Hi Boswser.

I'm a newbie, but I agree with the others who say do both.

Also you mentioned the romance beat sheets are out there. Can you give links to the romance beat sheets? I would like to try writing in romance as well as other genres. And if it's not a disruption, If anyone else has links to romance beat sheets, please post them as well. Thanks.

As somebody whose career is built on feel good, I want to say that many if not most readers LOVE sex in romance. It is part of what they are reading for. Authors who write a steamy and clean version of the same story will tell you that steamy outsells clean many times over.

There is already tons of clean romance. Where I see the market is in steamy, sweet, feel-good stories with lots of humor and heart, and with exciting sex that does not squick people out. That is where Marie Force is, Zoe York, Roxanne St. Claire, Susan Elizabeth Phillips, and the rest of us.

The thing about the above is that it is hard to game. Ghostwriters who earn a few hundred bucks a book are not likely to be able to inject genuine emotion and humor (humor is not easy to write), or to write a tender, sexy love scene that pushes the right buttons and is different from the next love scene. If you can write genuine character development, this is a great niche. I call it realistic romance. It does not mean bad things do not happen. It just focuses more on good things and small moments.

But, writers are a persistent lot, and so I kept at it. I may have finished the challenge nine months later than intended, but I finished the challenge. That in itself is pretty significant, if I had one lesson to impart. Always finish what you start. That's something I've done almost all my life and I think it's a big piece of what gives me confidence in writing and publishing.

For the handful of you who've followed along, thanks for joining me on the ride. Onward to the next challenge. Always be writing.