On Writing Romance_ How to Craft a Novel That Sells - Leigh Michaels [10]
Word count: 50,000 to 55,000
Time Travel: A variation of paranormal in which time-traveling heroes and heroines can go either to the future or the past. As in other paranormal romances, consistency is important in time-travel books. Once the author sets up a rule for how her world operates, that rule must stay in effect unless she can explain why it changes.
Word count: 60,000 to 100,000
See also Futuristic, Historical, Paranormal
Woman in Jeopardy: Features a heroine whose life is clearly in danger, often from someone close to her or in a position of trust. The old-style Gothic romance is a good example of woman-in-jeopardy books, but the rules have broadened considerably since Victoria Holt's day. The threat faced by the heroine in a woman-in-jeopardy book is bigger, fiercer, closer, and more frightening than in most romances (for instance, she might suspect her husband, rather than a stranger, of trying to kill her). Woman-in-jeopardy books sometimes include paranormal elements.
At present, this isn't as much a category or subgenre in itself as it is a type of story appropriate for several of the longer romance lines as well as single titles and mainstream.
Word count: 80,000 to 110,000
Women's Fiction: Fiction usually written by women and aimed at a primarily female reading audience, including mainstream and single-title books but usually
not category romance novels. Women's fiction often involves a group of women who may be sisters, friends, co-workers, or enemies.
Word count: 90,000 to 110,000
See also Mainstream, Single Title
Young Adult (YA): Aimed at the teenage and even pre-teen reader, these books usually focus on the development of an innocent first love and include few sensual (and no sexual) elements.
Some books in the YA line focus on older teens and may involve realistic situations and decisions about drinking, drugs, premarital sex, etc. Though these books can carry a message, the successful ones don't preach or lecture.
The time frame for YA books can be contemporary or historical. Paranormal characters appear in some YA fiction.
Word count: varies
READING ROMANCE AS A WRITER
In addition to understanding the various types of romance, it is important to read widely within the romance genre. As an aspiring romance author, you should read the type of romance novel you are writing, as well as other similar categories or types, in order to be familiar with the style and type of stories the editors are choosing.
If you wish to write category romance, it's important to realize that each category has its own very definite identity. Reading the books themselves is the best way to understand and distinguish between categories that seem very much alike. If you don't understand the differences between similar-looking categories, you may end up writing a manuscript that doesn't really fit anywhere.
Even if you wish to write single-title books, you should familiarize yourself with the market and the competition. Though by definition a single-title book stands alone, reading a wide variety of current books will help you discern what factors make a single-title book successful.
To begin your study, visit a bookstore and simply browse the romance section without picking anything up. Stand back from the shelves and notice the variety of romances, looking at how the different categories and types of books are packaged so they are distinguishable from the rest. Which books seem to have similar themes and covers? What catches your eye as you look at the shelves? Is it bright colors, type styles, art?
Now move up close. Take a good look at front covers—colors, designs, titles. What kind of art does each cover use—is it a photograph, a painting, a cartoon, or a graphic design? Read back cover copy. What can you deduce about the books from the appearance of the front and back covers? Does