I’m going to be perfectly honest; romance is not my thing. At least I never felt like it was, but I could be wrong. I have found that what I perceive as traditional romances, whether in books or films, don’t really appeal to me with a few specific exceptions. However, when reviewing my list of go-to chick-flick romances with some friends, I learned that some of my choices aren’t very traditional. Don’t worry, I’ll be sharing that topic on another day.
When it comes to my writing I realized that most stories need some element of romance, love, or relationship issues (not always romance) to keep the story well-rounded. It was then that I also realized that I do like romance when it’s combined with another genre, when it’s not the driving force but an interesting subplot or catalyst. I even conducted a poll last month to see how people felt about genre, to which I’ll be posting my results in my newsletter tomorrow.
Anyway, back to romance. I’ve been told that my Eternal Curse: Giovanni’s Angel is non-traditional romance within the whole paranormal romance genre. In all honestly, that may have something to do with the fact that I tried not to focus too much on the romance, but it is a major driving force in the story. I feel that maybe the idea of writing romance intimidates me so I try to avoid it or reduce encounters with it. Unfortunately, that tactic has never worked for me.
So that’s when I decided to write a romance of my own with no paranormal twist, no fantasy or sci undertone, or any time of violence or political intrigue. I decided that I wanted to tell the story of characters who could be real people who I might meet and form relationships with. But of course this raised another question. “Am I truly writing a romance or just general fiction with a romance in it?” This is where the whole idea of “read what you write” would have greatly helped me. In any case, I’m so close to finishing this story and can’t wait to share it.
In the meantime, I’d love to know your thoughts on romance, whether you’re a fan or not.
Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords
4 replies on “What defines Romance as a genre?: Authors Insights 14”
My problem with romance, or any codified genre is that it’s always, ALWAYS predictable.
In romance, girl meets boy, stuff happens in the middle, they live happily ever after at the end.
In a lot of fantasy, boy meets evil <>, stuff happens in the middle, boy beats evil wizard in the end. Ditto mysteries, ditto police procedurals, etc etc.
The stuff in the middle may be interesting, but the ending is a foregone conclusion. That said, I do love science fiction and fantasy, probably for the worlds both genres create. Those worlds make me think something new and wonderful may happen, and sometimes it actually does.
I guess we all search for whatever gives us that tingle of expectation. For me it’s the unexpected, for someone else it may well be the reassurance of knowing that in fiction, at least, people do live happily ever after.
Thank you for sharing. I hope you’ve considered taking the poll. I’m working hard to writing a non-predictable romance at the moment and I thi I might be close. It’s my first time so I know I’m no master…yet. 😉
I filled out the poll.
I don’t read romance although I have read a couple blogger buddies’ books that were romances.
I agree there needs to be some kind of relationship in a story – love of siblings, etc.
Ironically, while I don’t read it, I admit to having a soft spot for romantic comedy movies…
Yeah, I find that I accept romance in movies much better than I do in books. Thanks for sharing.