Does a Romance Novel Have to Have a HEA?

 

I write fiction and non-fiction.

Two of my fiction books are romance novels.

One of my books is called Stand By Me and one reviewer on Amazon complained that the story didn't have a HEA (Happily Ever After) ending so it couldn't be classified as a romance story.

But I disagree. I believe that a good story is a good story with or without a HEA, plus, I don't think a romance story necessarily has to have a HEA. A HFN (Happy For Now) is good enough. 

I also think my novel had a great ending that tied everything together.

And it was a Happy Ever After ending, although not in the traditional sense.

It's a story about a woman who wants her lover to live with her, but he won't. 

She tries to leave him and move on with her life without him but she misses him too much.

She even leaves him and takes up with a new love, but even though her new love is a wonderful man, she still pines for her old love, but he still won't live with her and she cannot for the life of her figure out why not.

To the reader and to the main character, his secrecy makes him seem like a bit of a ratbag, until she unwittingly learns the truth and realises that he's not a bad guy at all and now that she knows the real reason, she understands that they can never be together.

She is finally able to walk away.

That's a good ending isn't it?

She got the closure she needed and could move on whereas she couldn't before she knew the truth. She had been waiting for someone she could never have.

It is a surprise ending, and a good one. She discovers a truth that she could never have guessed.

So even though they never got together, they loved and laughed.

And then she was able to move on, and so was he.

Whether you think it's a HEA ending or a HFN, the ending still satisfies.

And because this novel is still selling, I'm having a HEA.

If you want to write a novel, write the one you want to write.

https://cheritonhousepublishing.com/books/SBM.html

How to Write 10,000 Words a Day

 

Photo by Kaitlyn Baker on Unsplash

A few weeks ago I was reading an article about how it’s possible to write a million words a years, and I thought, “That’s crazy.”

But it turns out it’s not as crazy say you think. Not only is it quite sane, it’s also quite do-able.

The author also said that we all write at the same pace, which is around 1,000 words/hour, which is only 16.6666 words per minute.

I pondered this, did a little math, and worked out that one million words divided by 365 days is 2,739 words a day. So if you wrote 2,739 words a day for a whole year, you’d have written a million words.

Hmmm. It doesn’t seem too unreasonable when you look at it like that.

So then I went back to the 1,000 words/hour. To write a million words at that speed, you’d have to write for 1,000 hours (1,000 x 1,000 = 1,000,000).

This means that if you wrote 1,000 wph for 2 hours a day, that’s 2,000 words a day which isn’t far off the 2,739 words a day needed to write a million words a year. In fact, 2,000 words a day is 730,000 words a year.

But what if you upped the ante and wrote 10,000 words a day? Even working a 5 day week you could achieve 50,000 words a week. That’s a whole book written in a week.

But is it possible to write 10,000 words a day?

According to the book, “2k to 10k: Writing Faster, Writing Better, and Writing More of What You Love” By Rachel Aaron (https://amzn.to/3ruC0bd) it’s more than possible.

At 1,000 word/hour you’d have to write for 10 hours a day. That’s a lot of hours.

But look at it a different way.

If you’ve ever tried speed writing you’ll know that it’s possible to write ¾ of a page in 5 minutes. Speed writing is where you’re given a writing prompt, or 3 words, you set a timer for 5 minutes and start writing. If you’ve never done it, you should. It’s really eye-opening to see just how much you’re capable for writing in such a short time.

Speed writing proves that it’s easily possible to write ¾ of a page in 5 minutes. So assuming a full page of writing is 300 words (it’s usually more), this means that you can write 2,700 words in an hour (¾ of a page in 5 minutes  x 12 lots of 5 minutes = 1 hour).

If you write like this for 5 hours a day, even if you drop the speed down to 2,000 words an hour, that’s still 10,000 words a day.

But the real question is whether or not it’s possible to write at this fast pace.

