Why I Write WWI Romance Novels
Stretcher-Bearing in Difficulties © IWM (Art.IWM ART 3801)
The words seem incongruous-”Romance” and “WWI”. To many historians
(academic and family), it might seem insulting to situate a “bodice
ripper” in the midst of a violent, tragic, and heartbreaking war, and to
many readers, it might seem too sad and hopeless a setting to believe
in the fantasy elements of the genre. As I fill my hard drive and
bookshelves with research books I live with the carnage and blood and
despair, but I also live with the bravery and pluck and determination of
WWI society, and yes, also the humor.
What attracts me most is that women have an even greater agency than
before. Things loosened up considerably during the Edwardian era, but
the war showed women what they were made of, whether they became a VAD
nurse or ran large charities. Another attraction is the shaking-up of
the class system. It wasn’t entirely demolished, but the foundations of
the upstairs/downstairs life, as well as the divide between the have and
the have-nots, were tested and challenged. After all, what does rank
and wealth matter in death or in perilous situations?
When it comes to the actual romantic life during WWI, from the
outside looking in (or rather looking back from today), it seems
depressing, but do people ever stop falling in love? Does hope and joy
absolutely end? I think not, and all of that-particularly wanting to
honor the living, the survivors of that time-is what I hope to capture
each time I write a romantic novel set during the Great War.