Where do you get your ideas ? - Kate Walker

How did it get to September? That means that nine of the 12 Points on the 12th blogs are almost done.

I hope they've been interesting and some help to those of you who are trying to write your own books and aiming to get them published. If you're enjoying them, don't forget that there are a whole lot more details on how to write romance in the book from whihc the title of this mini-series is taken - Kate Walker's 12 Point Guide to Writing Romance. Just be sure to get the second edition which is revised, updated and expanded from the first one.

Today I'm taking a brief look at one of those questions - the one that every writer gets asked (often more than once) at every stage of their careers. And the question is:

Where do you get your ideas?

The honest answer is 'Life' - I have often tried to persuade my accountant that life is a claimable expense for a novelist but sadly I haven't yet managed it.

So here are some of the tips and techniques I use when trying to come up with a new idea. Because, believe me, after 55 books, it can be dificult to think of something fresh and interesting - and something I want to write.

TRAINING YOURSELF AS A PLOTTER

Read Read Read – learn the plots that make successful romances in the past and in the present – and the ones that have failed

Think about them – which ones can you still use?
Which ones will need changing to make them work today?
How?

How could you turn a plot on its head?
Have him kidnap her?
She wants the marriage of convenience?

Watch soaps/dramas/films – stop it halfway – or at the end of the episode – ask yourself:
Where is it going?
Who will end up with whom?
Why?
What conflict/problem/sudden revelation/black moment is the writer going to bring in?

How could you do it differently?
What twists could you bring in?
Who could they end up with instead?
What if . . .?

Read newspapers/magazines/watch people stories on TV – use them as your characters - see if you can see what will happen – check it against reality

How could you rework a fairy story – Cinderella? Beauty and the Beast? Or a classic ? Jane Eyre? Pride and Prejudice?

With every story you read, watch, hear - think about what was behind it, who is involved, why it happend - and consider what will happen next. Very soon just a phrase or even a name can spark you off.

I know. I once wrote a book (long ago) simply because I was determined to get into the story the line 'I don't know who the hell you are, but you're certainly not my wife!'

And if anyone can tell me which book that was I'll send them a special prize.

(c) Kate Walker

Kate's latest novel Bedded By The Greek Billionaire is out now in Mills & Boon Modern and will be published next month in Australia's Sexy Romance and in Harlequin Presents in November.

12 Points on the 12th with Kate Walker

Category romances have very specific word limits. Many other types of fiction too specify or suggest a word limit and even if they don't, it's often a good idea to watch your word count carefully. Too long a story can ramble, have a sagging middle, and end seeming far too heavy with more details than are really needed. It does all of us no harm at all to check that we are not being self-indulgent and writing far more than we need to.

Here's a question that I'm often asked - either exactly in this way or somehting very like it:

QUESTION: I've finished my novel and done a total word count - to find that I'm way over the limit. How does one cut 28 pages from a WIP?

Some years ago, I had an editor who was affectionately known as Ms C4P and the C4P stood for Cut-for-Pace. This is because when I - or any of her other authors - sent in a manuscript for her to read, inevitably, even if she passed it without any other revisions, it would come back with lines, paragraphs, sometimes even whole pages where she had put a pencil line down the side and the instruction 'Cut for pace'. After a while working with her, I very soon started to hear her voice in my head when I was writing, and I would soon start cutting for pace even before I'd sent the manuscript off - sometimes even as I was writing the words - I would be erasing them as fast as I wrote them.

Cutting your work to meet the strict word count of a Harlequin novel can be one of the hardest things for an author to do. We put a part of ourselves into these stories, we love every word we've written - we believe every word we've put into it is vital, essential to the story - and oh, so eloquently written. How could anyone ever ask us to cut it back?But an editor will. If your work is over the word count limit, you'll be asked to bring it under the maximum. If your story has lots of extra characters, events, secondary plots that are extraneous to the central romance, you'll be asked to reduce them. If you have proportionally a lot more narrative than dialogue, you'll be asked to change the balance to around 60% dialogue to 40% narrative. And even if your story fits exactly into the word count limit, very often a trained, objective, editorial eye will see places where the action slows, where the dialogue goes nowhere, where you repeat something you or your characters have said before, and her pencil will come out, a line will go through the passage and in the margin will be the words:

CUT FOR PACE

So how do you cut anything from a few hundred words to several thousand from your precious manuscript on which you've worked so hard?

First things first - you swallow your pride. You push away all thoughts of how much you 'just love this bit!' and you look at your work as coldly and objectively as you can. After all, that's what your editor is going to do. She isn't going to think, 'Oh but she had such fun writing this,' or 'This is where she put in something that her DH said to her once - a secret message between the two of them'. No way. She's going to decide that this doesn't really contribute to the story or that has been said already on pages 34 and 78 and really we've got the point by now. And she isn't going to be impressed by long, poetic descriptions of scenery or clothing or meals or the history of a particular place. To her it's going to look like padding and the pencil will cross it out.

The best thing you can do is to try and get there first - to do much of the cutting for her. If you're careful and clever then you'll create a tighter, pacier read at the same time -you might even improve on the slightly saggy middle - and that will help to give your manuscript the best possible chance.

So what do you cut?

Cut anything you’re already said
If you have a point to make between you characters, make it once as clearly as possible and then leave it to stand. You can refer back to it briefly, but don't keep belabouring the point. In short books like romances, even just one line repeated on several occasions can seem way too much.

Unnecessary description
Obviously you have to have brief descriptions here and there - what your characters look like - what they're wearing - what the room they're in looks like. But don't waste time and precious words going into elaborate details. The sad truth is that more often than not a reader will skim over any detailed descriptions so as to get on with the good stuff - the relationship between your H & h - so you're really wasting your time if you go into poetic descriptions. Make it short and sweet.

Dialogue that doesn’t make its point
Okay, so everyday dialogue is full of Good morning/How are you/Nasty weather . . . but you don't have space or word count for that. You don't really have the word count for any dialogue that doesn't reveal one character to another. The conversations your characters have should add to their knowledge of each other, reveal facts about the conflict that has come between them, explain why things happened. They - and you - don't have time just to pass the time of day. Make your dialogue count. And don't constantly keep getting them to the point of revealing something and then breaking off and saying, 'No - not now.' No one in real life would let that pass again and again and it becomes irritating repetition.

