I’ve been a writer for most of my life, and I’ve been a hopeless romantic for even longer. So, naturally, I am writing a romance novel. I’ve been drafting it on-and-off for about a year, and am about 50,000 words into my first draft.
There is plenty of writing available about the craft of romance novels: how to structure them, build romantic tension between characters, and so on. I have been devouring these texts as I slowly chip away at my draft – but I’ve also found myself craving information about the more psychological or emotional side of writing a romance novel. There’s a lot less of that type of writing, although it has been an experience unlike any other in my career – so I thought I’d tell you a bit about it today. I’m sure the experience will change a lot as time goes on (final edits might be more annoying than pie-in-the-sky drafting, for instance!) but here’s where I’m at right now…
1) I’m a total swoondog, bro.
I giggled maniacally when I encountered the word “swoondog” in Christopher Downing’s excellent book Fool Proof Romance. Chris doesn’t define it, but from context clues, I gathered it was meant as a romantic/crushy equivalent of being a “horndog” (something I also am, at times).