Writing Romance

I'm working on a Just For Fun novel to clear my mind of Larger Things. It's reminding me of why I never got into Romance. A lot of my writing includes romances, some of which could be described as epic. However, the romance novels I've read tend to focus on the sappy parts of epic love.

I'm more interested in the body count.

Maybe it's a good thing I'm going to be single for at least a while. When your ideal romantic movie is Bram Stoker's Dracula simply because (not enough) people die and there's blood everywhere, it might be best to keep to oneself in that respect.

"Well, fuck" has now become "WTF?"

Not in a bad way, mind. I've just found out (late, as usual) that RoF is coming back, hopefully starting in May, which means that "Nell and the Devil" will make an appearance at, um, some point. This is a very, very good thing, not only for the sake of my fledgling pro status (woo, SFWA membership qualification!), but for my pocketbook. I'm not getting a hell of a lot of money, according to the real world, but I'll be damned if I forget about it.

Three cheers for RoF! Huzzah! =)

This totally selfish post has been brought to you by My Feet Hurt And I Want Sleep.

ETA: Make that July. I don't mind. That's another period or two of WotF qualification.

RAR!

Why do I have so much more difficulty with short stories than novels? Short stories feel like diet cheesecake: I know it's supposed to be good for me (or at least better than the real stuff), but, c'mon. Really?

This post brought to you by a story that's been through at least three versions in as many years, and writing on a shitty mattress because my desk and fancy ergonomic chair are still at the house.

Well, fuck.

Looks like "Nell and the Devil" won't be appearing in Realms of Fantasy this April. I have no idea what the situation is, but it's not on the ToC for the final issue.

Sigh. Story of my life, I guess.

Brief Update

The long and short of my month of silence pretty much comes down to one thing: due to his own chronic depression and my chronic illnesses, my husband dumped me at the start of February. I'm convinced he's going through a mid-life crisis--the words "Florida" and "sports car" came up--and he can have it. I'm doing well and renting a room from a friend right now, though it'll be nice when my computer desk is here so I can write without tearing up my back. I'm starting to slink from a nasty creativity crimp. Mostly, I'm just working on getting my life in order.

That's pretty much it. Taking the day to try and write, so I'm going to get back to that. It's slow going, but it will be for a few weeks yet.