Writing Romance
The Act-Three Break-Up: Required or Suggested?
Thanks to a nasty virus, I’ve spent a good amount of the last few weeks on the couch with…
August 24, 2025-
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Writing Romance
DON’T GO BREAKING MY HEART
Romance readers’ expectations: Finding the best setbacks and obstacles for my couple to overcome is one of my greatest…
February 23, 2025 -
Romancing Your Story
Knowing (and Meeting) Reader Expectations
All fiction readers come to their chosen stories with certain expectations. A mystery reader expects a puzzle to solve.…
November 23, 2024 -
Romancing Your StoryTo Thine Own Self Be True
Plotter or Pantser? Or Plottser? Outline or just start writing? Index cards or story map? The Hero’s Journey or…
May 23, 2024 -
Romancing Your Story, Writing Romance
A Rose By Any Other Name (Authenticating Details)
Once upon a time, when I was new to fiction writing, I brought a chapter to my weekly workshop/critique…
February 23, 2024 -
Writing Romance
REALISTICALLY RELATABLE
Making your hero and heroine relatable is key to creating characters your readers will care about, will laugh with,…
November 23, 2023 -
Romancing Your Story
What’s Your Type?
So many personality types and traits and tools to figure them out. The Enneagram Myer Briggs The OCEAN Model…
February 25, 2023 -
Writing Romance
Who’s Behind the Mask?
Upon doing a search for romance novels that include a masquerade, I found that many romance novels include the…
October 23, 2022 -
Romancing Your Story
Can Your Male Character Still Be the Hero in Your Romance Novel?
The current writing trend is to have strong, independent female characters. These female characters can run a business and…
September 23, 2022 -
Romancing Your Story
How Candlelight Brings Out the Romance in Your Characters
What is it about candlelight that makes a candlelight dinner so romantic? First of all, did you know that…
August 23, 2022 -
Writing Romance
What About Commitment?
Let’s face it. The majority of romance readers, including me, prefer a happy ending. But does that mean the…
June 23, 2022 -
Writing Romance
Can You Write Christian or Clean Romance That Isn’t Boring?
Let’s face it, even Christian men and women want to feel that spark of attraction in a romance novel…
March 23, 2022 -
Writers ChatWriters Chat Recap for February Part 2
Writers Chat, hosted by Jean Wise, Johnnie Alexander, and Brandy Brow, is the show where we talk about all…
February 28, 2022 -
Romancing Your Story
Hole-Hearted to Whole-Hearted and How to Get There
What hole is in his heart? What hole is in her heart? This is where your romance story begins.…
June 23, 2021 -
Guest PostsPlot Structures: Predictable or Helpful?
Girl meets boy. Even though it’s obvious to the reader that they would make a perfect couple, they don’t…
May 25, 2021 -
Romancing Your Story
Walk on By: Secondary Characters
Secondary characters are the seasoning in your story soup. Who can be secondary characters, or sidekicks? Often, they’re the…
May 23, 2021 -
Romancing Your Story
The Romance Promise
Every book written begins with a promise. No matter if it is fiction or nonfiction, there is a promise…
October 23, 2020 -
Romancing Your Story
How Do You Write Characters of the Opposite Gender Realistically?
This was a question I saw in the Twitter writing community and realized it is a challenge, especially in…
March 23, 2020 -
Romancing Your Story
Tension is Necessary in Romance Fiction.
If you are writing a clean or Christian romance, you still need to build tension in your story. Depending…
January 23, 2020 -
Romancing Your Story
Does Romance Really Mean “Happily Ever After”?
As a little girl I was enthralled with the classic Disney tales of princesses finding their “Prince Charming” and…
December 23, 2019 -
Romancing Your Story
Writing Romance in the #MeToo Era
Once upon a time a romance novel plot included a heroine who wanted the hero to kiss her, but…
November 23, 2019 -
Romancing Your Story
“Setting” the Romance
What do you think about when you think of romance? Oh sure, there are the typical things like boy…
September 23, 2019 -
Romancing Your Story
First, They Meet
The fact that you are writing a romance it’s a given that your hero and heroine have to meet…
July 23, 2019 -
Romancing Your Story
A Romance by Any Other Name
What’s in a name? That which we call a rose By any other word would smell as sweet ……
February 23, 2019 -
ScreenwritingWhat Matters Most
If you’ve been reading my column for any amount of time, you know it’s no secret that I am…
February 4, 2019
