Sourcebooks Casablanca Romance Authors

by Leah Hultenschmidt, Senior Editor In addition to getting ready for swimsuit season, summer is great time for writers to also think about taking the flab out of their work-in-progress.  I think it’s fairly safe to say most writers know one of the best ways to hook readers is to keep up a riveting pace that makes it just about impossible to put down the book. And it really doesn’t matter whether your reader is a book buyer who just picked up your latest release from the store, or an editor you’re hoping will help put your book on the shelves.  One way to keep that storyline moving forward is to follow one of my journalism professor’s favorite mantras: Omit needless words.  To me, tight writing really separates the consummate pros from the rest of the pack. Some key points to look out for when going over your next draft: Avoid explanatory dialogue – characters shouldn’t explain things they would obviously know just for the sake of the reader.  Fin...

by Leah Hultenschmidt, Senior Editor I admit it: one of my favorite summertime guilty pleasures is So You Think You Can Dance.  There's something really special about helping discover amazing new talent.  Kinda like when reading submissions, come to think of it.  If you've ever seen the show, you know it's not always the most talented dancer who wins the day.  And I do think there are a number of lessons applicable to  writers from the show-- 1. You have to be good at what you do.  There's no denying that you have to be a great  dancer to make the top 20 on the show.  The dancers prActice and hone their craft for years before trying out.  Same with writers. Have patience.  Get better.  Dont give up.  Become amazing. 2. The dancers who go the farthest on the show aren't just great dancers; they have distinctive personalities or styles or stories that separate them from the pack. Remember Mark, who did an amazing...

By Leah Hultenschmidt, Senior Editor This week, I’ve been doing a big pitch critique over at YA chat lit. Even though the material is all young adult, you might want to check it out for ideas in honing your own pitches:http://yalitchat.ning.com/forum/topics/pitch-slam-weekend-january-13-15-2012. Here’s a roundup of some of the most common questions I had for those who submitted a pitch: · Where’s the hook? What is the element of your story that’s going to make everyone clamor to read it? · Where and when is it set? · Does it fit the category? If it’s YA, the pitch needs to mention that the characters are teens. And for romance, I need a happy ending for the main characters. One comment that came up frequently for me was that I’d seen a lot of similar themes lately. The pitch was strong—it summarized the story, it had a hook, there was a sense of drama, the storyline was clear—but I felt as if I’d read it before. This is always...

by Leah Hultenschmidt Senior Editor So back at Thanksgiving, I listed the many many many many reasons I'm so grateful for my amazing Casa authors. Now time for this year's Fire authors. So to the spectacularly talented crew who makes me feel like a teen all over again--you guys rock! Katherine Grace Bond--SU MMER OF NO REGRETS is the book I wish I had when I was 13. Powerful, poignant and fun all at the same time. Zoraida Cordova--Really, you had me at mermaids and the seedy paranormal underbelly of Coney Island. But then I got to experience your infectious energy first hand. This is going to be such a fun ride! Kim Culbertson--You gave me an amazing trip to Rome in INSTRUCTIONS FOR A BROKEN HEART. How could you not love that? Janet Gurtler--Your deft touch with teen emotions is unparalleled, and you manage to connect with every single reader. And you have a Canadian accent. ;-) Geoff Herbach--Sometimes I call you for no reason but make something up just so we can have a ...

By Leah Hultenschmidt, Senior Editor A little shout-out of gratitude to my romance folks who makes doing a job I love even more awesome: Macy Beckett – I fall into your books and it’s a like a big welcome home (and I’m not even from Texas!). Can’t wait for more from Sultry Springs! Isabel Cooper – The most amazing hook ever: Terminator meets My Fair Lady. And next up, Victorian X-Men. You take everything I love and make it wonderfully new and fresh. Christy English – Talk about sparks a-flyin’! And yet you have the historical detail down to a T. In How to Tame a Willful Wife, Shakespeare never looked so good. Jayne Fresina – from Aubrey: Your books are the total package: funny and sweet, witty and sexy. I want to go to a ball with Sophie and Ellie, sneak away for a little spiked punch and hit on the hot footmen. Leigh Greenwood – A gentleman of the highest sense. No wonder everyone adores your heroes! Shona Husk – Your imagination enthralls me, and the nu...

by Leah Hultenschmidt, Senior Editor You know those books that have such a clever/intriguing title you want to read it without knowing anything else about it? Talk about love at first sight. We talk a lot about how important a cover is, and that process is a great topic for a future post. But editors don’t have the benefit of a gorgeous cover to suck us in when we’re first reading a manuscript or proposal. If we’re lucky, we have a fabulous query letter that gets excited to read more. But what can often help complete the package is an amazing title to go along with it. Every one of my authors is going to think this post is directed him or her today because we’re all going through the process of finalizing titles as we start to set our Fall 2012 list (yes, we’re working that far ahead). But it’s really for all writers at any stage in their career. And for writers going through the submission process, a strong title can help you stand out from the pack. One ...

