Why I Write and Read Romance

by Fran McNabb

Not everyone will agree with my opinion here, but that’s okay. Everyone has different likes and dislikes in the books they choose to read and write. Mine happens to be the romance genre. Recently my husband and I watched a rather long movie, almost three hours long. The time didn’t bother me, but the ending did. We watched a soldier fight his way through a bloody war and spend months walking home to get to the woman he loved, just to be killed after only one night with her.

Grrrr. I was mad. The romance writer in me would never have let that happen. I know the point of the story. War is horrible. It shouldn’t be romanticized, but the writers and producers could have made their point another way. I won’t name the movie because it was very well done except for the ending. It depicted the brutality of war. The characters were well developed. The story line was intricately woven. Too bad the ending ruined it—at least for me.

The romance genre is predictable, at least for the endings. Getting to that satisfying ending should not be. I love to read a romance with a unique plot, interesting characters, and, yes, a happy or at least a satisfying ending.

On my website I have a couple of paragraphs about romance and why I write in that genre. I explain that I like a good story that brings me to an "aaah" ending, or leaves me with a tear in my eye or a smile on my face. I like to feel good and be entertained by the books I read or the movies I watch. There’s enough bad in this world so I like to think my books can bring a little joy to someone’s life.

Let me know how you feel. Do you like a feel good ending in your books or one that leaves you with the harsh reality of life?

FRAN MCNABB loved spending time in the city library when she was in junior high. She found the shelf with Avalon’s family-friendly romance novels and read every one of them. Ironically, she started her writing career by publishing with Avalon in 2006. Today she has nine published books, all in the romance genre. Visit her at www.FranMcNabb.com or at mcnabbf@bellsouth.net.

The Five Dollar Happily Ever After

by Gina Ardito

I was a five dollar bet. He was trying too hard.

The year I turned twenty-two, a friend of mine forgot my birthday. Because I was (and still am) a bit of a smarta**, I told him he could make it up to me by showing up at a local club that Friday night, buying me several drinks, and dancing the night away. This particular friend is not much of a dancer so I knew there was a very good chance he wouldn't show up. Bearing that in mind, I brought another friend, Margaret, to the club with me that Friday night.

Margaret was the dance fiend among friends. She hit the dance floor that night and never returned. Since I was the designated driver of the evening, I took a seat at the bar (another friend was the bartender--always helpful!) and ordered up a club soda. The first guy to approach me showed up with a posse of his friends backing him up. He proceeded to tell me his dad was a driving instructor and he could get me free lessons if I'd date him. (Wow! What a deal! What a catch!) Luckily, my bartender pal scared him and his posse away. 

I was sipping my club soda, scanning the dance floor for Margaret, when a husky voice whispered in my ear, "You're not having a good time tonight, are you?"

I turned and came face-to-face with a pair of golden eyes that made my heart stutter. He offered to buy me a drink. I told him I was drinking club soda, which was free. He offered to buy me a free club soda. Okay, I thought, we've got great eyes and a sense of humor. Two checkmarks for him. I must have smiled, encouraging him. He pulled up the barstool next to mine and kept chatting. He told me he was a stockbroker and part-time ski instructor. He had a boat he'd love to take me out on. He routinely flew to Europe on business. The more he told me, the more I knew he was lying. And yet, as odd as it might seem, his lies charmed me. He was trying so hard to impress me, I felt flattered. Or maybe he had me hypnotized with those eyes. 

We talked for hours. We danced. And at the end of the night, despite his insistence I leave with him, I gave him my phone number and went home with Margaret. She, of course, gushed about this guy who seemed so interested in me. "When you marry him," she said, "I better be invited to the wedding." I told her, "When I marry him, you get to be in the bridal party."

You can pretty much guess the rest. He called me. On our first date, he confessed he wasn't a stockbroker or a ski instructor. He didn't have a boat and had no plans to go to Europe. In fact, he'd only recently graduated college and was about to start his first "real job" a few weeks later. Why had he lied? Because I looked so perfect, so special, he thought he wasn't good enough. Yeah, I fell. Hard and fast. Lucky for me, so did he. We dated for two years and on the second anniversary of the day we met, we married.

Over time, he taught me to ski. He took me sailing. And we traveled to Europe. So maybe he was more prognosticator than prevaricator. 

The five dollar bet? I found out about that after we were engaged. His friend, Mike, who was with him at the club the night we met, revealed all. "Didn't he tell you? He spotted you when you came in that night, said you were perfect for him, and bet me five bucks he'd leave the club with you."

He lost that bet.

But, in the end, we both won. Mike was the best man at our wedding; Margaret was a bridesmaid. It's been thirty+ years since that night in the club. His eyes still make my heart stutter. And every time he tells me, "I love you," I fall in love all over again.

Happy belated Valentine's Day! 

Puppies, Kittens and Ponies

What is it about puppies and kittens and ponies (and even hamsters, though I have never had one) that we love?  Every jaunt through Facebook includes  adorable pictures of friends’ furry loves (my own included), heartwarming stories of  pets reunited  with their pet people, or passionate pleas for adoptive homes for animals in distress.

 

Most of my friends have pets. Most of my family and extended family are pet lovers, too.  I have two rescued cats and two noisy and happy parakeets.   Pets are like members of the family.  I like people who like and respect and protect animals.

So what does that have to do with romance novels?

I love to read sweet romance and light mysteries. I also like to write them.  I feel that a large part of the joy of our stories is directly related to the ability to identify with.. and LIKE the characters.  Though it may sound corny, in a good book, they actually feel like friends to me. Real. The kind of people I like.

I am seeing how the memorable characters in my favorite books (both romance and mystery) often have a pet that matters a lot to them.  Like Stephanie Plum and her hamster, Rex.  Or Jesse Stone and his big lovable dog. Jessie. This can also been seen in sweet romance movies, like Tom Hank’s adorable dog Brinkley in “You’ve Got Mail.”

  In many of my earlier books, my characters have pets too.  In “Daring Hearts”, my heroine helps a sad little boy get a puppy.  In “Love, Julie”, my heroine saves and trains a wild horse that people have given up on.  In “Noah’s Bark”, my heroine is a veterinarian who fights for animal rights and cares for a bevy of animals, usually with no pay. In “Patient Heart”, it’s all about an errant pony.

There is a certain kind of sweet loving heart that is open to loving a pet, and that trait is very attractive to me in a romance novel, as well as in real life.  In our sweet romances, the emphasis is on heart and character and story. The inclusion of pets often makes the story richer, more realistic and heartwarming to me. 

What do you think? Do you have a pet? Do you find stories richer with characters who love their pets?

Christine Bush is the award winning author of many books and novellas of sweet romance and light mystery. When she isn’t writing, she can be found working with clients as a Marriage and Family Therapist in private practice, or teaching Psychology at a local college.  She lives with her family and two crazy cats in northeastern Pennsylvania, and loves to hear from readers and aspiring writers.

www.ChristineBush.com

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Christine-Bush-Author/213919128638762

http://www.amazon.com/Christine-Bush/e/B001KHSLRG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1392688497&sr=1-2-ent

  

Check out her reissued Award Winning  book “Cindy’s Prince!”

http://www.amazon.com/Cindys-Prince-Christine-Bush-ebook/dp/B00IFSRVJ2/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1393781746&sr=1-1&keywords=christine+bush+cindy%27s+prince