Falling in Love Again and Again and Again...
Whenever I’m asked why I write romance, my response is that’s it’s like falling in love again and again.I’ve been married for 22 years, to the boy I loved in high school. We have a son in college (WAH!!!) and are halfway through our mortgage. This is all wonderful, but it lacks….newness. So when I write romance, I get to experience it all again.
I get to experience the first meeting, the first spark of attraction. I explore the uncertainty and the tension, which in real life isn’t so much fun, but in a romance novel I know it’s going to end well. I relive the first kiss, the first intimacy of a couple exploring new sensations and new emotions. I play with doubts and drama more intense (thank goodness) than any I experienced.
I play with timelines—how quickly can a couple fall in love? What does it take for two people to trust each other? What does it take to break that trust? What does it take to bring two people back together?
Writing is hard, definitely, but the resolution of a romantic journey is its own reward.
I tried something different in my latest Samhain release, Beneath the Surface. I have a couple who are estranged. They’d fallen in love in college, had a passionate courtship, a passionate marriage. Their passion tore them apart, and now Mallory, the heroine, is ready for a stable life, a real home. Before she can move on, she needs the divorce papers signed. She has to chase him down to a dig site on the Caribbean to get him to sign them.
Getting these two to fall in love again was hard because they’d both felt betrayed by the other. But playing on their good memories, on the remembered trust, helped bring them back together.
Because it’s all about the happy ending.
Why do you read or write romance?
posted by MJFredrick @ 12:41 AM
9 Comments:
We just returned from a 40th anniversary cruise, and the spark is still there.
But yes, that 'falling in love' moment is something special, and since I don't expect to be doing it again, it's nice to read about it.
I'm very much like you, MJ. I like experiencing those feelings all over again through the characters in the stories, both as a writer and reader.
The romance subplot in any story was always my favorite bit of the whole. So when I discovered an entire genre devoted to all the best bits...ahhh :-). Pure heaven.
I'm a sucker for love stories. Always have been; always will be.
If there is a villain, I want to see him well and truly taken care of and gets what he deserves. I try to be forgiving and compassionate, but every once in a while it's such a pleasure and a relief to see the bad guy not get away with it. I also love seeing the hero and heroine bring out the best in each other. I've seen too many real life relationships where they brought out the worst in each other; rather than lifting, they drag each other down. I want to at least be able to read about no matter how messy things get they work out, happily for everyone. I want the happy ending.
Terry, that's wonderful! The dh and I are rediscovering some romance now that the boy is off on his own so much. It's wonderful, but as you said, different from that first tumble. And when we read/write romance, we know it will have a good ending.
Maureen, another thing I love is the POWER to give someone a happy ending. Some of my friends tell me to write them a happy ending. If only I could!
Terry, yes...if a show/movie/book doesn't have a love story, I lose interest.
Judy, I LOVE everything you said! I'll admit to putting, um, people who irritate me in my books and give them their comeuppance. It's always heartbreaking to see news stories where the crimes go unpunished.
And the hero and heroine bringing out the best....so true!
I love romance! I was following the romance storyline when my husband took me to "G.I. Joe" (subplot surprisingly satisfying, BTW).
I'm very happy with my own personal Mr. Marvelous. But, like you, I write romance to re-experience that initial spark.
Love the heroine's name... my daughter's name...
To me writing romance is exactly what you say it is: rediscovering the heady feeling of falling in love again and again.
Not without Pain, but with HOPE.
That's what I want inspire in my readers... one day... when I am published: two lost souls finding each other and discovering HOME.
Thanks for a wonderful post.
Kate, congratulations on your Mr. Marvelous ;) I hadn't heard that GI Joe had a romantic element. With Channing Tatum, I hope?
Christine, I LOVE what you said. Not without pain but with hope. That would be a terrific tagline for an author!
Thanks! I believe I'll claim it as mine. Have been playing around with my core story--and this is what I keep coming back to as my internal driving story, regardless of the sub genre. I think it harkens back to CS Lewis. He once wrote about the loss of his wife and to paraphrase my memory, said something like this: I wouldn't know the pleasure had it not been for the pain.
Like the valleys of life make the mountain views all the more grand.
Now, *slapping hands*, must go back and revise my current monster in progress and help my two lovers get through their tangled troubles.
:)
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