Writing Romance When the World is Burning

Writing Romance When the World is Burning
By Jo McNally, author of When Sparks Fly

If you’re looking for a one-size-fits-all solution for writing through chaos, I’ll let you know right now it doesn’t exist, in this article or anywhere else. Mainly because each of us is in our own unique chaos, which seems to change every other day lately. Yes, the worldly issues are the same for all of us—war, pandemic, violence, political upheavals, environmental disasters. The news cycle these days is…a lot. 

Now layer that over our own personal lives, and it turns into a game of 3-D chess played on the tilting deck of a ship at sea. Working from home. Going back to the office. Kids taking classes online. Kids going back to in-person classes. Getting back to “normal” (whatever that is). Health issues. Family stresses. Financial worries as prices rise. Just writing these two paragraphs made my blood pressure jump a bit.

For me, the past two or three years included a major move right before the shutdown began. I lost my three remaining aunts, including one I was extremely close to. I lost my mom a year ago. I herniated two discs in my spine and had to change my approach to just about everything I do. It wasn’t much of a surprise to end up with some minor heart issues after all of that.

What else happened in that same time period? 

I wrote eight books. 

How? 

One word at a time. 

It was just that simple, and just that hard. Some of it was, without a doubt, the hardest writing I’ve done in my career. My books are contemporary romance with a good deal of humor, heat and emotion. Summoning up humor felt nearly impossible some days. Summoning up emotion felt dangerous, and even more draining than usual. Making forward progress often seemed impossible. I told my husband that writing felt like I was trying to run through quicksand.  

I had to adjust my approach to writing, both physically and mentally, in order to do my job. Most of the adjustments were surprisingly minor. In the physical sense, I did my best to avoid distractions like doom-scrolling and randomly staring off into space for hours. I forced myself to sit and type, but I often got restless. I coped with my shorter-than-ever attention span by moving around a lot. One day I’d write in the living room. Then I’d use the sunroom. The change of scenery helped.

I discovered I had to give myself more time to get in the zone before giving up on a writing session. In normal times, I would sit with a manuscript in the morning and spend twenty minutes or so reviewing what I’d written the day before, picking up the storyline and the overall mood before diving into writing more. But when the world got crazy, I started to panic about not being able to get started each day. Had I forgotten how to write? No. I just needed more time to push the real world out of my mind so I could get into writing mode. It often took forty-five minutes or even an hour of me sitting at the laptop, making multiple false starts before I really got rolling. Once I found the zone, it was just like old times—I could write 2,000 words a day or more. I just had to start earlier and allow myself that extra time to get there.

An author friend once told me that every time she sits down to write, she tells herself “This is the best thing I’ve ever written!” That simple line helped me over the past couple of years. It breaks that inner dialogue trying to convince you that you’ll never write another decent sentence, much less a book. It changes your mindset from dread to anticipation. Once I’d practiced that mantra for a while, writing began to be fun again, instead of drudgery. 

But the most important thing to remember when you’re writing through disaster? Forgive yourself. Because some days none of these tips will work. Some days I’m not comfortable no matter where I set up shop. Some days I flail around for hours and never find my writing mojo. Some days I tell myself I love writing this book, and my brain immediately comes back with “LOL—this book sucks.” When that happens to you, forgive yourself. Give yourself permission to just…stop…once in a while. Sometimes stopping—for an afternoon, a day, whatever—is the only thing that will reset your mind and allow you to write that tender love scene without your romcom characters getting into a knife fight to the death with each other.      

When I lost my mother last summer, I was five weeks away from a book deadline. I was already behind with the book, due to my aunt’s recent passing and my mom’s rapidly declining health. I knew with absolute clarity that the book deadline wasn’t happening. I was in a spot I couldn’t write my way out of. My brain was screaming “STOP!” in flashing red letters, and I listened. My agent worked with my editor and we moved a winter release into a summer release. That meant a title change and a cover change and I’m sure some frazzled rescheduling on the publisher’s part (thank you, HQN!), but I don’t regret making that change for one minute. I needed at least a month of not writing. I needed to rest. And to grieve. I had to deal with all the decision-making that death brings—estates, memorials, stuff to be distributed. 

Not writing last July saved me. And it saved the book. 

My mind was fresh and rested when I picked up the partial manuscript of When Sparks Fly and began writing again. The whole premise of the book is a romance between two people who’ve been absolute best friends since third grade. They text each other corny jokes. Their romance is a tender slow burn. There’s also a secondary romance for the FMC’s 70-year-old godmother, and that story is also funny and tender. Last summer, I wasn’t in a place to write funny or tender. Could I have pushed through? Probably, but for the book’s sake as well as mine, I’m glad I didn’t. By fall, I was ready. And I think When Sparks Fly may be the best book I’ve written to date. One major reason is that I set boundaries for my own mental and physical health.

Here’s one last tip for writing in times of worldly or personal trauma—remember that the world needs art, beauty, love and laughter more than ever. Take a look at the movie industry. In the years when wars rage and economies teeter, consumers want musicals and comedies and lavish productions. They want to escape. And that’s what we provide as authors, particularly as romance authors. I’m not saying to sacrifice yourself for the greater good. But on the days when the non-stop news cycle makes you wonder why we bother, remember there’s a reader somewhere who’s watching that same news channel and wondering where to find hope. 

Fellow authors, the answer is us. We’re providing hope and happily ever afters to a public who needs it. It’s our superpower. On the days when you just don’t think you can push through, remind yourself that we’re lucky enough to be in the hope business. And that’s pretty cool. Just remember to take care of yourself, too.

—

JO MCNALLY lives in upstate New York with 100 pounds of dog and 200 pounds of husband—her slice of the bed is very small. When she’s not writing or reading romance novels (or clinging to the edge of the bed…), she can often be found on the back porch sipping wine with friends, listening to an eclectic playlist. If the weather is perfect, she might join her husband on the golf course, where she always feels far more competitive than her actual skill-level would suggest. Connect with Jo at jomcnallyromance.com.

Follow her on Twitter @JoMcNallyAuthor

WHEN SPARKS FLY

“Readers will be charmed…Full of genuine emotion.” —Publishers Weekly on Stealing Kisses in the Snow

“Entertaining and charming story that will appeal to readers of small-town romance.” –Harlequin Junkie on Slow Dancing at Sunrise
What if the one who’s off-limits…is really the one?

Between her business, her recent divorce and her teenage daughter who needs her right now, Zoey Hartford has her hands full. Thank goodness she has her best friend, Mike McKinnon, to keep her laughing. Zoey and Mike have gone through everything together—from chemistry class to heartbreak. They would never risk their friendship…until one unexpected but sizzling night changes everything.

Mike is torn. Funny, down-to-earth Zoey in her flannel shirts and messy ponytail always seems so in control…until she melts into his arms. But he won’t come between Zoey and her daughter. They’ll just keep it casual. No drama. No feelings. No messiness. What could go wrong?

But the meddling, matchmaking book club won’t be denied. They may not have set them up, but they recognize a perfect match when they see one. And they’re determined to help Zoey see what’s been right in front of her for so long…

In Lost in Love, single mom Andrea will do anything to make the fall festival a success…even ask the town bad boy for his help.

BUY HERE

 

Tags: featured, women writers

Category: How To and Tips