3/28/2024 0 Comments How We WriteAs we mentioned last month, we get questions from readers. One that comes up regularly is, who does what to get a Robin Paul romance into the hands of our wonderful readers?
The answer is, it’s complicated. There’s much more to getting our books on shelves than writing them, particularly when you aren’t tied to a big publisher. We choose to publish our own books. That puts us in pretty good company. Best-selling authors like Colleen Hoover, Lucy Score, Mark Dawson, Hugh Howey, and others are indie authors. It allows us to choose our own destiny. The downside? We are responsible for everything. EVERYTHING. Writing, editing, cover art, print prep, marketing, and finances. That means there is plenty to do. So, who does what? It all starts with an idea. We brainstorm constantly and keep a file of potential story ideas. Our first book, Christmas Presence, is the story of a nurse who returns to her hometown. Robin spent much of her professional life as a nurse. Her experiences played into that story from the first page to the last. Once we figure out the story, Paul starts writing, usually about 1500 words a day. As each chapter is complete, we read it aloud. Paul loves writing dialogue. Robin infuses scenes with emotion and setting, and checks for continuity mistakes (such as a secondary character whose name changes). Robin is also better at the mushy stuff, so she gets to punch up the romance scenes. This is usually the time we begin working with Berni, our UK-based designer, on the new book’s cover. Once a manuscript is complete and we’re satisfied with the story, it goes off to Jen, our editor in Kansas City. A month later, it returns with hundreds of notes and suggestions, including grammar and spelling errors, ways to make things more concise, and plenty more. Paul spends two weeks going through the edited manuscript page by page, considering and, most times, accepting Jen’s edits while Robin prepares to record the audiobook. A marketing plan is put together about this time, too. We advertise heavily on Facebook and Amazon. Paul’s background is in marketing, so he leads this effort. Finally, about six months after putting the first words on a blank computer screen, Paul uploads the final manuscript onto Amazon while Robin heads to the recording studio in Sarasota to record the audiobook. And just like that, a new book is born! There’s a lot more that goes on, such as newsletters, attendance at conferences, answering reader emails, and this blog that is handled by whoever has the time. It might not be ideal, but it works well for us. And it helps that we kind of like each other!
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |