Urban Fantasy/Paranormal Romance

[jenlyn_b]

*Cross-posted from my blog, where I've been talking about some of the thoughts and ideas that came up at Romantic Times last week*

One really interesting RT panel was devoted to defining the (often blurry) line between urban fantasy and paranormal romance. Jackie Kessler (who, by the way, just sold an awesome-sounding YA that you can read about

Comments

[antonstrout]

I think it's many things.

Sometimes its the amount of horizontal hokey-poking that goes on in the pages that make it more paranormal romance, but not always.

Sometimes its the package and how much skin on the cover that makes it more paranormal romance, but not always.

Sometimes a books is heavier on action and fighting evil than it is on the developing romantic relationships that make it more UF, but not always.

Sometimes it's a sales team deciding they could get a better buy from the urban fantasy buyer for the bookstores than they could from the paranormal romance buyer, but not always.

Sometimes the noir detective style of the story with that cleverly worked first person perspective plants it down in urban fantasy, but not always.

Sometimes its an arbitrary choice to fill the monthly slots in a publisher's schedule, but not always.

These panels are great because the world will never truly know, but they do get people talkin!

[antonstrout]

It's cute you think you get a choice where it goes. :P

[nerinedorman]

You've raised an interesting point. Considering that I've recently started reviewing paranormal romance in order to get to grips with the genre, I'm trying to look at the genres to see the differences (and the similarities).

I pretty much write the kind of stories that I like to read, where the hero isn't always a nice person and he/she experiences some sort of transformation but the love interest may end up going home with their best friend . . . that sort of thing.

It's my intention to "keep it real" as much as possible because you're already dealing with supernatural powers of some sort. And, real life doesn't go for the HEA.

It's difficult because on the one hand there's a trend of readers wanting HEA but also those who're happy if you give a bittersweet bite to your last words.

[frost_light]

As for the HEA expectation in romance, be it at the end of a single-title book or the culmination of a series, I find it no more unrealistic of a genre expectation than for the villain to be defeated in a UF, or the killer caught in a mystery. Do killers and villains sometimes get away in UF or mysteries? Yes, sometimes, but across the board in the genre, most readers expect the villain to be defeated (even if it's temporary) or the killer to be stopped (even if it's temporary). And in the same way, most romance readers expect the book (or series) to end with some form of the couple being together. Granted, if it's not done properly - just like endings of books in any genre - the HEA or HFN can seem unrealistic. Just like the hero suddenly catching the serial killer after being outsmarted for the whole book, or the UF superhero suddenly finding the One Weapon that will defeat the villain after being clueless through the whole book.

[tom_gallier]

We don't have to worry about if it is paranormal romance, or Urban Fantasy (got to have the caps), it's the YA we have to watch out for and stop. I tell you, it's corrupting our children and turning them into....us.

[wynterwolf47]

Heh, and if the writers are confused? Think how us readers must feel. ;-)

For myself, I have always thought of those terms as pertaining to two completely different elements of a book: "Urban Fantasy" denotes a particular tone/style/environment of the book, while "Paranormal Romance" is more an indication of what the main focus of the plot is all about (i.e. the romantic relationship). So basically apple and oranges, and books can be both at the same time, or just one and not the other. But then you toss "Contemporary Fantasy" into the mix, and I start getting a headache. ;-D