~The Kissy Bits ~ - Romance Writing Without Cooties

Yay, the Kissy Bits are back! What's been going on? A lot of excuses, obviously. Also, a brief look at things to come. It was a looong excuse. ^_- Listen to the show

Show Sixteen – the heroic heroine Finally! Why have I been holding out on the heroine? Cause heroines are that much harder. “Just shut up and give me more page time with wonder boy here!” When you ask people to describe their heroines, they’ll often give you a physical rundown. The ingredients that separate a true heroine from just a mediocre one are based on what's inside of her. First, a romantic heroine must CONNECT. Second, a romantic heroine must have STRENGTH. Third, a romantic heroine must DESERVE YOUR HERO. A heroine embodies all our hopes and dreams of a perfect love. Heroine archetypes: The BOSS. The SEDUCTRESS. The SPUNKY KID. The FREE SPIRIT. The WAIF. The LIBRARIAN. The CRUSADER. The NURTURER. Think of your favourite heroines of all times. The next few episodes are going to be a lot different to what we’ve had so far. It’s conference season for romance writers everywhere, and as I’ve said, I’ll be heading to the Romance Writers of Australia conference at the Gold Coast. If you’ve got anything you want to know about the conference, about the writing journey, about romance in writing, you know how to reach me! If you’ll be on the gold coast for the conference, drop me a line and we can get together for a chat. I promise I’ll be nice to you. Show link: Heroine Archetypes Listen to the show

The Kissy Bits Show 15 – Naming Your Baby - with real-life examples from yours truly! - 1. Keep it short. 2. Avoid fancy words. 3. Make sure your title reflects your story. 4. Make your title original. 5. Brainstorm. 6. Alliteration always attracts. 7. Tried and true with a twist. 8. Use words that contradict and/or conflict with each other. 9. You can't copyright your title. 10. Have a backup. Next Show: All About Your Heroine Listen to the show

The Kissy Bits Show 14 – Closing the bedroom door almost all the way Why has the show been so late? I lost my microphone. Anybody who is going to attend the Romance Writers of Australia conference in August, drop me a line! Warning: This episode contains words some people might find offensive, and descriptions of scenes not suitable to minors. If you or anyone within earshot might get offended, turn around now. Talking about sex is one thing, but writing about it is, in some ways, even worse. - "what if Mom reads it?" syndrome. - Why romance writing is better than writing murder mysteries. - How do you get over the embarrassment? - celebrating sex for all the beauty it symbolises - difference between having sex and making love – tension - Be brave with it! Promo: Confessions of a Struggling Writer - Push your comfort level, but don't write to someone else's standards - Remember you are not writing about yourself - Sexual tension is more important than sex itselfprolonged the wait, the sweeter the reward. - Don't follow a formula - Sexual experiences is part of the plot - Use all the senses - Voice - What do we call "IT"? Got any questions? Comments? Feedback? Drop me a line on the show’s blog at kissybits.blogspot.com. For an upcoming show, I’ve got a challenge for you. I won’t do the show until I get enough replies, so you’ll *have* to do it if you want to find out why. I want you to dscribe someone’s face. And I want you to make it romantic. It can be first or third person, as detailed as you like or as general as you wish to make it, but I want you to convey a sense of attraction in your description. After all, that’s what we’r talking about. In the next show, we’ll talk all about your WIP and you. Naming your baby and letting go. Until next time, stay in the mood. Listen to the show

The Kissy Bits #13 - First Kiss We're back after a long hiatus! Lots of writing has been done in the meantime. My chicklit novel is getting ready for podiobook goodness, yay! Also, your host has taken another step towards 30, shhhhh. The Kiss: expression of unique emotion between unique people. Don't make it anybody's kiss. Kiss as plot device Is your kiss only making the right noises? PROMO: Morevi Beware of purple prose. High tension or low tension, where should your kiss be? Challenge: Write that perfect kiss. Next show: The Kissy Bits #14 - Opening the Bedroom Door, or: Is it all about the smut? Show Links: The Site of Podiobooks: Podiobooks.com Morevi the Podiobook Listen to the show

The Kissy Bits #12 - Emotional Honesty New intro! Since a lot of people have been asking me when I’ll put the Kissy in the Bits, I’ve decided to dedicate the next few shows to the craft of romance in writing. Is romance really just about making the right noises? Let’s talk a bit about getting emotional. Learn about the Stanislavski method of acting Deep POV gets you there. Employ all the senses, go into the deepest details. And once you’re there, dig deeper. And once you’ve added as much depth to a scene as you can? Go deeper! Your love scenes are not interchangeable. They happen in that order for a reason. Don’t pull your emotional punches. Dig deep. Strike gold. Make emotions matter in your fiction. Show Links: Patricia Kay's Writing The Love Scene Gary Chapman's The Five Love Languages Listen to the show

The Kissy Bits #11 - From the Mail Bag just having a look at some feedback. Also, the first time recording with a new microphone. What do you reckon? Listen to the show

The Kissy Bits #10 - Writing About Real People For those of you that couldn't get the show to download last time, here is a fresh new file, all tasty and ready to go. If there are still problems with this one or older files, please let me know, and I'll bang my head against the wall some more. Listen to the show

The Kissy Bits Valentine's Special. Let's talk about emotional honesty here. And a confession: I don't like v-day. Even as a romance writer, I can see why it's a bad day. Can you? Let's talk about the Big Gestures and how you can make them more meaningful. These tips are for real life AND writing. How neat is that? Show Links: Valentine's e-cards Anti-Valentine's e-cards Next show: Writing About Friends or "I'm not like that!" Listen to the show

Subletting The Brain Muses The canonical nine muses Muse Obedience School Muse as a measure of story idea Exercise: write down 20 reasons why a woman walks out on her first date. Promo: I Should Be Writing The inner editor Editors are good for you Finding a compromise Working together with your inner people Taking responsibility for your own writing Listen to the show

What is chick lit? Chick lit sub-genres Chick lit vs romance Chick lit vs literary chicks Chick lit people An actual example by yours truly First person Exercise: Narrow your point of view; write a chick lit Show links: Chick Lit Writers of the World Chick Lit Books(with a great list of sub-genres!) Listen to the show