Hi, I’m Winter. Welcome!

This blog is about romance — the concept of romance, the science of romance, romance movies, romance writing, and my experiences as a romance writer.

Please sign up below to receive my monthly newsletter with updates on my books, my writing life, and the world of romance, plus links to my latest posts.

And yes, I write contemporary romance novels!

My books:

Feature gamma heroes (i.e. alphas without the arrogance)
Are set internationally
Include on the page love scenes, but don’t use graphic language
Always include a dramatic, satisfying “I love you” conclusion
Are fairly short (around 250 pages), so you can get to that “I love you” fast

You can learn more about my books here.

31Jul

Netflix’s A Perfect Pairing; light and airy with notes of meh

It’s summertime (where I live, anyway), so the ‘perfect’ time to watch a frothy, fluffy romance – like Netflix’s A Perfect Pairing, which is well-qualified as summertime viewing:

It’s about wine and wineries (and sheep!)
It stars a former Nickelodeon child actor, Victoria Justice – What is it about former child actors and light romance?
It’s a Netflix Original – I would say most Netflix romances fall squarely into the ‘light’ category

Before I begin my critique, let me just clarify that I am in fact talking about the Netflix film, A Perfect Pairing, and not the Hallmark romance of the same name that also came out this year. Wouldn’t want anyone to be confused.

31May

Crazy Stupid Instalove; Secrets to making short-timespan romances seem real

Romance readers (and viewers) have a love/hate relationship with the concept of instalove (a.k.a. love at first sight); some view it as supremely romantic, while others view it as shallow and unrealistic.

I agree that pure instalove — when the leads have no real interaction at all, yet they declare love and make commitments to one another — is hard to pull off.

31Mar

Don’t underestimate the value of the romantic “look”: A critique of The Proposal

Have you ever watched a romantic movie and at the end, when one character declares their love to the other, instead of swooning, you cringed and covered your eyes?

I have. Just the other day.

The movie? The Proposal.

Yes, the Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds film, circa 2009.

Actually, I first saw it years ago, and had vaguely negative feelings about it. But, I think that first viewing was on a plane or something, and I didn’t give it my full attention. So I thought I’d give it another shot.

09Jan

Hating the player: A critique of The Hating Game movie

I am a huge fan of Sally Thorne’s The Hating Game – the book, that is.

It’s one of the best romances I’ve ever read, mostly because it manages to sustain romantic tension from beginning to end – an extremely rare feat, in my experience.

The movie, on the other hand…

12Dec

Single all the Way – It’s one small step for man-man romance

I’ve read that Netflix’s Single all the Way is the first gay holiday romance movie. (On Netflix? In the world?? I’m not sure.) Whatever, this is yet another example of Netflix choosing not to push the envelope.

The movie is tepid. There’s nothing here to offend, because there’s basically nothing here at all.

The gays deserve better than this.

28Nov

How to develop a writing routine by writing while commuting

If I hadn’t started writing during my commute, I don’t think I would have finished a single novel.

I mentioned my problems with procrastination in my post, My origin story, Part 2: Becoming a romance writer. It was only when I linked writing with the ingrained habit of commuting that I was able to sustain a writing habit.

That’s why I’m a huge advocate of writing while commuting — for those who can incorporate it into their lives.

So, partly to encourage others to try writing during their commute, and partly as an homage to my lost commute, I’ve created this 2-part video series on commuter writing.

04Sep

Uncovering my romance writing dreams, values, fears, and #goals

I’ve been thinking a lot about my “career” as a writer (it’s probably telling that I put that in quotation marks), probably because I’ve been dipping my toe in some new things this past year — joining RWA, launching a website, submitting my first query to an agent, getting my first rejection, etc.

There are plenty of options for writers today, and so much advice floating around. I’ve found it distressing at times, comparing myself to others who seem to have it all together, and wondering if a socially-anxious, introvert like me has what it takes to find readers.

11Jul

The downsides of pursuing traditional publishing

It’s been about eight months since I wrote this article about my romance publishing intentions, so I think an update is due.

No, I’m not announcing a big contract or anything. Kind of the opposite.

01May

Single or dual POV – which is best for your romance novel?

When I started reading romance novels, oh, more than thirty years ago now, it seemed like they were all M/F stories, told solely from the female point of view.

But, somewhere along the way, readers decided they liked the idea of getting some insight into the male perspective, and the tide turned in favour of dual POV.

Nowadays, depending on the sub-genre you’re working in, either single or dual POV can be acceptable. I’d say the vast majority of romances are written from dual perspectives, but that doesn’t mean single POV is dead.

So, if anything goes, how do writers choose which approach to use? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each? And, is dual POV actually better than single POV??

06Mar