17 March 2014
My Writing Process
Thank you, my romance writer buddy, Ruchi Vasudeva, for inviting me to jump on the #mywritingprocess bandwagon!
Last week, Ruchi wrote about the writing process that works for her. In case you missed it, you can read it on her website right here.
Since she tagged me, and since I’m honored, and since today is Monday, the 17th of March, our #mywritingprocess blog tour day, here are my responses to the four questions:
1. What am I working on?
Book two for Harlequin® India!
Simi and Rudy are both doctors with chips on their shoulders. Their mutual attraction is engendering explosive stuff, but I’m throwing some boulder-sized chips in the way of an early happily-ever-after (HEA). They will have to have to work through lots of stuff before they can find their way back into each others’ arms.
2. How does my work differ from others of its genre?
Well, its Romance, so like others of this genre, it is going to have a HEA. What’s different is that the story straddles two continents; issues stem from both American and Indian influences; while one country tears them apart, the other brings them together again.
3. Why do I write what I do?
I found myself in romance writing. I have tried other genres – children/YA, humor – somehow, although I thoroughly enjoyed writing those, I felt most at home crafting love stories. I am quite a romantic; I believe in that perfect other that completes you etc etc, so I guess it was just a cosmic coming together of romantic fiction and me, which is why I write what I do!
4. How does my writing process work?
I cannot plot to save my life. Nor can I write story structure scene by scene. I tried, really, with book two, but I couldn’t make Simi and Rudy behave or follow a preset plot. I recall that even with “Scorched by His Fire” Mita and Tanay had minds of their own, refusing to be tied down within the realms of my imagination, so my process had to adapt to them.
Now, I sit down and flesh out my main characters, then list their internal and external conflicts. That is the sum total of the plotting that I do; thereafter, I start from page one and carry on in fits and starts till it is done. In that sense I’m a linear writer; I cannot move forward until the last chapter is down to my satisfaction.
Don’t forget that the next #mywritingprocesss blog posts will be from my friends and fellow authors:
Devika Fernando: having lived in Germany and Sri Lanka with her husband, Devika has made the best (and the worst) of two totally different worlds – something that influences her writing. Besides being a romance novel author, she works as a German web content writer and as a translator. When she’s not writing, she’s reading or thinking about writing. Her first romance novel, When I See Your Face, is now available at Amazon.com.
Siddharth Tripathi: born in Allahabad and schooled in Banaras, Siddharth is a B.E from NIT Trichy and an MBA from MDI, Gurgaon. He lives in Gurgaon and works as a consultant for a business advisory firm. He also writes a blog on music and films. The Virgins is Siddharth’s first novel. He is working on his second book.
Jyoti Singh: In January of 2013, Jyoti entered the Passions Contest of Mills & Boon India with the very brief first chapter of a romance novel, not for a moment thinking that her truncated writing would stand a chance in the competition. She made the top three and as a part of the reward, won a mentoring opportunity with the UK editors of Harlequin. The end result is Temptation in Paradise that hit the stands earlier this month.
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24 May 2018
An Update
This has been a fun flashback! Every single author listed on this page has journeyed much further since then – checkout their pages and their latest releases.