Excessive introspection
Yes, the reader wants to know what your H & h are thinking - but keep it short, sharp and to the point. One problem with introspection is that it's always in narrative - and it's always telling, not showing. If you spend time having your hero reflect on how the way the heroine is behaving reminds him of how his mother always used to act in front of her many boyfriends and so he . . . before you know it, you'll have lost the reader's attention - and they'll have lost their place in the dialogue. Keep introspection to a couple of telling sentences. If there is more that needs to be explained, then it should go into dialogue and be told to the heroine.

Introspection that has been done before, that doesn’t add anything new, that is indulgent
This is much like point number one - yes, your reader wants to get inside the H/h's head and understand them - but we don't need to know every last details of their life, their thoughts, their relationship with their parents and every single girlfriend/boyfriend they ever had. Only use introspection when it actually tells the reader something about the way the person Is feeling now.

Elaboration on minor points
Elaboration full stop
The reason a reader has picked up a romance is because she wants to read a ROMANCE. She doesn’t want a travelogue, a history lesson. You may be a world expert on horse racing, or martial arts – but are the details you’re putting in directly relevant to the ROMANCE? If not, they are padding, and padding will weigh down and slow down your story.

Too much detail/dialogue/description/action involving minor characters who take away the focus from the H&h and so diffuse the action
The story your reader wants is the story of the HERO and the HEROINE. They don’t want her sister’s troubles with her husband or his best friend’s long last girlfriend.. Any time you spend away from the central story weakens that plot and so the focus of the book. Of course, this varies according to the different lines – a Superromance can afford to have more of a secondary plot and more characters than, say a Presents – but as a general rule, and certainly when you are trying to cut for pace, the main relationship should always be your focus and you can afford to cut back on the lesser ones.

Scenes that only show one thing and so could be combined with another to tell a couple of things in one go
In a restricted word limit, you don’t have time to detail everything and give everything its single focus in the spotlight. Use each scene to it’s best advantage by making sure that it shows something about your H&h and their story. Don’t just have one scene where the heroine finds a photograph of the hero’s dead wife – put that together with an argument that leads to her blurting out that she has been married too - unhappily – and the repercussions from that will lead into a sensual reconciliation . . .

Family – families often get in the way in fiction – and in fact!
Don’t however fall into the trap of feeling that you have to kill off all the heroine’s parents and relatives – that will just turn your book into melodrama. But families could interfere – a brother or father wouldn’t stand for the way the hero is treating the heroine – so set up a scenario where the heroine is working away from home – or living in another country – or Mum & Dad have gone on a round the world cruise and won’t be back till Christmas. Then you won’t have to have scenes in which things have to be explained to them.

Lovemaking scenes that don’t show any development – that aren’t different from the last one
The point about a sex scene is not just to show that your H&h fancy each other - they are there to mirror the development of the relationship and show the changes in it. If your word count is too long and you have some love scenes , however well written and erotic, that are really just a long-winded way of saying ‘they made love again’ - then why not just say that. Besides, too many repetitions of lovescene, even passionate love scenes lose their impact and become a bit too much the same. Don’t waste them. Make them count – or cut them.

Long, detailed ‘getting to know you’ that could be summarised into ‘and then he told her about…’
The H& h need to learn about each other, especially if this isn’t a reunion story – but you don’t have to have ALL the story – summarise – He told her about his childhood in Texas, the happy days before his mother died, the change that came after . . .’
Quite often if you show the beginning of the conversation – ‘Tell me about . . .’ then like a film would ‘fade’ - focusing again on the ending ;’ . . .and that’s why I came to live in New York . . ‘


Scenes that do not have the H&h together should always be looked at in case they’re not really needed.
This is another point on the focus of the plot - that central relationship. So even if a scene is the heroine discussing her relationship with the hero, if it’s with her mother/her best friend, it can probably be expendable and a shorter, more direct way of just stating how she’s feeling can be found.

Detailed telling of action that could become ‘with one bound he was free’!!!!
For example – if your hero has been captured and tied up – then finds a piece of glass and cuts through his bonds- again you only need the beginning ‘Twisting the glass awkwardly in his restricted grip, he began to saw clumsily . . . Two hours later the last strand finally parted. With a sigh of relief he rubbed his hands, wincing as he touched the places where the glass had slipped and nicked him.’
You don’t have to go into every last detail of how long it took, how he kept dropping the glass, how he cut himself . . . Leave that to the reader’s imagination.

Factual background that weighs down the action – history of places/family histories/ clothing details/ training details
A romance isn’t the place to air your knowledge – you are telling a story never forget that.

Cutting always hurts – you’ve written it and you meant it to stay but….

The rule of thumb is – yes you may have written this wonderfully well – but is the fact that it’s well written enough justification for it staying in – what does it ADD to the book – if nothing/not much – why is it there?

(c) Kate Walker 2008

You can find out more about the 12 Point Guide to Writing Romance and how to buy it by visiting the Writers' page on my web site. There you'll also find details of my latest release - the complete collection of The Alcolar Family Trilogy in either a print version or a Harlequin ebook bundle.

Twelve Points on the 12th

I'm a bit late posting today - I've had a hectic week after an even more hectic weekend. I was at the UK's Romantic Novelists' Association Conference which was as enjoyable and busy as ever. Then I had a l-o-n-g drive home in some horrible weather conditions and I've spent the rest of the week trying to catch up - and being locked out of the internet. At last I've got back on in time to blog today (just!)

My blog today is inspired by a question I was asked several times at the Conference. And that is, what makes the difference between a Modern/Presents novel and the books that are published as Modern Heat in the UK, as Sexy Sensation in Australia - but are, confusingly, published as part of the Presents line-up in America. These are - as many readers are finding - not the typical Presents books that they have come to know. They may have some similar elements - an alpha type of hero,but perhaps one who is still making his way in the world, a feisty heroine,, a very sensual tone - but they are subtly and distinctly different and if you are aiming for this line in the UK where there are first published, it's worth taking a closer look at them.

