Welcome to the Nickel Nasties series! In celebration of my first scathing Amazon review for A Ranger's Tale (1 in 58 ain't bad), I've decided to devote February to the stories that garner so much stereotype and ridicule, but still comprise one of the world's best-selling genres: ROMANCE! I hope you'll enjoy this series. Please leave comments for the wonderful contributors. And...don't forget to check out their books!
Romance-It's Organic
by
Lisa Tapp
My
interest in romance began with my earliest readings. No, not the David and Ann
readers. Please! But Nancy Drew. For her times, (this series
first appeared in the 1930’s) Nancy was pretty kick-ass: a teen female solving mysteries that confounded
the adults. Where was the romance?
Nancy’s boyfriend, Ned Nickerson. Make no mistake, it was Nancy who solved the
mysteries. At best, Ned was her assistant. But his presence in the books had a
much more crucial role – he made her human. Vulnerable.
Doesn’t
love do that to us all? (Aaaah. You say I’m using the word ‘love’ in place of
‘romance.’ My friend Webster defines romance as a love story.)
As
in real life, love interests in books attach us to the characters. We yearn for
their successes; we suffer with their failures.
Good authors today take advantage of this ploy to hold their
readers. Look at Harry Potter, the
biggest literary phenomenon in the last decade. Rowlings’ young readers have
Harry and Jenny, Hermione and Ron, and the love story that started it all –
James and Lily.
This
trend is not unique to female authors. Not at all. Male authors, even those
that write the ‘lone wolf’ type detective series use romance to bond their readers
more deeply to their hero. (Although I do believe some of these ‘lone wolves’
should wear neon disclaimers such as: “My last five relationships ended in Disaster!”)
Why
is romance so prevalent in writing? Because it’s organic. It is one of the
defining characteristics of the human animal. Humans are born with two
instincts: the will to survive and the will to propagate. Stripped of all
social niceties, we are creatures who will fight for the right to live, and we
will have sex.
Once
we’ve established peace in our lives, when survival is no longer a daily
battle, humans look to belong. In a group, in a one-on-one relationship, we all
have a need for belonging. For love.
Most
of us live and struggle somewhere between the raw basic and the totally
fulfilled, ethereal aspects of love.
Seeing it in print is natural. It’s an affirmation that we are all on
this same path.
It’s
what draws me to read romance. It’s what draws me to write romance. And why,
for the month of February, we celebrate romance.
****
Lisa
writes contemporary YA romance.
You
can follow her on Twitter or at YAFusion@blogspot.com
Hi Lisa, what a wonderful post to re-introduce me to the genre. I'm a self-confessed epic-fantasy chronicler of those "lone wolves" you mentioned, some of who have a shot at romance and others... not so much! But since an online colleague recommended I read some romance to improve my writing, I have been intrigued. It seems right, that romance would be about belonging whereas fantasy so often involves standing out and apart.
ReplyDeleteAnd I agree that Ned was the bomb, especially for his day- not a sap, but intelligent and supportive. Nice role model- ::grins::
not for any of MY heroes, of course...
Will Hahn
Well said! I used to think I didn't read romance - LOL!
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed your post, Lisa. I loved the Nancy Drew and Hardy boys books way back when. You're right, in some way, romance is a part of who we are. Without it, life would be boring.
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by. :)
ReplyDeleteHi Lisa - I've always thought that the Nancy Drew books were just `detective' stories but you're right, there is definitely romance in it because of Ned and Nancy's relationship. If the Nancy Drew books were written today, it would be YA definitely :)
ReplyDelete