In my previous two posts, I looked at the 7 beats of a rom com in screen writing terms, as defined by Billy Mernit, and how they can translate to books too. The final one is the resolution or, in Mernit’s lovely phrase, Joyful Defeat.… Read More
Yesterday I posted about the first four Romantic Comedy Beats, as defined by Billy Mernitt: the Set Up, the Meet Cute, the Sexy Complication and the Hook. Here are the last three: Swivel: Second Turning-point This is the moment after the hero and heroine have… Read More
I am a bit of structure geek; I love thinking about narrative formulas. Recently I read Writing the Romantic Comedy by Billy Mernit, which talks about the Seven Basic Romantic Comedy Beats in screen writing. These are rules for film obviously, but they can apply… Read More
In every single first draft I write, I get the note that I need to introduce more conflict between the hero and heroine. Every. Time. I can’t help it. I write a nice guy, and a nice girl, and there’s a bit of disagreement but then… Read More
One thing I love about romantic comedies (one of the many things) is how creatively they use locations. Because rom-coms are so dialogue-heavy, they would get very boring if they stayed in the same place. Instead, you get scenes where characters are talking, but they’re… Read More
So, after my frozen phase of last week, wheels are starting to turn. The good news is: I’m starting to be able to write the book. The bad news is, lots of things are still eluding me including one of the main characters – one of… Read More
In my last post I wrote about the horror of the Blank Page. Today, in honour of NaNoWriMo, I’m sharing a few things I’ve found useful in overcoming it: Set yourself up to work. In other words ‘go through the motions’ – literally – even if… Read More
This post is almost TOO topical, because: It’s nearly Hallowe’en and also nearly NaNoWriMo. I am starting a new book right now and it’s TERRIFYING. I have an idea that I’m really excited about, I know more or less what’s going to happen and who… Read More
Rachel does Rome is out tomorrow!!!!! I know I’ve said this before but Rachel really is one of my favourites in the Girls on Tour series. It’s the first novella where we see the girls on holiday together (except Poppy) and I relived loads of… Read More
Call me sentimental but I get attached to my characters. Having seen them through their adventures I like to know what happens to them afterwards – especially since a happy ending always the start of something else. And I also like taking people who had a small… Read More
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