Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Recipe for Writing
I’m so glad to be back aboard the ship on this fine Wednesday. When Sin asked me to fill in for her this week I admit I had some performance anxiety. Fortunately, it has been a while since I’ve written much of anything, so I pulled some muse from the wonderful reading I’ve indulged in over the last couple of months. I have enjoyed reading some fabulous historical romance in my absence. I’ve discovered some authors that are new to me, and revisited some old favorites. I was pleasantly surprised at the original plots in most of the books I added to my library.In my prolific journey, I seriously contemplated what it would entail to write a historical romance. Some of you who write in the historical genre may find my insight amusing, and off base, but a girl can always dream. I admire any writer who has a historical voice.
While riding the sigh express I formulated my recipe for writing a historical holiday romance. Most of my ingredients are light hearted and silly, but who wants their romance to be all stiff and pampas? Okay, so stiff comes in handy with appropriate timing. Read the following recipe at your own risk, parts of it do not require an oven to get a rise in temperature.
Lisa’s Recipe for Writing a Holiday Historical Romance
My tentative title: I Kissed a Rake under the Mistletoe
Other possible titles: The Rake Who Sleighed Me and All I Want for Christmas is a Rake and a Promise.
You can use any holiday song and switch up the title. I also suggest using song lyrics.
Ingredients:
A feisty heroine that doesn’t mind a hero that reeks of rake. (Because I love a stubborn rake.) Not a raving beauty, but a unique woman who can take care of herself if necessary.
A rake that doesn’t fall into the sap trap as soon as he spies the heroine across the ballroom. He must remain a rake until I’m ready for him not to be. It is an added plus if he is a blue blood, perferrably a Duke or an Earl. Although I do find a historical romance with a honest man of means to be quite enticing. l also prefer a hero who is tall and muscular in all the appropriate places. *wink* Also an added plus is a man who rides a fine steed well. There is a lot to be said about a hero who is comfortable and in control in the saddle. Giddy up.
A red lacy chemise
The smell of sandalwood and crisp winter air
An un-chaperoned sleigh ride.
Some hot mulled cider with a splash of brandy.
A furry muff. (To warm the heroine’s hands on the sleigh ride of course.) Stay with me, you can slip into the gutter later.
A long, sensual, earth-moving kiss.
A roaring fire.
A letter that links two destinies.
A small dog that has a deep affection for humans of the male persuasion. (especially rakes who hate dogs.)
A skeleton in the closet.
A Christmas Ball at the estate of the heroes’ last paramour.
A gift and some mistletoe.
A missing silver bell.
A bed with a canopy. (because I like canopies…okay)
A steamy hot love scene that takes place in a copper bathtub and rocks Rudolph off the roof.
A heartbreaking discovery.
Some forgiveness.
A happily ever after.
Use all ingredients in a word format to total 100K. Let gel at room temperature for one month in a file entitled "Historical Dandy" then contemplate revisions. Distribute with wild abandon. Serves a multitude of readers. Sighs optional.
What would be the main ingredients of your holiday historical romance novel?
What qualities do you love in your fantasy rake?
Share the best historical romance title you have enjoyed in the last few months.
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64 comments:
Hi Lisa, so nice to "see" you! I love your title "The Rake Who Sleighed Me", that's perfect. I think my holiday romance novel (and I don't do historicals) would also have to included a black-hearted demon with a dastardly plan to destroy the world--on Christmas Eve.
Lisa!! I love the small dog and canopy bed - excellent ingredients. I know this is starting to be come cliche in historicals, but I love love love forced marriages. I'm sure you can guess why, but the potential for angst just skyrockets! *g*. So somewhere between the skeleton in the closet, the steamy love scene, and the heartbreaking discovery, I would force a marriage. And there's something about a rake with dark hair and blue eyes.....ahhh. He might be rakish, but there's all that passion to make up for it *g*
I read contemps more than historical, but I loved JQ's "The Lost Duke of Wyndham" and I'm impatiently waiting for my B&N to get "Mr. Cavendish, I presume". I'm just going to have to order it online, I think. I'm curious to see how she handles the dual story lines.
Hi Lis! *runs over to deliver an exuberant hug* I've missed you!! *waves a crewmember over with a ration of rum. pinches his tush as he wanders off*
I love your historical ingredients. :) I particularly like the giddy up.
Honestly, a ball at an old paramour's house sounds great. I wonder if i can use that later....
Anyway, I think I'd have to offer a pot of chocolate. (Sorry for the fanlit flashbacks). And ice skating. And a kid. There's always room for an adorable urchin in Christmas books.
JK,
Hi! *waves* So nice to *see* you too:) I love, love the dastardly plan. What a rockin story that would make, not to mention a nice plan to shake up Christmas!