Why is an Modern Heat not a Presents? in the UK Presents is Modern and Modern Heat is something else. They have a more youthful feel, and a hero who is on his way to power, rather than being a successful billionaire (though some of the USA titles would give you that impression) In the UK they are not being marketed as the same thing but as a distinct mini-line on their own. The Modern marks them out as ‘not Tender’

But you only have to consider the shout lines and the guidelines to see that there are very large and very real differences between the lines

So – the shout lines

Modern/Presents
International affairs. Seduction and passion guaranteed
Modern Heat
Sizzling, stylish, sensual – the ultimate temptation

Guidelines:Modern/Presents

Modern Romance is the home of intense emotion, international settings and a range of sensuality and moods. Climb on to a roller-coaster ride of fast-paced plots, relationship drama and sizzling attraction. Travel to the world’s most glamorous locations, where you’ll meet unforgettable strong men who make love in a variety of languages. Seduction and passion are guaranteed.
Novels in this series include stories that are intense with international settings, and are driven by alpha male heroes. The relationships portrayed are provocatively passionate, highly-charged conflicts and the plots are dramatic and compelling, and able to deliver on favourite core themes, such as marriages of convenience, mistresses and revenge.
This series has a consistently international focus. Readers particularly love settings such as the Mediterranean, Australia, the Caribbean and South America. Backgrounds must be sophisticated, glamorous, cosmopolitan – the habitat of the international jet-set. Life-styles of the rich and famous are what it’s all about.

Modern Heat
Take an international city background that vividly conveys the sophistication and buzz of cosmopolitan life, an independent woman, who knows what she wants from love and her career, and a guy who’s confident, easy-going, and gorgeously sexy – and you have Modern Extra.

These titles promise to deliver to the reader a feel-good experience, focusing on the kind of relationships that women between the ages of 18 and 35 aspire to. Young characters in urban settings – either North American or international – meet, flirt, share experiences, have great, passionate sex, and fall in love, finally making commitment that will bind them together, forever. Though their stories are firmly based around emotional issues, other concerns, - such as job and friendship – are also touched on and resolved in an upbeat way.


The important words here are:

MODERN/PRESENTS –
Intense emotion
Relationship drama
Driven by alpha male heroes
Provocatively passionate, highly charged conflicts
The plots are dramatic and compelling

MODERN HEAT
an independent woman, who knows what she wants from love and her career,
a guy who’s confident, easy-going, and gorgeously sexy –
a feel-good experience,
resolved in an upbeat way.

The important drive in a Presents/Modern romance is in the intensity of the emotions, the intensity of the conflict. There is no ‘feel-good’ experience in a Presents until the very resolution. The conflicts are ‘highly-charged’ and can tear the H&h apart both physically and emotionally.

Modern Heat has a much lighter touch, a much younger feel. It's been described as Presents Younger Sister. There is scope in a Modern Heat or humour and fun – very little scope for that in a Presents /Modern. The Modern Heat tends to be the heroine’s story – so it bridges the gap between Modern and Tender (Presents and Romance)

If you want to know more then, as always, the best way is to read - read the classic Presents style authors and contrast them with books by Modern Heat authors now published in Presents like Trish Wylie, Kate Hardy, Heidi Rice, Kelly Hunter

Or compare books in both lines by established Presents authors like Susan Napier, Susan Stephens, Lucy Monrow - and see the different styles of books that these authors are writing for the different lines.

12 Points on the 12th - with Kate Walker

Are you writing in the right century ? Or even in the right decade?

No, I’m not talking about writing historical novels here, I thinking about the way that some would-be authors ruin their chances by writing the sort of dated novel that might have been wanted, even very popular, some years- some decades ago. But now time has moved on and this is the last sort of thing that an editor is looking for.

I was thinking about this last week when I was lucky enough to be invited to the opening of the Mills & Boon Centenary Exhibition – “And then He Kissed her” - in Manchester Central Library. The exhibtion covers, obviously, the history of the company from 1908 when it was founded right up to the present day. And nothing showed more clearly and more strikingly how far the company, the books, and the writing styles have come than the different styles of the covers on display in the big glass cases.

There were books from the 1930s and 40s and 50s, obviously meant to appeal to fans of Cary Grant, Douglas Fairbanks with tall, conservatively dressed heroes with , short dark hair brushed back and Brylcreemed into glossy, (greasy) waves. There were the first paperbacks of the 1960s onwards, with chiselled jawed heroes and elegant heroines in evening gowns . On Call Sister was a typical title – or perhaps Five Shilling Holiday or even Mystery at Butlins. And then there was the case that showed the modern romance novel – with titles like Mission to Seduce or 91/2 Days.

So many critics look at the masses of romances on the shelves and see the way that they are all produced in such a similar format and they jump to the wrong conclusion that these books must all be the same inside. In the same way some uniformed people will claim that romance writing hasn’t changed since 1908. That all the books are just the same as they were in their grandmother’s day, with a demure kiss and perhaps a crushing hug being the only demonstration of affection. They are stunned to find that romance writers have ‘discovered’ sex and that we actually are prepared to go well beyond that bedroom door.
But would-be writers know better – don’t they? They know what the up to date romance is like. They read it and enjoy it and learn from it - or do they?

I was once at a romance writers’ conference where an unpublished writer came up to me and asked if she could discuss the plot she had for what she hoped would be her first published Mills & Boon /Harlequin novel. She was convinced that she had the most amazing, unusual, original plot. One that no one else would have thought of. One that would surely win her a lot of acclaim from the editors.
So she was shocked when I had to say that this plot had been written before - lots of times.
Did she read romances? I asked her. Oh yes, she told me – lots. But closer questioning showed that what she were rather elderly novels – book that were more than ten years old. When I pointed this out to her she frowned then said, ‘Well how have they changed in the last ten years?’ Read the books I said.

I’ll be willing to bet she didn’t. She was not only one of the people who believes that romances haven’t changed with the times, she had also stopped reading at the point she liked them best, and she was trying to recreate the books from the late 80s. And that just didn’t work in 2000+

The 1970s/80s were also the times when every perfume was named, when the designer of the dress or the handbag would be mentioned. I remember using one afternoon of a holiday in the duty-free shop doing research for the designer fragrance my next heroine would be wearing. Then almost everything the heroine wore was described in precise detail right down to the last stitch in the hem. But fashions change so quickly and what would have been a very glamorous and fabulous outfit could very soon become a dated frock-horror from the decade that time forgot.

