Pup Paves the Way to Love

by Kay Layton Sisk from the April 8, 2024 issue

Tagline: Allie never would have guessed the lost puppy that her dog, Biscuit, found in the flower bed would be what led her straight to a budding new romance.

Observations: Great story. I immediately saw a writing tip to share with you.

When you're trying to communicate information and your main character is alone, here are two things Ms. Sisk did that you can do too.

1. Get the info across via her thoughts or the narrative.

Last spring's frog crop had cost a trip to the vet, and Allie didn't want a repeat performance.

2. Have the character talk aloud to a pet/animal (as in this story), to herself, or even to something like a photo of a loved one.

"You're a mess, girl, but let me get a photo and I'll put it on the neighborhood watch site. If it wasn't the weekend, we could go to the vet and see if you're chipped. Either way, we'll find your family pronto!"

Photo by Tyler Allen via Flickr CCL

Father's Day Match-Up

by Kay Layton Sisk from the June 19, 2023 issue

Tagline: Jess' daughter is worried her dad will be lonely after she gets married...until a beautiful stranger appears and changes everything.

Observations: I liked this story. In it I could see many familiar Woman's World story elements. There is the matchmaking daughter. There's also the classic misunderstanding when Jess sees Claire with "another man," who turns out to be her brother. 

Sisk revealed that it was her brother cleverly by having Claire mention it out of the blue instead of having Jess having to approach the subject in a roundabout way.

However, on my second read, I wondered at this:

"C'mon, Dad. It's Father's Day, and I would love your gift to be a date with a woman you like."

How exactly would she go about doing this? If Jess had said yes to either of the ladies Laura suggested, would she then go to the lady in question and say, "Hey, you're my Father's Day gift to my dad?" 

Even though that pulled me out of the story slightly, I still enjoyed it. 

Photo by waferboard via Flickr Creative Commons License

True Love at First Bite

 by Kay Layton Sisk from the May 2, 2022 issue

Tagline: When father-son duo Blake and Brad show up at Janie and Annie's front door, the mother and daughter are in for the sweetest surprise.

Observations: This week I wanted to put a spotlight on the Black Moment. 

Often in fiction there is a moment in the story when it seems as if all is lost. The reader wonders how the protagonists will overcome all the obstacles. In Pretty Woman, it's when Vivian is driven away from the Beverly Regent and Edward. In A League of Their Own, it's when Dottie leaves the team to start her new life with her war-injured husband. In Romancing the Stone, it's when Jack leaves Joan by diving off the wall to chase the alligator that swallowed El Corazon, the jewel.

You may not think so but many times Woman's World stories have Black Moments too but they're subtle enough that sometimes I call them Gray Moments. In this story, the Gray Moment comes when Annie has to leave to go to her meeting. 

Clearly the stakes are not as dire in a Woman's World story as they are in movies. Sometimes in movies and novels, the reader will not be able to see any way out of a disappointing or even tragic ending, but unless it's a tragedy, things will work out. Edward comes to his senses and goes after Vivian. Dottie returns to play the championship game. Jack shows up on Joan Wilder's doorstep with a yacht and crocodile-skin boots.

In this story, Annie and Brad figure out a way to meet again to discuss restaurants in the neighborhood. There isn't the rush you might have felt when you watched those movies--and if you haven't watched them, they are MUST-SEES. But there should be a warm glow of contentment and satisfaction when you read the end of your Woman's World story.

If there isn't, keep revising.

Photo by Benny Mazur via Flickr Creative Commons License

The Man with a Plan

by Kay Layton Sisk from the January 7, 2019 issue

Tagline: Tom is dying to meet his beautiful new neighbor, Jennifer, but can never find the right time...until a snowstorm gives him a chance to warm her heart.

Observations: I remember back when I was first targeting Woman's World as a publication I wanted to write for, the first story I read in their magazine had a dog in it. There came a time when people noticed that they liked dogs in their stories--so much so that they eventually put the kibosh on dogs for a little while because they were getting so many submissions with canines. LOL

This was a cute story. I liked all the action in it. There was a nice "full-circle" element--starting with the snowstorm and the good news/bad news thing and ending with the line:

"As Tom felt a radiant warmth spread in his chest, he realized the snowstorm was good news after all."

I did catch a typo. Did anyone else see it?

Photo credit: FarCryStudios via Flickr CC license

A Thanksgiving Surprise! by Kay Layton Sisk

From the November 13, 2017 issue

Tagline: Her kids' matchmaking may give Chrissy something extra to be thankful for this Thanksgiving...

Observations: What a great story. I have to admit, Chrissy is a better woman than I. I would have been a little perturbed at the thought of five extra guests. Then again, I normally have fifteenish people and the thought of twenty gives me hives.

I loved how the kids acted once Henry got there, making themselves scarce. That was hilarious. This story was full of wit, which I love.

I just wanted to point out the story structure here.

Scene 1 - Chrissy's kids approach her with the idea of having guests for Thanksgiving. This is the set-up where we find out the situation and some of Chrissy's backstory.

Scene 2 - It's Thanksgiving and the guests arrive. Here is where the hero and heroine meet and connect. It's always good to show them having something in common and in this case, it's that they both have matchmaking kids. LOL

Scene 3 - The couple have coffee on the patio while the kids clean up. First of all, I applaud this idea of the kids doing the clean-up. Aside from that, this is the wrap-up where we find out things have gone according to plan and that the hero and heroine like each other enough to set up a "second date."

As is often the case, there is no black moment, or even a gray one. At no time do we worry that things won't end up happily, which is fine. You've only got 800 words and sometimes you just can't fit it in.

