5 Things I’ve Learned from Writing my Debut Novel

with Cassandra Samuels

1. Writing a book is hard.

Anyone who says it isn’t hasn’t tried to write one. It takes a lot of mental effort and a lot of time. If you are serious it could mean deciding to write rather than watch TV like me or some other activity.

2. Research is a must.

Whether it is about the profession of your hero or heroine or a specific time period, you need to know what you are writing about. That doesn’t mean putting in great slabs of info; it means weaving it in, and only when necessary to the story. I write historical romance so that includes quite a bit of research in my chosen era – the Regency period.

3. No writer is an island.

I know in movies and on TV writers are portrayed as sad, solitary figures but really the writing community is alive and chock-full of wonderful people. It is important to interact with other writers and readers. Listen to them. Learn from them. The friends I have made through Romance Writers Australia have been priceless to my writing and my personal life.

4. The work doesn’t end with writing the book.

Once you have written your book you need to let it rest, or give it to those amazing reader/writer friends to get some fresh eyes on it. Then you can go through the whole thing and edit it. Cutting out bits here and building up parts there. Only when it is as perfect as you can get it can you start to submit it to publishers.

5. Publication is not the end result, it’s just the start

 Once your book is accepted for publication there is a whole other side to this writing gig to learn – the business side. Working with editors, writing a blurb, and yes, getting on with the next book. There is no time to rest on your laurels; you need to get busy writing that next book. On top of that you must use the power of social media to let people know you even have a book for sale and that you are working on the next one. This can be unpleasant for some of us not used to spruiking our goods but it really is a necessary part of being a writer in this technological age.

These are just some of the things I’ve learned writing my debut book, A Scandalous Wager. Other writers may have a different experience but this is what I have learned.





What is the most interesting thing you learned from reading a book?





Love to learn – How to handle writer problems by brainstorming. A problem shared is a problem solved.

Love to laugh – at this wonderful poster by Grant Snider on The Writers’ Retreat.

Love to love – how supportive all my friends and family have been throughout the many years it has taken me to reach publication. No thanks will ever be enough.

Pre-order A Scandalous Wager from: 

Amazon Aus | Amazon | & all good e-bookstores
Out 8th November!

Mysterious Romance

by Karen M. Davis

I love a good romantic mystery. In fact, like so many other keen readers, I love all types of books in various genres, including fiction and non-fiction. But I have to say my favourites are crime, murder mysteries, historical romance, and romantic suspense, because they all contain some kind of mystery. I’d argue that most books have some form of mystery weaved into the story somewhere. It’s not always solving a murder, or discovering some deep, dark family secret. It can be anything really; a discovery, a shocking or traumatic event, a broken love story? There has to be something to drive the plot so that other events can occur – like a budding romance. Even in strictly romantic fiction there is always a “reason” why the lead characters meet or are thrown together. That often involves solving a mystery, or working though some sort of problem so they can move forward.

My dilemma as I attempt to write my first mysterious romance novel – fearfully stepping out of my comfort zone of writing “what I know,” which is crime – is staying on track with the mystery and not letting the romance between my main characters run away with the story. I have an issue with balancing all the different aspects of the book as the romance tends to want to race ahead of everything else. I’ve been told that this type of book has to be led by the said “mystery” and events surrounding it, and that the romance should be secondary. Logically, I can understand this, but sometimes my mind has other ideas.

I also love mystery romance novels that have an element of suspense as well as a ghostly presence (especially historical novels) involved in the story. Yet I worry whether this is believable to some readers? The setting I have chosen for my “attempt at a mystery romance,” is an old country farm house in rural New South Wales. It has been in the one family for generations and of course something terrible happened there years ago. So it’s probable that there could be a few cranky spirits hanging around the place, isn’t it? Do readers like that? I suppose it comes down to whether an individual believes in that kind of thing or not?

So my question is:  mystery, suspense, romance--what is more important? Does it have to be a combination of all of the above? Are you limiting your audience by making it a bit spooky?

