A Christmas Prince

Yup, A Romance Movie…

Got stuck right at the “meet cute” of the move called A Christmas Prince staring a bunch of actors I didn’t really know. Stayed with it because I knew every detail that was going to happen and I wanted to see if I would miss. I didn’t. Still a movie nice enough to watch as well.

If you want to study either the romance plotting structure or romance team structure, this is a perfect movie to study. No theme deep enough to get in the way, standard romance troupe of hidden prince, standard heroine, everything.

And they hit every detail in the plot structure as they should. And the movie stayed focused solidly on the relationship. And the ending was spot on, of course, and even the last printed line as they did a (what happened to the characters) technique for validation said, “Planning their happily ever after.”

The team members around the two main characters were great, the movie did alternating viewpoints very clearly, and I could see this book being a pretty solid Christmas romance novel. Worth studying if you want to write romance or romance team structures.

And a bunch of you who haven’t had the Teams workshop or taken a romance workshop from Kris have no idea what I am talking about. Sorry. Just babbling writer-stuff here. I just like to keep studying, even with silly, small movies. (grin)

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Fantastic Christmas Bundle

This will be gone on Wednesday night. All the books and stories in this are top notch. I know, I curated it. But if you haven’t ever read any of my Thunder Mountain novels, grab this bundle and read Melody Ridge. It has romance elements, but is far, far from a romance.

You can get it at www.storybundle.com/christmas

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January Workshops Now Open On Teachable

You can sign up directly on Teachable now. Or write me and have me put you on the list for the workshops. Full list of workshops and descriptions here.

Those of you with credits from either the Kickstarter or the certificate special we offered, you must write me to sign up.

Those who would just like to sign up directly can do so on Teachable at any point.

Class #1… Jan 2nd … Depth #3: Research
Class #2… Jan 2nd … Author Voice
Class #3… Jan 2nd … Business
Class #4… Jan 2nd … Writing into the Dark
Class #5… Jan 2nd … Writing Fiction Sales Copy
Class #6… Jan 2nd … Think Like a Publisher
Class #7… Jan 3nd … Depth in Writing
Class #8… Jan 3nd … Advanced Character and Dialog
Class #9… Jan 3nd … (Empty spot)
Class #10… Jan 3nd … Pacing Your Novel
Class #11… Jan 3nd … Novel Structure
Class #12… Jan 3nd … Writing Fantasye

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5 Comments

JM

December 24, 2017 at 8:04 am

I’ve found that the ones the Hallmark Channel will run nonstop every weekened (and 24 hours a day at Christmastime) are interesting, because if you watch enough of them, you can see how the basic plot fomula is tweaked (or not) by the various writers.

Something I also noticed in them (and I’m wondering if it’s the same in the one you saw): there is a pure fantasy element in the way they handle jobs/careers and money. It’s as if nothing must get in the way of the story … and certainly not reality. I mean things like a small town reporter who seems to have only one story to write and three weeks to do it but unlimited funds, or an author whose editor sends her to a sort of boot camp to be sure the military facts in her next romance novel are correct, to name two. To be fair, it’s kinda that way in most movies and stories, unless the job aspect is important to the plot, but it strains the suspension of disbelief, sometimes.

dwsmith

December 24, 2017 at 11:46 pm

JM, of course because those elements are not important to the story between the two people. The romance is all that matters, not the details around the romance.

Michelle Mulford

December 24, 2017 at 8:20 am

I have not taken your Teams workshop, and had no idea Romance could have teams. I’m off to watch the movie with an eye out for the team dynamic. Thanks for the recommendation!

dwsmith

December 24, 2017 at 11:46 pm

Let me know how many team members you spot. I think you will be surprised. (grin)

Ed Marrow

January 1, 2018 at 7:33 am

I must have watched 25 of those Hallmark movies over the holiday. Watching that many so close together, you can see when one misses a beat or stumbles with the story. I mean, I still watched them all, some more than once. I’m a fool for Christmas movies.

JM

December 24, 2017 at 8:04 am

I’ve found that the ones the Hallmark Channel will run nonstop every weekened (and 24 hours a day at Christmastime) are interesting, because if you watch enough of them, you can see how the basic plot fomula is tweaked (or not) by the various writers.

Something I also noticed in them (and I’m wondering if it’s the same in the one you saw): there is a pure fantasy element in the way they handle jobs/careers and money. It’s as if nothing must get in the way of the story … and certainly not reality. I mean things like a small town reporter who seems to have only one story to write and three weeks to do it but unlimited funds, or an author whose editor sends her to a sort of boot camp to be sure the military facts in her next romance novel are correct, to name two. To be fair, it’s kinda that way in most movies and stories, unless the job aspect is important to the plot, but it strains the suspension of disbelief, sometimes.
- dwsmith
  
  December 24, 2017 at 11:46 pm
  
  JM, of course because those elements are not important to the story between the two people. The romance is all that matters, not the details around the romance.
Michelle Mulford

December 24, 2017 at 8:20 am

I have not taken your Teams workshop, and had no idea Romance could have teams. I’m off to watch the movie with an eye out for the team dynamic. Thanks for the recommendation!
- dwsmith
  
  December 24, 2017 at 11:46 pm
  
  Let me know how many team members you spot. I think you will be surprised. (grin)
Ed Marrow

January 1, 2018 at 7:33 am

I must have watched 25 of those Hallmark movies over the holiday. Watching that many so close together, you can see when one misses a beat or stumbles with the story. I mean, I still watched them all, some more than once. I’m a fool for Christmas movies.