Cupcake Saturday by Tina Radcliffe

 from the January 18, 2018 issue

Tagline: When Drew offered to help Hanna with her cupcake business, things suddenly got sweeter...

Observations: Lovely story! We have a matchmaker tale that I didn't see coming for a full third of the story. I adored that Drew bartered his services for her cupcake business. What a great idea.

The grandma and the grandson playing Crazy Eights reminded me of when I used to play that game with my own grandma. Those are very fond memories and it made me think about me identifying more with the grandma than the heroine in this story. Which made me realize I should talk to you about your audience.

You would be smart to consider the older demographic of Woman's World readers as you're writing your stories. Here's a screenshot of some info from the Bauer Publishing website. As you can see the median age of our readers is 55.7 years old. Coincidentally, I am 55 years old. So the readership is my generation and maybe yours too. But even if it's not, you can do some research. There are websites on pop culture for the different decades. Pull stuff from there into your stories. Even in the magazine itself there's that little column on the right side that says "It Happened This Week." Look there for inspiration.

Cupcake Photo Credit: Jake Przesbo via Flickr CC license

Teacher's Pet by Diane Crawford

from the January 22, 2018 issue

Tagline: With Nick in her cooking class, did Jo have all the ingredients for romance?

Observations: I have a confession to make. I'm a good cook, but I, too, have burned things. Mostly, it's because I start something and go back to my computer and forget about the food. So, been there done that. However, these guys had nothing else to do but watch their chicken. LOL

Still, I thought it was a cute story. I noticed that Crawford deftly managed to get the idea across that Nick was a single dad, without mentioning that the wife had passed away or whatever. I usually feel compelled to share the reason why, but she just had him say, "I'm raising a daughter by myself." Huh! No need to say why.

Photo credit: Patrick Mueller via Flickr CC license

A Christmas to Remember! by Brenda Minton

from the December 25, 2017 issue

Tagline: A past good deed turns into a special Christmas for Lydia and Jason...

Observations: I know I said I wasn't going to analyze the Harlequin stories, but I think they're getting the hang of writing for Woman's World, so here we go.

This was a lovely story. It was easy to see why they chose it to appear in the December 25th issue. In the past, I have cautioned against including too much sadness in your stories. This is still true. You can mention the death of a spouse, but you can't dwell on it too much. This story strikes the perfect balance between including the melancholy but still managing to be an uplifting read at the end.

Here's that poignant moment where that information is revealed:

"My daddy taught me that Christmas is always in our hearts," the little girl said with authority. "My mommy is in my heart too, even though she's in Heaven."

Lydia didn't know what to say. She knelt before the girl, putting them at eye level.

"I think that's a very wise thing your daddy told you. And since we both know Christmas is special, I have something special for you. Homemade peppermint sticks. Would you like one?"

So, you get that sentimental tug, you introduce the information that this man is a widower, but then you move on.

Merry and Bright by Elizabeth Palmer

Tagline: Dani was determined to get the Christmas lights up. But a power outage interrupted her long enough to have chicken soup with her handsome neighbor...

Observations: Wow. This was a really terrific story. As I read it, I got happy ping after happy ping. I always go into a story neutral and let it take me where it will. This one brought me to a warm fuzzy feeling.

1. I loved the pluckiness of the heroine. Of course, we all know how devastating it would be to suffer a broken engagement, but Dani is resilient and we like to show the heroines in Woman's World rising to challenges. Woman's World magazine is all about showing women how to live better, be happier, achieve their goals. This mission is also evident in the fictional stories as well.

2. I loved the humor in this story. The heroine meets the hero and sees they're wearing identical hats...

"I'm Rick Black and I see from your hat that you've already met my mother."

3. Another funny part:

"Would it help if I told you I was an electrician?"

"Only if you can turn the power back on."

4. I loved when Rick said, "You seem pretty capable to me, but I'd be happy to help out." That right there is a hero demonstrating a) he is easy with his compliments and b) he is willing to help. Both good traits in a love interest.

5. The ending was wonderful. Am I the only one who got a warm feeling when reading this?

When they stepped outside, she gasped at the sight of her brightly decorated home.

"Simply beautiful!" Rick said.

Dani turned to thank him, but it wasn't her house he was gazing at. She blushed and looked back at the glowing lights, filled with joy. "Yes, it is."

Photo credit: Dion Gillard (via Flicker CC license)

Making Christmas Memories by Tina Radcliffe

from Issue #50

Tagline: Joan had just enough money for her twins to have their Christmas wish...would the handsome store manager be able to help?

Observations: I haven't pointed out a man to the rescue story in a long time. The man to the rescue story can be about a woman to the rescue too, but there's something about it being the man that I think resonates a little more strongly with the Woman's World readers, because the majority are women.

I mean, look at Steve Lind. The heroine has a big problem and the guy goes way above and beyond the call of duty to help her solve it.  If the man does this kind of thing for a total stranger, what might he do for the woman he loves?

In part, our job as romance authors is to create that perfect hero, the man the reader wants to fall in love with. One way to do that (quickly, in 800 words) is to show a man who not only talks the talk, he walks the walk.

Favorite line: "Sure. It's the season for miracles, right?"

Photo credit: Umberto Brayj (via Flickr CC license)