It’s not just the fashions in clothes and hairstyles that date a book. It’s social behaviour, the types of heroes who are popular, relationships between men and women, jobs . . .

My second book, Game of Hazard, had a hero who smoked. In fact those cigarettes were fairly important in the plot as his initials were etched into his lighter (he had amnesia and didn’t know who he was) and when he went to find his car where it was crashed, he brought back several packs of cigarette with him. I don’t think I could get away with that now – nor would I want to because I’ve long since given up smoking. But I think I’d have a hard time creating a hero who regularly smoked. And the aristocratic hero, with his family stately home somewhere in the green hills of the UK is no longer the immediate pull he used to be. Princes yes – but perhaps even they are starting to have had their day.
So when you are reading, remember to read as a writer. I’m not saying don’t read the older books – there are some fantastic stories by fabulous authors. But always think about whether these stories will still work today. Once upon a time the hero always had a friendly, motherly housekeeper who looked after him – or perhaps a butler. Does anyone actually have a ‘faithful retainer’ these days?

And what about language? Will the slang phrase you want your heroine to use still be popular when someone reads her story? Will ‘awesome!’ have the right effect when the book is published or will it be strange and out of place - as ‘swinging’ or ‘fab’ or ‘most excellent, dude’ might have been when out of the time in which they were so popular.

So when you’re reading keep the present popular fiction market in mind. And when you’re writing, remember that you hope that readers will be buying you book for years to come. My Alcolar Family Trilogy (2004) is being reprinted in both book and ebook form this summer and just yesterday I received a reprint of a book that had originally been published in 1995 Don’t date your books with very topical references or mentions of a very fashionable trend of the time. You can be sure that would sound so ‘old hat’ to a reader, possibly even just after the book is published.

Remember that every book you buy this week was probably written months, possibly even a year ago, My current title, Spanish Billionaire, Innocent Wife was written in March-May 2007 so it was already a year old by the time it was released.

In some ways, a romance writer needs to be something of a fortune teller, writing a book now that they hope will be popular 12 months in the future – or even more. So be careful and keep alert for all the little points of style, of fashion, of character – even the perfume your heroine wears. You want your book to be every bit as appealing in the future as it is now when you’re writing it.
And don’t date it before it’s even been bought by following the trends and styles of bygone days. Not if you’re writing contemporary romance anyway – historical stories are a very different matter.

What about you? Did you love the older books and think the latest ttiles are just not the same? Who were your favourite authors - and would you stillread them today?

Or what about the sort of things in a story that 'date' it for you? Are there fashions right now that you think are on their way out? Things that just won't be around - or shouldn't be around by this time next year? Have you ever thought bout the tiny clues by which a book gives away the decade, maybe even the year in which it was written?

12 Points on the 12th by Kate Walker

I recently celebrated a birthday (no, I’m not admitting how old!) and that started me thinking about the way that something as basic as when they were born can influence the creation of a character when you’re writing a book. I don’t just mean when they were born, say 34 years ago, so that is their age at the beginning of the book, but other, more intriguing aspects of the influence of their birth.

Some authors like to use astrology as a way of getting into the nature and personality of their hero and heroine. There are books that go into great details about the way that your birthdate and so star sign affect your personality and your relationship with others. Books like Sun Signs by Linda Goodman detail the different characteristics of the Leo man or the Gemini woman – and discuss how they relate to each other. You can also take this further if you read Love Signs or Relationship Signs by the same author.

You don’t even really have to believe deeply in astrology to get something from books like these because, if you put aside the fact that the descriptions are headed ‘Taurus Female’ and ‘Scorpio Male’, you still get useful information and ideas about the way that a woman with this sort of personality will interact with a man of a particular type. Just knowing what things about each other will ‘rub them up the wrong way’ or where they might find an unexpected connection can often spark ideas either for the conflict in a book or the way that conflict might be resolved.

But another way of looking at when your characters were born and the way this can affect their personality is that of their birth order in the family. And this one had a particular interest for me when I was writing my latest Harlequin Presents novel, Spanish Billionaire, Innocent Wife.

Its amazing how brothers and sisters with the same parents, upbringing and life experience end up with such different personalities and interests. One school of though believe that your place in the family has a huge influence on how you'll turn out, determining everything from the type of career you'll choose to the type of person you'll become.

Although it's officially classed as 'pop psychology' its easy to believe that where you're born in relation to your siblings really does have an effect on how you'll turn out. Your place in the family hierarchy influences everything from the amount of 'quality time' you spend with your parents as an infant to whether you're the trail blazer or baby of the family all of which must have some impact on your expectations of, and the way you interact with, the 'outside world'.

Some believe that there are a certain set of identifiable characteristics that go with each birth position, and this is what they say:

First borns

For a while at least first borns receive the undivided attention of their parents. Being the first to do everything can mean you're doted on and overprotected while at the same time under great expectation to succeed. For this reason first borns are often perfectionists. Determined to live up to their own and their parents high expectations they hate to mess up and so are often quite cautious and unwilling to take risks. First borns can be fiercely ambitious and driven to succeed which is perhaps why more first borns are in 'high powered' jobs than any other sibling position.

On the other hand first borns have to make the transition from only child to sibling. Parents often encourage the eldest child to take on extra responsibility and 'be a grown up' to their baby brother or sister and while this can make first borns very caring towards others it can also make them very strong willed and quite stubborn when it comes to new ideas and ways of doing things.

Middle children

More than anything middle children are different from their elder siblings, having never been the 'only one' they've got to fight for their parents attention somehow! Middle children sometimes act out to fight for attention, enjoy winding up their siblings and often adopt a hard done by attitude to life (characteristics often put down to middle child syndrome).

As they aren't the trail blazer of the family, middle children often have fewer expectations and less pressure to succeed placed on them by their parents and so are more likely to follow the life path they want to. They are often very sociable, have great people skills and lots of friends. Middle children often have good negotiation skills too, probably from the years of practice they've had competing with their older brother or sister!

