Hi foxtrotting friends,
How’s your August been? Calm? Chilled? Serene? Hehe! I wish I could say the same, but my August has been defined by moments of huge excitement (meeting Christina Lauren and Sally Thorne), enormous fun (the Romance Writers of Australia Conference - themed Trope Actually - was outstanding!) and then a good deal of running around like a headless chicken bashing into fences (which let me tell you is exhausting!) Wish I could say that by the end of the month I’ve arrived bushy-tailed and sparkly-eyed, but alas, there have been rather a lot of eggs to juggle (thankfully, as of yet, none smashed). Right now, I’m in the thick of final final FINAL edits for the 12 Tropes of Christmas anthology and I’m super excited to share it with you.
Over here, it’s been ‘Aussie Author August’ and what better time to grab yourself an early Christmas gift and support 12 awesome Aussie authors (Ooops, I appear to have inadvertently included myself in that awesome shout out, but it would feel strange to say 11 authors given the anthology title, anyhoooo…) We’ve 12 brand new romcom stories and a dozen ways for you to fall in love this Christmas. Go grab yourself a preorder bargain while you can. It’s only 99c using the link below:
Romance Writers of Australia Conference - theme ‘Trope Actually’
For the RWAus cocktail party on the Friday evening, we were asked to go dressed as a trope. What’s your favourite romance trope? I’m a sucker for an enemies-to-lovers story, but for our anthology I’ve written a ‘jilted bride’ romance. Just in case your interest has been piqued, and before I forget, here are the tropes you’ll find in our 12 Tropes of Christmas anthology:
Now back to the RWA Conference…
Here are some of my fave snapshots. Can you guess my trope from one of the pictures below? Clue - I am not dressed as a fox!
I made the roadtrip and shared a room with great friend Heidi Catherine (top right photo). She kept me so entertained the entire weekend and certainly has the gift of the gab (and I mean that in the best way possible!).
It was a great chance to catch up with six of the other romance writers in the anthology (bottom and middle right photos), including friend and all round superstar Megan Mayfair (top middle having a giggle!) who I’ve been with in two previous anthologies. Megan’s not only my ‘Author in the Spotlight’ in this month’s newsletter (scroll down for that), but we were also invited by Pamela Cook of podcast Writes4Women to chat about collaborating in anthologies, writing novellas, publicity and marketing strategies for 12 Tropes and much more. Pam is a fabulous host - so warm and welcoming - and she put us totally at ease (which was just as well because after a full day of teaching I was looking a bit ragged!). Pam was also in a Christmas rural romance anthology last year, A Country Vet, and has joined forces for a second rural romance collaboration due to come out 1st October. More on that next month!
Enormous thanks to Pam for inviting us on her show, supporting Aussie authors and sharing our excitement about 12 Tropes of Christmas!
Here’s the link if you’d like to listen:
And if you’d like to find out more about Pamela’s writing, here’s a link to her website:
On top of all these lovely shenanigans, it’s also been my 25th wedding anniversary. Yikes, 25 years, it must be love!!
My husband and I enjoyed a fabulous weekend away, on the other side of the bay from our own home, at Barwon Heads. It was great to explore somewhere relatively close that we don’t really know well, and we were very lucky with the weather. Crammed into our little MX5, we also took our dog, Truffle, and stayed in a cute pink cottage. It was very cosy!! And the perfect spot from which to explore the local coastline, wineries and bars!
Anyhow, enough from me. Let’s get on to introducing one of my very dear writing friends to you. We first met at the RWAus Conference in Brisbane in 2017 and we’ve been firm friends every since. She’s charming, erudite, elegant and has a wicked sense of humour. She’s also a bloody good author! If you don’t know her already, you’re in fro a treat - I’m so delighted to introduce, the very lovely and lovable
Megan Mayfair!
Megan is a USA Today bestselling author of fiction with a dash of mystery, a sprinkling of humour and a spoonful of romance. Her books have won awards including the Romance Writers of Australia Romantic Book of the Year (RuBY), the Romance Writers of New Zealand Koru Award of Excellence and the Australian Romance Readers Association Award for favourite romantic suspense novel.
She lives in Melbourne, Australia with her husband and three children and loves coffee, podcasts and yoga.
Megan, what do you love most about being a writer?
I love writing as a creative outlet. Creating stories is something that has always brought me a lot of joy.
What is your favourite genre of fiction to read and why?
I enjoy a mix of romance, women’s fiction, mysteries and thrillers.
Are you a plotter or pantser? (Does she plot out stories or dive straight in).
I’m a “plantser”. I generally have an overarching arc and story structure but then allow the characters to tell me the story and fill in the blanks.
What top tips would you give for someone wanting to write a series?
Consider how each story can work as a standalone story but fit seamlessly into the ‘world’ of the series. Side characters, locations, past events, shared history etc can all enhance the overall experience for reader and allow them to dive deeper into each story when they spot those threads running over several books.
You’ve collaborated in several anthologies. What is the appeal?
I enjoy working with other authors and building greater networks and community in what can sometimes be an isolating activity. I also enjoy reading other’s stories and providing feedback during the editing process. It’s fun to read the stories before publication and also receive some feedback to help strengthen my story in the collection as well.
If you could have written any book that’s already been published, which would it be and why?
Pride and Prejudice. From You’ve Got Mail to Bridget Jones’ Diary to Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, it remains a fixture in popular culture because the central story and characters are so adored. Plus I just love reading it. It’s a sheer delight.
What writing are you currently working on?
I have a couple of novels in draft. One is a romantic suspense and one is a contemporary romance. Both are completely new projects and are not linked to any existing work. I hope to have both completed later this year or early next year. Fingers crossed!
You can find out more about Megan’s books below.
That’s all from me this month because I need to get back to my editing. Let me know what you’re reading and what you’re looking forward to reading - hopefully 12 Tropes of Christmas!
I look forward to catching up with you next month.
Tropetastic wishes to you all!
Anna
x