoming part of this community is really exciting. Writing can be a very solitary thing. Hopefully after this weekend can help make it a little less lonely when the words just won't flow.

When I'm not writing I work as a TV news producer. This means I'm hardwired to love lists. I'm prone to backtime every event in my life so I know exactly where I should be when. I also research everything. It makes sense then that when I was feeling a little overwhelmed by the idea of going to RWA for the first time I turned to the internet for info.

I will, of course, be writing about RWA after I come back home to NYC, but I thought I would touch on a few things I was told I should know before heading to Atlanta:

1) Pack like a pro

Erin Knightley seems to be the reigning queen of conference packing. I've traveled all my life so I'm pretty efficient, but Erin's videos take it to the next level. One of the most helpful things about her posts, however, weren't the tips about making your clothes fit into that tiny TSA-approved bag. She gave me some perspective about what to wear. I've packed for a business casual dress code along with something pretty for the RITAs. And shoes. I love my stilettos (and yes, in case you were wondering, I can wear them 12 hours non-stop).

2) Prep for the swag

Books. This conference is all about books. Wonderful, romantic books. From what I can tell you're also given plenty of books to dive into when you get home. I thought I was a good little romance reader before I started to seriously get involved in the community on Twitter. Some of these ladies put me to shame. I can't wait to learn about authors I've never heard of before and read across subgenres when I get home.

Someone very clever told me I should pack a couple of USPS flat rate boxes with pre-printed postage into my suitcase. Those boxes are lining the top of my luggage and keeping me from bringing my entire wardrobe. There is a post office right near the conference hotel, so I hope to be able to just drop those boxes off and go along my merry way.

3) Pull my reporter cap on

Once upon a time a long time ago, I thought I wanted to be a reporter. Turns out I really didn't care about being on TV, and I wanted to be in charge of the newscast behind the scenes. I became a producer but not before putting some time in reporting for print, radio and TV. RWA is going to mean dusting off my old "Reporter Julia" personality.

When you're a reporter you're forced to walk up to total strangers, strike up a conversation and figure out if there's a story there. From what I've been told RWA is similar. I'm a newbie, and I know so few people that I'm going to have to be my friendliest. The good news? Everyone attending loves romance. Instant icebreaker.

So look for me. I'll be the blonde first-timer rocking the ridiculous high heels all conference long. I'd love to say hi!

Cracktastic White Tigers

Taming Lord RenwickCan an author escape having a blog? Probably not. Especially not in the romance world where the distance between author and reader seems to be shrinking thanks to Twitter and Facebook. So here we go. Time for my own blog!

I started writing romance because, like so many other authors, I was a reader first. I remember the first time I got my hands on a romance novel. I was a pre-teen at one of those remaindered bookstores that was dedicated to selling of the entire inventory of every bankrupt Crown Books in Los Angeles. Books are in my family's blood, so when my mother let my sister and me loose it was only natural that we should start poking around the stacks. Then 12-year-old Julia wandered into the romance section and fell in love.

The book that did it was a Zebra Regency Romance called Taming Lord Renwick. I can't explain why the absurd cover featuring a Jane Austen stand in gazing into the eyes of a mulleted man in britches did it for me. Oh wait, there's a giant White Bengal Tiger lying next to them. When you're 12 anything with tigers on it is an instant win. Then and there I decided I had to get my hands on what I would eventually come to call "romance crack."

And crack it was. Yes, there is a White Bengal Tiger. Yes, there is a mullet. But get this... Lord Renwick is BLIND so his tiger is really a giant, scary seeing eye dog. Romance crack!

From there it was a slippery slope. I've always read fast, but I found that I could rip through a romance in a few hours. From Zebra Regency I made a big jump in steaminess to Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series. I discovered I have a deep love of Westerns thanks to The Trouble with Josh from Harlequin. When I picked up Nora Robert's Midnight Bayou I was officially an addict.

During all those years of reading I started scribbling. I'll tell the story of my first unfinished manuscript another day (it's only somewhat horribly embarrassing). It took until I was in graduate school for me to decide to give writing a romance novel a serious shot. I looked up from my very serious master's project and thought, "I've got to do some fun writing or I'll lose my mind." The scribblings that I made that first night would three years later wind up in my first book.

That first book is a historical, and it's the one that landed me my wonderful agent Emily Sylvan Kim. Agent Emily encouraged me to try my hand at contemporary romance too, so I've now got a book I'm rewriting for submission. If you had asked me a year ago whether I thought I would have two books and an agent under my belt I would have laughed so hard I would have teared up. That will teach this skeptical author.

Like any unpublished author I'm waiting for The Call. One day I hope to join the ranks of women and men who write the wonderful romance novels that keep me reading late into the night when I should have turned the light off. For now, however, I am eternally grateful for the romance community on Twitter who has been nothing but supportive while I'm waiting.

So, here's to new beginnings and white tigers and cracktastic fiction!