The youngest child

The youngest child is often spoiled and treated as the baby of the family. As their older siblings have been there and done it all before they have far fewer expectations placed on them by their parents and so tend to be more impulsive and egocentric than their brothers and sisters. Having grown up as the baby, youngest children have to fight to be heard and so are often quite gregarious and outgoing. They also often have their parents wrapped around their little finger and are much more likely to get away with things than their brothers and sisters. As they have had so few constraints put on their development by their parents youngest children tend to follow more artistic pursuits and take more risks than older siblings, although they still tend to be treated as the baby even when they're grown.

The only child

Only children are very much like first borns in that they are blessed with the undivided attention of their parents, although this carries on uninterrupted through their childhood and beyond. For this reason only children often spend a lot of time with grown ups and so can be quite advanced for their years and can also be quite eager to please. However, having never had to learn to share only children can be quite egocentric and many have awful time keeping skills.

As only children don't have playmates on hand they have to learn to entertain themselves and so are often quite happy in their own company using hobbies to keep themselves amused. They tend to be quite independent as adults although just as the only child are often pampered by their parents right on into adulthood.

In Spanish Billionaire, Innocent Wife, both my hero, Raul Marcin, and heroine Alannah Redfern are born into a particular position in their family. Raul is the middle child, the second son, with a third child, as sister, who is younger than him. Alannah is the first-born, the older sister to her brother, Chris. So they start off with those roles as defined in the notes above. But Raul’s older brother died young, as a child, and so immediately he became like the first born, deeply responsible and ambitious, determined to succeed. In the present day too, when then tragedy intervenes, it changes both their lives in so many ways. One of which is that they are no longer in quite to same position in the family as they had been before. And part of the way that they adjust to that change also means that they behave differently towards each other as a result.

Spanish Billionaire, Innocent Wife is a story about family as well as the central relationship of the hero and heroine and so the ideas of birth order were particularly useful when thinking about this plot and, most importantly, about the characters at the centre of it. But what really matters is that this idea, or that of the astrologers with their star signs, give us useful tools, possible different ways to look at the characters we are creating and go deep into their personalities. And when you’re writing a romance where the characters are absolutely central to the story, any techniques like these are a great help in giving those characters depth and substance.


What about you? Where were you born in your family? And do you think that these definitions of the way that position affects you are true for you?

If you’re interested, I’m a middle child, and I think a lot of it is true for me. Let me know what you think and I’ll get Sid the Cat to pick a name at random from the posts to win a signed copy of my June book Spanish Billionaire, Innocent Wife so you can read about Raul and Alannah for yourself. You can read more about this title - and all the others I have coming up soon by visiting my web site here.

12 Points on the 12th - the new edition!

In a slight change from the actual 12 Points blog , today I’m so pleased to be able to talk about the brand-new, second edition of the 12 Point Guide published this week. I'm really thrilled to be able to say that this second edition is being published and I've been working hard to make it even bigger and better than the first one.

Why did I want to write a second edition?

Well, first there's the obvious reason - the fact that the first edition sold out.

That meant that no one can get a copy any more, unless they found one second-hand. Even Amazon doesn't have any used copies available.Well - they do - if you want

a A copy sent from Lebanon. I think that's Lebanon NY

b. A used copy for £60-82 - £60-82!!!!

c. A 'like new' copy for £67 - 40

I think not!

And no way am I claiming that my book is worth 6 - nearly 7 times what it originally cost.

Then there was the fact that some of the information in the original edition needed updating - for example, there were the names of some lines - Mills and Boon 'Tender Romance' was back to being just Mills & Boon Romance. And Silhouette Romance had merged with that line to be Harlequin Romance.Then there was the Modern Extra line which is now selling as Modern Heat. . . Nothing stays exactly the same in romance publishing for very long.And that includes the focus of the different lines, there are changes in the guidelines and the things that editors are looking for in submissions.So obviously it was time to plan a second edition.

But I also decided that if I was going to bring out a second edition, it was going to be an improved and expanded new edition as well as a revised one. I know a lot about writing romance but there are some things that only the authors who write for specific lines really know about.And so I decided that the best way to make the book even more helpful would be to include advice from the horses' mouths so to speak. Only I didn't call it that - I called this new section From The Authors' Desks. I sent out questionnaires to lots of my wonderful friends who write romance for many different lines - and 21 of them answered.

But I'm thrilled to be able to say that the new edition is not only revised and updated, it also has this 40+ pages extra with advice and tips from 21 currently published authors. Authors like Michelle Reid, Anne McAllister, Sandra Marton in Presents, Liz Fielding, Natasha Oakley, in Romance, Trish Wylie and Julie Cohen in Modern Heat (Trish in Romance too!) - and Kate Hardy in Mod Heat and Medicals - along with Gill Sanderson and Margaret McDonagh. And in Historicals there's Nicola Cornick and Michelle Styles. . . and that's only as a taster.

There's also Holly Jacobs from Harlequin Everlasting - er - Superromance (see there's another of those lines that came and went) and Yvonne Lindsay from Desire. Hopefully, whatever line you're aiming for you'll find something to help you there.

And it won't cost you £ 67-00 - I promise!

No, this new expanded edition will be exactly the same price as the first edition - that's £10.99 in UK money.

From the actual publication date- I will be holding a special launch party on my blog with many of the authors who contributed to the From the Authors' Desks section joining me in the celebrations - and many of them are offering prizes too. So don't miss out on that.

And I'll be answering questions in the Writers' Q&A as well. So I hope I'll see you here.

Oh -and as I've been asked for these details - here's what you need if you want to order the 12 PGTWR 2

The details you'll need are:

12-Point Guide to Writing Romance
(Studymates Writers Guides)

By Kate Walker

2nd Rev Ed edition

Pub April 8th

RRP: £10.99

Publisher: Studymates Ltd

ISBN: 978-1842851319

In America you should be able to order it from Barnes & Noble, Borders, Chapters/Indigo - just tell them to order it through Transatlantic Publishers

If you're in America and you'd like a neat way to remember these details, then Lee has some lovely bookmarks with all the info you'll need. If you'd like one of these and a free Kate Walker pen - then send an SASE (USA postage naturally) to:

Lee Hyat

Kate Walker Goodies

4411, 76th Ave. West # 2

University Place,
WA 98466

If the envelopes are addressed as above, then Lee will know what you're interested in.

