Man's Best Friend

by Amy Michaels from the June 18, 2018 issue

Photo: Jim Leary (Flickr CC license)

Tagline: Jeff and his beagle admired their neighbor...little did they know that the feeling was mutual!

Observations: Happy Independence Day, people! I hope you enjoy your holiday.

Before I get started, I wanted to also celebrate the fact that Woman's World is using thicker paper! Finally! I think too thin paper was why some of my issues were going missing. Either the entire cover or the part with the address label was getting eaten by the postal machines. I'm excited.

This was an adorable story! I was smiling throughout as I read it. I think part of it might be because it was written in first person, from Jeff's point of view. There was so much personality in the narrative.

My favorite line was, "Seriously, Oz?" LOL

The only slightly clunky thing was that man's best friend line at the end. It didn't seem natural for him to say that, so to me, it felt like they were trying to tie in the title but not very successfully.

A Romance With Class by Amy Michaels

Photo: John Lodder via Flickr CC License

from the April 30, 2018 issue

Tagline: Liz's literature class focused on classic romances, but could a more intriguing plot be unfolding off the page?

Observations: Loved this story!! I liked the romantic literature focus of the class. I really liked the ending.

Notice there were two matchmakers in the story, rather than the usual one.

Going back and re-reading, I saw this and it made me laugh:

"Did you notice that our reading list is all classic romantic literature? I have it on good authority that our instructor is quite the romantic," Rick said.

We find out later that the instructor is Rick's uncle. LOL

Sunny with a Chance of Romance by Amy Michaels

Tagline: Peter offered Rachel an umbrella and a chocolate croissant...but was there a chance of romance?

Observations: First of all, this is my 500th post!!! I can't believe it. Not all 500 are story analyses, but most of them are, and I don't plan on stopping anytime in the near future.

I adored this story, maybe because I work with chocolate croissants every day! LOL

A few things I wanted to point out about this story...

There is a part in the middle that fast-forwards us through time. It's a "telling" passage, as opposed to "showing." This kind of device helps the reader feel as if the story is longer than it really is. I have to admit that when Rachel gets back in town and sees the canopy and tables, I was totally surprised. It's hard to surprise me in a Woman's World story!

Here's a line that I loved:

The girl smiled. "Oh, you must be the chocolate croissant."

LMAO. FYI, this is totally how we Starbucks baristas sometimes refer to our regular customers--by their drinks, not their names (which we sometimes don't know or can't remember).

In a Woman's World story, you can refer to physical attraction, but do it discreetly. This is how Michaels did it...

The broad smile on his face and the warmth in his eyes had her pulse racing.

That's all it takes. Just a sentence. :)

Photo credit: Joy via Flickr CC license

Thankful Hearts! by Amy Michaels

From the November 20, 2017 issue

Tagline: Kate and her daughter expected a lonely Thanksgiving...but a winter storm changed everything!

Observations: I got warm fuzzies from this story. It was like a super short Hallmark movie on paper. I loved this idea of an entire neighborhood coming together. It's worth noting that when the hero and heroine work on something together--in this case, it was a blackout neighborhood Thanksgiving potluck (say that 10 times fast!)--it can forward their relationship.

Like, remember that movie, Speed, with Sandra Bullock and Keanu Reeves? Remember how after the ordeal with the bus and the mad bomber, they ended up kissing? Just think of a Woman's World story like that, but way way way way way way way toned down. LOL Here in "Thankful Hearts," the crisis isn't nearly as intense or dangerous, but they get past it together. So that's one way to get an idea for a story. Think of a minor crisis and come up with a way for a hero and heroine to solve the problem by working together.

Photo credit: Patricia (Brownies for Dinner) (Flickr CC license)

A Treasure in Plain Sight by Amy Michaels

From the January 23, 2017 issue

Tagline: Madeline thought of Mike as her best friend...then she realized just how empty life would be without him!

Woman's World Tropes: "Meddling" family member, helpful hero

Observations: I was nodding my head, liking this story, until I got to this one point.

Did you experience a let down when she confesses her love to Mike? I did. I was like, wait...did I miss something? One moment she's talking and the next moment, Mike's all SHE LOVES ME in his head.

