The HEA Cafe

Archive for the ‘Books’ Category

I’m in edits this month–just finished substantives and copy edits arrived at my door. So the part of my brain that dredges up pithy blog topics is on a bit of a hiatus. So I asked my readers on my fan group what I should blog about here and received (and am still receiving) quite a few interesting ideas.

One I’ve chosen for this 11th-of-the-month offering is author Lynne Connolly’s, where she noted:

“How about … Harlequin’s recent contention that in times of trouble sales of romance books go up, because people are looking for escape?”

I admitted I was totally unaware of the supposition–edits tend to keep me nose to the keyboard, lost in world of my own making. The best I can do at those times is scan Publisher’s Lunch when it plops in my emailbox. But it’s a good topic because it highlights not only the value of reading but the resilience of the romance genre. I think it also ties into author Margaret Carter’s recent blog at Alien Romances, where she offers:

The August-September issue of SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MIND contains an article on the importance of storytelling. Benefits of stories for human beings include expanding the capacity for empathy and learning how to function in social groups. One psychologist suggests that stories “may act as ‘flight simulators’ for social life.”

So, are romance readers escaping into flight simulators? What a thought.

I am hopeful that this readjustment of the financial markets will make people see the value of a $6.99 book as opposed to a $250 DVD player. Both are escape mechanisms but in my humble opinion, the book is one that provides a much deeper, long lasting and you-don’t-need-batteries-with-it-experience (unless you’re Kindle-ing…).

But the advantage of the romance novel (or a novel written to the romance genre’s required HEA) is the overall positive tone generated by the book. That, to me, is what makes the genre special and what also makes it powerful.

You are what you think is perhaps an overused slogan from the 1970′s but there is a lot of truth in the adage. Focusing on the negative makes you negative, or more prone to be negative. I’m not just making this stuff up out of my little blonde over-edited head; there’ve been studies done that state so. So when you have a roomful of people thinking, Ohmigod, this is awful and then a cityful of people thinking, Omigod, this is awful and then a planetful of people thinking, Omigod, this is awful…things can get pretty awful.

Hold your fire. I’m not advocating blind Pollyanna-ism. (I originally typed BLOND instead of blind…how’s that for a Freudian?) I’m advocating a realistic appraisal of your ability to choose what you want to focus on and how you want to feel.  

It’s the old glass being half-empty or half-full analogy and where romance novels come into play is they can remind us that the glass can well be half-full, if not overflowing.

Romance novels are far more than just stories of two people falling in love. They’re also stories of faith, hope, perseverance, resilience and determination. They’re an analysis of the personal dynamics between people that often transcend logic.  They’re about strength and they’re about vulnerability. They are the human drama of the heart, and perhaps there is no better time to rediscover that than when the non-human elements of politics and finances seem to overwhelm daily life.

So maybe a resurgence of interest in romance novels isn’t so much an escape as a reminder that yes, this really is what life is all about.

“you shall above all things be glad and young.
For if you’re young,whatever life you wear

it will become you;andif you’re glad
whatever’s living will yourself become…

I’d rather learn from one bird how to sing
than teach ten thousand stars how not to dance.” ~e.e. cummings (1894-1962)

 

~Linnea

HOPE’S FOLLY, Book 3 in the Gabriel’s Ghost universe, coming Feb. 2009 from RITA award-winning author, Linnea Sinclair, and Bantam Books: www.linneasinclair.com 

It’s an impossible mission on a derelict ship called HOPE’S FOLLY. A man who feels he can’t love. A woman who believes she’s unlovable. And an enemy who will stop at nothing to crush them both.

I have to admit, when it comes to books I can be a complete snob. When I find people who don’t read, and I mean quite literate adults who choose not to read, I have to wonder what I have in common with them, if anything.

