See this article as an illustrated PDF.

Summer is coming, and so are the romance conventions, most notably the Romance Writers of America convention to be held in New York City beginning at the end of June. It’s the premiere convention for hopeful writers who attend workshops and panels in the hope of learning the craft and making a sale.

To these aspiring writers I offer the following tips I’ve compiled over my roughly thirty years of editing and agenting romance novels.

1. Remember that the main plot is the changing and developing relationship between the hero and the heroine. I have seen writers create a synopsis of what they say will be a romance that contains no romance. The story is about other things. “The romance part is understood!” they say. That won’t work. It means the romance isn’t important enough to be actual plot. The romance is the plot.
2. Keep background to a minimum, not just at the beginning of your novel but throughout. Background slows down your story. Definitely keep it out of chapter one, but also spoon feed it to us beyond chapter one. Tell us only what we need to know to understand what is happening now in your story.
3. Keep minor characters to a minimum. Romances have low word counts so there’s not much room for anything beyond the main story—the relationship between your hero and heroine (see #1).
4. Make your novel the same as but different from romances you’ve read. The same in that your book will also be in the third person, it will have the correct level of sensuality, it will not introduce elements never seen in this line—for instance, a short contemporary romance should not include vampires—and it will end with happily ever after. Different in terms of your story’s situation, plot twists, perhaps the occupations of your hero and/or heroine.
5. Don’t hold back on emotion. Your characters’ emotions are as important to your story as their actions. Emotion is plot! Develop your characters’ feelings fully and describe these feelings fully. Emotion is one of the things readers want most in a romance.
6. Know exactly what line of romances you’re targeting. Harlequin Desire? Romantic Suspense? Special edition? Ideally it will be the type you most enjoy reading and are therefore most familiar with. Later, when you submit your novel to a publisher, be sure to mention which line you have targeted.
7. Word count is extremely important! Find out the required word count for the line you’re targeting and make sure your manuscript is the correct length.
8. The largest romance publishers such as Harlequin and Mills & Boon accept manuscripts written in English only. If you decide to submit to one of these publishers and English is not your native language, hire an editor to smooth out your work, or don’t bother submitting here.
9. If you need to query a publisher before submitting your manuscript, put adequate effort into your query letter. A query letter is a one-page business letter in which you: give your novel’s title, its word length and the line you’ve targeted; briefly describe your story; give your background and credentials if relevant (previous publishing credits, or you’re a nuclear scientist and that’s the occupation you’ve given your heroine); and a request for action: “May I send you my complete manuscript? Thank you for your consideration. I look forward to hearing from you soon.”
10. Many romance publishers happily consider unagented material, so don’t let the lack of an agent stop you. Follow publishers’ submission guidelines carefully.

See this article as an illustrated PDF.

The query letter is one of publishing’s necessary evils. Most people hate writing them, hate having to boil their projects down to a page, but in most cases it’s the only way to get your foot through the door with agents and editors. Like other agents, I receive thousands of these a year, and more often than not I’ll spot something that pegs the author as an amateur. Here are some tips based on my observations.

You did not write a fiction novel! Nor did you write a fictional novel. You wrote a novel. “Fiction novel” and “fictional novel” are redundant and make you sound like an idiot. A novel is always fiction.

Don’t try to teach me about publishing. A recent query letter began with a lesson on why people read thrillers. Others have explained to me what’s wrong about books in a given genre, what’s wrong with books currently on the bestseller list, or what’s wrong with people for putting those books on the bestseller list. I don’t know everything, but I do know publishing, and even if I didn’t, this kind of lecturing has no place in a query letter.

Don’t “review” your own work. Last week I received a query letter about a work that would become a classic in its genre. At least that’s what the author thought. I’m glad when writers are proud of their work, but it’s amateurish to blow your own horn in a query letter.

Do state right up front the genre your novel belongs to.

Do state the novel’s word length.

Do tell me if you think your novel will appeal to fans of other (preferably successful) authors.

Do give relevant background on yourself. For example, let me know if your novel is based on your own career experience. Tell me if you have published stories or other novels, but for God’s sake tell me who your publishers were! Authors are often embarrassed to mention very small or regional publishers, thinking they will detract from the credit. If you’re embarrassed to mention the name of your publisher, don’t mention the credit at all. Otherwise give the name. Don’t make me Google you.

Do give a brief summary of your novel, but not the entire story. The best approach is to give us the setup or problem facing the protagonist, the obstacles standing in his or her way, and what’s at stake if s/he doesn’t set things right. We want the gist of your story, not an actual synopsis, however brief.