Yeah, leave it to JK to introduce a demon on Christmas eve. lol!!
Hal!
A girl has to love a dog sleeping on a canopy bed and the rake moving it out of the way to put the bed to good use:)
I like a forced marriage too. You are so right, the angst potential is too good to pass up.
I have Mr. Cavendish, I Presume, but I've recently discovered Liz Carlyle and dearly love her writing. I'll eventually work my way back to JQ:)
I bet she handles the story line with her unique ability to make every plot seem new and the book a bit hard to put down.
*running in slow motion toward Marnee with dramatic music playing in the background*
*Big long squishy hug*
I've missed you so much!
It's so good to be back with my pirate wenches!
Feel free to borrow the ball idea:) I thought it would be a potentially divine scene.
I love the urchin and ice skating! Every rake has to have a giddy up:)
LOL! *Cueing cheesy 80s music to accompany our squishy hug.*
We've missed you too deary.
The ball idea does have a lot of potential. A woman he always thought he loved and the new, fiesty woman who equally irritates him and fascinates him.
*sigh*
well we all know how that works - the paramour doesn't have the glittery hoo haa! Only the new, feisty woman can redeem his rakish qualities with her glitter *g*
Absolutely. How can a rake resist the pull of his corresponding glitteriness?
Lisa, I've missed you! And I agree: The Rake Who Sleighed Me is a riot...and I too like canopy beds. Just because. And the furry muff line is going to make me snicker all morning.
Favorite Rake Traits: I love it when their need for selfish gain is crossed by some apparently dormant "integrity" trait. Like he can't seduce her because she's a Marriage Mart Miss and he doesn't touch MMM's. However, she did accidentally stumble into his bedroom...and she is the little sister of the guy who owes him 10,000 pounds...so this might be a handy revenge...Oh, the decisions, decisions.
*LOL* And I'm going to have "Giddy Up" in my head all day long. *LOL*
Lisa is on da decks!!! *joins in the Marn/Lis lovefest*
I'm loving this recipe. And I hate to cook! But I could whip up a batch of this. The furry muff is my favorite. Yep, mind went there immediately. LOL! But the copper tub and rockin' Rudolf off the roof sounds like something I'd like to try.
For my own ingredients, I'd throw in the perfect present from the hero to the heroine. You know, the locket/book/ornament that proves he truly knows her, loves her and best of all LISTENS to her.
Toss in a romp in the snow and the presentation of a very special present all decked out in a pretty bow right around midnight, and we reach perfection!
I'll have to think about titles. I'm reading A Seduction at Christmas by Cathy Maxwell right now so that one's kind of fun.
Hurrah! Lisa's back! I love homecomings. (((Hugs))), Lisa.
I love Christmas romances too, I'm in the midst of my annual holiday rereadings and enjoying every minute. I reread Jo Beverley's Winter Fire last week. It's a book that gets better every time I read it. It has fire (literal and metaphorical), a baby, a creche, a high-tempered, tender-hearted heroine, and a sigh-inspiring hero who wears an earring. :)
Can we add snow to our list? Some of those historical authors set great love scenes in the snow. I'm convinced Eloisa James's scene in An Affair Before Christmas will become one of the classic scenes in romance fiction.
Terri, we were posting at the same time. I'm just a slower typist. :) Great minds and all that! What matters is adding the snow scene. LOL!
I know Lisa is busy working today so I'm going to try to help her out by answering comments too. :)
LMAO- The Rake Who Sleighed Me. I love that one.
Thanks for filling in for me today babe. My brain was total mush last night when I got home. If it would've been up to me to blog today, there would've just been a picture up of a naked man and a picture below it of me, sighing.
This is an absolutely fabulous blog!
Ter- tell me how you like that Christmas Cathy Maxwell. I almost picked it up but I'm not much for holiday themed stories so I put it back down but I love Cathy Maxwell.
I'm glad to see I didn't miss out on all the glitter talk. I knew Hal would bring it back. LOL
And I absolutely loved An Affair Before Christmas! Eloisa sure does know how to write. *sigh*
Janga- Snow! Snow is on my list of things too.
You know the glittery hoo ha could not be a one-day conversation *g*
Ohh, love scene in the snow....if I can just get over the "my ass is cold" issue, that would be super hot!
*singing*
All I want for Christmas is a glittery hooha...
Janga - I was thinking of that exact scene. Or the scene at the beginning of Balogh's Simply Unforgettable. Though I didn't like that book so much, I still remember that scene.
Hal - think of it as making snow angels. Only it's snow angels in a compromising position. LOL!
All I want for Christmas
Is a Glittery Hoo-Ha hee
A hoo-ha-hee
A hoo-ha-hee
If I could get my glittery hoo-ha-hee,
I could wish my baby a Merry Christmas...
