Write What You Know or Write Romance

Write what you know. The old cliché, so often seen on writing sites but now I am reading that is not necessary to know what you write.  Instead, it has become a world of write what people want to read. You know, the jump on the bandwagon, as soon as something makes a big splash, write three or four similar books as quickly as you can and become rich and famous. Some authors are making a living at it, but I wonder if other than financial, how happy they are with their creativity and writing life.

So, if a writer can write and wants to write only for the money – here it is Romance. Romance books make up 40% of Amazon’s eBook sales. There it is, if you are in it for the money, write romance. Oh, and no need to write steamy erotica books, they are a tiny portion of the romance books for sale on Amazon.

Speaking of Romance, this lovely couple is heading for
Anniversary number 48 in a few months.
Some say high school sweethearts never last
Jan and I beg to differ.

Sounds tough for someone like me and old guy that writes historicals and western fiction. But as one of my all-time favorite TV characters, Colombo used to say, “One more question.” Only, in this case, it’s one more thing, and pretty exciting at that. Westerns were on the rise last year. Yes, more westerns selling. Up as much as 7% and a few good western movies came out as well.

Now if I can just figure out how to write a bit of romance into my westerns. Never mind, I already have. Here is a cut from my western, Commitment.

    Blade’s dream flashed ahead and the couple walked hand in hand under a canopy of overhanging elms, the heavy branches filtering the silver glimmer of a half moon. An eerie yellow circle of light cast from one of the new city gas lights illuminated each street corner.  The two walked as if no one and nothing else mattered. And nothing and no one did. They walked, they smiled, and they talked about everything and then talked of nothing at all. The couple passed from the filtered moonlight to the yellow of the street corners, watched buggies and saddle horses pass and held hands letting the troubles of the world find others on this perfect night.

    Blade had never been in love before, didn’t know what it felt like and wasn’t sure what it should be. But he knew it that night, and it scared him worse than he had ever been scared in his life. They had kissed for the first time on their fifth date several weeks before. The first kiss extended Blade’s stay in Kansas City from one month to six months and as the time had worn on their relationship deepened, growing stronger and stronger by the day.

Not too steamy, but it works, at least in my world, because I write what I know.

Sometimes a great western setting is all the Romance needed

170 Year Old - A Christmas Carol - The Story

 In the past few weeks I have watched all or parts of several versions of the Charles Dickens story, “A Christmas Carol.”  Some newer movies kept the Dickens title and others have been renamed, Scrooge or Scrooged along with many other names that relate to the original story. Dozens of other short stories, books, television programs and movies are loosely based on the Dickens tale.

Dickens wrote the story as a commentary on greed in Britain at the time. His character Ebenezer Scrooge, became one of the most well know names in all of literature because of the story and likely because he was such an uncaring person throughout the first part of the story and changes as his life is revealed to him.

Dickens wrote the 80 page novella fairly fast, starting in September and finishing six weeks later in early December. Publishing it 170 years ago today- December 19, 1843 it became an instant success. The only problem was that Dickens needed money and hoped to make much more on the book than he did.

Dickens, “The Christmas Carol.” Has been continuously in print for 170 years and still sells well, especially around Christmas, throughout England, America and numerous other countries around the world.

Merry Christmas! 

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