In August, I attended the 2013 Romance Writers of Australia (RWA)   Conference in Fremantle. This was my first RWA conference and it certainly  won’t  be my last. Spanning three days and attended by over 300 delegates,
the event  was jam packed with fun social events and wonderfully  educational sessions.  Listing everything I loved about the event could take  a while, so I’ve condensed  it down to a list of my Top  5.

 5. Freebies

Now, feel free to call  me shallow, but I dare  anyone not to love the amazing book bags from  Penguin and Harlequin.   Penguin held a party on the Thursday evening  to celebrate the  1st birthday of Destiny  Romance, and along with  lovely drinks, food and a hot pirate handing out long  stemmed roses (sigh)  all guests were given a cute Penguin bag filled with books. 
 

At registration I discovered that all delegates received a lovely  ‘Riding  the Waves’ bag filled with fabulous Harlequin books, Baci chocolates, a   pen and a ‘Riding the Waves’ coffee keep cup (the perfect gift combo for  
writers!) Then after the closing speeches, there were more free books up  for  grabs. We got spoilt. And I do believe many of us had to pay for extra  baggage  allowance on our flights home!

4. ‘Nautical or Nice  Party'

After a day of working diligently in Kim Hudson’s ‘Venus on the Half  Shell’ workshop, it was time to let our hair down! The effort that people went to with their costumes was amazing.  Pirates, wenches, mermaids, sea witches, a seal and even a tropical island with  palm tree filled the Harlequin event on the Friday evening. The whole night was  a great success with plenty of drinks, finger food and a chance to catch up with  friends, or if you were a newbie like me, finally meet the people you’d been  talking to on Facebook for some time!

 3. Socialising &  Networking

Who knew that the range of people who read and romance was so vast? Not  me. There were so many different personalities among the delegates, and as  someone who is usually quite shy around new people, it was great to feel so  welcomed. The Esplanade Hotel where the conference was held is huge, yet  everywhere I looked I saw small groups of conference attendees chatting in  between sessions. Others nipped out for coffee at a local cafe or restaurant.  If sleep hadn’t been necessary, I think most of us would have happily stayed up  the whole weekend, just to fit in more social time.

Whether it was just a quick chat with a stranger, making a new friend  or building up existing friendships, there was no shortage of socialising to be  had. I met some absolutely terrific people at the conference and have built
supportive friendships that will carry on into the future. 

2. RWA Gala Awards  Evening

 What a night! The room, which during the day held enthusiastic and  studious romance writers listening intently to guest presenters, had been  transformed into a gorgeous heaven on earth for those with a sweet tooth. Tables
contained a delicious variety of desserts as well as bubbly for those inclined  to have a drink or two... or three. 

To begin, the ‘First Sale’ ribbons were presented, and I was amazed at  the large number of talented writers who had achieved this particular milestone.  Talk about motivating! The award presentations were exciting, and as I’ve come  to expect from the romance community, the feeling of joy and genuine pleasure at  the success of others was obvious. 

I may be wrong, but I believe the noise level may have been slightly  higher over on the right hand side of the stage where MRWG members cheered on  loudly for a number of our members who were nominated, or had already been  announced as winners of awards. We were proud of them all.

After the awards, the music began and we danced the night away...  including a kick-arse display of ‘The Nutbush’ from our very own Emmie Dark and  Ebony McKenna. Oh, and who could forget the chocolate fountain, to keep up the  energy levels through all that physical exertion?
 
1. Workshops

As fun as it was drinking, eating, catching up with old friends and  making new ones... the best part of the conference for me, was all of the  knowledge I gained from the workshops. I wish I could have attended all of them.  Here is a quick rundown of my favourites:

Save the Cat presented by Nina  Bruhns

 I’ve heard people rave about this book  by Blake Snyder and after attending this session, I can see why. As a pantser,  it was great getting a glimpse at how I could strengthen the premise of my  story, how it fit into the major themes of storytelling, and how I could plot my  story effectively. I purchased the book after this session and have been using  it to plan my latest story. I love it!
 
There was also a particular point that  Nina made which really resonated with me:  

The worst possible hero for the worst possible heroine in the worst possible situation equals the best conflict.
 
More information on ‘Save the Cat’ can  be found here: http://www.blakesnyder.com/  


Scrivener presented by Alison Stuart and Sasha  Cottman

These two authors are passionate about this program! After a quick  rundown, I could see why. The potential of what this program can do for you is  enormous. Some of the features include:
       
Allowing you to move your scenes around on a virtual corkboard (for  those who love this visual method)
 
Saving all of your research including webpages in your Scrivener file  for easy access, 
       
Setting word counts and goals for your entire project, or just for a  particular writing session
 ·        
Adding labels to scenes and chapters to help keep track of things like  point of view changes etc 
·        
Using short scene descriptions to help compile a synopsis of your  story and my favourite thing of all – you can’t accidentally delete your  work!

