Writing YA/NA Historical Romance

You may recall that Romancing the Genres celebrated New Adult novels in August and September, and I explained then how my books could be considered both Young Adult and New Adult. (See my post at https://romancingthegenres.blogspot.com/2017/09/new-adult-or-not-by-lynn-lovegreen.html.)

I’ve learned a lot about writing YA/NA historical romance over the years, including these points:

• A writer can’t just take a modern young woman and throw her into past centuries.

• The historical information must be woven into the story without slowing down the plot.

• The romance has to be organic and appropriate for the characters involved.

For more tips and tricks, you can sign up for “Writing YA/NA Historical Romance,” an online workshop I’m leading through Hearts Through History Romance Writers on January 3-31, 2018. Here’s the course description:

Can you just throw Bella or Katniss into the nineteenth century to create a historical romance? This four-week workshop will provide the skills an author needs to write a historical romance with young characters. In this course, we will practice writing romance grounded in historical fact. We will consider setting, character, and plot points, and ensure the language is appropriate for the story. Part of our discussion will include how young women had more limitations in the past, sexuality has changed over the years, and that adolescence was seen differently way back when. We will also discuss researching and weaving in historical information. While Lynn will provide lectures and short homework assignments, participants will be encouraged to add to the conversation with their own ideas and knowledge.

To learn more and to register, go to https://www.heartsthroughhistory.com/workshops/writing-yana-historical-romance/#register.

Lynn Lovegreen has lived in Alaska for almost fifty years. She taught for twenty years before retiring to make more time for writing. She enjoys her friends and family, reading, and volunteering at her local library. Her young adult/new adult historical romances are set in Alaska, a great place for drama, romance, and independent characters. See her website at www.lynnlovegreen.com. You can also find her on Facebook, Goodreads, and Pinterest.

My Perfect Time and Place by Lynn Lovegreen

This month, we’re talking about our perfect time and place. I’ve already found my place—Alaska. As I’ve mentioned before, this is my home because I love the land, water, and people here. It’s great to be around beautiful landscapes, and friendly, independent  folks. But as an historical author, I’m always looking back in time.

The Alaska Gold Rush ran from the late 1800s through 1915 or so, depending on your criteria. The Gold Rush time period is attractive to me because anything seemed possible and the territory was full of hardy, adventurous people. And while life was not easy for women then, they had more opportunity in Alaska than they normally would have in other places. Many women in Alaska were able to push the boundaries by owning their own businesses, like Belinda Mulrooney, and proving that women were physically as strong as men, like Fannie Quigley. It’s no accident that the territory was one of the first to pass women’s suffrage, and had women representatives like Crystal Snow Jenne, who grew up in Juneau during the Gold Rush, early in its legislative history. 

As you can guess, many of my Gold Rush characters are based on these and other extraordinary ladies. I’m proud to be part of this legacy, and would like to think I would have been as remarkable as my Gold Rush heroines if I’d been there myself. This is as close as I can get, on the beach in Nome in my Gold Rush-inspired clothes. :-)

Lynn Lovegreen grew up in Alaska, and still lives there. Her young adult/new adult historical romances are set in the Alaska Gold Rush, a great time for drama, romance, and independent characters. See her website at www.lynnlovegreen.com.

My Favorite Flower: the Forget-Me-Not by Lynn Lovegreen

If you know me well, it’s not too surprising that my favorite flower is the forget-me-not. It’s kind of old-fashioned, more of a wildflower than a cultivated one, and it’s also petite. Plus it’s closely associated with Alaska. Please allow me to explain.

The forget-me-not has a sentimental name that goes back a long time. The definition in  Dictionary.com states, “the flowering plant Myosotis palustris, 1530s, from Old French ne m'oubliez mye; in 15c. the flower was supposed to ensure that those wearing it should never be forgotten by their lovers. Similar loan-translations took the name into other languages.” That romantic name is one of its attractions for me. 

Plus, I feel the flower physically resembles me a bit in that it is petite and it grows well without a fuss. I am a bit under 5 feet tall, and forget-me-nots grow in tiny clusters. I have forget-me-nots in several places around my house, but the locations it really likes is in gravel between a garden bed and a brick path, and between stone steps. It doesn’t need to be coddled, and neither do I. Neither one of us is hothouse material.

And, of course, it is the Alaska state flower, and I am a diehard Alaskan. You can find forget-me-nots growing wild throughout the state, and forget-me-not designs on t-shirts, postcards, Alaska Native art, you name it, all over Alaska. 

I always smile when I see a forget-me-not. I hope this post’s photos make your day, too!  

Lynn Lovegreen grew up in Alaska, and still lives there. Her young adult historical romances are set in the Alaska Gold Rush, a great time for drama, romance, and independent characters. See her website at www.lynnlovegreen.com.