Summertime

 And the livin’ is easy–or so the song goes. I don’t know about that. Sure, the days are long, the flowers are lush, and the fruits and veggies are amazing. But despite the lovely weather, most of us still have to work.

Except on holidays. The Fourth is usually filled with fun and relaxation. If we’re lucky, the holiday falls on a Friday or Monday and we get a long weekend. This year, that wasn’t the case, and now that the celebration is over, many of us are back at work. Whether we want to be there or not.

Don’t get me wrong–I love what I do. Writing is my passion, and I thoroughly bringing the ideas in my head to life. But on a hot summer day, sitting at my desk and focusing on work isn’t always easy. The allure of heading for the beach or the woods or simply taking a book outside and reading in the shade is tough to fight.

So here’s my burning question of the day: How do you fight the urge to play hooky?

Until next month and hoping to learn some great hooky-fighting ideas,

Ann

www.annroth.net

JUNE WINNER!!!

CONGRATULATIONS CathyAnn40! You’re the June winner. To receive your free autographed books please contact Leigh Duncan, C.C. Coburn and Linda Warren Milburn through their Web sites.

To enter the contest simply leave a blog comment and your name will go into the drawing. Simple and painless. And FREE BOOKS.

HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!!!  AND HAPPY CANADA DAY!!!

Don't panic!

Sorry for the scary title. But writing is a scary business.

An aspiring author once said she envied me because, as a multi-published author, I didn’t have to be afraid when I started a book. Afraid that I’d fail. Afraid that the ideas would desert me.

I disabused her of that notion. Although writing may be rewarding, even exhilarating, it’s also daunting and dangerous in its way.

Take the book I just started writing for Harlequin American, the eleventh in my Safe Harbor Medical miniseries. I’d set up an appealing hero and heroine, an interesting plotline and good conflict. What could go wrong? 

Well, as I began the second chapter, I sat staring at my computer thinking, This is too predictable.

Despite all the interesting elements, it was clear how the story would develop, where the conflicts and discoveries would come, and how the couple would resolve them.

If I’m already bored, the reader will be too. Never mind those idiots who don’t read romance novels but go around proclaiming that our books are all alike. They aren’t. Certainly not the good ones, and that’s what I try to write.

So I typed a note to myself: Make something unexpected happen.

And, after I played around with ideas and reevaluated my characters, it did. Nothing earth shattering or genre bending, I assure you (and my editor, who may be reading this). No aliens will land atop Safe Harbor Medical Center and no miracle-producing babies will be born in the maternity ward. I just found a twist to keep things interesting and produce additional tension and uncertainty for my characters.

I’m sure I’ll experience a few more scary moments before I finish the book, times when I'll wonder if I can pull it off and if these people really will fall in love in a dramatic, sparkling fashion. But that’s why, even after selling 93 novels, I never get tired of writing them.

Thanks for reading!

Jackie

www.jacquelinediamond.com

The M.D.’s Secret Daughter (Sept. 2012)