Don’t address an agent by his or her first name unless you’re really on a first-name basis. A query letter is a business letter, and the rules of business letters apply. Use “Mr.” or “Ms.” until you’re told to do otherwise.

Don’t enclose a photo of yourself. I’m glad when people like how they look, but how they look has absolutely nothing to do with the merits of their work. Don’t enclose a sketch of how you envision your jacket. Don’t enclose the first page or pages of the manuscript. Don’t enclose a synopsis, unless you’ve read in that agent’s listing that he or she wants one. Don’t enclose a CD of music to accompany your novel. Don’t enclose anything—except a self-addressed, stamped envelope for the agent’s reply.

Even if you’ve already self-published your novel, don’t include a copy. As far as an agent’s concerned, it’s the same as a manuscript, and you shouldn’t send a manuscript unless it’s requested. (However, if your self-published book is selling thousands and thousands of copies, do mention this!)

Keep these tips in mind and your query letter will have a real chance of resulting in a request to see your manuscript.

When deciding what kind of novel to write, it’s not always smart to pick a genre that’s currently hot. By the time your novel is written and on submission to editors, that genre may have gone cold. Some genres appear to be eternally hot—vampire fiction, for instance—but everything cools off eventually. You’re always safer trying to anticipate a future trend and aim your fiction in that direction. How to figure out tomorrow’s vampire fiction?

Look at current films. Films both reflect trends in books and set them. Speaking of vampires . . . when Hollywood saw how vampire novels were selling, it jumped enthusiastically on that bandwagon, not only adapting many of these novels but acquiring original scripts in the genre. That’s Hollywood copying books.

When the publishing industry caught on to the popularity of India-related movies like Monsoon Wedding and The Namesake (itself adapted from a novel), it began looking for India-related novels. Now we are enjoying stories from Shobhan Bantwal, Indu Sundaresan, Anne Cherian, Padma Venkatraman, Farahad Zama and many others. Will the current success of True Grit spark a spate of new Westerns? Keep an eye out.

Watch news trends. Book editors scour the news for hot trends, and so should you. I’ve noticed an unusually large number of animals killing or maiming their trainers lately—killer whales, chimpanzees, elephants. If it keeps happening it will turn into a trend people watch, and editors will no doubt put out the word they’re seeking novels about it. Will more suburban spies be exposed? Will face transplants become commonplace? Will the apparent new spate of floods spark a resurgence of “disaster” novels? As you read the news, keep a list of possible trends.

Monitor conversations. Perhaps the best way to find out what interests people is to simply listen to them. What are people talking about at cocktail parties? At the dinner table? Over the holiday table? Don’t grab at one conversation pulled from the morning’s headlines; watch for trends. For example, lately I’ve noticed a lot of people talking about municipal budget cuts that cause police to be laid off, causing a degree of “lawlessness” not seen before. Today I clicked to my favorite news site and caught this headline: ”Camden lays off nearly half of its police force.”

Budgets cuts aren’t going away anytime soon. My experience tells me that some editors would find a novel about gangs taking advantage of police cuts interesting.

Don’t write what’s trendy now; write what’s trendy tomorrow. If you’re smart you can figure out what that is ahead of everyone else.

Anyone familiar with my novel writing system or my views on fiction writing in general know I stress targeting a specific genre when tackling a novel. Is it a romance? A mystery? A science fiction novel? A Western? I stress this simply because editors stress it, and I’m all about not only writing novels but selling them.

But more and more, people say to me, “But half the novels on the bestsellers lists are blends of genres. If they can do it, why can’t I?”

Well, you can, but there’s a right way and a wrong way to do it.

Which Genre Predominates?

First of all, though it’s true that many successful novels meld two or more fiction genres, in the majority of them one of those genres is predominant. For instance, a so-called science fiction/fantasy novel may at first glance contain equal parts of both genres, but almost always a careful study will reveal that one dominates, and that’s the one that will determine where the book would be shelved in a bookstore. That’s the bottom line: In what section of the bookstore would I find this book?

So, if you’re writing a novel that doesn’t strictly belong to one genre, make sure one of them predominates. That way, agents and editors can’t say your book sits between two stools and is uncategorizable. Because before a book is shelved in the bookstore, it’s presented in a publisher’s catalogue, and inevitably a book’s listing includes its genre.

