The Writing Year Ahead

Happy New Year!

Here’s what’s ahead of me in 2014:

The fourth book in the Three River Ranch series, because, hello: cowboys! I’m also working on a couple of new ideas, including:

a)    a gritty brothers-and-dogs series, set in a small mountain town where search-and-rescue and MMA-style fighting leads each guy to the love of his life. While helping Aunt Mabel train Cupcake-the-Killer-Chihuahua.

b)    A series of novellas set in a San Francisco no-kill animal shelter, where hard hearts open and lives are saved. Plus sourdough and Pier 39.

 

c) A reunion/secret-baby/amnesia story that is mostly done but not submitted anywhere yet. I know, I know, it sounds cliché. It totally is. BUT. It’s also plausible, with a gorgeous half-Hawaiian hero, a damaged but determined heroine, the sweetest island-child ever, and a woolly-mammoth-style service dog. And it’s set on the warm, sandy beaches of Maui. Mai-tais, anyone?

As you probably know, I write romance, a genre with established reader expectations, ie: happily-ever-after endings. But mine usually involve a deep, dark undertow for my characters to overcome to earn that HEA.

Why do I write romance? I’m fascinated by relationships, the change and growth that occurs when two people struggle through to their happy ending. Plus, it’s fun. Real life can be tough. Romance makes readers feel good. Sometimes that’s all you want.

How does my writing process work? Mostly by sheer panic. I’m a crush-writer, a deadline-smasher, an under-the-threat-of-death kind of author. I don’t write every day. However, every day I’m thinking about my books, my characters, my storyline, what makes a great grand-gesture, what kind of jeans they wear, snappy come-backs they might make… I try to write these things down, so that when the deadline approaches, it’s there for me.

Thanks for joining me today! If you have questions or suggestions about upcoming books, drop me a comment. I LOVE comments!! Enjoy New Year’s Eve and here’s to a wonderful 2014.

-Roxanne

PS: On January 6^th, visit the following authors as they discuss their processes:

Annie Seaton lives on the east coast of Australia where, besides working as a publicist and editor, she’s also a writer of contemporary romance. She’s been delighted to discover that readers love reading her stories as much as she loves writing them. She and her own hero of many years are living their own happily-ever-after with “Bob” the dog and two white cats. Annie relaxes in her garden or on the beach…or most likely at sunset on her deck overlooking the ocean, a chilled glass of wine in hand. She loves to meet readers on Facebook and Twitter, too.

EJ Russell holds a BA and an MFA in theater, so naturally she became a financial manager, database designer and business intelligence consultant. Now, her daily commute stays in-house, where she writes with a cat draped across her wrists and a dog attached to her hip. Her stories include gay and straight characters because her life includes gay and straight characters – as does everyone’s.

Nora Snowdon has lived in New York and Toronto, where she worked in the financial market, gambling dens, environmental protection, food service industry, sold shoes and either appeared in or directed over 25 plays. Then Nora moved to the wet West coast and became a Writer of Elegant Smut. She has five novels available on-line and many others on the way. Check out her quirky romances (and read the first chapters) here! 

A special think you to Sheila Crosby, who invited me to participate in this blog-hop! Sheila is British, but lives on the island of La Palma, just off the North West coast of Africa, where she originally came to work at the astronomical observatory. Sometime during her three-year contract, she met the tall, dark, handsome local man who became her husband, and ended up staying. Lucky, or what?