Ilona Costa Bianchi ,'The Girl in Question'
A place for Buffistas to discuss, beta and otherwise deal and dish on their non-fan fiction projects.
Romance can run as short as 60K, depending on the pacing and the writer.
I hope it can also be as long as 100-120K, because I just don't see any way to make this puppy much shorter, even if I trim fat ruthlessly. Which would mean cutting out all the description I've been adding in at my writing group's behest. ("More visual details, Susan! I'm sure you can see it all in your head, but help us out a little.")
Susan, I've seen them that long, especially historical romance; it's the modern ones that are generally shorter, sometimes because they start at as paperback and never see hardback publication.
I expect you're fine. Other thing is, if an editor did want you trim it, he or she would say precisely what they thought wanted trimming, and where, and would likely suggest how.
My experience, anyway.
Romance can run as short as 60K, depending on the pacing and the writer
That's for Harlequin. Standalone romances are ~100,000, up to ~140,000.
Geraniums are scarlet. A Chrysler Imperial rose is crimson.
Good Buddy Tad, OTOH, writes boat anchors
No kidding. I loved Otherworld, and didn't mind that it had to be published in four volumes.
(My longest fic to date is now at around 120,000 words. Eep.)
Standalone romances are ~100,000, up to ~140,000.
Cool. I'm in the right ballpark, then. But it's a damn good thing I decided to put some sex in it. When I started I thought it was a trad regency, and they're about the same length as contemporary series romances.
Though now that I think about it, I'll be able to trim it some just because writing it out of order has led to a certain amount of duplication. For example, I have a tertiary character whom I introduced in a late scene just because I needed someone to fill out a dance set. I didn't waste much time on her, but I gave her a name, an age, a hair color, and a connection to the community. Then, last week, writing a scene that's chronologically much earlier, I needed a "filler" person again, so I brought her back and gave all the basic info again. I'll only save about twenty words by cutting the description in the later scene, but multiply that over the whole book and it'll be something.
It's a bit of a hassle, but I'm glad I decided to write in the order scenes impressed themselves on my brain rather than in chronological order. I'm sure I would've abandoned it long ago otherwise, since there's still a big chunk of the beginning remaining to write, and I'm just now figuring out what needs to go there.
It's a bit of a hassle, but I'm glad I decided to write in the order scenes impressed themselves on my brain rather than in chronological order.
Many do. Including me, which sucks, because dammit I want my plot NOW!
Betsy, thanks - could not for the life of me remember which line it was (Harlequin).
I'm always amazed at people who can write a book out of order. I think there's a section of my brain that's completely closed off, because my jaw sort of flops loosely if I try anything other the beginning-middle-end.
Harlequin
Harlequin isn't the only publisher; the official term is "category". A category romance is the sort that is on sale for precisely one month, and is sold by category rather than title. You have a standing order for, say, 10 Harlequin Temptations. In January you get ten copies of "Hamsters, Babies, and Lust" and put them in the stack. In February you get ten copies of "The Amnesiac Seal's Quadruplets", tear up the remaining 9 copies of "Hamsters" (everybody thought immediately of duct tape) and go on with your life.
Harlequins are Mills and Boon in Canada and the UK, by the way.
This is the first time I've tried writing out of order, and I don't think it's a coincidence that I've never gotten anything like this far before. In some ways it feels more like assembling a jigsaw puzzle or watching a construction site slowly grow into something recognizable than the kind of writing I did for school or do for work. Before I started, I had the opening, the heroine's background, and a few scenes from various points in the plot I knew I needed. The more I write, the more I see what needs to come before or next. But Chapter Two? Still not here. Which I'm taking as a sign that what I'd planned to put in it isn't really that important and can be rushed through to get to the meat of the story.
Betsy, again, yup- that's what I think of as "line". Doesn't AVon do runs like that as well?