What makes a scene a scene, how to create chemistry between characters, and pop culture recs!
Welcome to my April newsletter, babes!
It’s finally hot in New York City, praise Buffy. All the tulips boldly springing forth have got me thinking about the power of planning because this month, I’m hard at work developing an extended book outline, a.k.a planned fun.
I’m dreaming up another queer ensemble romantic comedy. My outlines are a chronological breakdown of each chapter, with an overview of the action, occasional dialogue sketches (if I hear them), and the point of the scene: what makes it a scene. My feeling is, if a character has not experienced change, made a choice with significant consequences, felt a deepening of emotion, or learned important new information, the scene might just be exposition or backstory—things are happening but it’s not a scene. I aim to create compelling stories by having every scene do crucial work.
When plotting a book, I pay attention to Romance-specific structure (which I teach in the Romance Workshop)—the beats that make a romance satisfying—as well as classic structure, which craft books like Save the Cat Writes a Novel cover well. I’m discovering the internal rhythm of the story, such as when it feels right to switch POVs. I pay attention to what the story wants to be—where the focus naturally is. I outline scenes that show us the story—show us the characters’ personalities or conflicts, show us emotionality or humor or swoony moments—as opposed to scenes where the characters or narrator tell us these ideas. My outlines are long and detailed because (say it with me) it is so much easier to edit (i.e. tear apart) an outline, than a book. Major revisions happen at every stage of the process, and a detailed outline is no foolproof insurance policy. But I recommend outlining prior to writing to help fail fast/fail early in something you can more easily chop and change. I dished more on how to outline in my January newsletter.
In other news, we have a pub day for MOST WONDERFUL! My forthcoming queer holiday romcom will be released into the wild on (drumroll plz): Tuesday October 15th. I’m planning a super-special event that night in NYC, so save the date! Also, the earliest reviews are starting to pop up. I do feel a little nervous about that, but whenever those feelings arrive, I try not to indulge them. I remind myself that I truly love this book, and I’m excited to share it with readers. I don’t actually read any reviews and steer clear of review sites, and was reminded why over the weekend when I foolishly clicked on a Reddit review of IT HAD TO BE YOU, a previous book, naively expecting positivity and instead witnessing total carnage. A hard but necessary reminder that review sites are no places authors should be!
Other than that, this month I celebrated my darling wife’s birthday with an incredible meal at our local Italian restaurant, Misi, before hitting up Marie’s Crisis to hear show tunes sung by Broadway gays; had the first iced coffee of the season in New Orleans on a weekend away with my girls Issy and Big D; spent a rainy weekend upstate with my little fam; and enjoyed the fluttering, frilly cherry blossoms at the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens. How ‘bout you?
Love stories show us a couple who click. Call it a vibe, call it catching feelings, call it URST (Unresolved Sexual Tension): chemistry exists between all lovers and is a delicious thing to read. Here’s how to get it on the page.
Start With a Spark: From the jump, we generally see the couple in question activated by each other from their first meeting (aka the meet cute. If they already know each other, their first scene together functions as such). “Activated” does not mean “in love”: your couple might actually dislike each other at first, setting us up for a classic enemies-to-lovers. However you play it, they generally twitch each other’ radars: this person catches their attention in a way they might not have expected. Their souls sense they’re what each other needs, maybe. Note that I did not say Start with a Forest Fire. Love stories build in intensity and if you start at 11, the journey will start to feel one-note. They might register attractiveness, but true chemistry comes from being together, and liking it, as well as shared vulnerability and lived experience.
Get ‘Em Talking: Especially in my genre of the romantic comedy novel, we experience chemistry through characters talking to each other. Banter—conversational repartee—is a staple of the genre because it’s fun and entertaining to read and shows us two people who can verbally parry or spar. Give your characters time to just talk and hang out. Let’s see how they get along, solve problems, and handle surprising stations. Ensure we don’t just hear their thoughts about each other, and that your characters listen deeply to each other.
