A Fine Romance
I've been in "research the genre" mode of late. Read a first-person thriller, a social-commentary comedy with vampires, and a standard procedural/whodoneit. And after catching up on one of my favorite blogs, Smart Bitches, Trashy Books, and seeing mention of an author I enjoyed waaaaaaay back when, I also re-read a bodice-ripper romance that had been a particular favorite of my youth. Yep, there was literal bodice ripping.
Wow. What a trip.
Okay, I'll own it: I have a fond spot in my heart for the romance genre. It's one of those guilty pleasures I like to indulge in once in a while, like I like to indulge in a bag of Pepperidge Farm Milano cookies. You know they're bad for you, but sometimes you devour them in one sitting and then can't have another for years.
One of my friends and I were talking about romances today, and how they're still hidden behind the covers of a Kindle, or shoved into a bag, or their tawdry covers obscured by something else. Smart women don't read trashy romances (or even literary romances). Right?
Yeah, whatever. Get over it.
We totally do. Romance is still the top grossing genre in the publishing industry, and it's not hard to see why. The stories are comfort food for the brain. For Old Skool Romances (a SBTB term), you don't need to cogitate (and in fact, it's better if you don't), you just go along for the ride. And you don't have to wonder if it will all work out ... you know there will be an "emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending." New Skool Romances are the same, but they're often modernized, sometimes have deeper themes, and aren't just about finding a man and getting married, or even just about teh sexxin'. Of late, romances become journeys of self-discovery for the main characters. They're not only about the relationship with a significant other, but the relationship with self.
Don't get me wrong. There's a ton of what I consider to be bad romance out there, and it's not even good bad romance. But there are also some gems that follow in a proud tradition that began in 1740 by Samuel Richardson's penning of Pamela and continued with Jane Austen.
So why even dip back into the romance genre? Two reasons. The first being that I ate them up like candy when I was in my pre-teens and up until I got married at age 20. They, for better or worse (mostly worse), informed my idea of what romance, marriage and relationship were all about. They and Disney, but that's another story. The second reason is that I very much enjoy exploring relationships in my writing, and when there's "romance" in my stories, I want it to be mature and I want it to be truthful. Re-reading helps me see clearly what is no longer true for me, no longer true for many women (and men), and what tropes should be avoided at all costs.
An example of the latter is bad sex writing (for the love of Pete, make it stop!), and another is all the "sparring". I'm as fond of a well written verbal match as anyone, but when the misunderstandings happen over and over because the main characters are too stubborn or stupid to simply sit down and TALK?? GAAAAAH! Oh, and the improbable coincidences. I hate those, precious! That's just crap plotting IMHO.
I want to be able to write a truthful romance. A REAL romance. One that isn't about happily ever afters, but simply about happily one day at at time, because that's what we get for realz. I want to be able to write about people who don't assume or jump to the wrong conclusions, but who respect the person they're with enough to talk. I want to be able to write about relationships transcending fear of loss and judgment. And mostly, I want to be able to write about relationships that hold a mirror up for the characters, allowing them to see themselves and grow. It's not about what he did to her, or who she is because of him. It's not about taking self worth from someone else. It's about who she is because of herself, and he's there because they both want him to be.
To me, that's a real, fine romance.
And now that I'm done with my trashy romance (and it was engagingly bad), I'm back to blood and bodies and murder and mayhem. Yeah! Procedural crime novels, here I come!
PS And while I'm using the traditional romance genders of male/female, it's for convenience. I'm fond of female/female and male/male romances as well. I'm equal opportunity. Like I said, for me, it's all about the relationship.
Wow. What a trip.
Okay, I'll own it: I have a fond spot in my heart for the romance genre. It's one of those guilty pleasures I like to indulge in once in a while, like I like to indulge in a bag of Pepperidge Farm Milano cookies. You know they're bad for you, but sometimes you devour them in one sitting and then can't have another for years.
One of my friends and I were talking about romances today, and how they're still hidden behind the covers of a Kindle, or shoved into a bag, or their tawdry covers obscured by something else. Smart women don't read trashy romances (or even literary romances). Right?
Yeah, whatever. Get over it.
We totally do. Romance is still the top grossing genre in the publishing industry, and it's not hard to see why. The stories are comfort food for the brain. For Old Skool Romances (a SBTB term), you don't need to cogitate (and in fact, it's better if you don't), you just go along for the ride. And you don't have to wonder if it will all work out ... you know there will be an "emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending." New Skool Romances are the same, but they're often modernized, sometimes have deeper themes, and aren't just about finding a man and getting married, or even just about teh sexxin'. Of late, romances become journeys of self-discovery for the main characters. They're not only about the relationship with a significant other, but the relationship with self.
Don't get me wrong. There's a ton of what I consider to be bad romance out there, and it's not even good bad romance. But there are also some gems that follow in a proud tradition that began in 1740 by Samuel Richardson's penning of Pamela and continued with Jane Austen.
So why even dip back into the romance genre? Two reasons. The first being that I ate them up like candy when I was in my pre-teens and up until I got married at age 20. They, for better or worse (mostly worse), informed my idea of what romance, marriage and relationship were all about. They and Disney, but that's another story. The second reason is that I very much enjoy exploring relationships in my writing, and when there's "romance" in my stories, I want it to be mature and I want it to be truthful. Re-reading helps me see clearly what is no longer true for me, no longer true for many women (and men), and what tropes should be avoided at all costs.
An example of the latter is bad sex writing (for the love of Pete, make it stop!), and another is all the "sparring". I'm as fond of a well written verbal match as anyone, but when the misunderstandings happen over and over because the main characters are too stubborn or stupid to simply sit down and TALK?? GAAAAAH! Oh, and the improbable coincidences. I hate those, precious! That's just crap plotting IMHO.
I want to be able to write a truthful romance. A REAL romance. One that isn't about happily ever afters, but simply about happily one day at at time, because that's what we get for realz. I want to be able to write about people who don't assume or jump to the wrong conclusions, but who respect the person they're with enough to talk. I want to be able to write about relationships transcending fear of loss and judgment. And mostly, I want to be able to write about relationships that hold a mirror up for the characters, allowing them to see themselves and grow. It's not about what he did to her, or who she is because of him. It's not about taking self worth from someone else. It's about who she is because of herself, and he's there because they both want him to be.
To me, that's a real, fine romance.
And now that I'm done with my trashy romance (and it was engagingly bad), I'm back to blood and bodies and murder and mayhem. Yeah! Procedural crime novels, here I come!
PS And while I'm using the traditional romance genders of male/female, it's for convenience. I'm fond of female/female and male/male romances as well. I'm equal opportunity. Like I said, for me, it's all about the relationship.