How to Write a Romance Novel:the secret formula of how to write a romance novel revealed

Me: I'm guessing that a good place to start might be by reading a number of popular romance novels? Is that true?

Morgan: Yes, that is a good place to start because it gives you a feel for what readers are buying at any given time, and also you will know if this is the type of writing you are comfortable with doing.

Me: Who are some of your favorite romance novel authors?

Morgan: I have sooo many favorite authors it'd take too long to list them all. A few are: Karen Marie Moning (love her Highlander and Fever series!), Nina Bangs, Johanna Lindsey, the late Kathleen Woodiwiss. (See list of Amazon titles below for purchasing info.)

Me: Can you tell us a bit about your beginnings as a writer?

Morgan: As for my struggles, I started out with a huge dose of self-confidence (today I recognize it as pure arrogance, lol) that since I'd read so many romance novels (I was 16 at the time) I could write one in my sleep. NOT. It didn't take me long to realize I needed to learn the craft of romance writing.

Me: So what specifically did you do to learn how to write a romance novel?

See Morgan's response below

I sought out and read every piece of information I could find (lots of Writers Digest magazines and books!) on writing fiction and writing romance.

I hung out in chat rooms online where published romance authors used to hang out (this was years ago when AOL was cool) and they'd answer your questions if you asked. (Romance authors are nice!) I gained a lot of "inside information" there, things you didn't (and still don't) necessarily find in magazine articles and such.

So essentially, I read, I networked...and I practiced. At that point (when I set out to learn the craft) I'd already read hundreds upon hundreds of romance novels.

But as time went on, I became frustrated. I KNEW what I needed to know. I could write well, I could dream up amazing concepts that I knew people would love to read. I'd learned about plotting and characterization, even revisited grammar (ugh!), but still hadn't finished a book.

Upset with myself and about to give up on writing, I sat down and gave my story-in-progress a long, hard look. I wanted to know WHY it wasn't finished. What was holding me back? This is when I put together the Magic Formula. A step-by-step process map that helped me complete my first romance novel in 72 hours.

That was a "first draft", but still, the core of the book was complete.

Keep reading below to learn more about this Magic Formula and whether you can put it to use.

Me: So you had all the ingredients for a good story, but somehow you were failing to put them together? So the 'magic formula' was about putting the ingredients together?

Morgan: Yes, it's how to take a story concept and turn it into a complete romance novel.

Me: And you have since written down this magic formula for others to use, right? You offer a home-study course on how to write a romance novel? Does it include information on getting your romance novel published?

Morgan: Yes, it does. There are sections dedicated to helping you put together a proposal package to sell your book to publishers, and a resource section that includes publishers who actively publish romance novels.

Me: Sounds great. Where can people get the details on this?

Morgan: Sure, click here to learn the secrets of my magic formula.

Me: One last question. Are you currently working on a new romance novel?

Morgan: Well, I'm not currently "actively writing" on my next novel, but the concept is there, and it's up next for me when I get through the other activities that have sort of fallen on my plate these past couple of months. Readers are going to love it, too, if for nothing more than the concept alone. :-) I can hardly wait to get to it!

Me: Say no more... thanks for taking the time to answer my questions.

A lot of people struggle with writing a steamy sex scene. They've got flirtateous dialog, a great plot and setting, but as the clothes come off, the writing stumbles. So I asked Morgan for some advice.

Me: How do you write sex scenes?

Morgan:I do explain this in more detail (along with the steps on how to do it) in my course on writing romance, but essentially you need to shift your focus. See, a lot of writers think a sex scene is about "who puts what where", but that's not it at all.

As a writer, your entire goal is to entertain and satisfy your reader. To do that, you must focus on moving them emotionally. And that's what you should concentrate on when writing your love scenes: the emotions of your characters. When it comes to love, it's all about what your characters are feeling.

Pack your love scenes with emotion, and they will be outstanding.

Hope this helps!

Me: Thanks, it definitely helps.

The romance novel genre represents 26.4 percent of all popular fiction sales, but each individual book generally represents a fairly modest number of sales. Authors should begin in romance writing because they love the genre and love writing, not hoping to get rich.

The really big earnings come to authors who acquire a following and have readers with their wallet open by the time their next book comes out.

One interesting observation, the heros and heroines in romance novels have little racial or ethnic diversity. Some feel that there is an untapped market for writing the romance novel that takes the reader beyond the middle or upper-class white world.

Good luck to you on your journey of learning how to write a romance novel.

I found a really interesting post about writing romance novels and copywriting. The primary point is that both require a main character to suffer, at least initially. I know many folks suggest starting a romance novel with the question.... what is keeping your main character from the love of her (or his) life? All good romance novels, it seems, should start with a Romeo-and-Juliet-love-denied sort of situation.

Similarly, the best sales letters acknowledge that the reader is kept from true happiness by something...... and one should start with the focus on the reader's suffering, before having the solution ride up on the white horse and sweep them into their arms.

An interesting thought, so let's take a peek at a sales letter written by a romance novelist...