Writing Process Blog Tour

Talking On Corners

Hello y’all

It’s BLOG TOUR DAY!!!

I have been fortunate to be asked by the wonderfully talented Ruchi Vasudeva to be part of the “My Writing Process – Blog Tour”. And I thank her, and the tour organizers, from the bottom of my pixie queen heart for letting my FIRST official WRITER blog be about a subject that is so close to my heart! And I get to answer questions too in my first “Talking on Corners” post.

 For all of you, who want to know the culprit who roped me in, my pal Ruchi and how she wades through her writing ‘treacle’ (LOVE the Blyton reference), you can find out more here

For those of you who are still with me, come fall into the rabbit hole that I fell into years ago!

1.      What am I currently working on?

I am a multi-tasker by nature, but when it comes to writing I have always made it a point to stick to just one draft at a time. Indeed, you can say I am a bit anal about it. But, recent events (Promos for Harlequin India’s KINGDOM COME!) have made it near impossible for me to just write. So, I am currently going to start work on my next Harlequin India romantic thriller, the first in a series, called “TO LOVE, HONOR and (DIS)OBEY”. And I am doing the line edits on my Historical Romance “LUCAS: Book One of The Lords of Devil Manor Series” from Knox Robinson Publishing which comes out in June. And I am learning to walk the tightrope of writing and promoting at the same time without going mental!

2.       How does my work differ from others of its genre?

I am a romance writer, but I straddle both Historical and Contemporary. My peers have already carved such niches for themselves in both sub-genres that I break out into a sweat, when I sometimes think of the long, arduous road ahead of me, to get to where they are.

That being said, my books are action-oriented, to a large extent. I can’t write slow-paced romance, although ‘LUCAS’ my first HR novel is extremely slow-paced. I am more comfortable writing a story where the action is constantly moving, even though I leaven it all with more than a generous dose of romance. I also try and keep the conversation and settings as realistic as possible, while heightening the tension and drama of the scene.

3.       Why do I write what I do?

In a line, I would say, I write what I write, which is romantic thrillers and historical romances (also with a twist, SIMON: Book Two of the Lords of Devil Manor Series!) and someday many others like paranormal and fantasy, is what I would love to read. In a very real sense, I write my stories for myself. If I am satisfied with it, I would proceed to the next step, which is sharing it with my Beta Readers and from thereon, taking it on the road to publication.

I write romance, in particular, because I am just a girl, writing about the thing that makes the world go round. Putting two difficult (sometimes, impossible)  characters in tricky situations and watch them mesh and gel on all levels gives me a great sense of satisfaction and accomplishment, that I won’t probably get if I were to, say, try my hand at writing horror.

4.       How does my writing process work?

I am a very disorganized woman. My closet is in a mess and you will always find five different books around my space. But, writing is the only place, where I am actually organized and disciplined. I begin with a single line that forms the core basis of my work.

For instance, for TO LOVE, HONOR and (DIS)OBEY), I first figured out the overarching thought: One Nation Can’t Have Two Queens and took the story from there which is going to be a romantic caper than a full-on thriller. Then, comes characterization, which is the most fun part because my hero inspirations always come in the form of cuties and hotties available in books and small and silver screens. For my heroines, I look no further than all the many, many awesome women I know and extrapolate from there.

Then comes the main plotting, jotting down a rough road map of major plot- points (there is a boat chase in TLHD) and then it is the simple process of opening a fresh document, thanking and dedicating all those who helped me get from Overarching Thought to First Draft beginning, filling my iPod with the best music and start typing.

Time-wise, I can work day and night, depending on what my schedule is (again, promotions!) but I love writing in the dead of night. It is my favorite time, when my hands fly over the keyboard with the perfect soundtrack racing in my mind as the scene comes to life.

All right, I have expounded on my own process and I hope y’all had a super time knowing about the workings of my extremely scattered brain. And now, as any good host, I would like to introduce to you My Chosen Three for next week. They are talented, they are fun and they are going to rock it in writing.

EVI ASHER: Evi Asher is a Paranormal Romance author; who loves to write Young Adult too. She is a die-hard romantic who firmly believes in happy endings and adores all things paranormal and exciting. She lives in South Africa with her (very patient) husband and two awesome children, her yorkies Izzy, Hadies and Logan. She loves the color pink, Hello Kitty and if she were a superhero she'd be Ms.Optimist or Silver-lining Girl. Evi can be found at these places.

FB fan page is https://www.facebook.com/evi.asher.1

Twitter is @evi_asher or https://twitter.com/evi_asher

 www.eviasher.com

TANU JAIN: Tanu Jain is a bookaholic-turned-writer. With, a doctorate in English Literature, she hid the fact from friends and family for years that she was an aspiring writer of one of those steamy Mills and Boons. She had sent off manuscripts (returned with polite regret) much before M&B came to India. But now she has two M&Bs (His Captive Indian Princess, 2013; His Runaway Royal Bride, 2014) and is currently working on her third book. She loves to connect with writers and readers and can be found at tanurja@yahoo.com and at http://www.facebook.com/tanu.jain.0001  

MILAN VOHRA: Milan Vohra has worked with some of India's leading ad agencies like JWT and Saatchi & Saatchi as Creative Director, on brands ranging from gripe water to pizzas to digestives. She gained international recognition when one of her short stories won a nationwide Harlequin short story contest and made her the first Indian Mills & Boon author. Her book 'The Love Asana' became a huge bestseller, and is now being translated into several languages. Milan has also written a play, a musical comedy called "Maid in India', short stories for anthologies like ‘Vanilla desires’ by Unisun Publishers , Young Adult stories for Penguin in ‘Love like that and other stories’ and also written for children, for Sesame Street for Indian TV.  Milan’s latest book ‘Tick-tock we’re 30’ by Westland is a reflective rom-com about old friendships, new chemistries, and imperfect urban relationships. Milan's real claim to fame, she says, is that she is the world's best worst dancer.
On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Milan-Vohra/257690834354018?ref=hl
On twitter: @milanvohra
www.milanvohra.in