Track the Physical: In Romance specifically, we track physicality as a way to build chemistry and sexual tension. Have your lovers closely observe each other—not just how they look (and be specific), but what they’re wearing and how they move. Describe each time they touch each other, especially the first time—I’m talking a hand on an arm, not a boob squeeze! If we get to sex, it might be as a result of a growing emotional connection, and after a sustained period of desire.
Daydream: Allow your characters to daydream, to fantasize, to consider. Let them think about the other, in the way we do when we have a crush. You’re showing the way their lover has gotten under their skin and become a new lens to see the world through. Secondary cast are useful here as conversation partners.
Delay Gratification: The first time your characters kiss should not be the first time we’ve seen them entertain the idea, unless you’re showing us a surprise kiss that shocks one or both of them. There’s a reason why we often have an interrupted almost-kiss and that’s because it builds delicious tension and is then even more gratifying when it happens. Tease us!
Emily Henry and Casey McQuiston are two of my fave authors who write characters with great chemistry. Go forth and read, babes!
Join the May Romance Workshop!
The exciting thing about having taught the Romance Workshop for so many years is seeing past students enjoy their much-deserved success. I was thrilled to see former student, Olivia Crandall, get three offers of representation this month! Congrats, Olivia!
If you like the idea of writing and selling a romance—be it a zippy romantic comedy, a heartfelt romantic drama, or even another genre with a romantic subplot—I can help. Whether you’re on draft one or draft ten, the Romance Workshop will give you the essential basics of crafting an emotional love story, connect you to a community of writers in the same boat, and leave you with actionable feedback and a way forward. Romance has never been more popular as readers gobble up the wide array of stories within this enormous genre. Get in the mix, and sign up before it sells out.
This’ll be my last workshop for a while, so join me Monday nights in May, from 6pm - 8pmET. Find out more.
I’m reading: Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood
Ali has carved out quite the niche for herself in writing romcoms centered in STEM and academia, and her latest is her best yet. The only thing that stands between fiesty theoretical physicist Elsie Hannaway and her dream job is Jack Smith, a rival physicist who ruined her mentor's career and undermined the reputation of theorists everywhere. He’s also extremely hot! The pair butt heads, displayed with Ali’s snappy, world-class banter. Will falling into an experimentalist's orbit finally tempt Elsie to put her most guarded theories on love into practice? I’m only halfway through but I’m betting the answer is absofuckinglutely.
I’m watching: Gilmore Girls on Netflix (season 1)
When I was in New Orelans, my friend Issy asked if I’d ever seen “the Girls”. Oh sure, I replied vaguely, I’d seen an episode here and there… Oh no, she cried, I MUST watch in earnest, from the start. It’s SO funny and SO cozy and SO—Okay, okay, I said, I’ll give it a whirl. Cut to me, inhaling season one before the month is out. Love the banter, love the small town vibe, love the familiarity of it. It’s the show I have on to keep me company when I’m working and I could not be happier.
I’m performing at: Generation Women
Our next show is tonight! Our theme is Uh-Oh: Stories About Mistakes. I’m getting real vulnerable and telling our sold-out house at Joe’s Pub about my biggest professional mistake. Get ready because it is a DOOZY: I really did not think life could go on after, but hey, somehow, it did. If you missed a seat, grab a livestream ticket. Our May show (5/21) is also on-sale now.
Storytellers may be interested in my new virtual Storyteller Groups that start next week. Beginners kick off Thursday May 16th, and Advanced meets Wednesday May 8th. Find out more.
That’s it for now! If you’ve read this far, I’d be grateful if you click the like button below. HMU in the comments. I reply to every message and I’d love to hear from you.
Love your newsletter, as I do every month, Georgia ✨ I also want to note that as I was reading about your outlining, I thought, "I would pay for a Georgia workshop on writing an extended book outline" and/or reading the extended book outline of one of your previously published books!