How to Write a Brilliant Romance: The Easy, Step-By-Step Method of Crafting a Powerful Romance (Go! Write Something Brilliant) (28 page)

Keeping
the
romance
fires
lit
on
every
page
is
all
about
showing
how
the
romance
increasingly impacts
every
area
of
the
POV
character’s
life
so
that
when
they
break
up,
it
isn’t
just
sad,
it’s devastating.

Try
this:
As
you
write
the
scene,
ask:
Are
my
hero
or
heroine
physically
together
in
the
scene?
If they
aren’t,
what
elements
in
the
scene
cause
them
to
think
about
each
other?
Does
the
hero
or heroine
make
decisions
based
on
the
current
status
of
the
romance
(negative
or
positive)?

Note: if you have gone through an entire scene without the hero or heroine characters contemplating
or
interacting
with
their
relationship
with
the
other
in
some
way,
the
romance
hasn’t made
enough
impact
on
the
character
.
.
.
or
the
reader.
It’s
time
for
a
rewrite.

A
powerful
romance
isn’t
just
about
structure—it’s
about
drawing
the
hero
and
heroine
closer, impacting
each
other’s
life,
and
thereby,
your
readers’
lives.

Now
that
you
have
something
to
work
with,
let’s
talk
about
editing.
See,
you
can’t
edit
something that
isn’t
there
.
Think
of
editing
as
taking
that
rough
form
and
making
a
masterpiece
out
of
it.

I
like
to
get
the
entire
story
on
the
page
and
write
the
entire
book
before
I
edit.
Some
authors, however,
like
to
edit
as
they
go.
But
be
warned:
You
can
really
get
caught
up
in
editing.
It’s
easier,
in some
ways,
than
writing,
because
the
words
are
already
there.
You
don’t
have
to
create.
So,
make some
limits
for
yourself.
Do
only
one
or
two
editing
passes
before
you
force
yourself
to
keep
going. You
can
always
come
back
later
and
re-edit.
If
you
edit
after
you’re
farther
in
the
story,
you’ll discover
new
elements
and
textures
you
want
to
add
to
your
previous
chapters.

Editing,
in
my
opinion,
is
the
fun
part
of
writing.
You
already
have
the
rough
draft
nailed
down,
and now
you’re
going
to
hone
it,
add
all
those
things
that
will
make
it
sparkle.

For
me,
there
are
three
phases
to
writing
a
book:

1. Creating
   –
   The
   long,
   painful
   discovery
   of
   the
   scenes.
   Again,
   keep
   a
   notebook
   of
   all
   the things you want to put in it later during
   the:
   
2. Revision
   phase
   –
   It’s
   the phase where I
   hone the theme and
   add
   special
   elements,
   like the five
   senses,
   or
   thematic
   metaphors.
   I
   draw
   out
   scenes
   that
   need
   to
   be
   longer,
   shorten
   ones that
   are
   too
   long,
   even
   delete
   unnecessary
   scenes.
   This
   is
   where
   I
   add
   character
   textures
   such as:
   

Idiosyncrasies
–
mannerisms,
something
the
character
says
out
of
habit

Food
and
drink
preferences

Clothing
and
kind
of
car

Nicknames
(my
secret
weapon)

Which
leads
us
to
the:

1. Editing
   phase
   –
   Print
   your
   scene
   out
   and
   read
   it
   slowly,
   taking
   notes
   in
   the
   lines,
   proofing it, and going through my checklist. (See
   below.)
   

Scenes that pack a punch – Do each of your scenes have a purpose? Do you need to
make the
slower
scenes
faster?
Can
you
combine
two
slow
scenes,
cutting
away
the
less
important to the
important?

Action
–
Are
there
sufficient
reasons
for
everything
your
character
does
in
that
scene?
Have you
planted
the
clues
for
that
action
or
decision
long
before
they
do
it?

Likeable characters – Do your hero and heroine have great qualities that make you truly like
them?
Make
sure
that
in
each
scene,
there
is
something
likeable
about
your
characters— that
special
spark
that
sets
them
apart.

Surprise
–
Don’t
give
us
an
expected
plot.
Are
the
plot
points,
the
scenes
cliff
hangers,
the romantic obstacles plausible yet
unexpected?

Art – Have you mastered the
mechanics?

1. Are there five senses in each
   scene?
   
2. Replace
   the
   adverbs
   with
   strong
   verbs,
   the
   adjectives
   with
   defined
   nouns.
   Cut
   all
   “ly” ending adverbs if possible.
   
