Hoover Article and Tips

I ran across this article (see HERE) about Colleen Hoover and her "CoHort." I really enjoyed reading it and got a lot out of it. It could be that have just gone a long time without reading or writing with the aim toward novel writing or publishing (we can blame this PhD on that), but it was refreshing to read this and dream about writing more creatively again. 

There is nothing too revolutionary in this article or in what the author outlines about Colleen Hoover's methods and techniques, but what is there is worthwhile to remember for any writer. 

First of all, it's a bit humbling. Ms. Hoover is 42. UGH. She's so accomplished and so much younger than I. I'm on the downward slope and I have three, poorly written, somewhat well-reviewed books to my name that I've self-published. 

That leads to the second bit of slightly less humbling news about Ms. Hoover. She started by self-publishing too. This was something I saw coming way back with Wool. How self-publishing would become the minor league system for agents looking to sign, promote, and publish books. What a great way to see if the author has something worthwhile and special than to see how it does in the Market. 

There are three techniques that the article points out Ms. Hoover uses in all of her stories. These are:

Past Scars - Ensure that the characters have lots and lots of emotional baggage and past scars. I think about my book On the Edge. I made sure that my main character in that had tons of emotional baggage. But did I make sure the other characters did too? Not really. Future novels . . . I need to ensure that all characters have tons and tons of rough, emotional, edges. 

Troubled Romances - This one is easy. There needs to be a romance and it needs to have problems. I like to think about every single Hallmark movie I've watched. Hallmark movies are masters of troubled romances, aren't they? Hallmark movies are my guilty pleasure, and I need to channel them when I write my romances. Back and forth, ups and downs. They need to have trouble, not just romance. But it needs to be more than this. As the article states: "It’s this “hurts-so-good” angst that induces the raw emotion some fans said is exactly what’s kept them hooked." I need to get the reader hooked like this.

Lots of Sex - So this is one where I don't do so well at all. The first two, I can find representative examples within my books of what Ms. Hoover promotes. The article states: "Steamy scenes pervade Ms. Hoover’s books. There’s love and hate, staring and biting, electricity and head-to-toe lust." Me? Do my books have this? Nope. There's a love affair usually, but lots and lots of sex . . . nope. Not in my books. This needs to change. Readers like that. They live through that. Give them something to live through. 

Plot Twists - I think I do okay in this regard. I have plot twists (I think) in each of my books. There's a murderer and I don't think it's always easy for the reader to figure it out. It's a bit of a surprise in each case. Need to keep this up. 

It's a good article, well worth the read for any reader or writer.