Lisa Hendrix

I’ve been experimenting with doing more thorough pre-planning/outlining/storyboarding.  I’ve always written a pretty thorough synopsis and had a clear idea of the overall story, but there came a point in each of my past books that I would get lost.  Somewhere between chapters 8 and 12, give or take, the synopsis would say something like “they spend several days tracking down the McGuffin.” It worked for selling the story to my editor, but left me to work out the details when I was actually writing.  So I’d try out 10 or 15 possiblities—by writing them out.

Ack! Days of wasted writing.  Sometimes weeks. 

Clearly, with a nine book series stretching out ahead of me,  I need to get a handle on that, so inspired by Cherry Adair, the Manuscript Mavens, and others, I decided to make a thorough storyboard.  I bought lots of sticky notes and and a big folding display board and started scribbling and sticking, just like Ally Carter, whose storyboard is to the left.

And promptly lost interest.  Too fiddly. Same with 3×5 cards. 

But I still need SOMETHING, plus I have this sense that if I find the right method, this is all going to fall into place. Read the rest of this entry »

On one of the reader-oriented email lists I’m on, the group moderator (who is brilliant at starting up good discussions) recently asked what everyone thought about condoms in romance novels. She wanted to know whether the failure to address some realistic approach to birth/disease control makes a book a wallbanger or whether the mere mention of such things destroys the fantasy for which many of us read romance. As an author, I followed the discussion with great interest; even though I’m writing historicals right now, I have written contemporary romances in the past (which showed condom use, btw) and surely will again. So what, I wondered, do readers want?

As you can imagine, there were strong opinions in both camps, with one or two people quite vehement that condoms interfered with enjoyment both in books and in real life. 

But one woman came down on the other side, and did it with such clarity and passion and good humor that I asked if I could post part of her response here. She kindly gave permission, so here, from romsfuulynn:

It seems to me that condoms are part of the play, the overall experience, and part of life. Sex can involve accidental hair pulling, muscle cramps in legs, arms, etc, books that got cast aside poking someone with a sharp corner or pinching people in a bad place, falling off or almost falling of the bed (or desk or kitchen counter, or what have you), champagne, beer, coke, milk, ice water or what have you getting tipped over and flooding the field of play (it’s COLD and WET), scratchy surfaces, hard surfaces, beard burn, leg hair scratchiness, other shaved area scratchiness, chafing of almost anything, rug burn, insect bites, sand in unfortunate places, children knocking at the door, phones ringing, doors you didn’t lock, object supporting activity being insufficiently sturdy and breaking, creaking, squeaking. Not to mention being very pregnant or recently post partum.

At least I’ve never had a gun go off like one of Jenny Crusie’s heroines did.

Sex beats no sex. Hands down. (Although hands can be a lot of fun too.) Condoms are the least of it.

Yes, maybe no condom is better for a guy, but that’s life and over time, it all works out. For me, fictional sex should reflect the absurdity of life and the power sex has to overcome distractions. I don’t particularly like sex that is portrayed as dreamy or perfect - sex is better than being merely perfect, it is overwhelming.

Or maybe it’s just my husband. . .

Lucky woman. She’s been married 35 years.

What do you think?  Can a love scene that uses a condom still be romantic?  Share your thoughts on romance and real life. (Keep your language clean, please. Children may be present)

I don’t know how it came up today, but I was thinking about how eyes get described in romance novels.  They’re seldom plain blue or grey.  They’re azure, or cornflower or stone or pewter.  So my brain went off on a tangent (as it often does), and I googled eye colors.  Not much, other than articles on genetics, like this one from Discover. But then I hit Images, and there they were.  So I collected some example photos of unusual eye colors and hereby present them for your perusal.  Yep, there really are people with eyes the color of a tropical lagoon, old terracotta, or a cadet’s jacket.

(bottom photo credit — Discover Magazine online)

Those may not be the first two question I ask myself when I start writing, but they’re right up there. I HAVE to know his name and appearance — hero first, almost always. Until I get them right, I cannot truly begin. Names are a huge thing for me. I can’t use a placeholder name to start out; too much baggage attaches to it, and then when I try to switch to the “real” name, I find I’m writing about a completely different person.

