Romancing the Beat: Story Structure for Romance Novels

This guide is kinda short, but it does what it says on the tin and describes the structure of a romance novel. Note there is only one structure, not more than one, and she doesn't go into what would happen if you deviate from the specified structure. Still, it's a great guide. Hayes writes in a very personable way, full of pop culture references and humor. It may be a hit or miss in that regard. I personally wasn't a big fan of her style, but the information provided was still a gold mine. I'm used to reading writing guides that explain the structure of novels in general. But romance novels are slightly different from that mold and having her point out those differences was really helpful to me. Overall, I reccomend this book for people who want a concise guide to writing romance novels. I don't recommend it for veterans of the genre because it would pretty much explain the basics without going into much detail.

I am so glad I found this book! I had an idea for a romance novel in my head, but had a difficult time structuring it...especially that pesky, saggy, daunting middle part. I checked out some resources online for structuring a fiction novel (storygrid, story circle, save the cat, etc.) but nothing quite clicked for me. I stumbled on this book and bought it on a whim, and I am so glad I did! The book is a quick read; I read it twice in about an hour. As I was reading about each beat, I found myself easily mapping out my story in my head. It was like all the obstacles and roadblocks that kept me from creating my story just melted away. Once I had my high-level beats created for the story I had in mind, I got hit with inspiration for two more stories I can write in the future. They were both high-level plots I had kicking around in my head for awhile but had no idea how to move forward; after reading this book, I was able to fill in many the beats for each of those stories without even really trying. I will say that the author provides a free cheat sheet for this method that you can get in PDF form from the book's website. I went ahead and downloaded it to use as a guide but I am still glad I bought the book because each chapter expands on the brief notes in the free template. The book also contains a sample beat sheet at the end so you can see how the beats can be split up or merged and how a story flows through each of the beats. I also wanted to address some of the criticisms of the book that other reviews have brought up. First off, yes it's pricier than you'd expect for such a short book. However, keep in mind that this is a system that you can reuse over and over again if you plan on churning out multiple romance novels. As I mentioned above, this not only helped me map out one story but got me started on two others that I'd never been able to articulate in detail before. I enjoy writing and would like to write multiple romance novels, and I know this book (and the free cheat sheet) will be a resource I'll keep referencing many times as I write stories. When you look at it that way, I think it's a pretty good deal. I also believe that while it's a guidebook, it's not prescriptive. The author makes many suggestions throughout the book, but constantly reminds you that YOU are the writer and you can do whatever you want. In my opinion, the beats are narrow enough to help you keep the ups and downs of your story in mind, but broad enough that you can be creative and break the mold when you really want to. In other words...it's not a box into which you have to force your story to fit; rather, it's a framework on which you can build the story you want.

One of the panels I virtually attended at RWA this year recommended ROMANCING THE BEAT. I’m a devoted plotter, so I wanted to see how best to weave the romance beats into the greater story beats. Hayes’s book is short and sweet. She lays out the beats, where they fall in the three-act structure, and gives a brief description of what each one needs to accomplish. Because it’s so short, you can read it easily in one sitting and be ready to plot or revise your next romance novel. However, because it’s such a quick read, it’s short on details that would have been nice. Whether you’re new to writing romance or have been at it for awhile, there are some great tidbits in here for every romance writer. Bottom Line A solid resource that you’ll find yourself referring to over and over.

