Taking over the blog for today is #buqosteamyreads author Halina Cabrera!
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I would never have finished writing a steamy story if it
weren’t for Mina Esguerra’s workshop. I think the discipline of having to write
using a specific trope, a literary device (for more info, join Mina’s writing
workshops), learning all the background on romance heat levels and alpha males,
and having to finish on a specific deadline really helped. So there, a big thank you to Mina and all my classmates. For
all writers who are looking for a push (to finish writing a story): attend a
writing workshop now!
Inner Bitch
I liked writing strong female characters. I was challenged
when Mina said the main character should NOT be simple/ ordinary. The female
character should have an X-Factor that will make the alpha male fall for
her. It was challenging but it was also
fun. It was like finally getting permission to let my inner bitch come out.
Haha! It was actually quite liberating. But according to one of my beta
readers…my bitchy character wasn’t bitchy enough! More practice is in order.
The Steamy Parts
Writing the steamy scenes took a bit of work. Not because I
don’t get any practice! That’s a different story. It was challenging because I
was writing so fast, my initial readers (beta readers and editor) felt like I
wanted to get it over with. (Side note: beta reader and editor feedback are
invaluable). The point of writing steamy reads is to get the reader to enjoy
the steamy scenes: linger a bit and really make the reader feel (smell, taste,
and see!) the action. Maybe that was my way of dealing with the discomfort of
stepping out of my comfort zone: by doing it fast. But that’s no way to enjoy
anything. The editing process was really a good way to address this.
What helped? It helped to have a picture of my love interest
in front of me when I was writing. It’s easy to describe my main characters.
But looking at actual pictures helped me be more graphic with the descriptions
of my love interests. I needed to put
myself in the reader’s shoes. Who is this guy? Why is he so hot? Why should the
reader pay attention to him? Details make a character very interesting. And
there’s nothing like having a picture to add more details to the page.
Another thing that made a difference when writing the steamy
scenes was having a romantic perspective. What makes a love scene romantic?
It’s the…romance. That sounds easy to follow, right? But it’s not. Getting
dirty is not the same as getting romantic. This distinction takes some balance.
Mina was very emphatic during the workshop that there should be no mistake
about what was going: consensual romance. No rape (subtle or otherwise) and no
intoxicated sex. I’m glad Mina made this clear to all the writers in the
workshop.
Community
Lastly, I liked being part of a community of writers. I felt
like I was in this with a lot of other people and it was okay to be in certain
spaces: unsure, embarrassed, awkward, not getting enough word count, etc. I got
to meet a lot of great people while working on this project. I am eternally
grateful to them for the help they gave me.
Shameless Plug
On this note, I’d like to introduce my short stories:
Boyfriend-Stealing Bitch and Crashing Into Him, both going up on buqo
(www.buqo.ph) as part of the #buqosteamyreads bundles by April 1, 2014.
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Boyfriend-Stealing Bitch: Jess Rodriguez always gets what
she wants. That's why no one in her office has difficulty believing she tried
to steal the gorgeous Martin de Guzman from his perfect girlfriend, Eliza. Now,
the label "boyfriend-stealing bitch" has been slapped on her. Plus,
Martin has to leave for the U.S. and Jess is left all alone to pick up the
pieces.
Two years later, Martin shows up in the most unlikely of
places: at Jess’s weekend getaway with her boyfriend, Joey. Will it be his turn
to steal her away on a hot summer night? Is she finally going to claim the
title she was so unfairly given back then?
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Crashing Into Him: Hazel Fernandez, certified workaholic and
finance manager, and Luis Cortez, fitness buff and gym owner, meet when he
crashes his truck into her car. In the first five minutes, she notices that he
is one hot guy. But he immediately starts acting like a jerk. She decides she
can’t stand him. And she guesses he can’t stand her either. Except that she
catches him checking her out.
Then Luis wants to meet about car insurance issues. Will all
discussions end with what will be done with their cars or will there be more
crashing into each other? Hazel is about to find out one rainy night.
Email me: Cabrera.Halina@gmail.com
Follow me on FB: https://www.facebook.com/HalinaCabrera
Follow me on Twitter: @CabreraHalina
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