Newspaper stories follow a specific, time-honored structure: the ending comes first. That is, all the important details of a story are presented at the beginning.

This allows editors the freedom to cut from the bottom if space is lacking, and readers the chance to scan the first paragraph for a summary of the news. The technique is called the inverted pyramid, and every self-respecting journalist is familiar with it.   

Before your character reads that article verbatim, make sure your fictional journalist is familiar with it too.  

EXAMPLE:
   "Read the paper yet?" Zack asked.
   Emily groaned. "Give me a break, I just got up."
   "Listen to this. 'A message was found on the bathroom wall of Fort Wagner High School yesterday. It was a threat that they were going to bring a gun to school. John Fenton, superintendent, said the handwriting was similar to what was found on his garage in May.'"
   Emily looked up from her coffee. "Amy?"
   "None other."

CLEANED UP:
   "Read the paper yet?" Zack asked.
   Emily groaned. "Give me a break, I just got up."
   "Listen to this. 'Montgomery police on Monday took into custody a 15-year-old female Fort Wagner High School student for writing a death threat on the bathroom wall.'"
   Emily looked up from her coffee. "Amy?"
   "None other."

   "What'd you hear?" Frannie asked, snuffing out a butt. "And don't you try to lie to me, Stanley R. Watson, just to make me feel better."

   "It's in the paper, sweetie." He plopped on the edge of the bed, folding the newspaper around the article. "Right here, first line, clear as day: 'The fire department doesn't suspect arson in the house fire on Phillips Avenue.'"

CLEANED UP:
   Stan shot back to the hotel room, ready to howl. "We're free as birds!"

   "What'd you hear?" Frannie asked, snuffing out a butt. "And don't you try to lie to me, Stanley R. Watson, just to make me feel better."

   "It's in the paper, sweetie." He plopped on the edge of the bed, folding the newspaper around the article. "Right here, first line, clear as day: 'An overheated electrical outlet is believed to be the cause of the October fire of Millie Wentworth's ranch house on Phillips Avenue.'"

DEADLINE: January 15, 2009!

"How did I meet thee?
Let me recount the day."

A pivotal scene in all romances is the one in which the heroine first crosses the path of the hero. Whether the meeting is subtle or dramatic, the intimate tension surrounding it lets readers know these two are more than mere ships passing in the night.

How do your lovebirds meet? How do they reveal their smitten-ness? Melt our bonbons, as well as our hearts, with your best romantic encounter! 

Grand Prize

$100

  Scene published in The VERB

Scene Opinion, also published in The VERB

Signed copy of The Art of Romance Writing by Valerie Parv

Oops!

Due to a shipping error, this book will not contain
the autograph of its Australian author.

Get all the details at the Contest Cafe.

   Lucy adjusted her laptop strap and pasted on a smile. So where was this guy? It was horrifying enough that she'd agreed to a public makeover as part of one of her own marketing campaigns, but now she had to go peeking behind treadmills in a game of find the über-trainer?

   According to the receptionist, he was a hard-to-miss man with short light brown hair, blue eyes and a little gold hoop in his left ear. Yet so far, she'd managed to miss him and his hoop just fine.

   Lucy felt ridiculous. Then she felt around inside her jacket pocket for the comfort of her edible worry beads and popped two Milk Duds into her mouth. It hadn't escaped her that the beloved Duds would have to go if she was going to lose a hundred pounds in a year. But for that blissful instant, perhaps the last she'd ever know, Lucy closed her eyes and felt the chocolate melt on her tongue until it was yielding and warm, just the right consistency to swirl around under her soft palate to position for the gratifying payoff—the lethal slam of her bite.

   Ah, Milk Duds. The official candy of pissed-off fat women everywhere.