START HERE
Romance 101: A year-long, free daily challenge that takes you from blank page to finished romance novel—one prompt at a time.
So you found Romance 101. Good.
Whether you clicked a link five minutes ago or you’ve been lurking in the archives for a week trying to figure out what this is — welcome. Let me tell you what you just walked into.
Romance 101 is a year-long, free romance writing curriculum. One prompt a day, five days a week, with a weekly craft deep dive every Tuesday. By December, you’ll have a messy, beautiful, revisable first draft and an actual understanding of what makes romance work — not just as a genre, but as emotional architecture.
This isn’t a collection of random writing tips. It’s a scaffolded curriculum. Every week builds on the last. Every month builds on the one before. The prompts aren’t busywork — they’re diagnostic tools designed to help you build your story from the inside out, starting with the emotional foundation and working outward to scene craft, structure, and eventually a full draft.
I’m Tasha L. Harrison — romance author, developmental editor, and the person who built this entire thing because I got tired of watching talented writers stall out for lack of a framework that actually respects this genre. I’ve been writing romance for over sixteen years, editing it for fourteen, and teaching craft for long enough to know exactly where most writers get stuck and why. ROM 101 is everything I know, organized into a curriculum that meets you where you are and walks you forward.
How It Works
The rhythm is simple: Every Monday, you get a weekly introduction — the why behind that week’s focus, how it connects to what came before, and what you’re building toward. This is the article that sets the table for the week’s work.
Every Tuesday is Just the Tip Tuesday (yes, we named it that — we’re grown). That’s the weekly deep-dive craft essay, 3,500-5,000 words, where I break down a specific element of romance writing with the depth and specificity you’re not going to find in a weekend workshop or a craft book that treats romance like literary fiction’s less serious cousin.
Wednesday through Sunday, you get five daily writing prompts — roughly 700-800 words of instruction, context, and a specific exercise. These aren’t journal prompts. They’re craft exercises that teach you something about your story while you’re building it.
The Syllabus
The monthly table of contents for Romance 101. Each issue maps out the month’s craft lectures, writing exercises, and workshop content in reading order — designed for romance authors who want structured, scaffolded craft education they can actually follow. New here? Start with the most recent Syllabus.
#JustTheTipTuesday
A weekly long-form craft essay for romance authors by developmental editor and author Tasha L. Harrison. Each essay is a deep dive into one element of writing romance — from emotional architecture and character wounds to kink as psychology, pacing, and scene structure. Published every Tuesday as part of the Romance 101 curriculum. This is the lecture.
The Workshop
Where Romance 101 craft lessons become practice. Each writing prompt is a guided exercise — 700 to 800 words of context, craft instruction, and a specific writing challenge designed to build on that month’s #JustTheTipTuesday deep dives. Prompts are scaffolded week by week so each exercise builds toward the next. This is the homework.
The curriculum builds quarter by quarter and will continue through December with deeper dives into subgenres, advanced craft, revision, and drafting at speed. Each quarter builds on the last.
But I Just Got Here — Am I Too Late?
No. And I mean that.
You’ve got two paths, and both of them work:
Path One is to jump in where we are right now. The daily prompts are designed to teach craft principles that apply to your story regardless of where you are in your process. The Tuesday essays stand on their own as deep-dive lessons. You don’t need January’s content to understand March’s content — each piece teaches something complete. Start where the curriculum is today, do the work alongside everyone else, and absorb what you need.
Path Two is to go back to the beginning and build from the foundation. January Week 1 is where everything starts — subgenre, trope, and emotional architecture. If you’re the kind of writer who needs to understand the whole system before you trust it, start there. Work at your own pace. The archive isn’t going anywhere, and neither am I. You can catch up or you can build alongside — whatever serves your process.
Either way, you’re not behind. You’re here. That’s the only prerequisite.
What This Costs
Nothing. ROM 101 is free. Every prompt, every essay, every framework, every Tuesday deep dive — free. Always has been, always will be. But here’s the real talk: this is a one-woman operation. I’m writing these lessons, building these frameworks, showing up in the comments, and doing this work alongside my own writing career and editorial practice. A paid subscription doesn’t unlock secret content — it unlocks time. Your support means I can dedicate more hours to this curriculum, go deeper with the teaching, and keep showing up with the same energy and care.
If Romance 101 has been useful — if it’s helped you move forward, see your story more clearly, or finally understand why your manuscript wasn’t working — a paid subscription is a way to say “keep going.” You’re not buying content. You’re investing in the person making it.
The Only Thing You Need to Do
Subscribe. Hit the free option. That’s it.
Every new post comes straight to your inbox. You can read on email, on the Substack app, or on the web. You can dive into the comments and connect with other writers or work solo in your own space. You can follow every prompt to the letter or adapt them to your process.
The structure is here to support you, not box you in. The only rule is: show up and write.
Welcome to Romance 101. Let’s build something.
xo, Tasha