I recently went to a workshop put on by my local chapter of Romance Writers of America. Tessa Dare spoke on firsts in romance novels--first meet, first kiss, first realization that this is love, etc. One piece of advice she gave that really resonated with me was to slow it down. When you come upon an important moment in your story, it's critical that you slow down. When I'm editing stories, I usually tell the writers to MILK IT FOR EMOTION, which is essentially the same thing. Like Hermoine with her Time Turner, you have the power to control time. In this case, I wish Michaels had taken a little more time right here:

"I'm not mad."

"Sure you are. You're mad because your parents love me and you don't."

"That's not true. I love you just as much..." I stopped and closed my eyes tightly. The next thing I knew Mike's arms were around me.

This is anticlimactic for me. It's too fast. Here's the first thing I thought of to boost the drama.

"I'm not mad."

"Sure you are. You're mad because your parents love me and you don't."

"That's not true." I stopped and closed my eyes tightly. "I...I love you just as much."

The next thing I knew Mike's arms were around me.

To me, that pause before the declaration is key. It shows Maddy is scared. You almost think she might not go through with it. But she does, and you sigh with relief. If I had my druthers, I'd have beefed it up even more.

"I'm not mad."

"Sure you are. You're mad because your parents love me and you don't."

"That's not true. I..." I stopped and closed my eyes tightly. I was filled with uncertainty, but I was also filled with feelings I'd been harboring for Mike for a long time, but never realized. Until now. 

"You, what, Maddy?" Mike asked.

I took a deep breath. "I love you too."

The next thing I knew Mike's arms were around me.

See what I mean? Slow. It. Down. Milk it. If you have to cut something somewhere else, do it. Better to skimp in an unimportant place than at a critical one.

Running for Love! by Amy Michaels

June 13, 2016 issue

Tagline: Jenna isn't a natural at jogging...but the cute runner and his dog keep her going!

Observations: I loved this story for many reasons.

I really identified with Jenna. I hate running and this paragraph was funny...

The fact that I'm running at all is a miracle. I'm a nurse whose exercise routine has mostly consisted of carrying fast food up two flights of stairs to my apartment after a 12-hour shift.

So, the premise of the story is that Jenna is a proactive woman. She sets goals and she meets them. It's fun to see her try to meet the cute runner, and fail. We've all been there. We've all told ourselves we're going to do something and then chicken out. So we feel for her.

Here was another bit that had me laughing.

The next day I'm back at it, determined to speak to him when we pass. I've practiced running in place and talking at the same time until I can say a few words without supplemental oxygen.

LMAO.

Shortly after that, we have a mid-story turning point, which is a great thing. It's that point in the story where everything is turned on its ear. You think the story is going this one way and then BAM, it switches gears. Brent sprains his ankle and we suddenly have a woman-to-the-rescue story.

It's icing on the cake that he has to put his arm around her to hobble back to his car, right? LOL And then he confesses...

"To tell you the truth, I tripped because I was checking my watch to see when you'd appear."

Score! This shows he's attracted to her as well. Showing the attraction is something I think you should always do in a Woman's World story.

At the end of the story, Jenna overcomes her fear and asks him out. Okay, he already made it clear he'd be amenable, but still, she does it. I think that's a big part of why I enjoyed this story so much--I feel proud of Jenna at the end as well as happy that she's going to go on a date with Brent.

Photo credit: Candida.Performa via Flickr Creative Commons License

Kiss The Cook! by Amy Michaels

Tagline: Sophie wasn't passionate about cooking until she got together with a chef!

Observations: I loved this story, partly because I LOVE TO COOK. I loved the authenticity. Michaels certainly knows how to cook, or she did a great job of convincing me.

I did wonder about a grocery store allowing a chef to come promote his restaurant, but I suspended my disbelief.

I thought the way Michaels arranged for Greg to help her with dinner was very natural, and like I said before, it was totally correct for the chef to disdain the dried herbs in favor of fresh ones, although it might be hard to find fresh bay leaves.

I disagree about cake being more trouble than creme brulee, but there's a much bigger wow factor with creme brulee and they did have five hours, so there'd be plenty of time.

I thought the ending was terrific and with just the right amount of intimacy--the cheek kiss--for the amount of time they'd spent together and their budding relationship.

Photo by Clotee Allochuku via Flickr Creative Commons