The title of the book is much the same, though it can wait a little while. I do have to put a good name to it sometime before I hit the end of Act I, however–usually before I complete the proposal–and I tend to obsess until I come up with something I like. I’ve had to change a couple of titles after I turned the manuscripts in, though, and strangely, it didn’t bother me like a character name change does. All I did was obsess again until my editor and I agreed to something.

As for appearance, that’s more general but just as critical. Really, a blond hero is different from a raven-haired one, and if you add a streak of silver to the raven, well you have someone entirely new. I’m not one of those people who does a collage, but I do clip images on the internet and save them. Dozens of them (more on that in another post).

What brought this up is that I got my cover art for Immortal Warrior a few days ago. It’s gorgeous, all hero all the way. Unfortunately, it’s also preliminary, so I can’t share it yet — and I did ask. Though the cover model doesn’t look anything like who I pictured while I was writing, he’s a perfectly wonderful stand in. In fact, he has replaced my original model in my mind and heart. I’ve asked for his name and will share it when I can post the cover. This boy has a chest…omigod.

So while we’re waiting, I thought you might like to see what Ivo looked like while I was writing him. Turns out, he was a dead ringer for the juicy, tortured, wonderful Captain Etienne Navarre from Ladyhawke (aka Rutger Hauer)–except he wore grey.

Sigh,

I’ve noticed my speech patterns getting lazy–full of stuff, sort of, like, um, this. I don’t want my writing to get that way, so I’m working on it, and I’ve discovered a couple of blogs I think will help.

First I found Barry Eisler’s remarkable blog, The Heart of the Matter, which covers not writing, but “politics and language, particularly language as it influences politics” (thanks to “robin” who pointed me toward Eisler’s blog via a comment here at Buzz, Balls & Hype). His “Extras” page in particular hit home with me. I’d already commented to family that my speech –along with that of most of the people around me–was getting lazy. Eisler puts it in words and suggests some specific verbal tics to eliminate.

Eisler links to another site that I found appealing, The Vocabula Review, a blog on all things gramatical. Sharp and to the point. I suspect I’ll learn a lot from it.

Ironically, I found Eisler because of an old BB&H post (linked above) where MJ Rose claimed most author blogs are useless when it comes to actually selling books. Maybe. But I’m enjoying the process. And I’m going to go buy Eisler’s current book today — because of his blog.

Lisa

I found a piece by Steve Martin at the Smithsonian Magazine website today. Even though the title is Being Funny, it’s not really about being funny. It’s about professionalism, finding your voice, being true to yourself, hard work, and a myriad other things a writer needs to make part of his or her soul.

And about being funny.

Be sure to watch the video that’s linked at the top of the article (Martin’s breakthrough Tonight Show performance). Just be sure you don’t have a mouth full of coffee. I nearly sprayed my keyboard.

Lisa

My favorite technology blog, LifeHacker: tips and downloads for getting things done, had a great post today linking to 10 *free* online writing courses.

The original article from Education Portal tells you how to find courses from poetry to technical writing, from top-notch schools like MIT, the UK’s Open University, and UCLA.

I’m going off to download the screenwriting course, right now.

Lisa

I came back from Portland totally jazzed and full of ideas for improving Immortal Outlaw, the next book in the series. Deb Dixon is full of insight on things like the Big Black Moment (another workshop she gave to the group), and my brain just kept clicking over new possibilities, both during the workshop and later, on the long road home (I live about 6 hours from Portland).

The big thing I realized Read the rest of this entry »

Three critical elements of a good story. Also, a terrific book by romance and women’s fiction author Deb Dixon.

And finally, the title of Deb’s workshop, which she’s giving this weekend for Rose City Romance Writers, the RWA chapter in Portland Oregon.

I’m headed that direction tomorrow, laptop in hand, ready to learn. But also, to play. It is Portland, after all.

Portland: Bridges and riverfront parks. The casually threatening Rimsky-Korsakoffee House (home of the Church of Craft). Excellent mass transit. The incredible pastries of Papa Haydn. And of course, Powell’s books.

Aaaah. Civilization.

Lisa…smiling blissfully.