But today I want to praise an area of literature that I believe too many adults overlook as not worth their time, or too unsophisticated, and that is YA novels. “YA” is shorthand in bookstores and libraries for “Young Adult” and covers the novels written to appeal to a teen audience. So many of them are outstanding, and adults who don’t seek them out are doing themselves a disservice.  Some publishers are aware of the appeal of YA for all ages, and you only have to look at how many adults were caught up in the Harry Potter phenomenon to realize what an untapped market this is.
When people ask me to name my favorite romance novels, I have my list that includes the usual suspects, but I also add into that Mara, Daughter of the Nile by Eloise Jarvis McGraw.  I first read it when I was in the 6th Grade, and for the first time I fell in love with a novel.  Mara had it all–a plucky heroine, a mysterious and hunky hero, exotic settings in ancient Egypt, character development and more.  I still own a copy, and re-read it last year.  After all these years, it still entertained me, and I can’t say that about many of the novels I’ve read that are written for adults.

Good writing is good writing, no matter who the target audience is.  Of course, I can only re-read Harold and the Purple Crayon so many times and eventually I’ll stop uncovering hidden meanings and puns, but YA novels have more substance.
This week I read A Countess Below Stairs by Eva Ibbotson, and I adored it. I laughed, I cried, I was totally enraptured by the characters and their tale. Russian emigre Anna, with her commitment to being an excellent housemaid at an English estate, was a heroine in the mold of Cluny Brown, another favorite of mine. Despite the loss of almost everything in her short life, Anna never loses her core of sweetness and strength. But she’s not a dishrag of a heroine, far from it! When she sees wrongs perpetrated against those who are even weaker, she’s quick to rise to their defense and take a stand. It’s also a great love story, with an aristocratic war hero who has to choose between love and duty.

A Countess Below Stairs also deals with issues of class, equality and the upheaval of the Post WWI era.  It’s not Brideshead Revisited, but it’s still a darn good read and can be enjoyed by anyone who likes a good romance.

Another YA novel I love is Keturah and Lord Death by Martine Leavitt. This is one of those YA books that you want to wave under the nose of adult readers saying, “Hey! Don’t overlook it because it’s shelved in the kids’ area!” It was a wonderfully poignant story of love, and Death, and making our dreams come true.  But be prepared!  Have you hankies ready for this one, it’s a real weeper.

Other romance-oriented YA authors I enjoy are Sharon Shinn, Robin McKinley and Patricia McKillip.  If you haven’t yet discovered the joys of YA, I encourage you to look for their books as well.

Next time you’re at the library, look to the YA shelves.  There are reading treasures hidden there.

Microsoft, Thy Name Is Mud!

This weekend I switched my Office 2003 out to Microsoft’s Office 2007. I’m not sure if it’s a mistake or not yet, but I really hate it when they change things and yet they don’t include code that allows the user to decide whether to use the new view format or to revert to the old, more comfortable, more customizable one. I think I should have a choice as to what I want to use on my personal computer and how I want to use it. The other thing that bugs me about their new design is that it’s not disability friendly. It’s very mouse usage dependent, and for people with fibromyalgia or carpal tunnel syndrome, we’re talking some major issue.

Expectations with Romance Books

With all that said, the same thing could be said about romance books. I want to read a certain type of book. In fact, when I shop online for a book, I select generally from standard fare where I’m fairly certain what I’ll get. For instance, if I buy a Berkeley Sensation book, I know the sex is going to be pretty hot, although there are varying heat levels even with this imprint. If I pick up a Bethany House book, I expect it to be an inspirational read where faith is at the core of the romance relationship.

But what happens when you don’t get what you expect? Sometimes it can be a really good read. Passion by Lisa Valdez was that way for me. It wasn’t what I expected, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. Then there’s Kresley Cole’s Dark Needs at Night’s Edge. It’s a completely different type of paranormal read for me, and I’m enjoying it as well. But what happens when you read something that you find is quality writing, but it just doesn’t catch your attention.

What Happens When Expectations Aren’t Met

I encountered this just a couple of weeks ago. The books just didn’t resonate with me. They read like all the other books I’ve read in the past. They didn’t hook me and this was from NYT bestsellers to newly published authors in print and eFormat. So what does this mean? I’m not really sure. It could be the author just didn’t sell their characters to me well enough in the first 20-25 pages. Maybe my own writer’s hat interferes with my ability to just enjoy the read anymore. But I do know that I’m getting harder to please, and I’m more particular in my pursuit of the good read, and that means something to me as a writer. It means I have to keep stretching my writing and reaching for that bar that keeps rising when it comes to each book that I write.

