I don’t feel qualified to give writers advice, but I would say this – something I have learned is to ‘write the book of your heart.’  I don’t refer to romance when I say that.  I mean a book in any genre.

Write it YOUR way and stuff all the technical lectures about ‘what editors want’ that you have been fed.  As you become more experienced at writing you realize that a good deal of the time, editors DON’T know what they want, but they’ll know it when they see it, i.e. it has to be a book that grabs them.

If you don’t write with your emotions lying naked and pulsing blood with each sentence, the reader (not to mention an agent or editor) will pick that up right away.  It’s a long apprenticeship that we writers endure, so understand that you must bleed and give, give, give. 

Also, get yourself several critique partners, either online or locally.  Be prepared to take the rough with the smooth.  If you have several, their varying opinions may help you see your work more clearly.  There can be danger in having only one crit partner, because you may be swayed in the wrong direction for YOUR writing.  Always assume ownership of your writing.  Take their advice pleasantly and quietly ditch it if you know it is inappropriate.  And if you strike a derogatory and difficult crit partner, wriggle out of the relationship.  Life is too short to waste time on people who might damage your ability to write.

Now – forget the lecturing.  Below are some handy websites for readers and writers.  Some give advice on how to write a query letter, others show you how to get the best out of your research:

http://www.britishempire.co.uk/timeline/19century.htm  Excellent for relating your writing and reading to various historical occurrences.

www.georgianindex.com.  Everything you ever needed to know about the Georgian era.

www.rasley.com.  Alicia’s site is a miracle for readers and writers.  Loads of information, online courses and references with kernels of hard, gritty truth buried among all that useful stuff.

www.dellejacobs.com.  This lady’s site reflects her personality.  Her son has devised a website that is very ‘Delle.’  She is an indefatigable researcher and has a wealth of general writing experience.

www.annegracie.com. President of RWA (Australia), Anne writes Regencies and dispenses very, very useful advice to writers on her website – stuff like writing the dreaded synopsis and now to avoid abrupt switches in point of view so as not to confuse the reader.  A vibrant and hard-working Australian with a heart of gold.

http://www.lisagardner.com/tricks/synopsis.thm.  Yup, not only are Lisa’s suspense books chilling and enthralling, her website is one of the best.  She advises on how to write stuff like query letters, blurbs, synopses – all the creepy things that freak out writers, any writers, not just suspense writers.