Bridgerton Breakdown: Is Bridgerton “Bad” or Do I Just Hate It?

It’s no secret that I can’t stand Netflix’s show Bridgerton. I’ve been ranting about the trailers since before it came out, and the rants get longer with each season. But I’m a pretty critical person about stories in general, so it’s sometimes hard for people to tell if I’m ranting because something is objectively bad...

Beyond Bridgerton: Regency Era or Romantic Era?

I’ve talked before about how the Regency genre of fiction and the Regency era of history are not the same thing. Today, I’m going to elaborate on that, and hopefully clear up some of the confusion around the genre definition. In essence, what you think of as the hallmarks of Regency fiction are taken NOT...

Beyond Bridgerton: Writing to the Regency Market

Now that you've done some reading and research, you've decided you want to write Regency fiction to market, using the genre's current popularity to earn some money. But you also want your books to be good and still liked and read after the market (potentially) fades again. You also want your books to be interesting...

Beyond Bridgerton: First Drafts and Editing

I'm excited to get into posts about Regency details—manners, historical facts, character and relationship dynamics—but first, a few words on drafting your story and editing it. Write something you enjoy reading. Even if you are writing to market, write something you enjoy reading for three reasons: a) if you enjoy it, that's going to subconsciously...

Beyond Bridgerton: Getting it Wrong

We've talked about research and how you can make it work for you without making it obvious. But there's one more very important part of that to cover. Brace yourself. You are going to get some details wrong. Especially as an amateur writer publishing your first few books or your first few Regency books. That’s...

Beyond Bridgerton: Incorporating Research Into Your Fiction

We've talked about where to start with research as well as where to go next with dramas and books and online. But how much of that research do you need to incorporate in your book? When it comes to describing historical details, you don’t actually need a ton in the story itself if you’re writing...

Beyond Bridgerton: Research

Ah, yes, research. That sometimes terrifying rabbit hole that is necessary to write even the most loosely inspired Regency fiction. Let's start with what you can't do. You can't get out of it. You can't hack your way through it very well. 'Shortcuts make for long delays' is actually true in this case. You cannot...

Beyond Bridgerton: Story Foundations

You've figured out why you want to write in the Regency genre, and you’ve done some reading and confirmed that you do want to try it. Where to next? Pick your genre specialty, level of historical accuracy, and steam level. Aka: type, style, and flavor. Regency fiction comes in three types, four styles, and two...

Beyond Bridgerton: So You Want to Write Regency

You've loved Jane Austen's books from the time you were a girl. Your mother introduced you to Georgette Heyer's books, and you've read each one—or at least your favorites—multiple times. You're a new convert to the genre via Bridgerton or the bodice-rippers of the 90s and 00s (so named because, well, I leave it to...

Beyond Bridgerton: What IS Regency Romance?

From the drawing room to the bedroom to the ballroom to the picnic green, rustling skirts and sly hand touches and longing gazes, one thing Netflix's Bridgerton reaffirmed for the world is that readers (and viewers) LOVE Regency-flavored fiction. From the viewers who ate it all up and then raced to read the novels, to...