Writing for Harlequin Mills & Boon

SlopingBird

LilacPixie wrote: »

Has anyone done the writing fiction short course from OU A174?? I am considering it but would like view if anyone has tried it

Welcome to the thread LilacPixie. Don't worry about not writing much recently - I think we're all a bit like that. Sometimes life just takes over and it's impossible to find time to write. My children are almost grown (youngest 16 next week) so I've got more free time now (and space in my head to think!). I'd just say write as much as possible every day. The hardest bit is getting started. I write complete rubbish sometimes (often!) but once it's there on the computer screen, at least I've got something to edit.

Re the OU course. Someone I worked with completed an OU course in creative writing a year or two back (not sure if it's exactly the same one) and she loved it. I've done other OU courses years ago and the standard of tuition was excellent and well worth the money.

Now back to the writing!!

LuckyLucy11

I love Stephen King's 'On Writing' too, it's very generous of him to share his gift so honestly.

How I write is I have a ring binder and each subdivider is labelled with a key word which represents the title. I then watch a film (classic or modern romance) or read a book and take down relevant notes by adding them to which ever section I think they fit into.

Thanks Anglea & Sloping. It's true people want something original I'll bear that in mind.

LilacPixie

Thanks everyone... I seem to of hit 30 and realised my 20's hae disappeared in a blink of an eye and I don't want to be sitting here at 40 thinking the same of my 30's. My employer has given us £500 to put towards part time courses for personal advancment, i just fancied writing rather than say aromotherepy or nail extensions. My aim is taking my little net book to work, we have recently moved to an out of town office block so I have a good 30 minutes a day to read, take notes or actually write.

Jei-jei

Well, today I sent off my query letter, synopis and 3 chapter submission to HMB - thanks Sassers for that very useful PDF on the Liz Fielding workshop.

I only went over everything like 23 gazillion times - which is pointless because after a while your typos begin to look like perfect spelling and grammar. Stepped back for a couple of hours and went back again. Worried about whether my plot was fresh enough, checked that all my paras didn't begin with he-he-he or she-she-she and were full of scintillating repartee et. al then emailed it to myself again to double-check.

So...as Vin Diesel said in Pitch Black, unaware he was surrounded by flesh-eating thingies in the dark: "Looks clear!"

Jei-jei

freeoffers wrote: »

To be fair, authors do have deadlines once they become popular and this can lead to an awful lot of rubbish being published. Part of me does get annoyed that some authors continually churn out crud !!!!. On the other hand if they sell books it does help the industry and perhaps helps to prop up 'better' writers who for some reason are not as popular.

So true. I went to the library to check out some classic MB writers and was pleasantly surprised to see they were still writing. I picked up a couple of their books and I can't believe how turgid the plots and dialogue are - particularly for the series category they were in.

Yet another author I borrowed in the Historical series who has been going just as long, delivered in freshness, dialogue, sensuality, intrigue, development of the characters, etc.

Obviously there's some subjectivity in my opinion; I guess that's why there are so many categories - to cover the wide range of readers out there. But it seems kind of unfair for some to be sailing by on reputation when their contemporaries are still able to deliver.

LilacPixie

I am thinking of aquiring some M&B from a charity shop, Wanting to find some of the more modern ones though, everyone i've seen seems to be circa 1984

Jei-jei

LilacPixie wrote: »

I am thinking of aquiring some M&B from a charity shop, Wanting to find some of the more modern ones though, everyone i've seen seems to be circa 1984

LilacPixie, your local library might be useful as well. Since I've started taking this seriously I take out about 5 or 6 HMB books every couple of weeks. I decide which ones to borrow by backpage blurb and the very first paragraph (hmmm...a lesson there somewhere?)

I never look at front pages but often I'll also check how regularly the book is stamped out eg every month, and the date of publication.

I find that a lot of the time the authors that catch my interest are from the same stable as Natalie Anderson, Kelly Hunter (although of course there could be more popular authors who are always out on loan).

BTW. Tip for those who change their story title at the last minute for submission. Remember to check you've changed it in the Header! Arggghh..!! :eek:

Jei-jei

Sorry, I can't remember the link for this; some of you might already be familiar. Dashing out so will try and post it later. Just thought it might be interesting for those of us still working through the process to use the points as a guide for writing.

The judging is based on the first 3 pages of your manuscript. That's right, three.

HOOK, LINE & SINKER CONTEST 2011

The five entries with the highest scores will be ranked by Harlequin editor BRENDA CHIN.

Scores range from 1-5 for each question. 3 is average, 5 is superior, 50 points maximum.

1. Is the manuscript presented professionally and free of grammar and spelling mistakes?

Professional presentation in this contest consists of:
Title on each page, page # on pages 2 & 3, 12 point font, 1 inch margins, double spaced with no more than 27 lines/page

2. Is there a sense of time and place?
3. Does it have compelling characters and believable dialogue (if any)?
4. Does it have an intriguing situation?
5. Is the point of view consistent? Are changes smooth and logical?
6. Is the writing vivid and evocative?
7. Is the conflict present or implicit?
8. Has the writer begun at an interesting place in the story?
9. Has the writer avoided unnecessary details?
10. Do these three pages hook the reader?

Anglea

Hi Lilac pixie welcome to the group

jei jei - thanks you very much for that essential information.

5. Is the point of view consistent? Are changes smooth and logical?

8. Has the writer begun at an interesting place in the story?

Even if there is an exciting beginning, I often give up reading books that introduce a backstory right in the middle of a cliffhanger scene. Especially if they go on for too long or are boring. I completely lose momentum and end up skipping through them to get back to the good parts.

Anglea

Hi again

I just found something interesting -

insider's guide to writing MB

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2010/feb/15/insider-guide-writing-mills-boon