By: Leah Hultenschmidt, Senior Editor So what exactly do Eric Northman (True Blood), Tim Riggins (Friday Night Lights) and Don Draper (Mad Men) have in common? Besides being hot? They're all bad boys. We all know there's just something about that bad boy. The best heroes in romance novels all have a bit of bad-boy in them. Why the enduring appeal? 1. The element of danger. With a bad boy, you never quite know what you're going to get. He's unpredictable. There's a risk in placing your trust with him because you're not totally sure he's worthy of it. I mean, deep down you know he is...right? He doesn't conform to society and makes no apologies about it. He's exciting and adventurous and he ups the thrill for whoever he's with. 2. For the right woman, he is redeemable. Everyone else sees him as a rogue, a danger, someone to beware. But for just the right heroine who can see the good at heart, he is loyal and...

When people ask me to share my call story, I'm tempted to ask "Which one?" You see, I've had three different pen names since my initial debut in 2006. I know. It's a weird situation, but it's a fact of publishing life. If all the writers who have more than one pseudonymn turned purple tomorrow, there would be lots of purple authors out there. I started writing dark, angsty viking romances for Leisure Books with the fabulous Leah Hultenschmidt as my editor. I wrote three books as Diana Groe, then asked Leah if it was ok for me to try adding a bit of humor to the 2nd book in a two book contract. She gave me the green light, but when I turned in my manuscript, she said it was so different from my previous stories, I was likely to give my readers whiplash. Emily Bryan was born. Under this light-hearted alter-ego, I wrote 5 stories. Things were rolling along. My work was winning awards and was translated into 7 different languages. But change is the one constant in...

by Leah Hultenschmidt, Senior Editor One of my favorite parts of the job is traveling to conferences and getting to a chance to see in person our fabulous, fascinating authors and the many other published and unpublished romance writers across the country. At the beginning of the month, I was in Cincinnati for Lori Foster's Reader & Author Get Together and wanted to share with you some fun photos: Hello, inspiration! C.H. Admirand & cover model Bill Freda. Old friends: Leanna Renee Hieber, Donna MacMeans & me An absolute riot to hang with: Sidney Ayers & Cheryl Brooks Signing buds: Leanna Hieber, Elle James, Stephanie Julian The ever-beautiful Judi Fennell and her--ahem!--genie The gang's all here: me, Sidney, Jeanette Murray (of the forthcoming Semper Fi series--hot stuff!), Judi, Stephanie, C.H. & Leanna And last Friday, uber-talented Assistant Editor Aubrey Poole (middle, seated) & I attended the Long Island Romance Writers luncheon, where we had the...

By Leah Hultenschmidt, Senior Editor It’s really easy to be hard on ourselves for procrastinating. After all, everyone has a mountain of to-dos every day—especially if you’re juggling a full-time job, kids and a writing career. Seriously, I’m in awe of you. It’s very easy to become overwhelmed and beat ourselves up over not crossing off every item on the list. For my day, it could be contracts, revision letters, back cover copy, cover art feedback, author correspondence, submissions, meeting prep, returning phone calls, or any number of other things —even editing when possible! But it’s important to remember that we need some unstructured time. Just because something isn’t on the to-do list doesn’t mean it isn’t important. Here are five things you might consider procrastinating that can actually help improve productivity: reading blogs – it’s vital keep up on industry news and make connections with other bloggers, reviewers, and authors watching YouT...

by Leah Hultenschmidt, Senior Editor Happy St. Patty’s Day! I was going to do a whole post on luck vs. hard work (quite the opposite of this month’s pampering theme, I know). But then Deb and I got on the phone yesterday afternoon and decided we’re on a hunt-down for some contemporary romance. It doesn’t get fresher than this. What makes an amazing contemporary? It’s all about the guy. When I think about my favorite contemps, we’re getting a hero we can fall in love with very quickly in the story—and I mean in the first chapter when I say early. We’re getting snappy dialogue and characters we really believe in, along with a story we could envision (or fantasize about!) happening to us. So if you’ve got a fresh complete contemporary romance with high action a la Suze Brockmann, small-town values like Robyn Carr, humor that sizzles like Robin Kaye, or just as all-round delicious as Jennifer Crusie’s BET ME, bring it on! Post a comment below with: Your ...

by: Leah Hultenschmidt, Senior Editor I think people sometimes get so caught up in certain scenes—and you know the ones I mean—when it comes to romance that they forget that the love story itself is so much more. An amazing romance goes way beyond acrobatics in the bedroom (or kitchen or car or forest or…). It’s the small tender moments that, to me, really demonstrate a deep and abiding love that make the characters so memorable. One of my favorite examples comes from IN FOR A PENNY by Rose Lerner (and I hope Rose won’t be upset with me for a small spoiler): The most touching scene to me in this book had nothing to do with actual romance. To briefly set up: Nev & Penelope have been trying to make work a marriage of convenience— he’s an aristocrat in need of money and worries that he’s not smart/admirable enough, and she’s from the wealthy merchant class but never feels as though she truly fits in High Society. They truly care for each other, but they’ve quarreled and ...