It is if you’re prepared. This means having a complete outline for your book so that you know exactly what you’ll be covering in each chapter.

Having a detailed outline leaves you free to write without stopping, just like speed writing. 

An outline means you don’t need thinking time, just writing time.

I work this way with all my books. Lately I’ve begun using shorter outlines, and while it’s possible to write a book this way, it slows me down because it means I need to have time to think while I’m writing.

But with a detailed outline, I can sit down and start writing straight away. Even if it’s been a day or two since I last wrote, I can look at my outline and see exactly where I finished and where I need to go.

Outlines make the writing process so much easier and faster.

And it only takes 2 to 3 days to go from idea to outline to detailed outline, and then you’re ready to start writing.

And even if you want to slow it down to just 10,000 words a week, you can still get your book finished in a month.

I wrote about this in the 4th book of my Monthly Challenge Writing Series, “The One Month Author: How to Write a Book Faster & Better.”

A simple step-by-step manual that leads you through finding an idea for a book, creating an outline, and turning it into a finished manuscript - in just one month.

Check it out now at:

https://ruthiswriting.com/books/MCWS4.html

I Don’t Want to Write, I HAVE to Write

Image by Jon Hoefer from Pixabay

For the past couple of weeks I haven’t done any writing at all. Nada. Zilch. Zero. The only exception has been writing shopping lists and writing in my journal a couple of times.

My lack of writing was due to moving and trying settle into my new home which has included finding new places to store things, getting new daily routines, having new curtains and an awning installed and finding my way around the new area where I now live.

But now I’m pretty sure that everything that needs to be done has been done so I’m now back in my writing chair.

Since  I moved, my books sales have been doing well and I sold more books than usual, including my latest novel, What Goes Around Comes Around, which is a romantic story of how one bad deed had a devastating effect on a young guy’s life and created a chain reaction of events that he could never have foreseen. Through it all he meets a young woman who helps him through the darkest period of his life. But he worries that when he does’t need her any more will he still want her? She wonders the same thing too. 

You can read more at https://cheritonhousepublishing.com/books/wgaca.html. 

This was such a fun book to write and it’s proving to be a popular book to read too. 

Book sales are a big part of how I earn money writing and they can go on even when I’m busy with other life-changing events, like moving home.

And throughout this past couple of weeks when I wasn’t writing, it felt weird, like something was missing from my life. I felt somewhat lost, even though I was so busy sorting everything out.

That’s when it hit me. I don’t write because I need to, and I don’t do it because I want to. I write because I HAVE  to. I can’t NOT write.

Writing is the way that I earn all my income, but even years ago when it wasn’t, I still used to write all the time.

I think it must be in my DNA. Everywhere I go I usually have a notebook and pen with me. A few weeks ago I was at the beach and later sat in the park near the beach and I went to a nearby newsagent and bought a notebook and pen and spent the afternoon sitting at a covered picnic table, writing.

Even on days when I don’t feel like writing, it feels wrong not to, so I usually end up curled up on the couch with my everyday notebook which is the one I write in when ideas strike me, or when I want to map out a writing plan, or when I don’t feel like writing so I write about it in my everyday notebook, and before I know it, ideas start to come and I start taking notes and start writing.

How about you?

How much writing have you done lately? How much more could yo have done if you’d just sat down and started?

Do you write because you need to? Because you want to? Or because you have to?

Right now I’m catching up with two weeks of non-writing time, and it already feels good.

I hope you get plenty of writing done too.

If you’re stuck, try my Monthly Challenge Writing Series. It’s guaranteed to get you writing and earning.

https://ruthiswriting.com/books/MCWS1.html 

50+ Writing Markets For June 2022

Here is a list of over 50 writing markets, mostly horror writing markets, paying up to $350.

Some of them have a short deadline so be quick and don't miss out.

It's a great list to cosy up with this weekend and get some writing and publishing done.

