Have a LOVE-ly Day

link to my books

                For many of us, it’s the middle of winter. I have over 2 feet of snow at the side of my house, but fortunately a wonderful nephew who plowed the drive and I could get to the store today. It only took 2 tries and a near miss with a snow bank to get back up the hill! So I decided it was a good day to snuggle down and work on my romance. As I look over my past novels, other than my Christmas stories, there’s only one that has major events happening in winter (SPINNING THROUGH TIME). I much prefer to write about spring and summer!

                And I love writing romance, so let's begin there. Romantic relationships can start from a long ago attraction (GAME OF LOVE and TENDERHEARTED COWBOY), a slow building desire (HOLD ON TO THE PAST and PROSPECTING FOR LOVE) and even from instant dislike (PRELUDE AND PROMISES and LOVE IN DISGUISE.) It’s fun to develop relationships between two disparate people as they find that although they have very different views about everything, the attraction between them overrides all obstacles. Not right away, of course, because there has to be things like misunderstandings and separations, but that’s the fun of any relationship.

                Yet a romance needs more to fill 200+ pages than just the relationship, although that is the foundation of the story. What do you like in a story – mystery, murder, adventure/jeopardy? I always like putting a little mystery in my stories, such as AN INTERLUDE, where mystery revolves around finding a diary written during the 1920s about a speakeasy. I would probably classify my time travels as adventure or woman in jeopardy, as there is certainly that element when you consider getting thrown back into another century.

                Another element of a romance, along with plot, is the setting. This includes not only the season of the story, but where it takes place. And that “where” includes not only the town/state/country, but also the century – is it contemporary, futuristic, historical? As I indicated, I like writing in seasons other than winter, and many of my stories are set in a particular season because of some element of the plot. For example, SPINNING THROUGH TIME had to culminate at the Kentucky Derby, which takes place in May. HOLD ON TO THE PAST takes place in September because it’s about the steamboat Arabia, which sank near Kansas City in September of 1856.

As to whether it is contemporary or historical, many times the plot and characters determine that. I always thought I liked writing historical because of the slower pace and the ability of the hero to “save the day” with his wits alone. Then I started having plot ideas where WIFI and cell phones were crucial (GAME OF LOVE). 

So while I say I write historical and contemporary romance, I can also say I write mystery, murder and adventure. Because I love to read a variety of different genres, I also love to write them. All the book titles in CAPS are my books available through Books We Love. I hope you take a look at my web site at http://www.authorsden.com/barbarajbaldwin, read the book descriptions and find one that piques your interest.

Now, to get back to my work in progress, which takes place in summer, so for awhile, I can forget the negative wind chill temperatures! Find a good romance and have a LOVE-ly day.