Hi Folks,
My name is Anna James and I write contemporary
romance with strong heroes and heroines that conquer life’s trials and find their
happy ever afters.
I want to thank the Sassy Chicks for having me
here on their blog. Today I’d like to talk to you about my writing process and what
went in to creating my novel, THE BUSINESS OF LOVE – Book 1 Forevermore Series,
which released today.
First off, I should mention I have a
degree in Mechanical Engineering and I tend to lean heavily on my spread sheets,
tables, and process diagrams – lol. My writing is no different. I utilize the Three
Act / Six Stage structure to plot out my novels, using an excel spreadsheet to keep
track of major plot points and turning points throughout the story.
But, the very first thing I do before
I start plotting, or writing of any kind is decide if I’m writing a single title
story, or a book series.
There of lots of things to consider
up front when writing a series, but for me, the two most important things are how
many books I intend to write, and whether I’m writing multiple books that follow
a primary arc (books that are meant to be read together to tell one epic tale),
or an episodic series where a set of characters appear from one book to the next
with each book telling a different tale.
Forevermore is an episodic series for
the most part. Books one through three revolve around the Leone siblings, Dante,
India and Wyatt. Book four is about one of the other major characters in book one,
Trey Jackson. There’s even potential for a fifth book about one of the supporting
characters in CHASING MEMORIES – book 2, if I want to continue the series. Most
of the characters make an appearance in each book.
Once I decide on the type of series
I want to write and who my characters are, I create character profiles for each
of them, and then high level “blurbs” that list the highlights of each story.
The rest of my process isn’t necessarily
set in stone. I try to write 500 words a
night, but I’m a Panser by nature (so unlike the engineering side of me!), with
strong Plotter tendencies. I edit while I write until my first draft is complete.
Then I go back and edit the entire draft, and when it’s done... I ship off my baby
to my editor and… The baby is born!
Like reunion romances, like office affairs
with a little mystery and suspense thrown in for good measure? Here’s a little snippet
from THE BUSINESS OF LOVE (now available):
After the death of her beloved father, Sophia Hamilton
vows to keep his memory alive by taking an active part in running the company he
bequeathed a share of to her. However, Dante Leone wants no part of her as a business
partner. He still hasn’t forgiven her for keeping the truth from him six years ago
when they first met, but at only nineteen, to Dante’s twenty-eight, she couldn’t
see why her age mattered.
To make matters worse, her car has been vandalized,
her house broken into and her father’s valuable art collection stolen. She’s even
been accused of staging the robbery. Is someone out to get her or is this Dante's
way of scaring her off?
Sophia can either give up on her father's legacy
or convince Dante she is not the manipulative liar he believes her to be. If she
can’t, the company her father had poured his heart and soul into could go belly
up.
About Anna
James
Anna
James writes contemporary romance novels with strong, confident heroes and heroines
who conquer life’s trials and find their HEA.
Her debut story released in 2010. Since then, Anna has penned eleven novels/novellas.
Anna is married
to a wonderful husband who spends countless hours picking up the slack around the
house so she can pursue her dream of writing, is the proud mother of five fabulous
children, and a big, loveable rescue dog the entire family adores.
You can learn
more about Anna James at:
Interested in winning a
signed copy of the book?
Sign up
for my newsletter here: http://annajamesromance.com/?page_id=1437 between now and September 30,
2015. I’ll do a random drawing on October 1, 2015 and choose 3 winners and post
them on blog (US entrants only – sorry.) Good Luck!
Thanks for having me here today!
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