A few elements of romance novels

cj Sez: The following list of elements in a romance novel is a composite of information I’ve gleaned from various sources over the years, and I plan to keep it in front of me when I begin writing my next romantic suspense.

A likable heroine

   This character can’t be weak or dumb and must be actively involved in the plot. There will, and should, be some moments of angst in the story, but they should be fleeting. You want your reader to root for this character rather than think she deserves what she gets because she’s too dumb to win.

A likable hero

   This character should be strong (even if only emotionally), irresistible, smart, and actively involved. He does not have to be stereotypically attractive to be appealing. A well-developed personality can carry this character right into your readers’ hearts.

Emotional tension

   What’s keeping your heroine/hero apart? What threatens her/him? Making these decisions early on helps keep the story plot on track.

A believable plot

   A believable plot is a must but no worries. A twist on an oldie will work. According to some studies, there are only six (or maybe eight) possible plots in all of literature. Ergo every “new” story might today be called a trope. 

  For instance, Cinderella can be construed as a variation of the Biblical story of Esther, who was an orphan being raised by her uncle and who so charmed a king that he crowned her his queen. Julia Roberts was Cinderella in “Pretty Woman” as was Melanie Griffith in “Working Girl.” Star-crossed lovers, ala Romeo and Juliet, abound. It’s your unique writer’s “voice” that’s important in relating your take (spin, twist) on a familiar story.

A Happily Ever After ending

   A HEA is an absolute for a romance novel. Love stories do not have to end happily, but for the avid fans of the romance genre, and all its subgenres, a romance novel must have a happily ever after or at least the promise of one.

   Three of the points above are romance-novel specific, but at least two of them—emotional tension and believable plot—can be broadly applied to all genres. Even a memoir needs a bit of tension and a plot to make it an appealing read. You can help me out here. As a reader and/or a writer, can you think of a genre that wouldn’t use those two points.

   By the way, there is no “magic formula” for writing a novel in any genre, but with a lot of reading, analysis, study, and/or luck you might find some suggestions that you can adapt to your writing style.

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Author and Reader Notes:

   I’m a member of the Facebook group “POSSESSED: Timeless Gothic Reads,” and as part of our latest seasonal read-and-discuss assignment, I did a deep dive into THE HOUSE OF SEVEN GABLES, a truly Gothic novel by Nathaniel Hawthorne. 

   It is superbly rich in setting and description (which I need more of in my writing) and wordy to the nth degree. Those long, complex sentences made the read interesting but a real struggle for this fast-paced suspense writer with tired eyes.

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   Expert advice: Deciphering good from bad. The following link is to a Jane Friedman blog post by writer, editor, and book coach Lauren Reynolds.

The Pitfalls of Expert Advice | Jane Friedman

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  CALLAHAN IN ACTION, Book 6 in the Cat Callahan Mystery Series, is scheduled to launch August 8, and it's available for preorder. Click on the link below so you can put your name on a copy now:  https://books2read.com/CatCallahan6  I preordered mine.

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  Okay, that’s it for today. You-all guys keep on keeping on, and I’ll try to do the same. Raising prayers for a happy and safe you and yours. (P.S.A.: There are five months until Christmas.)

cj

Now some words from my sponsors:

  Having a book to read is the perfect entertainment for those holiday and summer vacation downtime moments. THE DAWGSTAR and DEATH ON THE YAMPA are available on Amazon or through your favorite eTailer and bookstore. Got a library card? You can read the ebooks free from Hoopla.

  Nota bene: Angela Trigg, the RITA Award-winning author and owner of The Haunted Book Shop has a few signed copies of my paperback books in stock. TO ORDER, contact: https://www.thehauntedbookshopmobile.com/contact-us 

➜ Follow me on        

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In the "Did You Know" department

cj Sez: When author/editor Joyce Sterling Scarbrough gave a wonderful presentation on self-editing to the Mobile Writers Guild a while back, she left us with a slew of important tips. For instance: Did you know that adjectives and adverbs have a “royal order?”

  Did you know that when you use an adverb before the noun, it does not require a comma? I took notes, so I know. The charts Joyce used have been updated and changed, but the structures remain the same. Here are two Royal Order charts for you to copy out.