When Melded Genres Become Genres of Their Own

Often in publishing, the public reacts so positively to certain melded genres that the “meld” becomes a genre itself. Examples are paranormal romance (paranormal fiction melded with romance fiction) and historical mystery (historical fiction melded with mystery fiction). Call these genres or subgenres, but whatever you call them, they are accepted categories in which agents and editors are always looking.

So, if you want to meld, choosing a popular combination is a good way to go.

When genres collide, the results needn’t be catastrophic. In fact, the collision could result in a sale.

1. I will decide on one genre of novel—the genre I most enjoy reading—and stick with it.

2. I will study novels in this target genre to get a good idea of the kinds of stories they tell.

3. I will work hard to come up with a story idea that fits my target genre yet is fresh and new, something I’ve never seen done before in novels, TV or movies.

4. Before I begin to write, I will create a detailed outline of my novel, so that when I do begin writing, I won’t hit any rough spots.

5. I won’t share my story idea with others, because (a) when you talk out an idea it can lose some of its sparkle, and (b) someone will undoubtedly find fault with it, and I’m not interested in what other people think.

6. I will work on my novel every day, whether it’s writing my outline, doing some research, or actually writing text.

7. I will adhere to a timetable: for example, a detailed story outline by April 1, a first-draft manuscript by Thanksgiving, a polished manuscript by the end of the year.

8. I will keep a running list of editors and agents who seem right for my project.

9. I will not start another writing project until this one is finished.

10. By this time next year I will be ready to start submitting my finished novel . . . and I will already have begun working on another one.

Polish up your writing with these easy tips.

1. Seek and destroy clichés: butter-soft leather, a mighty oak, a trusted servant.

2. To show habitual action, use the past tense rather than would. Not “Each morning he would walk to the Y and swim twenty laps,” but “Each morning he walked to the Y and swam twenty laps.”

3. Watch it, which should replace the noun that immediately precedes it. Not “He took an apple from the refrigerator and ate it,” but “He rummaged in the refrigerator, found an apple and ate it.”

4. Don’t use the weakeners appeared to or seemed to. Not “The road appeared to waver in the intense heat,” but “The road wavered in the intense heat.” Not “Her face in the portrait seemed to call to him,” but “Her face in the portrait called to him.”

5. Don’t tell us what you’re showing us.

Not:

Teddy smashed his fist into the oatmeal. Annoyed, Barbara shut her eyes and groaned.

But:

Teddy smashed his fist into the oatmeal. Barbara shut her eyes and groaned.

6. Limit the use of there was and there were. Not “There were ants all over the cake,” but “Ants covered the cake.” Not “In the next block there was the barking of a dog,” but “In the next block a dog barked.”

Learn these simple but important writing habits and watch your writing improve.

You did it—you finished a manuscript by the end of NaNoWriMo, National Novel Writing Month, but it falls short of your goal of 50,000 words.

This often happens: novelists find themselves typing “The End,” only to realize their word count is too short.

Here are some tips for adding additional pages to your novel without “padding” it.

• Can you add more chapter divisions? Each new chapter in your novel gains you half a page—not words per se, but definitely additional length. Remember, short chapters are in style. Just remember to end them with cliffhangers whenever possible.
• Can you lengthen any of your action sections’ conflict phases, heightening the drama? (In The Marshall Plan®, there are two kinds of sections—units of story: action, in which the actual movement of your story takes place; and reaction, in which a character reacts to an especially traumatic action section.)
• Should you length the rational phase (the part where the character looks at the problem objectively and makes new plans) of any reaction section where perhaps you didn’t show enough of the character’s option-weighing process?
• Can you lengthen the emotional phase (the part showing the character’s gut, emotional reaction to the problem) of any reaction section, intensifying the impact on this character of the previous section’s failure?
• Throughout the novel, have you remembered to show details of characters’ everyday lives and occupations so sections do not play in a vacuum?
• Have you used space-break (hitting Enter twice) or run-together (no space between sections) connectors where you might use summary (telling us what happens between sections) connectors?
• If you’re in dire need or more pages: You undoubtedly have characters referring to or thinking about action that has taken place offstage, between sections. Can you convert any of this action into actual, full-blown action and reaction sections?

Try any or all of these techniques to bring your novel up to the word count appropriate to its genre.

We are pleased to announce the winners of The Marshall Plan® Fiction Makeover Contest.

