I'm over at my friend Rawiya's blog today, talking about coming out of the closet. The romance closet that is. And to who and when I've done so. Come on over and read a little more about who gets to know about my true love, writing, and who I feel I need to keep it a secret from.

http://rawiyaserotica.blogspot.com/2011/06/welcome-willa-edwards.html

I'm over at author Raine Delight's blog talking about the limited choices for heroes and whether or not they need their very on masculine revolution. Stop on by and let me know what you think.
 
http://authorrainedelight.wordpress.com/2011/06/24/guest-author-day-with-willa-edwards/

Last week I wrote a blog, about how romance novels effect your marriage, today I'm speaking to the single ladies. How do romance novels effect your dating life? Do you still look at your dates with an even eye, or are you desperately seeking a romance hero? Drop by and let me know what you think, and one lucky commenter will be entered in to win a copy of my new release, Midnight Mirage.
 
http://www.bookinitreviews.com/2011/06/are-you-desperately-seeking-romance.html

Writers often take about plot bunnies. These are little ideas that come hopping into your head and won’t leave you alone when you’re in the middle of something else. I have huge issues with plot bunnies. They are constantly popping into mind at the exact wrong time.

Now, I’ll admit, some plot bunnies have worked out well for me. Naughty List was a plot bunny that popped into my head when I was supposed to be writing something else. That something else was destroyed in a zip drive breakdown, but Naughty List survived and went on to be my first publication.

But as much as a few plot bunnies have been very successful, I try and hide from plot bunnies as much as possible. For me, plot bunnies are often a sign of procrastination. They’re my mind’s way of putting off finishing or working through a tough spot in a WIP.

So this week I got a great plot bunny. One that I really like. But I’m supposed to be working on the next installment of the Naughty Holiday Lists. Once again, I think it’s my minds way of giving me a reason to procrastinate, to not do what I know needs to be done now. But how do you know the difference? Do you listen to your mind? Or do you listen to your schedule?

For now I’ll continue my work on Valentine’s Ultimatum, and see where that takes me. And maybe this other idea will stick around long enough to make it past plot bunny into full fledged story. Only time will tell. But if it doesn’t, that’s alright to. Because there’s plenty more bunnies where that came from.

I'm over at Coffee and Romance aking are romance novels ruining your marriage? Its in response to recent article citing how a woman being addict to romance novels can be as bad as her husband having a porn addiction. Stop on by and let me know what you have to say.

I'll also be giving away a copy to one lucky commentor, so stop on by and throw your name in the hat.

http://coffeeandromance.blogspot.com/2011/06/guest-post-giveaway-are-romance-novels.html

Midnight Mirage is officially available at bookstrand.com.  I've been working so hard and diligently on this work for almost six months, if feels so good to finally see it come out and to so much positive

For this week, Midnight Mirage, is avaliable for a discounted 10%. Get it today and for an economical price.

http://www.bookstrand.com/midnight-mirage

I'm also going to be taking over my friend Tina Donahue's blog to discuss Midnight Mirage and whether romance is really porn for women. Stop by and let me know you're opinion. One lucky commenter will receive a copy of Midnight Mirage. So come on over, tell me your views and you may walk away with your own copy of my new release.

http://www.tinadonahue.com/contest-and-guest-blog-with-romance-author-willa-edwards

I'm blogging over at Nocturnal Nights today defending my favorite genre, contemporaries, which are on the endangered species list. Come on by and check out what I have to say.

http://tabithablake.blogspot.com/2011/06/contemporaries-arent-as-easy-as-you.html

I’m crazy busy this week, running around getting ready for the release of Midnight Mirage, which is only three short days away (though the book is already available for preorder). You’ll be seeing a ton of me, not just this week but for several more weeks to come, as I promote Midnight. So I’ll make my stops here a little shorter. So you don’t get to sick of me :P

I wanted to say a few things on theme writing. From the time that I first began reading I always really liked theme writing. Often it’s witty but more than anything it brings me into the story. When the theme is done right it can completely immerse me in a new world and not make me want to never leave.

I’ve been writing based on a theme every since I picked up a pen to some degree or another. Every writer does some. They use words or phrases they’ve already used, to call back previous imagery, or events, though the degree this technique is used varies from writer to writer, and sometimes even book to book.

Now you might be asking, what does writing on a theme mean. Just to clarify I don’t mean writing with a theme, which many authors do very well. But I’m talking about writing on a theme. By that I mean every bit of your writing, the verbs, description and analogies, are all (or at least as many as possible) centered around a particular theme, or multiple themes.

My most obvious theme novel is Naughty List. The theme surrounding Naughty List is obviously Christmas. To complete this theme I describe everything in Christmas terminology.  Rarely do I describe anything as white, red, pink or black, they’re snowy, Santa suit, sugar plum or coal. Something doesn’t smell like vanilla, its smells like Christmas cookies. Every description I use circles back to that theme.

The same in true for actions, I use verbs like wrap (as in present), envelope (as in Christmas card), slid (as in Santa down the chimney), decorated (as in tree). I also use this theme to determine the analogies. Such as “Callie’s mouth turned as dry as Grandma’s fruitcakes” or “His balls hung tight and heavy as ceramic tree ornaments.” I even make allusions to theme in some of my descriptions. In Naughty List, I describe a wicked grin curled across Mallory’s face, or Eric’s heart feeling three sizes bigger. These are both inspired by my favorite Christmas movie, “How the Grinch stole Christmas.”

Not only do I enjoy writing on a theme, because it’s something I like to read and it gives me a little bit of a challenge (and we know I’m always up for a challenge). It also encourages me to think outside of the box, to think through each word I pick to search for a better one to go along with the theme. And it really helps me prevent any description repetition.

Most romance authors (and a lot of the others, even if they don’t say so) admit there are certain analogies and descriptions that they duplicate, specifically in those scenes. Sex scenes. There’s only so many ways you can describe someone’s nipples or cock. By writing on a theme I explore different analogies that might not come to mind normally.

Take three different descriptions of nipples I’ve written. In Naughty List, with the Christmas theme, I described Callie’s nipples as gumdrops. In Wandering off the Path, with its forest theme, I described Abigail’s nipples as knots (I was thinking knots in a tree, but for the story knots in a rope work too). In Midnight Mirage, I describe Mallory’s nipples as grapes (my thinking, being grapes make champagne, a common New Year’s party ingredient). As you can see from these examples, each description echoes back to theme, is different and brings to mind what it’s describing.

This is the way I write. And I enjoy doing. Whenever I get the right description, or find a word that perfectly meets my theme while describing what is going on in my scene perfectly, I get a little rush, a drop of excitement. It’s the type of wordsmithing that I’ve loved since I first started to reading, and I love to bring into my own writing.

So tell me what you think? Do you like theme writing? Do you not notice it? Is it too distracting? If you have any questions, let'em rip.  I'd be happy to answer them.