I love to love...doing what makes me happy.

I love to laugh...at and with my children because they can be very funny.

I love to learn...anything to do with writing.

You can find Karen's latest release, Deadly Obsession, at most large retailers, book stores, and online.  

Self-Publishing - Is It For You? (Part One)

Catherine Lee

This week we interview Catherine Lee, self-published author of Dark Heart, a race-against-time thriller, and an exploration of cellular memory - can transplanted organs bring with them the memories of the donor?

Marilyn: Thanks for joining us, Catherine. Why did you decide to take the self-publishing route with your debut novel?

Catherine: I sent Dark Heart to an agent because I wanted to try traditional publishing. A rejection letter is a rite of passage and I wanted mine. It took five months before I finally got my rejection letter. The way I saw it, I could stick with that process and wait years to see my book in print, or I could do it myself in days. I wanted this book out in the world so I could move onto the next one. For me it was no contest.

Marilyn: How long did it take you to get Dark Heart to market?


Catherine: Self-publishing means you control everything yourself, so once you’ve had your manuscript professionally edited, you need to have your file in a format Amazon (or wherever you’re uploading it) will accept. It’s not hard: there are plenty who’ve done it and posted instructions on their blog. There are also programs that do it for you e.g. Scrivener (highly recommended). Next, get your cover design. To maintain a professional look, find a graphic artist and go through the design process.

Once you have those two things ready, the actual process of putting your finished product up for sale only takes a day or so.

source: dpaperwall

Marilyn: What about cost?

Catherine: By far the biggest investment is editing. For Dark Heart, I had a professional manuscript assessment done. This, together with feedback from fellow writers, suggested my manuscript was in good shape structurally. I finished with a copy edit by a professional. The other upfront cost is cover design. Mine uses a stock photo, which the designer changed slightly using blurring and angles, with text over the top. It’s simple, but effective, and was cheap. Depending on the design, you can pay from $25 up into the hundreds. Apparently romance covers are the easiest and cheapest to produce.


Here’s the breakdown of costs for Dark Heart:

• Manuscript assessment $500 
• Copy edit $550 
• Cover design $45 
• Print version cover design $45 
• Proof copy $30 

I’ll be using the same editor for both structural and copy edits for my next book, Dark Past, and expect editing costs to be around $1500. From what I’ve read, anywhere between $1000 and $2000 is what you should expect to pay for good, professional editing services.



Marilyn: Thanks, Catherine. But before you go, can you finish off these sentences?

I love to love...Getting caught up in the world I’ve imagined for my characters.


I love to laugh...With friends. They’re essential to well-being, and I’m glad I have a great bunch of friends.

I love to learn...Things I never thought I needed to know. For instance, from Ninety Percent of Everything by Rose George, I’ve just learned that more than 2 ships are lost at sea every week, yet we don’t hear about it. I find that amazing.



Do you have any questions for Catherine? Ask away!



In Part Two of this interview, Catherine talks about marketing your self-published novel. Stay tuned.


Dark Heart is available via Amazon.

Could you live with the heart of a killer?

Fraser Grant was a kidnapper, a vile, murdering sociopath. Now he’s dead. Murdered in his own home, the women of Sydney can breathe easy again. All but one. His final victim is still missing — chained up, running out of time, and awaiting a captor who will never return.

Detective Sergeant Charlie Cooper is desperate to find the missing woman alive. On the verge of quitting Homicide after a decade chasing the brutal killer, this is his last chance to atone for all the victims he failed.

After a life-saving heart transplant, Eva Matthews just wants things to get back to normal. But when she learns she has the heart of the serial killer, will nothing stop the nightmares that plague her?

Dark Heart is a detective story, a race against time to save a life. But it’s also an exploration of cellular memory, the intriguing medical phenomenon of patients receiving more than just an organ from their donor. The terrifying serial killer may be dead, but that is just the beginning…