So what do you think a blah reading means to you as a reader, a writer or both?

 

Monica Burns – http://www.monicaburns.com
Dangerous – 4.5 Stars RT BOOKreviews | “A pretty good read” — Mrs. Giggles
Mirage, Top Pick RT BOOKreviews
Come Enjoy a Paranormal with that Ahh…Sensation

Historicals are my passion. If there’s any one thing that I love the best about romance, it’s a great historical. Some of my favorites include A Kingdom of Dreams by Judith McNaught, Lord Scandalous by Loretta Chase, Whitney My Love by McNaught and the list goes on. One of the things I love the most about historicals is their magical quality. As I’m flying across the country this week, I’ll be revising my latest historical romance in preparation for submission to houses. The resurgence in publisher interest in historical romance is really wonderful for me as I love bringing stories like Mirage and Dangerous to readers.

For me, historicals are magical, I mean I know they’re fantasies, but that’s what I love about them. They transport me to another place and time where chivalry and honor are romantic, despite the realities of the time period. And I’m sorry, but tight buckskins covering hard thighs, a white shirt opened to reveal just a hint of a well-muscled chest—well, for me there’s nothing more seductive!

With the RWA convention in San Francisco this week, there will be a number of big name historical authors who will be present. If you’re familiar with Michelle Buonfiglio’s Romance by the Book blog, you know that she’s a huge romance fiction advocate. This Friday at the convention, she’s doing a radio show with several of Avon Books top name historical authors like Sophie Jordan, Lorraine Heath and Elizabeth Boyle and others.

Michelle’s Radio Show is set for Friday, August 1, 3:30 pm PDT If you’re on the East Cost, you can catch the show after work because we’re three hours AHEAD of folks in San Francisco (6:30 pm EDT). Click here link directly to the radio show where they’ve got this COOL reminder feature that you can set so you get an email prompt! Means you won’t forget. How sweet is that?

So dial in and ask some questions about historicals!! Besides, think about how cool it will be to be on Internet radio!

Image via Wikipedia

I love the Fourth of July, and always have.  When I was a youngster we would hope that Dad made a summer business trip to Wisconsin, where he could buy legal fireworks and bring them home to Minnesota, much to Mom’s dismay.  But there’s something about loud, noisy explosions that just make the holiday come alive (provided you don’t blow your fingers off–how many times did I hear that every summer?).

Our nation’s love of pyrotechnics to celebrate Independence Day goes back to our Founding Fathers, and John Adams, who said in a letter to his wife Abigail, “The day will be the most memorable in America.  I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival…it ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade…bonfires and illuminations (fireworks) from one end of this continent to the other, from this day forward, forevermore.”

And speaking of John Adams, he’s who I want blurbing my next book.  I’m reading Cokie Roberts’ Ladies of Liberty (highly recommended) and ran across a line that made me grin real hard:

“But they didn’t lead a retired life…John Adams, so accustomed to having Abigail run everything, took to reading romance novels, much to his wife’s amazement, and continued to rely on her to manage their finances.”

I’d love to know what he was reading!
Fireworks and illuminations on July 4th make me think of my own writing of historical romance, and the serendipitous moments that fall into your lap. I realized that if my WIP’s current action is set around autumn 1814, I might be able to work in the burning of Washington and the battle of Fort McHenry. Sure enough, my dates coincided and suddenly I had a whole new scene referencing the rockets’ red glare from the poem “Defence of Fort McHenry”, better known to us as The Star Spangled Banner, by Francis Scott Key.

So if you’re one of the millions of Americans celebrating your nation’s independence and the beginnings of our growth as a beacon of democracy and freedom to the world, don’t forget to remember the men and women who made this all possible then, as well as the men and women who defend our shores today.  Remember, some of them, like you (and like John Adams) are romance readers!