Every novelist finds certain parts of the writing process more
enjoyable than others. For example, my least favorite part is having to come up
with names–for people or places–and I tend to struggle with developing and
enhancing themes.
At the other end of the spectrum, I absolutely love fleshing out
complex plotlines, and I adore trying to develop memorable characters. Given
that many of my books have been mysteries, it’s not surprising that I also
enjoy playing with things like suspense, intrigue, and pacing.
Loving
Love
What has come as a surprise to me is how much I delight in shaping
the romantic elements of my books as well. I’ve never been one for reading romance
novels, but for some reason writing romance
in my novels is one of the highlights of the entire process for me. Go figure.
Recently, I was chatting about this paradox with a small group
of friends and family members, and that led to a discussion of various romantic
moments from my past books. Soon the conversation evolved into a sort of debate,
with everyone comparing and ranking things like wedding proposals and first
kisses, declaring which was the “best” this and the “favorite” that.
And the
Winners Are
I’d been trying to think of something romance-related for this Valentine’s
Day blog post, so in the end I decided to make our conversation “official”, list
the top choices, and share them here. (Prior to posting, I also sent out an informal
poll to a few additional friends and co-authors, just to make sure we hadn’t
forgotten any important scenes or moments from the 26 novels I've written.)
Many thanks to all who weighed in!
There’s
nothing official about these results, they simply represent the final consensuses
for the various romantic categories. You’ll probably agree with some and
disagree with others, but for what it’s worth, here are the top choices as determined by committee. J Enjoy!
MINDY'S "ROMANTIC SUPERLATIVES"
Functional
Relationships
In all of my stories, my primary romantic goal is to portray
mature, functional love in action.
Sometimes I hit the mark better than others, but hopefully all of my readers have found some
moment of romance that resonated for them in a special way.
Happy Valentine’s Day–and much love to you!
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I’d love
to hear your thoughts on any of the above choices, in the comments below.
I KNOW the scene you're talking about in "Don't Take Any Wooden Nickels"! Just discovered your Million Dollar Mystery series and am in the middle of book 4. Looking forward to reading your other titles and seeing what I think of the rest of your superlatives. :)
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