I’ve been tagged by Jenna Jaxon for a blog hop on My Writing Process. Each author on the hop is asked to answer four burning questions…so here goes. I’m tagging two other authors at the end of the post that will follow up the same time next week so stay tuned.

What am I working on?

I recently finished a military romance novel. Currently, I’m revising a contemporary surfer/firefighter story I wrote a couple of years ago, and contemplating my next manuscript.  In a couple of months, I’ll return to the military story and edit with fresh eyes and prospective.

How does my work differ from others of its genre?

I take beach read to a literal sense. As a beach lover, I like to incorporate local ocean lore and getaways into my stories or make them a secondary character. The Outer Banks of North Carolina is my home away from home, but I’ve also included beach locales in Virginia. 

My heroes are usually the protagonist. The style has become more popular in the last few years, but it’s not the norm in the vast romance genre, so I’m different there as well.

Hot varies from author to author. For all the bare chested covers that have left me high and dry, I refuse to do the same to my readers. I’d say the love scenes in my novels are three peppers hot and short stories rate four hot tamales. The scenes are explicit, several pages with multiple rides in the story. 😉

Why do I write what I do?

My first story was initially fan fiction and turned into an epic historical set during the Rome Empire for which there is little or no market. I love the period and enjoyed the research, but after another couple of unfinished historical pieces, I attempted contemporary. I pantsed a fifty-five thousand word novel in a few short weeks. But before Twilight and Fifty Shades, no publisher accepted romance written in first person. Now it’s considered the standard in new adult.

Having learned proper POV (point of view), I don’t see myself returning to a limiting first person style. I love writing contemporary. Snarky comes across better which makes my voice a better fit for the genre. Plus my characters tell me they have to have four-wheel drive for beach driving and a cell phone!

How does my writing process work?

When I get an idea for a new story, I’ll mull if over. During that time, I imagine the opening and main conflict as well as how I perceive my characters. With my published novella, White Doe, the idea started with an itch to write about a bad boy Harley dude. Sons of Anarchy fans will understand the Jax Teller allure. Then I thought, what if he’s a shapeshifter…on the Outer Banks…and a descendant of the Native American Croatan who befriended the first English settlers. The legend of the white doe added another facet to the idea and from there it flowed.  Okay…well… it flowed after the PRO liaison of our RWA Chapter took me under her wing.

I do the day to day writing during the evenings and on weekends. I’m more panster than plotter. But after numerous rewrites, I consider scenes more carefully. I attempt a GMC (goal, modification and conflict) for the scene ensure that it advances the plot and/or protagonist’s arc.

Being in a critique group motivates me to improve my writing with each submission. They have helped me immensely in many areas of the craft. Without them and my PRO mentor, I seriously doubt I’d be published. I encourage writers of all stages to see out a writers’ group and try to connect with another member or join a critique group.

Next Monday, March 24 please hop on over to Karen Bynum and Carolyn Spear’s blogs to uncover their writing process.

Author Karen Y. Bynum:  Into Dragons, unicorns, genies…oh my! NA/YA author, coffee-lover, olive-hater, tea-drinker, music-listener. Random becomes me. Easily distrac—

Check out her blog and upcoming release, LORE.

Carolyn Spear is a mother of two preteens and wife of a fabulous man who spoils her rotten. Gardening and writing nourish her soul and smooth out her rough edges. Guarding His Heart is her first published work.