Diana's Writing Commandments

1. Don’t try to re-invent the wheel. I wasted a good six months slogging away on my own, assuming since I was an avid reader I could be a writer. My published friend, Eboni Snoe, author of over a dozen novels, graciously offered to take a look at my WIP. After a kind “Well, this is interesting,” she suggested, “You know, Diana, if you’re writing a romance, you might want to have your hero and heroine in the same state sooner than page 300.” Every genre has reader expectations and you ignore them at your peril. Learn from the experience of others.
 

2.Join a writer’s group. I’ve never heard of another profession where the practitioners were as generous and open-hearted as romance writers. At RWA meetings, I made important professional contacts, found new ways to improve my writing process and, best of all, made some dear friends.
 

3. Find a critique partner. Someone other than your mother (who thinks everything you do is wonderful) or your husband (who wants to continue sleeping with you). The value of a first reader cannot be overstated. I firmly believe I would not be published today if not for Darcy Carson, my e-critique buddy from Seattle who writes wildly creative paranormals. Not only does she catch holes in my manuscripts, she’s not above giving me a swift kick in the pants when I need it.
 

4. Enter as many writing contests as you can afford. My contest wins caught the attention of my agent, Vivian Beck. I had no prior published credits (unless you count letters to the editor), so contest wins filled an important blank space in my query letter. Even when I didn’t win, contest entries gave me valuable feedback from readers, published authors and editors.
 

5. Write. Write everyday. Write when you feel like it. Write when you don’t. Even if you tear up what you did today and re-do it all tomorrow, write. When I was   a professional singer, I had to practice every day. If I skipped one day, I could tell. If I skipped two days, my voice coach could tell. If I skipped three, the audience would be able to tell.        So write, ok?

RWA BookFair

Signing copies of my work is one of the greatest joys of being a published writer! I love meeting my readers.

Helpful Books for Aspiring Writers

Writing the Romantic Comedy by Billy Mernit
 

How to Write a Damn Good Mystery by James Frey
 

The Writer's Journey by Christopher Vogler
 

Writing the Breakout Novel by Donald Maass
 

20 Master Plots & How to Build Them by Ronald Tobias
 

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Getting Your Romance Published by Julie Beard

A Writing Hint from Diana Groe/Emily Bryan

Music is a huge motivator for me. Before I start writing a new story, one of my first tasks is to choose a soundtrack to play while I write. I like using soundtracks because usually they have no lyrics (distracting if you're trying to put your own sentences together) and a soundtrack runs a wide gamut of emotions. The music immerses me in the world of my story and when the inevitable revisions come back later, the music helps me get back into the story when I need to.

Check out my writer's blog at www.dianagroeromance.blogspot.com  

Silk Dreams BookPeek

What do I Put on the Page?

        An agent (not mine!) was complaining about a writer who attended one of her workshops. She had tons of questions--proper format, which font, who should she submit her work to--but the following question had the agent stumped.

       "What do I put on the page?"

       Of all the choices a writer makes, this is the most crucial. Assuming you understand the basics of what makes a good story, the answer to this question turns it from a yawn into a page-turner. Picking and choosing the details that frame your story, that sharply delineate your characters, this is a writer's chief work.

        There are hundreds of ways to tell a story. Leave out the boring stuff. Dump the back story. Hit the ground running and don't look back. That's what you put on the page.

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