I'm sorry to be away so much, thank's for filling in Sin! Don't you love a catchy title? *wink*
I'm trying to save the world one bladder at a time today and it's way too time consuming!
Hellion! *Big Group Hug* I love the idea of a revenge tryst...you had me at stumble:)
Terrio, *Hugs* Let me know if Maxwell's book is a keeper. Snow and a perefect gift is definatly sigh worthy.
Janga! (((hugs back))) I have missed your prolific insight! *adding Jo Beverly's Winter Fire to my TBR list*
Hal, So sorry I missed the glittery hoo ha conversation!
Oh, and An Affair Before Christmas...I dearly loved. The plot was awesome!
Cathy's book is good so far. And I'm not much for the theme thing either, Sin, but so far it reads like a regular historical. I haven't gotten far enough to figure out where the Christmas thing comes in. But I do know the heroine ties up the hero at some point. So I'll keep reading!
I love when Hellion writes catchy tunes with glittery hooha's in them.
That sounds really dirty.
Oh well.
Damn, I knew I should've bought that book!
That doesn't sound too dirty. Now, if you had said, "Hellion is all over that glittery hooha", THAT sounds dirty. LOL!
LOL!! I think it sounds more... sparkly than dirty, really.
glittery can't be that dirty.
can it?
Hi, Lisa!!!!!!! I'm with the others, missed ya around here. Love your recipe, now if only you had one to get me out of the hole I've written myself into. LoL, The Rake Who Sleighed Me, now that sounds like Regency meets Vampire and absolutely delicious. Now something about The Lady Who Jingled The Duke's Bells, Nibbling Jack Frost, hmmm....
Terr, I almost bought CM's book yesterday, but then I saw Michelle Willingham's new one. You'll have to let me know how you like it.
I have the agree, JQ's is so far my all time favorite Christmas time one.
I believe in my very first attempt at writing I have a love scene in the snow. Of course, my hero thought to bring plenty of coverings.
Great blog, Lisa.
Renee
Hmmmm...'fraid I don't do snow. But...
Set it in the Caribbean.
A Captain that doesn't believe in magic.
A witch wanting to celebrate Yule.
A talking raven named Edgar who is her familiar.
He not only doesn't believe in magic, he's taken a vow of celibacy, but she can see the pagan warrior buried inside...and she won't give up.
Enter a storm.
Call it Shipwrecked for the Holidays.
Though I do love the furry muff...
Though it sounds a bit like another mixed drink. ;)
We could open a bar! The Glittery Hooha, The Furry Muff...The Magic Wand...
Awesome blog, Lisa!!
Kisses under the mistletoe, yule log burning, Christmas pudding, add in some interesting relatives and old school friends and you have a great party.
Di
I do believe we've found the bartender for the ship. LOL! We have to add a drink called the Happily Ever After.
Blast! Another school ta go to? (flipping through the yellow pages, searching out bartender schools...might be a growing industry in this economy...)
Arrr! By the by, Lisa...me name is 2nd Chance. I hope ya'll forgive the not wantin' to hug and kiss and slow dance jest yet... I did lurve yer blog topic, even if'n I'm not turbly fond a' snow...
Ter - I think a Furry Muff should be a hot chocolate based drink... Now...A Happily Ever After? Got ta think on that one!
2nd - Do you really think relating something brown with a Furry Muff is wise? Too close for comfort ifn ya know what I mean. I think a Furry Muff should be a pretty pink drink. With coconut shavings.
Renee,
I've missed you as well! I'm sorry to hear you are stumped with your WIP. I love to brainstorm so drop me a line some time:)
I absolutely can see a historical vamp story entitled The Rake Who Sleighed Me! How fun would that be? "Bite me under the mistletoe!"
I love your titles, you naughty girl:)
I've never heard of Michelle, I'll have to check her out...
It appears snow is the common factor in all holiday romance.
Awww, I like the drink called Happily Ever After. There's rum in it, right?
Ooh, and I love the hot chocolate Furry Muff....
2nd Chance,
So nice to meet you. Thank you for dropping by.
I love the thought of a warm Carribean Christmas. Anything to vary from the norm is good with me. Ship wrecked for the holidays would be an awesome idea for a story. "Kiss me under the coconut tree."
And the thought of tropic drinks with catchy names makes it even more fun.
Waving Hi ti Di!
Yule logs,a lacy red chemise, and a rake under a quilt sounds yummy to me.
Okaaay...hot chocolate topped with whipped cream and a nice, plump cherry on the top? Or peppermint sprinkles? Didn't we establish it isn't the appearance so much as the...oh. Deliciousness? Warming abilty? Slipp...