  A past president of the Mobile Writers Guild, Joyce is also the editor of every one of the organization’s perfectly enjoyable PIECES anthologies. Follow author/editor Joyce Scarbrough on Facebook and her webpage HOME | Joyce Scarbrough

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Author and Reader Notes:

  The Sisters in Crime 2024 Pride Award is now open for submissions from emerging LGBTQIA+ Crime Writers! Sisters in Crime membership NOT required - open to all!

Who: LGBTQIA+ Crime Writers

Why: Win $2,000

What: Submit an UNPUBLISHED work in the Crime Writing genre (i.e. short story, novella, chapter(s) of a novel in progress), your resume and a cover letter

When: Submissions open through July 31st

How: For complete details and entry form, go to: https://www.sistersincrime.org/page/Pride

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  CALLAHAN IN ACTION, Book 6 in the Cat Callahan Mystery Series, is scheduled to launch August 8 and it's available for preorder. Click on the link below so you can grab a copy now:  https://books2read.com/CatCallahan6

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  Okay, that’s it for today. You-all guys keep on keeping on, and I’ll try to do the same. Raising prayers for a happy and safe you and yours.

cj

Now some words from my sponsors:

  Having a book to read is the perfect entertainment for those holiday and summer vacation downtime moments. THE DAWGSTAR and DEATH ON THE YAMPA are available on Amazon or through your favorite eTailer and bookstore. Got a library card? You can read the ebooks free from Hoopla.

  Nota bene: Angela Trigg, the RITA Award-winning author and owner of The Haunted Book Shop has a few signed copies of my paperback books in stock. TO ORDER, contact: https://www.thehauntedbookshopmobile.com/contact-us 

➜ Follow me on 

➜ Amazon:    Amazon Central Author Page

➜ Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/CjPettersonAuthor

➜ BookBub:   https://www.bookbub.com/authors/cj-petterson

➜ Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3fcN3h6

Still working on my mystery WiP

cj Sez: I’m now back at the keyboard, thinking up another adversity for the protagonist/sleuth in the WIP I’ve been working on for years. It’s a mystery, and writing a mystery is a learning process for me.

  Thriller and suspense genres I have managed to some small degree, but how to write a real mystery is a mystery to me.

  What remains the same among genres I write is that my protagonist (i.e., sleuth) must be likeable, have some personality quirks, and a bit of backstory baggage to be dropped intermittently into the story (no info dumps, please). My sleuth in this mystery has a confidant, which is a recommended device. There is a unique setting and a love interest to add a little jazz. Each of the major characters, including the bad guy, has a secret that I hope will generate some degree of sympathy.

  Mysteries do need a theme, and I have a theme that will, I believe, hit a universal nerve with my readers. Where I’m struggling is with the clues and red herrings. Where and how to place them so they invite the readers to try to solve the mystery but don’t reveal so much that they really can.

  As a writer, I am a pantser or, more accurately, a pathfinder. I find my way through my stories by building roadblocks for my protagonist then figuring out how she/he can escape. Because my WIP is a mystery, I have to do a bit of {gasp} plotting which is not my forté. How else would I know where to hide the clues and weave in red herrings?

  Like all manuscripts, I understand my mystery will change with each future edit cycle, and it has—that’s, the reason it’s taken me so long to finish it. My characters, clues, and red herrings change and must be rearranged. For example: I know the victim is murdered (off-page), but the description of one of my current red herrings may force me to change the “how” somewhat, again. Changing that scene will most certainly waterfall, again, into other changes throughout the manuscript.

  On the very slim plus side, what I really like about all this frustration is that I’m learning new things. My personal goal has always been to learn something new every day, and this never-ending project is certainly helping me reach my goal. How about you? Have you reached a personal goal this year?

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Author and Reader Notes:

 Jane Friedman’s blog recently featured a post by writer and book coach Monica Cox. who says 

“There is something invigorating about typing the words THE END on a rough draft. The story has unspooled from your fingers for weeks, months, maybe even years and, finally, you have reached the resolution.

  You may feel relief, excitement, or even a renewed dedication to the story. You may even be motivated to dive right into revisions so you can share it with the world as soon as possible. But rushing to edit can be the biggest mistake a writer makes.”