The book was released for publication in 2016 and was apparently intended to be a series, because it is listed as book one. Her style is conversational and sort-of off the cuff, such as a conversation with a friend over lunch. She is a little off-beat which makes her book fun to read. At the time of this review, the book is listed at #8 in Writing Skill, #10 in Authorship. As someone who has read and owns about 70 writing how-to books, I found this book delightful. A refreshing change from the general millieu of writing books, most of which are not useful when writing romance fiction. After all, it isn’t really a hero’s quest and the adversarial forces are probably not villain It is fairly quick-paced so it’s important to focus on the ideas and content. The set up is simple. There is the introduction of each main character, their meet cute, and the reveling of why it can never be between them, although it absolutely must be. The set up makes up the first 25% of the story leading to the first plot point as in other novels. The story arc is a little bit more nuanced then other writings, since there might not be the same antagonist forces at work here. Still, there are many complications surrounding the relationships in the romance story. The relationship then begins and despite some complications, the characters arrive at the midpoint having formed some kind of bond, maybe having had the first date. In the third section, it all falls apart, and in the final quarter of the book, the couple fights to save the relationship. Ultimately there are seven key points in the romance story. The introduction of each main character is followed by the meet cute. After establishing that the couple belongs together, it is vital to reveal why it can never be, though, in fact, it also must be. As the plot points works to further the story and the budding relationship, there are pinch points at every turn that pull the couple apart over and again. The couple often has aspirations separate from the relationship and these will further work against the relationship as each seeks to achieve a goal that is sure to come between them. During the third act, when facing the darkest moment, the pair finally realizes that they can and must find a compromise that allows then to achieve most of their goals while protecting the thing they now realize they cannot be without- each other.

Original review posted on the Wordy Speculations blog (https://speculationsediting.com/archives/book-review-romancing-beat-gwen-hayes/) on September 5, 2017 Romancing the Beat is a concise book on story structure for the romance novel by author and editor Gwen Hayes, who herself confesses to loving "kissing books." As an editor, I read a lot about writing, so when I picked up Romancing the Beat, I sat down with paper and pen, ready to take notes. What I did not expect to find was a funny little book that made me laugh out loud while still actually learning something. I Loved It, and Here's Why What I love about Hayes’s book is that she distills the elements of romantic story structure down to their very bones and gives the reader/writer specific advice for creating the plot of a romance novel in a book you can finish in one evening. Romance novels, unlike most other genre novels, have a pretty specific formula. Now, don’t shoot me for saying that, but it’s true, and maybe that’s why romance novels are so successful. Readers expect certain things to happen, and when they happen, they’re happy. Without those things, readers are unhappy. They will be quick to tell you that what you have written is not a romance novel and shouldn’t be marketed as such. For example, if your lovers are cheating, you haven’t written a romance novel. If your lovers don’t get their happily ever after or at least happy for now, you also haven’t written a romance novel. Hayes doesn’t give you tips on crafting sentences. She doesn’t give you ideas for external plot lines. She doesn’t tell you how to create the perfect hero or heroine. She focuses on one element of the craft in one genre. Romantic story structure is all this book covers, but it covers it extremely well. Breaking It Down Gwen Hayes breaks down romantic story structure into bite-sized chunks: four phases, each with five beats. I won’t tell you what they are—you’ll have to read the book for that—but she goes through each phase and beat in its own mini-chapter. Then, at the back of the book, she provides an entire outline with these beats from one of her own stories. To be honest, I flipped to the end first and read this outline. Good, complete examples are often missing in writing books. You can call beats or moments in the story anything you want, but unless the reader knows what you’re talking about and can apply it to his or her own writing, it’s all sort of abstract, hard to pinpoint, and thus, useless. After reading Romancing the Beat, I honestly feel I could sit down and use it write an outline within an hour or so for a romance novel that would fit reader expectations. And with Hayes’s approach, it would probably be a lot of fun. In the meantime, this book is going to serve as an important resource any time I sit down to edit a romance novel, and I’ll have no compunctions about recommending it to my writer clients and friends. Go read it yourself.

I almost hesitate to write a review for this book because it's so good that I want to keep it secret from everyone else. With it, I shall take over the romance world! Mwahaha! Okay, no, seriously, this book is extremely helpful. It's not a craft book in the prose sense. It doesn't go into depth about how to construct compelling sentences, POV choices, believable dialogue, etc. This book is essentially about the PLOT and STRUCTURE of a romance novel. It's a short book, which I actually appreciated because she gives the info and then gets out. It might be the only book I've bought about writing that I've actually finished! And I read this one twice! Let's talk about who this book is good for... I've been writing romance for seven years. I'm really dedicated to learning craft, but I struggle with the plot, character arcs, polish of the story elements, etc. This book nails all of the essential aspects you need to make sure your book goes from MEH to WOW! That's what I need. I started taking notes on post-its and placing them throughout the book to make sure I had all of her elements. For any I was missing, I added them to my book. This is going to be my best book yet! I actually want to (and this isn't exaggeration, I'm thinking about doing this) take her book apart, laminate the pages, and add them to a three ring binder that I can then have her explanation of the section, then add my "outline" behind it to the binder--my scenes that accomplish her section. Basically I want to turn her book into a personal workbook. Or hey Gwen, if you can figure out something like that, I'd buy that too!! In sum, I love this book. :)