I'm stopping before I get into trouble.
Lisa, I be a bit of a pantser. Hell, I be a total pantser. The basics I wrote down are about all I start with! Your ingredient list is so much further than I'd ever go, but wow...it sounds like a book I'd read. And I don't read many historicals... But a little dog that adores a rake...what's not to love! Put the dog on the cover and I'd buy it. (Total dog sucke...let me rephrase that. Total dog fan.)(These sailors have filthy minds!) *Thank all the Gods!;)
Though I did read Barbara Sheridan's Hillhouse trilogy, all set in the American West. Loved 'em.
2nd Chance
I'm sorry I can't take credit for the dog who loves a rake. I've read a couple of books that have that premise and I adored them. Liz Carlyle's Never Romance a Rake, and Sherry Thomas'A Private Arrangment. I highly recommend both stories:)
I didn't used to be such a historical fan, but now I am totally besotted. I can hardly read anything else. I missed my birth right. I should have been born in Britian in the 1800's.
Oh and I'm a panster from the word go...
No, no I only want to be born in Britain in the 1800s IF I get to be one of the ton. I don't want to live in the kitchens and be a scullery maid or anything.
Actually, no. I'm good with just the novels. I much prefer modern day conveniences of dentistry, hospital practices, plumbing, KOTEX, and drugs for childbirth (which I'm far more likely to survive now than then.) Plus, I'm pretty sure I would have been an old maid. Or worse, a TEACHER old maid.
What the hell am I doing ruining a perfectly good fantasy? I'm sorry, Lisa...I'm deranged. It's not like anyone on a real pirate ship has manners or bathes...
H,
Oh I have to be a part of the ton too. But I could see me being a spinster. I would live in a cottage in the country and fool around with the rake on a nearby estate:)
Or be the fiesty chit who steals the eye of the notorious rake who is so tired of the typical ballroom variety chit. He notices that I'm wordly way beyond my years. *snort*
I have to admit a couple of days in the 1800's and I would be crying for the internet.
Hey! I have manners and I bathe...
Oh, I'm living in a fantasy? Sounds good to me! (sauntering across the deck, ice cold drink in hand despite there being no ice available in that era)
Reality is over-rated anyway.
Oh and have we ever discussed how they removed hair in the 1800's? I can't imagine using a straight razor on your legs.
I don't know if it would take the full 48 hours before I missed the internet.
Ah, yes, I would miss my Gillette. Ex-nay on the going back in times-ay. At least for me. Even if the clothes are awesome.
And 2nd Chance, sister I have not belonged to reality since about 1985. And it can be argued I didn't belong to it before then either.
Knew we was kindred!
I've always been told I should have been born 150 years before I was. Then I went into a job that didn't exist before the 40s/50s.
Hell, I was at the mall for a few hours yesterday and missed the internet. The Glittery Hoohas were calling me. LOL!
Wait, that doesn't sound right.....
Terri, I'm pretty sure that Balogh has a trad Regency with a snowed-in plot where they make snow angels. In fact, I think the title may be Snow Angel. I have to check on that.
I'm pretty sure that now people are going to start referring to this blog as the Glittery Hoohas instead of the Pirates.
Well, then, if that's the case, Sin, I will certainly have gotten my Christmas Wish, huh?
It's going to be a b*tch to change the stationary and t-shirt designs though. (Vista Print did have a lovely pirate design, but I'm thinking they're not going to have much clip art in the way of glittery hoohas.)
*Damn, spit soda all over my keyboard again! Where is that shamwow when I need it?
Uh Huh...You all wait until I leave to change to a slutty name. *sob* I can glitter.
Lisa glitters with the best of them. I'm just waiting for her to pull it out to show everyone on deck.
Remember what I said about the shamwow the other day. It will even clear up the nastiest of glittery messes.
Works pretty good on spit, too!
Much as I appreciate the glitterorious hoohas... I'd rather be a member of the Revenge crew than a...a...hmmmm. Part of the glittery hooha posse?
Though t-shirt design boggles the mind for the GH... I can hear the filk song now...
Didn't we start off talking about historical romances today? Or was the hysterical?
I know there are wenches out there that just read us for the off the wall comments. No doubt my mother will get to read this tonight and I'll not hear the end of it.
"Y'all never stay on topic. It's hilarious though to see where your minds wander."
In this case she should know by now I have no mind and my mouth just wanders on it's own.
Welcome to the Revenge crew babe. Only wanderers need apply!
I have to keep my glitter tightly guarded. If word gets out how good it is, my life will not be my own:)
*snort*
As if it is now.
This gives new meaning to stripper dust....
Thanks for having me aboard today mateys!I enjoyed sailing with you once again. And thank you to everyone who stopped by the ship:)
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