Dearest Gentle Writer,

I humbly present myself to you as a fellow lover of all things romantasy. But if we’re going to be friends, there are a few things you should know about me.

First of all, I am not a published author. I don’t have a degree in writing or an endorsement from a name you’ll recognize. I claim to be an expert in only two things related to writing: coming up with fabulous story ideas and not finishing a draft.

Now I don’t want to brag, but I have over two decades of experience in not finishing a single full draft. Please hold your applause, though, because I’ve recently broken that streak. I’m now the proud owner of not one, but two completed rough drafts. They are the result of a years-long journey to figure out how to write a novel in a genre that didn’t even have a name yet.

My journey began in high school. Cliché—I know—but also true for most of us. Then life happened. Story ideas came and went. I’d jot them down somewhere, sometimes fall into days of creative trances, but eventually the trail would go cold and life would pull me away again.

Those stories were always tucked away with a little disappointment attached. Sometimes that disappointment came with a side of not reading for months… or even years.

Then a few years ago, life calmed down. I picked up a book. Then another. Then the rest of the series. Soon the ideas returned, and this time I decided to take them seriously.

You know the moment when you say to yourself:

I’m going to be a real writer.

And thus begins our quest: full of trials, relationship woes, and the gathering of magical objects or information.

We struggle with practical questions about what to write and how dialogue tags work. We fret about sharing our work. We encounter other writers in good ways and bad. But most of our time is spent gathering what we think we need, because surely the secret to writing a book must be hidden somewhere.

My search for that secret taught me three things:

Writing is at least half intuitive.
We learn it by reading, which makes explaining the process surprisingly difficult for many writers.

The process is personal.
It depends greatly on how your mind works and how you organize information.

And you often have to pay for anything remotely useful.

That last lesson was the toughest.

$500 courses. Monthly subscriptions to programs. YouTube videos that promise to teach writing but mostly offer generic affirmations and interchangeable terms without definitions.

You could search the internet forever and still struggle to find a clear process that shows you how to build a book.

Unfortunately, my friend, I can't tell you exactly how to write your story either. It’s your world, and you alone must build it.

What I can offer are the tools and designs I pieced together while building my own.

Here at Romantasy Writers, you’ll find:

• A free beginner’s guide with foundational ideas for building a novel

• A beat sheet modified specifically for romantasy stories

• Articles exploring craft, structure, and genre

And yes, I offer some digital tools for sale.

(A girl has to eat.)

My story grids provide a complete outline framework for a romantasy novel. They’re built in Google Sheets so you can use them on almost any device, and they come with a detailed beat sheet and video instructions.

They’re also affordable—and they come with a new friend who’s happy to answer questions.

But you don’t have to buy anything.

By all means, take any information you find useful and run with it. I won’t hold it against you. This site was built for the sharing of information, not just the selling of it.

If you like what you find here, bookmark the site, follow along on social media, and maybe we’ll figure a few things out together.

Whatever you do, and wherever you are in your writing journey, I wish you all the luck from every one of my worlds.

So that’s me.

I’ll leave you, dear friend, with a few generic—but useful—affirmations:

Keep reading.
Keep writing.
And don’t give up on the story living inside you.

XOXO

Landora