But if you want a chance to be one of the very first people to own a signed copy of this brand new edition, then I have one that I'm offering as a prize here on this blog.I don't know if you've ever visited my web site then you'll know that the way I pick the winners for my contests is that I don't pick them - my cat Sid does! I put all the names on pieces of paper with a cat treat on the top of each one, and the first one that Sid picks is the winner.

So Sid will be picking a winner for me for this prize - and I'll throw in a signed copy of one of my Presents books and a special Kate Walker book bag as well.

All you have to do is to post in the comment s section - tell me about your writing, what lines you're aiming for - or why you'd like to win the 12 Point Guide - I'd love to hear from you.

And so would Sid - the more answers we get, the more cat treats he has to eat his way through!

And if you get a chance I hope you'll come along to the launch party over on my blog - there will be more prizes to win over there too. Hope to see you there.

12 Points on the 12th with Kate Walker

For today's point, I want to take a look at Prologues and Epilogues.

Recently I had a writer email me and ask me whether she should start her book in a certain place, and then jump forward a couple of years to tell the main story, or whether she should start at that point a couple of years later - or should she put the past into a Prologue and then move into the main story.

Some authors love Prologues, some- and I'm usually one of them, will avoid them like the plague. But in a recent book of mine (Sicilian Husband, Blackmailed Bride) my editor really wanted a Prologue showing the hero and heroine happy together so that the events of a year later (the ones I had as the starting point of the book as it was ) hit home with more impact.

I'll admit I wasn't keen. I argued, almost dug my heels in, but then I rethought. And I saw what she was trying to get me to achieve with this particular prologue and I realised she was right. So I agreed, and wrote the Prologue. And I'm really glad I did because every time I open that book, I'm very happy with the impact it has. But, as a general rule, I don't really like Prologues.

The first thing to be sure of with a Prologue is that it's really necessary.

Because one of the real problems with a Prolgue is that by it's very nature it usually involves writing something that delays the start of the 'real' book - the reason why the reader has picked it up in the first place - and that is the development of the romance between your hero and heroine. A romance is a short book and the reader expectation is that it will concentrate - guess what - on the romance story.

Prologues usually set up something that one or other of them is unaware of and so you need to be careful that it doesn't have the reader hanging on, wondering justwhen the other central character will come in

The other problem that I have with prologues is the same as the one I have with too much back story. Obviously if the past has a major effect on the actions and feelings of the characters in the present time, then that needs to be shown - but it doesn't necessarily need to be acted out. It can be explained by one of your characters - bringing in much needed dialogue or you can use (carefully) flashbacks. But again the reason why the reader is reading your book is to see the relationship developing in the present - and how they move on from that past.

I'll be honest and say that when I see the word Prologue - which inevitably means something before the real action of the book starts, then I'm always wondering just why this couldn't be woven into the main story. It can look like the author 'writing themselves in' to the main story which doesn’t take off until the next section.

Epilogues are slightly different. I completely agree that where. there has been a lot of emotional damage, there is a need to show that the healing has worked. But again I do think it's very important to show a lot of that healing in the actual main body of the book. It's part of the Black Moment/satisfying Happy Ending combination that needs to be there not just to bring you characters together but to show that they have grown and moved on emotionally so that they are ready to overcome the fear, the guilt, the doubts. If there is so much of that that the HEA has to be 'proved' later by showing how they are still together you need to be careful that there hasn't been enough healing in the book itself.

Sometimes I have used an epilogue - for example, when the plot hinged around the death of a baby as a result of Cot Death/SIDS - the reader needs the reassurance that in the future this tragedy did not happen again.

But the epilogues I really dislike are the ones that look like padding - the detailed description of the elaborate wedding/christening/whatever when this feels like padding - bringing the word count up to requirements when that could have been used so much more valuably by adding to the conflict or the resolution of that conflict - something that showed character development rather than embroidered the already happy ending.

Now for some news. I spent this weekend working with the publisher of the 12 Point Guide to Writing Romance. Ever since we had the news that the first editon of this book had sold out, we've been planning a second edition and that will be coming very soon. And in order to launch it I will be running a special week long (or perhaps a bit longer if there's enough interest) Writers' Q&A over on my blog. This will probably be coming up in April but obviously I have to have some questions to answer if I'm going to run it.

So if you have any writing questions you'd like me to answer then email them to me . Please put Writing Q&A in the subject line. And then I'll answer them on my blog - or maybe here in one of the 12 Points.

And don't forget - the contest to win one of the remaining of the 12 Point Guide to Writing Romance is still open over on My Tote Bag. Lee has two copies to give away together with a Kate Walker tote bag and some other goodies. Entries need to be in by March 15th, so get your entries in today.

12 Points on the 12th with Kate Walker

First of all, I have some great news about my book - The 12 Point Guide To Writing Romance. (well - it's great news for me! If you've been looking for a copy, it might not be quite so great for you.)

I heard from my publisher last week and this book is now officially SOLD OUT. He shipped the very last copies from the wharehouse and there are none left. There might be some around on Amazon.com or B&N .com - but not many!

But if you want a chance to win a copy of this book, Lee actually has not one but two copies of it to offer as a prize in a contest and she'll be setting that up on My Tote Bag very soon - so look out for that or for the details on my blog too.

So for today's 'point' - I'd like to look at Conflict a bit more. On my blog, I wrote a bit about this in my mini-series of hints about Writing For Presents with reference to the Harlequin Presents Instant Seduction contest, where I wrote:

It's the emotional intensity that makes a Presents novel - and to create that emotional intensity you need to have a strong and emtional conflict.

The Instant Seduction Contest is still going on - just - so I'd like to add a little more to that thought about conflict and what makes a good one - and how you can deepen and intensify it by

Adding layers to a conflict

Very few reasons for conflict, however powerful, can actually last through the whole of a book without changing, adapting, developing, or just varying in tone and emphasis. The best sorts of conflicts are those that have layers and layers of involvement, and as each one is dealt with and peeled away, it reveals another complication, another aspect of the same problem, or a different development of it, going deeper and deeper until finally the central core of the problem is exposed, ready for you characters to tackle it.

This pacing and staging of the revelations that make up the conflict adds to the suspense and the tension that keeps the reader turning the page. It also has the bonus of increasing and building on the sexual tension between the hero and heroine as they want more and more to be together but feel more and more that it will be a mistake/a danger/a disaster.