Photo credit: Kimberly Vardeman (Flickr CC license)

An Unexpected Win! by Kay Layton Sisk

from the March 6, 2017 issue

Tagline: Lisa didn't realize the bowling match would be full of striking possibilities...until she met John.

Observations: I wanted to point out how tightly Sisk communicates some pertinent information about the setting and situation. As we all know, Woman's World stories can only be 800 words long, so succinctness is paramount.

Lisa Appleton pulled the old bowling bag from the car and caught up with 10-year-old Katie as she entered Star Strike Bowling Alley. The sound of rolling balls and crashing pins brought back good memories. A banner greeted them: Welcome Grover Elementary Third Annual Bowl-A-Thon.

It might be the PTA's third fundraiser, but it was Lisa and Katie's first. What better way to get to know parents, teachers and students when your job change meant a midterm move?

Lots of info there in a a mere two paragraphs. Personally, I think it's best to use the bulk of the story to establish a connection between the hero and heroine, show their attraction, show ways that indicate they would make a good couple.

I loved the puns at the end. Lately the endings of the stories haven't been as strong as I like, but this one was amusing and felt fresh.

Photo credit: Will via the Flickr Creative Commons License.

The Parking Spot by Kay Layton Sisk

May 23, 2016 issue

Tagline: Patience never dreamed she would meet a special someone at her daughter's softball game!

Observations: Unfortunately, this story didn't grab me. I didn't feel the connection between Patience and Ben was convincing. Perhaps it's because I've been in that situation where you're really wanting a spot and someone zips in and rudely takes it. That is some serious anger and frustration. Maybe Patience is a better person than I am, because I would have a very hard time forgiving that person. And Patience is peeved for quite a while, right up until he says his daughter is on the same team and then she gets kind of femininely flustered.

I thought his leaning close--because there was so much noise from the home run--was odd, especially considering what he said...

"Lisbeth told me her new friend's dad had died of cancer. Your husband?" he asked.

I nodded. "Heidi has a bit of the tell-all in her."

He laughed. "So does Lisbeth. I doubt there are any secrets between them by now."

That's kind of a personal question and an odd circumstance in which to ask it. Why not wait until you don't have to talk into her ear? Also, his laugher seems impolite. I would like to have seen him utter some sort of condolence or recognition of that horrible circumstance. That would have gone a long way toward me believing that these people have a chance at love.

And then, it's "break time" and the two girls come over to their parents. (I'm not a big baseball fan, but as far as I know there aren't any breaks during which the girls could leave the game, so maybe the game was over?) Anyway, the girls have come over and they all make plans to have pizza together and Patience's spirits soar. Again, I found this odd. She didn't like the guy at the beginning and not enough happened in the interim to convince me her tune had been changed to this degree.

However--and I haven't had to say this in a long time--my opinion is just that. Woman's World obviously thought enough of it to publish it and I am admittedly a very picky reader.

Photo credit: slgckgc via Flickr Creative Commons License

Young at Heart

by Kay Layton Sisk from the August 24, 2015 issue

Tagline: Deb's daughter thought her mother needed some romance in her life. Deb was way ahead of her!

Observations: This was a matchmaker story turned on its head. We start out thinking, oh, another matchmaker story. In fact, half the story was devoted to the daughter trying to convince her mom that Mr. Bewley is interested in her and that they should all get together the next weekend.

But then Sisk threw in a twist. Mom and Bewley have already fallen in love! Adorable surprise. I loved it.

So don't be afraid to take a trope, like the matchmaker, and put your own spin on it.

Time For Love

by Kay Layton Sisk from the April 22, 2013 issue

Tagline: Ella and Geordie were too young when they fell in love the first time. Now, the time seemed just about perfect.

In a Nutshell: Ella enters her cinnamon rolls in the Fair baking contest. The judge is her ex-husband from many years ago. They'd married too young and divorced two years later. Now, after they both achieved their professional goals, it seems as if the spark is still there.

Observations: Here we see Americana striking again in the form of the county fair. The fair as a setting for Woman's World stories is becoming as common as the animal shelter or flower shops. It provides that comforting, traditional ambience that Woman's World likes.

What I liked about this story was that I could totally believe that Ella and Geordie still had feelings for each other and that the only reason their marriage had failed was that they'd been too young to deal with it.

I was surprised that they let the thing about him using the family recipe go. But I was glad to see she wasn't falsely cross about it.

I loved how they talked about the missing secret ingredient, which we readers knew immediately was love. It was such a brilliant way to have them talk about their love lives, but in a secret way known only to them. Using that intimate knowledge from their past only helped push them a little closer to reconciliation and it was so sweet how he opened that door for them by exposing himself before she did.

Photo by stephan.maloman (cc)

The Trip of a Lifetime

by Kay Layton Sisk from the January 14, 2013 issue

Tagline: Janine had doubts about the bus trip her grandmother had persuaded her to take--until she met the bus driver...

In a Nutshell: Janine's granny needs a substitute roomie on her trip to the Grand Canyon. Janine agrees, even though she finds out that she's probably going to be acting as a babysitter for the great-grandson of her granny's beau. Turns out the bus driver, a cutie, is said great-grandson. What a surprise. LOL

Observations: This is one of those stories that has a long lead up to the point where the hero and heroine meet. We're halfway into the story before she lays eyes on David.

It's funny how we readers can see the misunderstanding miles away. The minute we meet David the bus driver, we know he's the great-grandson, but we keep reading because we want to see how Janine reacts when she finds out. It's sort of like throwing a surprise party for someone. That's the main fun of this type of story. That, and the fact that it ends with the promise of "The trip of a lifetime!"

Photo by Grand Canyon NPS (cc)