I already read Save a Cat! Writes a Novel so this book, Romancing the Beat, was a perfect additional since I'm focused on writing in the romance genre. I ready it in about an hour, so it's a quick easy ready and I felt motivated to work on my story right away. Definitely a good book to add to your craft material!

Enjoy the writing and 80s music themes. Really helped spell out romantic book structure. Would have been 5 stars if came with a pdf of the beat sheet but I made my own off this author’s advice. I’d vote this the best book I’ve read so far in this genre (writing rom com help) and I got them all. This one is the one that helped me the most. The tone is fun, conversational and engaging. She tells it straight up and like it is. I appreciate the straight forwardness. Now I just have to write!

Um dos raros livros que encontrei que aborda sobre a estrutura de romance romântico com certa profundidade. Vai me ajudar muito.

As well as being a reader, I also try to write. To help with that (and not at all as a way of putting off the, you know, actual writing) I have been collecting a lot of books about writing. I have read a few of them, but not recently, so I decided it was time to delve into the archive and pluck one or two out to see if they helped. In the case of this one the answer is: Absolutely! This is quite a short book at a little over 10,000 words, and told in a casual, joking style, but don’t let that fool you. Hayes has obviously studied a lot of romance stories and boiled them down to the essence of everything which must be included to make a satisfying story which has “the feels”. Most writers will at least have heard of “The Hero’s Journey”, often positioned as the archetypal story structure which underlies thousands of years of tales. This is all good, and for many stories the hero’s journey is an invaluable aid, but for romance stories it’s not such a good fit. The hero’s journey works best when there is a single protagonist, with some form of identifiable antagonist to struggle against. An enjoyable romance story, on the other hand, usually has two protagonists, each of whom has their own journey and their own obstacles to overcome. The familiar structure of a romance story has evolved over many years to be a different kind of tale. Hayes has picked this archetypal romance story apart and laid out the constituent blocks ready for us to put them back together again with our characters, settings, challenges and, ultimately, our own kind of “happy ever after.” Some people object to these kinds of structural books, pointing out that they can be limiting, and exclude multiple types of story which don’t fit neatly into the plan. While that is true, it’s not really applicable in this case. As Hayes points out, you are free to tell any story you like, in any way you like, but if you wish to position your story as a romance, then readers will have a certain set of expectations. As much as anything, it is these expectations that Hayes lays bare for us here, so that we can make sure that the story we tell gives readers what they want, and lives up to the promise of the cover. I found this book to be hugely practical, and all the way through I was mentally applying the approach that Hayes describes both to the romance stories I have read and enjoyed (and the ones I didn’t enjoy so much), and to my own stories. I have tried a few times to write romance, either as a standalone story or as part of something else, such as a detective story, and never been fully happy with the results. Reading this book was like chatting to a skilled mechanic about problems with my car. I am determined to revisit some of my unsatisfactory stories, armed with the checklist from this book, and get them running as smoothly as I know they should. I will also be recommending this book to other would-be romance writers.

Like most writers, I've read my fair share of books meant to help my writing, but nothing seemed to quite fit the story I wanted to tell. When I saw this recommended on tumblr, I bought it with the expectation that, hey, if it wasn't what I was looking for, I could always return it. I am keeping it forever. FOREVER. Because Gwen Hayes lays out what romance writers need to see in the simplest way possible. It's clear, well-written, humorous, doesn't get bogged down in how-to's while still informing you, and does its job beautifully. There's nothing about this book that I don't like. I will go back and reference it many times in the future. Thanks for writing this, Gwen!

Well structured, clear, with perfect samples and quick enough to read in one spare hour. I will use it straight away for the editing and rewrite of my current story and the last two as well. I love it, and will come back again in the future for sure.

Utilissimo per strutturare un romance