I tend to start out with a main character - either the hero or the heroine and a situation that they are in - okay - classic secret baby conflict (overused - but it's quick and easy)

So she has a baby - So what happened in the past?

Why didn't she stay with the father/tell him about the child ?

The answers to that will give me some more idea of what the conflict issues will be -

- She left him because she knew he never wanted children and she feared he would force her to choose between the baby and him and she knew she could never have a termination

Next - What is going to bring the two together

He comes back into her life Why? Has he been looking for her - or is it by accident

The answer to that will give me an idea of how he's feeling and so how he's going to react when they meet again.

Then putting the two together creates the initial conflict.

Short term conflict - She doesn't want him to know about the baby He believes she walked out on him for someone else

Long term conflict - the unresolved problem of the fact that he doesn't want children and she does and he thinks she has a new man in her life

So - the first conflict we see is that she hides the child's existence That's stage one

Stage two: - But then he sees her with the child - doesn't realise it's hers - a different conflict - should she tell him or not?
Especially as he is clearly taken with the child

Stage three : Her friend gives away the fact that the baby is hers

He now knows about the baby - but thinks it is younger than it really is - so the conflict shifts again He thinks the baby is with her new man and that's why she left. Same original conflict - but it's changing and reshaping with additional information

Stage Three - He gets to know the child - thinking it's someone else's. Then he finds out the truth

A new slant on this stage - how will he react to the realisation that he's been deceived ? He also has to face the fact that it was his own refusal to have children that made her hide the child in the first place

Stage Four: He comes to love the child - but does he love the heroine?

He explains why he didn't want children Which adds another complication.

They are building peace in order to care for the child but is there any more to it?

Black Moment He has fallen in love with his baby and insists that he wants more than just access - he wants the child in his life The heroine sees this as a demand to take the child from her - that he wants the baby not her

So you see, this all started from the original conflict of him not wanting children but not saying why

Which leads her to react in one way

And he reacts to that - which changes the situation.

And she reacts to the changed situation . . . .

So the way to develop a deep, emotional conflict is to work from the inside - to go with the characters' feelings and the way they react to each stage of the developing conflict. That reaction will spark off an answering reaction in the other person - emotional reactions, not conflicts created by outside forces.

And because the reactions, the emotions and so the conflicts come from deep inside the characters' hearts, the conflict in the book will have the emotional punch that editors are looking for.

If you want to see these changes in action - the book is HIS MIRACLE BABY (Presents Feb 02)

So Lee will set up the 12 Point Guide Contest but today's prize from me is a copy of my best-selling Presents title The Greek Tycoon's Unwilling Wife. This is the book that came out in November and you don;t have to answer a writer question for it. Seeing as Valentine's Day is coming up, tell me your favourite Valentine memory. (Mine is the year that my husband and I both bought each other the same card - because we'd both loved it and wished we could be given it instead of giving it to someone!)

Post your answers and I'll get that cat of mine to pick a winner.

You can find more about Kate Walker on her web site or on her blog

12 Points on the 12th with Kate Walker

Starting out . . .

Some time ago, I was talking with Lee and we were discussing the possibility of doing something for writers on My Tote Bag. We discussed doing on-line workshops but weren’t sure of the take up for them. So we decided to test the water with a series of Writing Blogs, to see how much interest there is.


So, here I’m starting the first of the 12 Points on the 12th. This title obviously links in to my award winning 12 Point Guide to Writing Romance, but the blogs should add to rather than repeat the advice and exercises in that book. So if you already have a copy of the 12 Point Guide, then these blogs won’t just repeat what’s in there – though they may cover some of the same ground.
What I want to do is to run this as I often run a workshop that I actually teach. So, in that case, the first session would be Getting to Know you.
So many people tell me that they would write a book if they had the time, that they could easily write a romance because writing romance is no problem at all, that they cold write a better romance than so many they’ve read. Oh yes, and they know all about romances and what they’re like- everyone knows that.

But if I ask for the title of the last romance they read – or the author – they are suddenly struck dumb, unable to think of anything. They don’t know if they want to write for Romance or Presents, or Medicals. And they have no idea what makes a ‘Modern Heat’ (in the UK) or what makes a Silhouette Special Edition different from a Silhouette Desire. They don’t even seem to know what they prefer, because they haven’t read enough. Romance publishing today is divided into so many lines, each with its own individual tone and style, so you need to know not just that you want to write romance but what type so that you can find that individual ‘voice’ that is truly yours.

So the start of a new year seems like a good point to pause, think, and take stock. Take stock of yourself as an individual and as an individual writer. What are your aims (other that getting published) what resources can you bring to the books you want to write – life experiences, studies, job experiences . ..

Why do you want to write? This may seem like an obvious question, but the truth is that publishing – in any area at all – is such a competitive field that there is no way I or any other tutor can promise you that you will be published, no matter how hard you try, how many classes you attend or books you read. So before we start out, you have to accept that if you’re only doing this to be published worldwide, make lots of money and become incredibly famous, then you’re not likely to find much happiness in your writing. But if you want to write because you have stories burning in your head, characters who talk to you at the most inappropriate moments – if you want to set out of this journey to enjoy the trip, rather than simply to get to the destination, then you’ll get a lot out of writing and learning to write the best way you can, no matter what the end result might be.

The other reason for taking stock of yourself is that no publisher, whether of romance or not, is looking for a copy of anything that has gone before. The romance world is not looking for a new Betty Neels, or another Penny Jordan, or Lynne Graham – they have those already. What they are looking for are not pale copies but fresh new individuals. In romance writing it is very difficult to be original – most plots have been done before - but you can be authentic. You can write in a way that is unique to you.So take a look at the best asset you have – yourself. What do you bring to your writing?

What are the experiences you’ve had – the jobs you know about, the places you’ve live, the people you’ve known. Even if you’ve lived in the smallest town in the most rural part of the country you will have met thousands of people already in real life- and many thousands more in fiction.

That’s another thing you need to consider. What are you like as a reader? What books have you read and loved – maybe read again and again, over and over? What books have lived in your memory long after you’ve finished them? Because the books you read, the ones you pick instinctively, and enjoy the most, tell you what sort of stories you most relate to – the ones you’ll probably be most likely to tell well.

