Writing is so much fun. If you’re thinking of writing a book, one of the first things you’ll need to do is pick a genre. I picked romance. Out of all the genres out there, why did I pick romance? Lots of people write romance.
Well, I picked it for several reasons. I think that first of all, most folks are fighting some kind of battle in their lives. Maybe they’re in a relationship that went bad, and they’ve lost the one they love. Whether it was by divorce, death, or just walking away, it tears a huge hole in someone’s heart. Maybe the problem is health-related. Someone has to accept that there are now limitations placed on them. Have you ever dealt with unemployment? How do you feed your children with no paycheck? My romances always have a happy ending which gives us hope that tomorrow things will be better. We can believe that ‘this too shall pass.’
Remember what happened at the end of Gone With the Wind? Scarlett lost Rhett and collapsed in tears, but then she decided to go home to Tara where she can think of a way to get Rhett back. Human beings are designed to hope.
I also think that romances possibly satisfy our craving for justice. In the real world, things don’t always end happily. Children are abused, the missing teen is never found, or our possessions are stolen. In the vast majority of romances you know the bad guys are going to get what’s coming to them. My heroes and heroines sometimes face determined villains, but you can rest easy in the knowledge that the bad guys will never win.
Last, I write romance because I’m a romantic at heart. I just adore a good love story.
Readers, what about you? Why do you read romance? Leave a comment and tell me what you think.
Turnaround Farm is my last romance. You can read an excerpt at Amazon.
Angela Schroeder
Patricia Kiyono
Elaine Cantrell
Jeff Salter
Joselyn
Tonette Joyce
Very well said and exactly why I like to write romance. There is just so much pain in the world and a love story and happy ending makes me feel happy inside. I also like to get inside the head of people as to why they fall in love with a particular person.
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It is unfortunate that some people still regard ‘romance’ books as ‘bodice rippers’.I have had a devil of a time convincing The Husband and family members that such is not the case, nr are they ‘a waste of time’.
I agree; let’s spread hope where we can.
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I hadn’t thought about that craving for justice that we — most of us, anyway — possess.
I agree.
We want to set things right… and in the “real” world, they may never be set right. So we make our own world with our own characters. Makes perfect sense.
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Great post, and I agree! I read romance because I’m an eternal optimist, or so I’ve been told. I want to find a happy ending to every story.
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Its nice to read a book and know that the bad guy isn’t going to get away with whatever he/she did. I do enjoy a happy ending.
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