Questions to ask yourself before entering a romance writing contest

The first year I started writing romance, I entered shed-loads of writing contests. The next year, I was more selective and had learned that not all writing contests are equal. This weekend I spent some time looking through dozens of romance writing contests that have their deadlines over the next few months, and I found… Continue reading Questions to ask yourself before entering a romance writing contest

Why does an agent have to love your novel before they can sell it?

(Warning: long post ahoy! Get yourself some chamomile and find a comfy chair. I hope you’ll stick with me till the end, even if it’s because you think I’m full of dookie.) There are all kinds of rejections in the writing world, but for writers the most frustrating may be: “I just didn’t love it… Continue reading Why does an agent have to love your novel before they can sell it?

Tools for culling repetitious words from your writing

Before I started working in charity communications, I spent four years teaching English as a foreign language in Prague and London. One of my first classes was full of Czech bankers who gave up their Saturdays to learn English. They were an intermediate-level group, so they could make themselves understood but were far from fluent.… Continue reading Tools for culling repetitious words from your writing

Dealing with writing contest disappointment

Last week calls went out to a few dozen special romance writers – finalists in the RITA and Golden Heart contests, put on every year by the Romance Writers of America. I didn’t get a call. Rejection is always difficult to accept. When a creative project you’ve spent months – or years – working on is… Continue reading Dealing with writing contest disappointment

Interview with Lisa Dale – and giveaway!

A couple of years ago, I began hearing about an author who wrote very smart contemporary romantic novels. I picked up Lisa Dale’s It Happened One Night and fell in love with her style. Lisa’s intelligence and curiosity about a wide array of subjects shine through her stories. She’s here today talking about her latest… Continue reading Interview with Lisa Dale – and giveaway!