If you are a lover of the romance genre and writing your own (or planning to!) then here are some tips to make sure your romance novel has the elements readers seek. You’re lucky in that you’ll be writing in the most popular genre (crime and mystery are second in popularity) with an abundance of imprints and publishers looking to snap up your latest story. Romance is also one of the few genres where you can build a financially viable self-publishing career on your own.

All advice for writers says to set a schedule and stick to it. Yet I’m not sure that works for everyone. It doesn’t work so well for me. I tend to write as inspiration flows and it rarely shows up on a schedule. Time management may be a virtue but I’m not sure that is even what I should be managing as a creative soul.

Having co-taught a week-long program on The Art of Collaboration, I’m always thinking about creativity and how that does or doesn’t come together when working with others. Sometimes when working with others, you might feel your own contribution doesn’t measure up and that can STOP your creativity cold.

Are you one of the perpetually busy? Always behind on whatever massive ‘to-do’ list you are toting around in your iPad. That query letter you have to polish; the dialogue that needs a re-do; the beta readers you owe your next chapter?
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It can be hard to claim your innate creative power when you feel overwhelmed by all that you have to do.

Lately I’ve been collaborating with many different people on a variety of projects and I’ve been thinking about why some collaborations work and others are just disasters in the making.
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I can remember how devastated I was when the Beatles split up – a classic collaboration (music/bands) that got tied up with egos, money and lots of hurt feelings.

I’ve been thinking about opportunities and choices. I have opportunities before me to collaborate with others, opportunities to set aside time, clear the decks and focus on my own book and even opportunities to give more time to my work as an editor helping other writers get their words onto the page and out into the world.

“There is no try; only do or not do. . .” - Yoda in Star Wars

Motivation is always a big topic on the minds of creative people. As a writer I struggle with days where my motivation to sit and write is offset by my need to clean the dust bunnies on the window sill. Other days I am happily writing away in seemingly effortless fashion – motivation not even necessary.