3 First-Chapter Red Flags: How I Know Your Romance Novel Needs Developmental Editing
May 20, 2026
Table of Contents As a freelance romance editor since 2018, I’ve critiqued about a bajillion opening chapters as free sample edits. By now, from
Category: Writing
Build your knowledge of romance writing concepts, such as romance novel plot structure and genre conventions. Also get grammar tips, plot ideas, and more.
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How to Format Your Romance Manuscript Before Sending It to an Editor
May 15, 2026
Table of Contents I’m not a literary agent. But after almost a decade of freelance editing for indie romance authors, I finally understand why agents
2026 Is the Year You Take Action on Your Publishing Dreams: My Lessons Learned in 2025 + Resources That Have Helped Me
December 28, 2025
Table of Contents Whew, 2025 was something else, wasn’t it? Many of us struggled to write and work as we watched horrifying events play
Tropes to Make Your Romance Cozy
March 27, 2025
Table of Contents Life feels overwhelming for a lot of people right now, and many readers are looking for a warm and cozy escape.
How to Punctuate Dialogue
March 20, 2025
Table of Contents If you struggle with how to properly format your characters’ speech, you are not alone. I’ve copyedited hundreds of romance novels
Remove These Unnecessary Words from Your Manuscript
November 28, 2024
Over the years of editing countless manuscripts, I’ve noticed many common turns of phrases that I edit out. Newer writers tend to overwrite, meaning they
Go from Nothing to Finished Outline with Romance Novel Planner
November 10, 2024
Table of Contents I’m so excited to announce that something I’ve been working on for quite some time is finally available! Romance Novel Planner, a
How to Write Interrupted Dialogue
October 8, 2024
Table of Contents This post was originally published on May 6, 2019. It has been updated to follow new guidelines from The Chicago Manual of
How to Come Up with a Romance Novel Idea for NaNoWriMo
October 20, 2023
Table of Contents NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month, is an annual challenge to write a novel during the month of November. Its “winning” word
10 Tips for Choosing Your Romance Book Title
October 15, 2023
Table of Contents Your romance novel’s title is pretty important. In fact, it’s marketing copy. It’s how readers will search for your book online, ask
100 Internal Conflicts for Your Romance Story
March 13, 2021
Table of Contents Every story must have external and internal conflict. External conflict comes from the world around your main characters, and internal conflict is
50 More Romance Writing Prompts
March 9, 2021
I recently posted a list of fifty romance plot ideas to help you get inspired to write your next romance novel. Below are fifty more story
How to Write a Romance Book Description That Sells
February 25, 2021
You’ve written a romance—maybe it’s 25,000 words, maybe it’s over 100,000—and now it’s time to publish it. If you’re like most authors, the few hundred
How to Write a Romance Novel: The Setting
February 23, 2021
Table of Contents Repeat after me: World building isn’t just for fantasy authors. In fact, it’s for every author, even those writing contemporary settings. Setting
50 Romance Writing Prompts
September 11, 2020
For many writers, myself included, coming up with an idea for their next romance novel can be difficult. Looking for inspiration can feel like waiting
Top 10 Things That Are Making Readers Put Down Your Romance Novel
August 16, 2020
Table of Contents At Lyss Em Editing, the ultimate goal is reader immersion. Readers want to get lost in a story, and authors want readers
Romance Writing Simplified: Love Interest = Antagonist
February 26, 2020
Many people have the misconception that antagonist and villain are synonyms, but the function of an antagonist is not to be evil. Instead, the antagonist
Romance Writing Simplified: Writing Sexual Tension
February 25, 2020
If you write romance with heat, sexual tension is an essential story element for creating suspense and excitement in the reader. To create sexual tension,
Romance Writing Simplified: Character Motivation Comes from Backstory
February 24, 2020
Most story problems, in my experience, come down to a lack of effective character motivation. Oftentimes authors (I’ve been guilty of this myself) will make
Romance Writing Simplified: Conflict in Romance Stories
February 23, 2020
Every story, regardless of genre, needs conflict. And this conflict must be relatable and believable to readers or the story falls apart. Romance readers in
How to Write a Romance Novel: The Idea
February 16, 2020
Table of Contents A lot of people (including myself) will tell you that story ideas don’t really matter. There are no original ideas, after all.
A Romance Novel Outline Template
May 20, 2019
In a previous blog post, I discussed the six essential plot points (and one optional plot point) readers expect to see in a romance novel.
10 Sexy Character Traits for Your Romance Heroes and Heroines
May 13, 2019
Table of Contents In a romance, your reader has to fall in love with your characters. It helps if at least one of those
Character Planning with the Zodiac
April 22, 2019
Table of Contents One of the most challenging parts of writing fiction is crafting characters who feel like real people. And if you’re someone who
The Plot Embryo for Romance Stories
April 15, 2019
Table of Contents Dan Harmon, the man behind Community and Rick and Morty, created an explanation of story structure called the Plot Embryo or Story
How to Use Commas
March 5, 2019
Table of Contents When I first started writing and publishing fiction, which was when I first encountered editors, the two pieces of punctuation I struggled
6 Pieces of Terrible Writing Advice Authors Won’t Stop Giving—and What You Should Do Instead
December 13, 2018
If you’ve spent any time at all in the online writing community, you’ve heard some if not all of these writing tips. Authors, even the
Romance Novel Structure
July 17, 2018
Table of Contents I used to think the three-act structure was nonsense. I know how, however, that I only felt that way because I struggle
10 Tips for Writing M/M Sex Scenes Your Readers Will Love
July 11, 2018
Table of Contents Warning: Frank language within. Some authors struggle with sex scenes. I struggled at one point, too—before all those years of roleplaying
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