pamela burford

award-winning romance author

writing blog (archives)

Will Ya Call Me Ishmael Already?

August 28, 2010

Tags: fiction, first lines, Good Twin, LIRW, Long Island Romance Writers, novel, Romance Writers of America, writing

Recently I gave a presentation to Long Island Romance Writers, my home chapter of Romance Writers of America, on the Opening Hook—how to start your book with a bang. Who doesn’t love great first lines? Here are a few of my faves:

“I was born twice: first, as a baby girl, on a remarkably smogless Detroit day in January of 1960; and then again, as a teenage boy, in an emergency room near Petoskey, Michigan, in August of 1974.” MIDDLESEX, Jeffrey Eugenides. (more…)

Comments have been disabled for this post

The Secret

August 15, 2010

Tags: fiction, luck, novel, persistence, publishing, talent, writing

I’ve taught countless writing workshops on many topics, and at the heart of all of them is one fundamental question: How do I get (and remain) happily published? Everyone in the biz has his or her answer. Here’s mine.

1. Read all types of fiction, various genres and literary fiction, and analyze what you read. (more…)

Comments have been disabled for this post

It's All Material

August 2, 2010

Tags: boat, fiction, fishing, Long Island, novel, restaurant, romance, seasickness, tragedy, writing

Night fishing sounded like so much fun. You get to fish. At night. With your pals on a boat in the Atlantic.

Okay, here’s the thing about boats. They rock. Which is not an issue for the lucky people who don’t get seasick. And here’s the thing about seasickness. You don’t find out you’re one of the unlucky ones until you’re on the damn boat. (more…)

Comments have been disabled for this post

Birth of a Writers' Group

July 25, 2010

Tags: agent, editor, fiction, Kensington, LIRW, LIRW Luncheon, Long Island, Long Island Romance Writers, novel, publishing, romance, Romance Writers of America, RWA, Steven Zacharius, writers conference, writing

I live on Long Island, New York. When I first started writing romance novels, the closest chapters of Romance Writers of America were in New York City and New Jersey. They’re great chapters and I did make it to several meetings, but both locations are just too far from my home—no way could I get there every month. (more…)

Comments have been disabled for this post

And Then the Dinosaurs Came...

July 18, 2010

Tags: anachronism, excerpt, fiction, Gold Coast, Good Twin, Harlequin, Kindle, Long Island, Meteor Publishing, novel, Patricia Ryan, photography, romance, sex scene, Smashwords, writing

If you read my "Was I a Bet?" post, you know that I wrote my first book in 1992 as part of a bet with the Good Twin, Patricia Ryan. Meteor Publishing bought that book, which was titled Secret Harmony. (Yeah, well, the heroine’s name is Leah Harmony—I’ve gotten better at naming books.) (more…)

Comments have been disabled for this post

Director's Cut

July 10, 2010

Tags: book cover, chef, excerpt, fiction, Kindle, Long Island, novel, restaurant, reviewer, romance, Smashwords, writing, Zebra Books

My novel Too Darn Hot was published ten years ago by Zebra Books. As part of the Precious Gems line, it had to be edited down to fit the short word count. Eventually the rights reverted to me and I've just published it on Smashwords and Kindle, complete with all the great stuff that had to be deleted the first time around. (more…)

Comments have been disabled for this post

“Was I a Bet? Was I a %$#@ Bet?”

July 7, 2010

Tags: bet, copyediting, DNA, Evil Twin, fiction, Golden Heart, Good Twin, novel, romance, sex scene, twins, writers conference, writing

That’s my writing career mouthing off there, ‘cause the thing is...Well, here’s what happened.

It was way back in 1992. Protein soup bubbled and blorped in the primordial ooze. Fish had yet to sprout legs and lungs and sashay onto dry land. Those brainiacs at CERN were yammering about something they called the World Wide Web. No one listened. They were always going on about something. (more…)

Comments have been disabled for this post

Bookshelf

ebooks
Life goes from blah to bizarro when competing kidnappers lock horns in Lucy’s kitchen. Quirky romantic suspense.
Snowed in at a Gold Coast mansion--with him! A sensual romance with stunning twists.
Hands off the hot chef! She's the restaurant reviewer who can make or break him and she never mixes business with pleasure. Including previously deleted material--the director's cut!
A paranormal romantic mystery with a Jekyll/Hyde hero to die for--RITA finalist for Best First Book.
Second of the two-book "Double Dare" twin-themed romantic suspense series. A yummy special-agent bodyguard with an evil twin. 'Nuf said.
Kidnapped by a hunkalicious commando--and he thinks she's the bad guy! RITA finalist for Best Short Contemporary, 1st place in heart of the west national writing contest.
stranded on a private island with her fiancé, her sexy ex, a passel of wacky relatives...oh yeah, and a dead body. Fun times!
The hottest summer read! Two fun, sexy novellas by the Evil Twin and the Good Twin. In Pam's "July": how to avoid his ex-boss's luscious runaway bride when they're sharing the same beach house?
A hot stranger, a ticking biological clock, and a good, old-fashioned New York City blackout. What the hell, go for it!
Spending high-school reunion week with the old crowd--including the hunky, cheating ex she never got over. The other woman's there, too. Just like old times!
Book 1 of the "Wedding Ring" Matchmaking Series
Book 2 of the "Wedding Ring" Matchmaking Series
Book 3 of the "Wedding Ring" Matchmaking Series
Book 4 of the "Wedding Ring" Matchmaking series
Out of Print
The original print version of the ebook

Quick Links

Find Authors