As I’m sure most of you know, the RWA Annual Conference is coming up at the end of the month. This is a time of much excitement for romance writers and editors alike, and this year will be my first RWA conference!

For the past few weeks, I’ve been trying to plan my time at RWA. My appointments are scheduled and I know when the main events are. It was strange and wonderful to have someone book a hotel and flight for me. Usually I’m the one booking things for others.

Thursday night is packed! I’ll be going to the American Romance authors’ dinner, the National Readers’ Choice Awards, the PASIC reception and the eHarlequin pajama party. Friday morning I do my first appointments ever—nervous, who me? Friday afternoon I will of course be attending the Spotlight on Harlequin—I hope to see you all there. Friday night is the Harlequin party, which I’m told is a total blast. I can’t wait to party with the Blaze babes! Saturday I’ll be going to our Blaze authors’ lunch, PAN, and the RITA Awards ceremony. Plus, I’ll get to spend time with three of my authors: new American Romance author Leigh Duncan, fabulous Blaze author Kira Sinclair, and brand new Blaze author Meg Maguire. Trust me, you’re going to love her first book!

Do you have any advice for me on my first RWA conference? What are your favorite events? What workshops look good to you?

I’m very much looking forward to seeing those of you I’ve been emailing and talking to on the phone over the past four years. I hope you’re all as excited as I am about Florida.

Can’t wait to see you there!
Laura

Hi all,

It’s great to be back on the Blaze authors’ blog!

In addition to my usual work, I’m currently reading a book on screenwriting called Save the Cat! by Blake Snyder. Every year the editors at Harlequin read and discuss books that help us develop our skills and broaden our understanding of story structure and creation. I love those “ah” moments when I’m reading one of these books and I suddenly realize why something in one of my current projects isn’t working. Don’t worry, I also have those moments when I understand why something IS working.

One of the first things Snyder says is that the hero has to be likeable. Of course this applies to both the hero and the heroine in a romance novel. And how do you make a hero likeable when he does some pretty nasty things (not that our Blaze heroes would do nasty things)? According to Snyder, we need to put in a “save the cat” scene where “the hero does something—like saving a cat—that defines who he is and makes us, the audience, like him.”

I couldn’t help applying this to a TV show that I enjoy despite myself—The Vampire Diaries. One of the most interesting characters is the hero’s brother, Damon. Stephen, the hero, and Damon are both very hot, Blaze-worthy hunks, but Stephen has given up drinking human blood and is a “good” vampire who only wants to protect people. Damon is his “evil” counterpart. Damon is a total bad boy, but somehow the writers have made us care about him as well as lust after him. And they’ve done this by throwing in some “save the cat” moments. For instance, in the last episode I saw, Damon fought a houseful of vampires to save his brother.

I think it’s the belief that this character may be redeemable that keeps us interested. But is that what we really want? If he is redeemed and becomes like his brother, Stephen, will we lose interest? What do you think?

I also wondered if you could give me a bit of insight. I’ve been asked to say a few words when I go with Brenda for a discussion and Q&A at the Toronto RWA chapter. If you were in the audience, what would you want me to talk about? What would you find most interesting and helpful?

Thanks in advance!
Laura

Hi, all!

Brenda suggested I tell you about what I do here at Harlequin, so here goes…

Officially, I’m the editorial assistant for Harlequin Blaze and Harlequin American Romance. Unofficially, they call me The Gatekeeper. Anything you send to Blaze or American Romance editors has to go through me.

I suspect I’m best known among Blaze authors as the person who nags them to fill out their art fact sheets. I also do a lot of administrative tasks: filing, photocopying, couriering, etc. And I deal with most of the slush that comes to the Blaze line. I get some promising submissions and some pretty crazy stuff, too—please do not send pictures of yourself, hand-drawn illustrations, or manuscripts written on lined paper and held together with twine. Seriously, just say no.

The part of my job that I enjoy the most is the actual editing. I now have three of my own authors, including fabulous new Blaze author Elle Kennedy, whose first book Body Check came out in March. I often take on projects, such as line edits, for other editors, as well. You, too, could be the lucky recipient of one of my very thorough line edits—don’t get too excited, now.

I love working on Blaze books. The authors are a lot of fun, and the stories are super sexy!

We have a fantastic lineup for you in July….

If you’re looking for a great beach read, we’ve got an anthology that’s all about the beach. In Endless Summer, author Julie Kenner makes her return to Blaze. She’s in good company with Karen Anders and Jill Monroe.

Samantha Hunter introduces us to the next generation of American heroes—The Texas Rangers—with Hard to Resist.

We’re also incredibly honored and excited to have New York Times bestselling author Betina Krahn join the team with her first Blaze book Make Me Yours, a hot historical romance.

Cara Summers brings us Twin Seduction, the follow-up to last month’s Twin Temptation.

Rhonda Nelson’s The Soldier is another Uniformly Hot! title, linked to last month’s Letters from Home. Army Ranger Adam McPherson shows us that even though he lost part of his leg to a roadside bomb, he’s still one-hundred percent man.

And Kate Hoffmann offers The Mighty Quinns: Teague, the second in her Quinns Down Under series.

So have fun at the beach and remember to take along these sizzling hot reads. And, make sure you add the comment that Blaze Heroes are Hunks to get your name in the draw for copies of our June Blaze books.

Thanks for having me and good luck!