Write plenty and enjoy. :)

The Theatre Phantasmagoria

W𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘯 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘶𝘣𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘧𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘩 𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘢 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮𝘦 𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘩. 𝘞𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘳 𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘭𝘢𝘷𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘱𝘶𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘴 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘕𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘛𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘳 𝘕𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘴 𝘗𝘶𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘳𝘦 𝘗𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘴𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘢

THEME: SUNDOWN IN A TUMBLEWEED TOWN.

How you interpret this theme is largely up to you. Think tales of the Old West, the Wild West, the Weird West; perhaps the tumultuous periods around it: the First Nations Wars, the California Gold Rush, the American Civil War. Please note that your story does not have to be set on the American frontier; we’re also interested in stories which feature other untamed, dangerous locales. If you can offer us a terrifying tale set in the badlands of Mexico, the Australian Outback, the Saharan Desert, or even the dunes of Mars, we’d be keen to read it. Primarily, we’re looking for tales of the odd and the macabre, of wildernesses and the savagery they might (or did) contain, or similar horror stories along these lines.

Word count: Max 2,000 words

Deadline: 30th June 2022

Payment: £10 flat rate + ebook copy

https://nightterrornovels.wordpress.com/2022/05/31/the-theatre-phantasmagoria-june-window-open-for-submissions

10 Fiction Markets Paying $50 to $350

These markets pay $50 to about $350 for fiction. A few also accept other genres, like non-fiction and poetry. They are open now, or will open soon for submissions.

Some have tight deadlines so be quick. 

https://www.freedomwithwriting.com/freedom/uncategorized/10-fiction-markets-paying-50-to-350/

Grain Magazine

Grain Magazine, published four times per year, is an internationally acclaimed literary journal that publishes engaging, surprising, eclectic, and challenging writing and art by Canadian and international writers and artists.

Please only submit work in one genre at one time.

Poetry: Individual poems, sequences, or suites up to a maximum of 6 pages.

Fiction: To a maximum of 3500 words.

Literary Nonfiction: To a maximum of 3500 words. 

Other writing: Queries for submissions of work in other forms (i.e. short plays, comics, etc.) are welcome. You may submit such queries through Submittable or by mail.

For fiction and nonfiction submissions, please provide a word count.

Payment: $50 per page to a maximum of $250, plus 2 copies of the issue in which their work appears.

Deadline: 16th June 2022

https://grainmagazine.submittable.com/submit

Dracula Beyond Stoker

Stories with Dracula himself as the main focus. His name is on the cover of the book, but he’s not the star of the show. Let’s change that.

What was he doing prior to the novel? What was he doing when we didn’t see him in the novel? Did he survive? Expand on one of the many movie adaptations. Give us an alteranate take. The canvas is blank, spatter it red.

Word Count: 1500-5000 words

Deadline: 15th June 2022

Payment: 5cents per word.

https://www.dbspress.com/submissions

Tales from the Monoverse

We want to expand on the concept of the Monochrome Noir mystery/thriller series by opening it up to multiple genres, and are looking for authors to join us on this unique journey. 

Short-stories, 4k – 6k words in length, set in the greater Monochrome Noir mythology/concept, where the world is forever trapped in the black & white color scheme of old movies & photographs. In this grayscale world, items of color are extremely uncommon. These stories can be devoid of color entirely, or can just reference colors tangentially. Hell, a rare item of color could even be the main focus. Your tales do not need to take place in the past.

Payment: $15 and 1 paperback copy of Tales from the Monoverse upon release. Contributing authors will have a biography section at the end of the book.

Submission Deadline: August 30th 2022.

https://www.lastwaltzpublishing.com/submissions-contact

37 Themed Submission Calls for June 2022

These are calls and contests for fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. Some of the themed calls are: tender; generations; incredible journeys; myths and fairy tales; outsiders; deadly women of the sea; and the still of winter.

https://authorspublish.com/37-themed-submission-calls-for-june-2022