If you can’t handle strong emotions and intense passions, then you’re unlikely to be able to write the intensity that a Presents novel needs. And if you have no experience of the world beyond a small country town then the sophisticated, worldly settings these books use are not likely to come easily to you. But those same characteristics that could be a problem for one line could be much more of an asset for a writer who’s aiming for the Romance line.

When asked what is the best advice I can give to a new writer – someone who is just starting out with the aim of writing their first novel – of any sort – my answer is always the same – READ.

Read, read, read – and then read some more. Read a variety of stories, from a variety of lines. See which ones appeal to you, not just as a story but because of the characters they contain, the places they’re set in, the tone of the story , the type of conflict there is between the hero and heroine. Read to see the differences between all the lines, to see which one seems the best ‘fit’ for you. If you’re aiming at a single title, learn the different ways and tones in which a story can be told – it’s not just ‘this happened and then that happened and then that happened. . .’ Make notes, and analyse, to see which line feels like ‘home’. That way, you’re creating a sort of writing map for yourself, so that when you set out on your own journey to create a fictional world and the characters who people it you’ll have a much better idea of what you can bring to your story as a writer and how you should think about writing it.

For some of you this will be easy. Others will have a more difficult time deciding just where there voices belong. I know this from experience – in my 53 + titles, I have 12 that were published in Harlequin Romance, the others in Presents. I just wrote the first books, without any idea of targetting or aiming for any particular line. But I’m not naturally a Romance writer. I’ve been much happier, and much more successful since I focussed on where my voice really belonged – where I was writing my most authentic books.

So this month take some time to take stock of yourself as a person, as a reader and as a writer. You are your own best resource as a writer so get to know that resource really well. Start creating that ‘writing map’ that will show your where best to begin – and where you really should be heading. Avoiding false starts and wrong directions will save you a lot of time and heartache from rejections.

Questions? Comments?

I have a copy of the 12 Point Guide to Writing Romance to give away - together with my latest book, the Greek Tycoon's Unwilling Wife. Just post any questions you have - or tell me what book it was that made you feel 'I want to write like that!' What line are you really aiming for and why?

The more you join in the more I can direct my writing blogs to what you want to know.

And in the run up to the Harlequin Presents Instant Seduction Contest I'll be posting some other writing hints on my own blog so why not come along and take a look there too?

Counting down and looking forward - by Kate Walker

I love Christmas. I love the way that it brightens up the dark, cold (well, it's cold here in the UK) days of December with decorations and celebrations, I love the way that, when it's celebrated right, it brings together loved ones from near and far, puts you in contact with people you don't connect with the rest of the year, and brings friends and warmth into your life and home.

I just had my traditional early Christmas with a group of very special writer friends who all come to stay at my home for a long weeked. They've only just left, that's why I'm a little late writing this blog. We ate a lot, drank some wine, visited 'Christmas World' in a nearby village. We played silly games, laughed a lot, some of us had things they needed to shed a tear or two over as well. And we talked and talked and talked . . .

There were different generations gathered together too - one of my friends couldn't make it last year because the birth of her baby was very close. This year, her almost one year old son joined us for the weekend - hopfully the first of many such visits by him and other new members of the 'family of friends'.

For a time, for various reasons, I'd been feeling too stressed to think of Christmas without worrying but this weekend has brought home to me just what it's really all about.

It's about sharing. About reaching out to other people and letting them know that they are important in your life. And that includes my readers. Every year as Christmas approaches, I run several contests to involve my readers in my Christmas celebrations. To reach out to them and let them know how much I appreciate them and how grateful I am to all the readers who buy my books and so keep me writing and published next year and for years (hopefully) to come.

Like this post, I'm a little late with organising this but now I'm in the Christmas mood I'm organising my 12 Days of Christmas contest and the details will go up on my web site just as soon as I can get them there. And then here on My Tote Bag Leena will be running my 12 Days of Christmas contest. Every day for 12 days leading up to Christmas I'll be giving away a signed copy of one of my books and a little extra Christmas Gift to all the lucky winners. So why not check out my blog or my Contest page on my web site soon to see when the contest is starting?

The other thing I do is ask my readers to help me with my Christmas Charity Card. I would love to be able to send you all a Christmas card to wish you all the happiness of this special season, but the planning and organising of all that is just impossible - so I'm going to be doingwhat I did last year, and that is to give a real, practical gift tothose in need instead of cards. Last year's gift was a batch of essential medicines for a whole village - that was the choice voted for by most of the visitors to the blog. So this year I'll be running the poll again and I hope you'll drop byand vote for your choice of special gift that I'll be sending this year. It is, after all, in place of a card to say thank you to each and every one of you for your support for me all through this year.

And as I did last year, I will be posting up a special cyber card foryou all on my web site from December. I have at least got that organised and it's up on my web site from today so I hope you'll come by and see that.

And looking forward? Well when 2008 dawns, Lee and I have some plans that we hope will interest those of you who want to be writers of romance as well as readers. Today's blog is on the 12th of the month and from January 2008 I will be regularly posting on the 12 of each month and then I will be talking about writing - 12 points on the 12th. Because, of course, my award winning guide to writing Romance is called the 12 Point Guide to Writing Romance. And I hope to have some exciting news about that to tell you very soon. So I hope you'll come by and join me for that too.

And to celebrate Christmas with all the readers of this blog, and too look forward to those special posts, I'm going to offer a special prize today. I have 2 copies of the 12 Point Guide To Writing Romance to give away - and if you're lucky I'll put in a copy of my current Harlequin Presents title too, That's The Greek Tycoon's Unwilling Wife a book that's still riding high on the bestseller lists on Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk.

All you have to do is to post me a reply to this blog - telling me what you're most looking forward to for Christmas and New Year. Let me know what you're hoping to write too - that would help me for the 12 Points on the 12th blog starting in January.

At the end of the week I'll get Sid the cat to pick a winner, as he picks all my winners and if you're really lucky you'll have those prizes with you in time to be an extra present for you.

And even though it's still a little early, I'd like to wish all of you a really happy, joyful, sharing Christmas. I hope it's everything you've ever dreamed of and leaves you with some truly special memories to treasure. And I wish you a fantastic New Year, with lots to look forward to in the next 12 months.

One of which I hope will be joining me here on the 12 for the start of those special posts.