More information on Scrivener can be located here: https://www.literatureandlatte.com/scrivener.php
 
Getting Your First Chapter Off The Gound presented by Annie  West

 This very practical and interactive workshop was informative and a lot  of fun. Rather than just telling us how to approach the beginning of a story,  Annie had created a number of fun exercises for us so that we could learn from  practical experience. The main points I took away from this session  included:
 ·        
You MUST hook your readers from the beginning. Make them want to keep  turning the pages.
 ·        
Start your story in the right place. Too much back-story can slow the  pace and may cause a reader to put your book down.
 
Sexual Tension: The Undertow of Romance presented by Rachel  Bailey

I have a feeling that the RWA may have underestimated the popularity of  this particular workshop with many people forced to stand at the back of the  room, or sit on the floor. It was packed... and as I soon learned, for good  reason. Rachel Bailey knows her stuff!

 Despite a few technical difficulties (and a rather embarrassed male AV  tech, who had to sit through sexy video clips from Dirty Dancing, The Vampire  Diaries and some tension filled Jane Austen scenes with requisite giggles and  sighs from the audience) the session was fantastic.

 There were many great points made about bringing sexual tension to life  for characters including the need to evoke the character’s feelings as well as  include their visceral reactions. I read one of Rachel’s books on the plane home  and was astounded by how well she created that tension. She’s a  master.

 If you’re an RWA member and haven’t read Rachel’s craft article on  Sexual Tension, I recommend logging onto the RWA website to find it.  Immediately. It is located in the October 2010 edition of ‘Hearts Talk’  newsletter.
 
In summary, I had the time of my life at the conference and have  already started planning my trip for 2014 – ‘Romance Rocks’ to be held at  Olympic Park, Homebush, Sydney. I hope to see many of you  there!

You close the romance novel having just read the final word. A warm glow fills your chest. Your mouth is curved into a luxurious smile. The good have got the happy consequences of their heroic actions and the not so good, if there are any, have gotten theirs. You radiate satisfaction.

The end is also goodbye, which makes the happiness of the heroes, who are leaving you behind as they head off into their happily-ever-after fictional life, all the more important. Their happiness is a kind of salve on the separation occurring.  Although you are parting ways  you can rest assured they are going to be okay. You don’t have to cling to them, wondering if this or that worked out the way they wanted it to. The happier they are equals the satisfaction you experience when parting from them.

The happiness of a hero/heroine is directly proportional to the sorrow they have been through. Like a pendulum swinging from one end of the spectrum of horrid experiences to the other end of sublime fulfillment of all wishes. Can you imagine closing a book and having a heart warming feeling if the hero needed to go to the shop for some milk but couldn't get there because of his broken leg. The heroine, his next door neighbor,  saw him struggling on crutches and drove him to the shop. They looked into each other’s eyes and it was love born of gratitude that she made it possible for him to have milk in his cuppa? What the heck! No Way.

The story requires something other than the pedestrian (pardon my pun) circumstances. It requires events and situations and feelings that will wrench the hero/heroine out of their ordinary world and plunge them into the thick dark waters of their worst fears.  This is the making of a really gripping will-they-drown-or-swim-to-shore story. It has to take their last ounce of everything, they almost fail but somehow they find resources within themselves they never knew they had. This creates the huge tension that is released on the hero/heroine successfully saving themselves and each other.  The hero and heroine shipwrecked-together story situation has been done before, done a lot actually. Why? Because the circumstances cut them off from all support except each other. It brings out every fear of inadequacy they have about themselves. They take it out on each other and at some point have to begin working together for survival. The metaphor of a fish out of water story-line also works this way and creates a brilliant release when love fulfilled replaces  severe emotional discomfort .

The amount a hero/heroine have to change, to survive their rapidly changing circumstances and emotions,  must be astronomical if you want the reader to have an astronomical happy ever after fix.  

Which books contain your favorite endings? Have a think about what elements the author used in creating that amazing, heart warming, keep you coming back for more glow.

My favorite ending to a romance novel would have to be, hands down,  Jane Austen’s Persuasion.  Captain Wentworth and Anne Elliot went through a hellish ten year separation before they could finally be together and boy they both had to learn some serious lessons before they could work it out. During his awakening, his actions put him in the position of almost having to marry someone else. Oh NO! Seriously, every time I re-read it I feel anxious for them, as if I don't know that it's going to be okay. 

 I’d love to tell you the tantalizing way Jane Austen constructs the resolution to this story and how the happy ending is written, but I won’t. If you've read it, you already know. If  you haven’t read it then you really have a treat waiting for you.

If you’d like to share the titles of books you've loved the ending of, that would be great. No spoilers though.  Giving away the ending is sacrilege. If it’s a romance novel we know it’s going to be happy. That’s one of the important reasons I love reading and writing them.