How to Write Romantic Comedy: A concise and fun-to-read guide to writing funny romance novels

by Rhoda Baxter, Jane Lovering

Overview

"Choc full of practical advice and inspirational examples this is an essential read for writers in any genre." Mark Stay, The Bestseller Experiment Podcast

"This book is hilarious: and it will make you funnier too." Kate Johnson, rom com novelist

Do you want to write Romantic Comedy, but struggle with the comedy element of it? Are you stumped by how to inject more humour into your novel? Do you want to know how story structure is just like telling a joke? Do you want to learn these things whilst being lightly entertained and given a giggle or two?

Then you've come to the right place.

Award winning authors Jane Lovering and Rhoda Baxter have over twenty books between them (where they make a great defensive wall) and extensive experience of cramming laughter into literature. They will show you how to put comedy into your romances, and make you laugh while they do so.

This book will teach you:

• The different types of comedy
• The anatomy of a joke
• How to make things funnier
• Different uses for comedy in a novel
• A simple trick to translate timing onto the page
• Specificity explained through the medium of biscuits

If you're looking for an easy, accessible How-To guide to writing romantic comedy* then this is the book for you.

*Contains confectionery. Bring tea.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781913752002
Publisher:	Juxtaposition Publishing
Publication date:	07/01/2020
Pages:	122
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 8.00(h) x 0.26(d)

About the Author

Rhoda writes contemporary romances about smart women and the men who love them - no alpha males here, thanks. She especially likes it when they make her laugh. She is fond of cake, British comedy and Lego Stormtroopers. Once upon a time, she used to be a microbiologist, which might give you a clue about where her name came from. She is British-Sri Lankan and she sometimes writes multi-cultural fiction under the name Jeevani Charika. She finds being two people really confusing. Rhoda is a member of the UK Romantic Novelists' Association and the Society of Authors. Her books have been shortlisted for the RoNA awards (2017 and 2020), the Love Stories awards (2015) and the Joan Hessayon award (2013). Rhoda is an excellent procrastinator, so you can find her wittering on about science, cake and comedy on Twitter (@rhodabaxter), when she's meant to be writing. If you fancy a free novella, you can find out how to get that on her website www.rhodabaxter.com.

WINNER - ROMANTIC NOVEL OF THE YEAR 2012 with Please Don't Stop the Music, RoNA ROSE (NOVELLA OF THE YEAR) 2018 with Christmas at the Little Village School AND FANTASY ROMANTIC NOVEL OF THE YEAR 2019 with Living in the Past Jane was, presumably, born, although everyone concerned denies all knowledge. However there is evidence that her early years were spent in Devon (she can still talk like a pirate under the right conditions) and of her subsequent removal to Yorkshire under a sack and sedation. She now lives in North Yorkshire, where she writes romantic comedies and labours under the tragic misapprehension that Johnny Depp is coming for her any day now. Owing to a terrible outbreak of insanity she is now the minder of three cats and an insane terrier - just as the five kids showed signs of leaving home, and she has to spend considerable amounts of time in a darkened room as a result (of the animals, not the kids leaving home). Jane's likes include marshmallows, the smell of cucumbers and the understairs cupboard, words beginning with B, and Doctor Who. She writes with her laptop balanced on her knees whilst lying on her bed, and her children have been brought up to believe that real food has a high carbon content. And a kind of amorphous shape. Not unlike Jane herself, come to think of it. She had some hobbies once, but she can't remember what they were. Ask her to show you how many marshmallows she can fit in her mouth at once, though, that might give you a clue. Go on, I dare you. You can find out more about Jane (should you wish to, of course) from her blog and website at http: //www.janelovering.co.uk

Table of Contents

I. How to write romantic comedy - the comedy part

What's so funny about love?

The Comic Premise

The different types of comedy

Uses of Comedy

Different types of jokes

Tools to make things funnier

Timing

Writing the rom com - things to remember

Marketing a funny book

Publishing pathways

II. How to write romantic comedy - the novel writing part

Starting your first novel

Characters

Character Arcs

Conflict

Plot - three act story structure

Show Don't Tell

Point of View

Pacing

Writing resonant endings

Editing

Resources and recommended reading

Acknowledgements

About the authors

Notes

Editorial Reviews

"Insightful, to the point and fun to read. Highly recommended to any budding, or indeed fully flowered, rom com author."Alison May, author and creative writing tutor

"Rhoda and Jane have done what I was always told is impossible - deconstructing what makes things funny, while still remaining funny. This book is packed full of tips and written in an easy to understand way" Liam Livings, award nominated gay fiction and romance author

"This book is a valuable tool in analyse the different forms of comedy, why they work and how you can incorporate them into your novel. I will definitely be returning to this book time and time again to fine-tune the comic moments in my writing." Kathryn Kendall, aspiring rom com writer

"Choc full of practical advice and inspirational examples this is an essential read for writers in any genre." Mark Stay, The Bestseller Experiment Podcast

"This book is hilarious: and it will make you funnier too." Kate Johnson, award winning novelist

From the Publisher