Last month I discovered a whole world unknown to me in the island of romance writers, a tropical place with white sands, lime green and hot pink libations and steaming bedrooms. The man in your bed might also be a vampire, descended from a Greek god and the woman whispering in your ear may hold a dark secret.
This professional group of writers (https://www.rwanational.org/eweb/StartPage.aspx) is very serious about their craft. Genres include chicklit, paranormal (time travel), historical romance, speculative fiction and some science fiction. I learned how to structure my first novel using a story board: inciting events for the heroine and hero, turning points that build suspence and keep readers reading, the black moment when the heroine or hero come to some realization and then the quick resolution. It is a kind of contract with the reader of romance novels. Readers in these subgenres expect certain things to happen.
My first novel is not a romance novel. However, I believe there is much to be learned from this group of writers. At a recent workshop with the local chapter, the group used my heroine and hero to explore how the two personalities should interact. A book they used is one I have read but forgotten about: The Complete Writer's Guide to Heroes and Heroines by Cowden, LaFever, and Viders. Sixteen archetypes are explored. After describing male and female archetypes, the authors then show how these personality types engage with each other.
At this point in the rewriting of my first novel, I need to decide whether to throw out the first draft and start over using a more structured plot sequence, or allow the book to be what it is: a series of scenes along a 100 year time line with characters who may or may not interact but who each represent a sector of Tucson's population that grapples or flees from the crisis caused by global warming and climate change.
One thing for sure, if I keep stalling, it will become a historical novel!
Susan
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