2 Grand Prize Winners

Hannah Cobb for Mortis

James Montgomery Jackson for Bad Policy

Ms. Cobb and Mr. Jackson each won:

• A copy of The Marshall Plan® Novel Writing Software
• A copy of The Marshall Plan® for Novel Writing Ebook
• Our Makeover Report: suggestions for strengthening the project in order to make it more salable in the current market

3 Runners-Up

Kate Fellowes for Thunder in the Night

Andrew Fuller for The Birdman’s Apprentice

Elka Weber for Against the Sea

Ms. Fellowes, Mr. Fuller and Ms. Weber each won:

Grand prize winners and runners-up were selected according to the following criteria:

• Freshness of story idea
• Commerciality of story idea
• Quality of writing

Congratulations to our contest winners!

Every scene of your novel should focus on a specific viewpoint character. Regardless of which other viewpoint characters might be in the scene, the reader will be let in on the thoughts and feelings of this particular viewpoint character only. The scene itself will be written according to the perceptions and awareness of this character. That’s viewpoint writing.

Many beginning novelists complain that when they’re writing, they have no idea what to show and what not to show, what to describe and what not to describe. Viewpoint writing answers these questions.

Let’s say you’re writing a scene in which the viewpoint character enters a room he’s never been in before. Naturally he would take in the room on entering, so you would describe the room as he sees it.

If, on the other hand, your viewpoint character enters a place he has been before, he wouldn’t take mental note of how the place looks. But what if something in the room has changed? He would notice that, so you’d have him think about it. When you describe it, the reader knows that the details are coming to him through the perceptions of the viewpoint character.

The same concept applies to people. If your viewpoint character is sitting at her desk and her boss walks in, your viewpoint character isn’t going to take in the details of the boss’s appearance; she’s seen him hundreds of times. But she might notice anything that’s different—the boss’s distinctive clothes or his windblown hair.

Conversely, if your viewpoint character meets someone for the first time, it’s natural for him to take in the details of that person’s appearance; we all do that when we meet someone. When you describe this character, the reader knows he’s getting this description through the perceptions of the viewpoint character.

Stick with this viewpoint writing rule and you’ll never be at a loss as to what to describe in your novel and what not to describe.

The Internet is full of freebies. Here are some of our favorites that are of special interest to fiction writers.

Books & Magazines

Book Promotion Ain’t For Sissies by author and webmistress Jenna Glatzer.

Classic ebooks from Planet eBook.

Classic ebooks from Project Gutenberg. Over 33,000 free ebooks; all platforms.

Free and sample magazines from volition.com.

Unleashing the Idea Virus by marketing guru Seth Godin.

Authority Rules, a report on online marketing by copyblogger Brian Clark.

Over 1,000 free ebooks—fantasy, horror, mystery, science fiction, young adult, etc—from Online Novels.

The Top 5 Free eBooks for Fiction Writers. Top-rated titles from Noah Lukeman, Donald Maass, Evan Marshall and Bob Mayer.

Business Cards

250 free cards from Vistaprint; choose from attractive premade design templates. You pay shipping.

Collaboration

Google docs, a free, easy way to collaborate with other writers.

Courses

Writing What You Know, a free course from Open Learn about sharpening the senses and triggering memory.

The American Novel Since 1945, a course from Open Yale;  discusses many classics via audio, video and course materials.

Forms

Free downloadable Section Sheets from The Marshall Plan®. Plot your novel with ease.

Inspiration

Free printable monthly calendar with inspirational daily quotes.

Marketing & Promotion

Free marketing plan template from ProBusinessWriter.

Press release software and template from Duct Tape Marketing. Guides you through the process.

Blogging for Marketing 101, a free White Paper from Mequoda Daily.

Organization

Plot your stories or organize research materials with this free online mind-mapping software from bubbl.us.

Reference

Need to know the population of Benin for that international thriller you’re writing? You’ll find that and more at the CIA World Factbook.

A free online dictionary from Dictionary.com.

A free online thesaurus from Thesaurus.com.

A free online version of Strunk and White’s The Elements of Style from Bartleby.com.

The Top 100 U.S. Newspapers, from refdesk.com.

Orangoo’s free online spell checker is a handy tool for all writers.

Spell-check your writing at Orangoo.

Special Reports

Writer’s Little Black Book by Evan Marshall and Martha Jewett. All kinds of resources for fiction writers.

Sell Your Novel Without an Agent by Evan Marshall and Martha Jewett. No agent? No problem!

Marketing for Writers, a helpful report from writer2writer.com.

Word Processing

Free word processing from OpenOffice.org 3.

Writing

The Story Idea Machine, an interactive tool for generating a high-concept log line for your novel.

Are you trying to write like your idol? See how close you come with I Write Like. It says I write like H.P. Lovecraft. Go figure.