  Find out what she means by that by clicking on the following link:

Why Your Revision Shouldn’t Start on Page One | Jane Friedman

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  CALLAHAN IN ACTION, Book 6 in the Cat Callahan Mystery Series, is scheduled to launch August 8 and it's available for preorder so you can grab it now at https://books2read.com/CatCallahan6

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  Okay, that’s it for today. You-all guys keep on keeping on, and I’ll try to do the same. Raising prayers for a happy and safe you and yours.

cj

Now some words from my sponsors:

  Having a book to read is the perfect entertainment for those holiday and summer vacation downtime moments. THE DAWGSTAR and DEATH ON THE YAMPA are available on Amazon or through your favorite eTailer and bookstore. Got a library card? You can read the ebooks free from Hoopla.

  Nota bene: Angela Trigg, the RITA Award-winning author and owner of The Haunted Book Shop has a few signed copies of my paperback books in stock. TO ORDER, contact: https://www.thehauntedbookshopmobile.com/contact-us 

➜ Follow me on        

➜ Amazon:    Amazon Central Author Page

➜ Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/CjPettersonAuthor

➜ BookBub:   https://www.bookbub.com/authors/cj-petterson

➜ Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3fcN3h6

Dog Days and Sisters in Crime contest

cj Sez: The “Dog Days of Summer” are officially upon us, as is Hurricane Season along the Gulf coast.

  To say the weather is sweltering would be an understatement. Today’s heat index where I live reached triple digits—something like 110°. Needless to say, I’m sucking down water and planning my days to be indoors between ten a.m. and five p.m.

  The dog days of summer are historically the period following the heliacal (sunrise) of the star Dog Star, Sirius. Sirius is one star in a group of stars that form the constellation Canis Major, meaning “Greater Dog.”

  Greek and Roman astrology connected Sirius to heat, drought, sudden thunderstorms, lethargy, fever, mad dogs, and bad luck.

  The Farmer’s Almanac says, “the 40 days beginning July 3 and ending August 11” are the traditional timing of the Dog Days. It also says that “some of our hottest and most humid days happen after August 11.” Seems there’s a lot more hellacious heat and humidity to come, so we have that going for us.

  The 2024 hurricane season has already spun up two storms. The first, tropical storm Alberto, doused the coast of Texas and now the first hurricane, Beryl, is also barreling toward the Texas Gulf Coast.

  Do what you have to do to stay safe out there, friends.

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Author and Reader Notes:

  “Sisters in Crime PRIDE award submissions are open through July 31. This $2000 award was the legacy project of past-president Sherry Harris. It is designed to support an emerging LGBTQIA+ crime writer. Folks do not need to be a SinC member to apply.” 

  Click this link to read more about submission requirements: 

Pride Award for Emerging LGBTQIA+ Crime Writers - Sisters in Crime

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  Award-winning author Connie Berry asks: “Are you a rule follower or a rule breaker?” My fellow Sisters in Crime member talks about weasel words and shares how writers can break writing rules and get away with it.  Breaking the Writing Rules (And Getting Away With It) - Writer's Digest (writersdigest.com)

(cj Sez: Do you know what “weasel words” are?) 

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  CALLAHAN IN ACTION, Book 6 in the Cat Callahan Mystery Series, is scheduled to launch August 8 and it's available for preorder now at https://books2read.com/CatCallahan6

§§

  Okay, that’s it for today. You-all guys keep on keeping on, and I’ll try to do the same. Raising prayers for a happy and safe you and yours.

cj

Now some words from my sponsors:

  Having a book to read is the perfect entertainment for those holiday and summer vacation downtime moments. THE DAWGSTAR and DEATH ON THE YAMPA are available on Amazon or through your favorite eTailer and bookstore. Got a library card? You can read the ebooks free from Hoopla.

  Nota bene: Angela Trigg, the RITA Award-winning author and owner of The Haunted Book Shop has a few signed copies of my paperback books in stock. TO ORDER, contact: https://www.thehauntedbookshopmobile.com/contact-us 

➜ Follow me on        

➜ Amazon:    Amazon Central Author Page

➜ Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/CjPettersonAuthor

➜ BookBub:   https://www.bookbub.com/authors/cj-petterson

➜ Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3fcN3h6