Michaela Miles logo courtesy www.michaelamiles.com |
I’ve been invited to answer a few questions about my writing process by the inimitable author/blogger Michaela Miles! This particular blog hop is all about authors offering others a glimpse into their work, their work schedules, and perhaps their innermost thoughts.
Click here
to find out how she does it! And be sure to explore her blog for her
many gems of observation, reviews, and more!
The Value of Vulnerability cover |
I’m still editing my latest novel
The Value of Vulnerability, a purely character-driven work
about how people deal with personal damage – and in the case of my H, rather
harshly! So naturally he needs an h who shows him better ways to deal. I’m
hoping to have this to beta readers in a couple of days.
Public Frenemy cover |
For Those Who Wait cover |
My first novel, For Those Who Wait, is
actually a nod to Harlequin Presents style – that genre that I love so well and
inspired me to write romance in the first place. But within it, I broke some
clichés, which was both hard and satisfying [That’s what she
said!].
A Bird Without Wings cover |
The upshot? I’m not out to reinvent the genre – it’s great
as-is. But it’s fun for both me and the reader to invert tropes and dispense
with stereotypes, so I do so as often as possible.
Q. Why do I write what I do?
Hmm . . . I write contemporary romance because I find the
entire question of what makes a relationship work [independent of the ultimate
conclusion of an HEA!] endlessly intriguing. What makes two people want to
permanently join forces through their lives? How can one person rely on another
to that degree? Still single, you can see how that would fascinate me!
Q. How does your writing process work?
I see a scene in my head. I write dialogue in my head. I
create a new Word doc and get down as much of it as I can – frequently naming
the characters “H” and “h”. Then I ignore it for weeks - sometimes months.
Eventually, I drag it out and start poking at it, see what I can make of it,
keying in little ideas that occur about backstory, characterisation, and
conflict.
I’m a pantser who thinks she’s a plotter. This
time, I’m going to write an outline! Never happens. Sometimes to get
things moving, I’ll write whole stream-of-consciousness passages to help me get
where I want to go. The characters – if strong enough – will write their own
story.
Oh, and I drink loads of coffee. Sometimes wine – but
there’s a fine line in creativity with wine . . . one point five glasses is my
cut off before I lose momentum and focus!
Who will we meet next week?
Check out these authors and their processes:
Renea MasonNoelle Clark
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