read any good love stories lately?
Been doing a lot of submissions and some revision work on old stories. Teasing my creative juices back up.
Trying to decide what to work on next.
I have a full draft of a novel (code name COVENANT)sitting around untouched, and the first few chapters of another one (untitled high fantasy). Sense tells me to dive into one of those, but first I have to convince myself to officially put the romance novel (code name CRIMSON) in a drawer.
I'm of two minds on CRIMSON. One, that the romantic storyline I have created can be woven with another kind of plot more like what I typically write, resulting in a literary/speculative or fantasy novel with romantic elements. Trouble is, I don't have any other overarching plot in mind, so I'll have to shelve CRIMSON until one comes to me, and meanwhile focus on other things.
Or, two, the love story I have would be a perfectly viable as a romantic novel. Surely romantic novels can be thoughtful and literary; it's just that I'm not familiar enough with the genre to recognize that.
I'd like to explore some romance titles to see if I can find what I'm looking for, but so far I'm put off by what I've found on the library shelves and Goodreads list. I don't want Twilight. I don't want Harlequin. I don't want Bridget Jones' Diary or chic-lit love. I don't want Outlander, either (though I love those books) - no genre benders. I want a thoughtful, character-driven, contemporary love story where the love story is the whole point. Or most of the point.
If anyone out there has any suggestions for books to check out, I'd be ever-so-grateful.
Trying to decide what to work on next.
I have a full draft of a novel (code name COVENANT)sitting around untouched, and the first few chapters of another one (untitled high fantasy). Sense tells me to dive into one of those, but first I have to convince myself to officially put the romance novel (code name CRIMSON) in a drawer.
I'm of two minds on CRIMSON. One, that the romantic storyline I have created can be woven with another kind of plot more like what I typically write, resulting in a literary/speculative or fantasy novel with romantic elements. Trouble is, I don't have any other overarching plot in mind, so I'll have to shelve CRIMSON until one comes to me, and meanwhile focus on other things.
Or, two, the love story I have would be a perfectly viable as a romantic novel. Surely romantic novels can be thoughtful and literary; it's just that I'm not familiar enough with the genre to recognize that.
I'd like to explore some romance titles to see if I can find what I'm looking for, but so far I'm put off by what I've found on the library shelves and Goodreads list. I don't want Twilight. I don't want Harlequin. I don't want Bridget Jones' Diary or chic-lit love. I don't want Outlander, either (though I love those books) - no genre benders. I want a thoughtful, character-driven, contemporary love story where the love story is the whole point. Or most of the point.
If anyone out there has any suggestions for books to check out, I'd be ever-so-grateful.