3. Be
   ruthless
   with
   passive
   sentences.
   “Was”
   and
   “were,”
   “has
   been”
   and
   “have
   been,”
   are good
   clues
   to
   a
   passive
   sentence.
   Although
   sometimes
   you
   need
   a
   passive
   sentence
   to
   let
   the reader rest, most of your sentences should be
   active.
   
4. Repeating
   sentences
   –
   If
   two
   sentences
   say virtually the same thing,
   cut
   one.
   
5. Two adjectives together weaken both. Use the strongest
   one.
   
6. Read
   through
   your
   dialogue
   –
   Do
   you
   need
   tags?
   Do
   you
   have
   enough
   action
   between words?
   Do
   you
   repeat
   names?
   Do
   you
   need
   to
   delete
   tags
   to
   make
   it
   faster?
   Is
   there
   enough white
   space
   between
   chunks
   of
   dialogue?
   Body
   language?
   Fighting
   words?
   

Do you have a list of overused words? Do a word search and fix/delete those!

Now, what is the difference between
strengthening
a scene and
re-arranging
the words?
Strengthening
a
scene
is
discovering
the
emotional
significance
to
the
scene,
the
way
it
will
affect
the overall
book,
and
milking
it
for
the
reader.
Using
setting
and
dialogue
and
body
language
and disappointment
and
words
to
cut
to
the
heart
of
a
character.

Rearranging
words,
on
the
other
hand,
is
merely
putting
them
in
a
different
order.
Ordering
them differently.
Rearranging
them
so
they
say
that
same
thing,
only
in
a
different
way.
Maybe
even
going on
and
on
and
on
about
the
same
thing
in
hopes
of
driving
your
point
home
.
.
.
.
☺

So,
you’ve
written
your
book,
edited
it,
and
now
it’s
time
to
submit
your
book!

Okay,
wait,
maybe
that
proclamation
was
premature.
I
got
a
little
excited
there.
First
you
need
to write
a
Proposal,
which
consists
of
a
cover
or
query
letter
(depending
on
what
your
prospective publisher
wants
to
see
first),
a
synopsis,
and
the
first
three
chapters
of
your
novel.

I
like
to
write
my
cover
or
query
letter
last
,
because,
well,
by
then
I
know
what
I’m
trying
to
say.

And,
you
should
have
written
those
first
three
chapters,
right?
(Because,
well,
you’ve
also
typed, “The End.”)

So,
let’s
talk
a
little
about
the
synopsis.

We’ve
talked
about
all
the
ingredients
you’ll
need
for
your
Romance.
You
know
who
your
characters are,
what
stands
between
them
and
true
love,
and
how
love
will
win
the
day.
Now,
it’s
time
to
tell the
world.

A
synopsis
is
nothing
more
than
a
summary
of
your
story.
Go
back
to
your
ten
ingredients,
put them
in
the
order
you
will
use
them,
then
use
the
following
steps
to
weave
these
ingredients
into
a synopsis.

Step
One:
A
good
synopsis
starts
out
with
outlining
the
characters’
deepest
desires.
What are
they
after,
and
why?
What
will
they
learn?
What
do
they
want,
and
why?
What
is
their conflict?

Step
Two:
Move
the
story
through
the
obstacles.
Highlight
some
of
the
things
that
your characters will struggle with, internally and romantically (spiritually and emotionally.) Use the physical
plot
points
to
jump
from
paragraph
to
paragraph,
writing
it
in
proper
POV.

Note:
A
synopsis
is
supposed
to
be
an
Overview
of
the
story.
One
mistake
I
see
made
by beginning
writers
is
the
tendency
to
narrow
in
on
the
details.
You
want
to
step
back
from the
story
and
squint
a
little
and
tell
us
the
big
events
you
see,
and
how
they
affect
the spiritual
and
emotional
threads.
Don't
tell
us
how
he
stops
and
caresses
her
hand
as
he declares
his
love.
Just
say,
“He
declares
his
love.”
Details
slow
the
pace
and
will
make
the editor
put
the
synopsis
down.
You
don't
want
this
to
happen.

Hook
your
editor
and
bring
him/her
through
the
story,
holding
her
breath,
until
you
end with:

Step
Three:
Tie
up
the
synopsis
nicely
by
telling
us
how
the
title
or
theme
fits
in
to
your story,
wrapping
it
up
like
a
gift
for
your
reader.

Don't
worry
about
length,
or
style,
just
spit
it
out.
We're
not
looking
for
a
polished
piece
yet. You
just
want
to
tell
the
story.
Shoot
for
three
to
five
pages,
and
stick
to
the
main
plot.
Your goal
is
to
wind
all
the
threads
through
the
story,
beginning
to
end.
For
now,
just
get
it
down on
paper.