“What’s the biggest misconception about romance novels?”
That was a question posed to me two weeks ago at RWA. I’m not sure what my exact answer was at the time – the interview took place at the Kensington party and I was at least one cocktail into the evening. But I’ve been thinking about it ever since. At the same time, I’ve been reading the wonderful novel Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See. I know: What does a novel about two lifelong friends in 19th Century China have to do with RWA and romance writing?
Everything.
The novel Snow Flower and the Secret Fan is about two women who stay connected to each other through secret writings that sustain them through difficult marriages, child-rearing, the death of children, poverty, and war. Their communication is via a secret form of writing (and this truly exists) call nu shu – it’s for women only. This ancient form of communication and storytelling is one that sustained women during one of the most repressive eras of female existence.
This brings me back to the question at RWA. People who don’t read romance novels think they are about men and/or about sex. I would argue that they are not about men or sex and maybe not even about love. I think they are a part of the timeless tradition of female storytelling. It is how we make sense of our world, how we work out our frustrations, how we escape the often mundane plodding of daily life. It’s how we stay connected to other women, and how we build community.
At RWA, the highlights were not the parties, the book signings, or the SWAG. It was the small moments of hanging out with other women who read and write these books. It was talking about our husbands, our children, our mistakes, our fears, and our struggles. For many of us at RWA, the greatest romance will always be the magic of putting pen to paper (or computer keys to screen) and finding that in the end, what we have created is as timeless as love.
That was a question posed to me two weeks ago at RWA. I’m not sure what my exact answer was at the time – the interview took place at the Kensington party and I was at least one cocktail into the evening. But I’ve been thinking about it ever since. At the same time, I’ve been reading the wonderful novel Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See. I know: What does a novel about two lifelong friends in 19th Century China have to do with RWA and romance writing?
Everything.
The novel Snow Flower and the Secret Fan is about two women who stay connected to each other through secret writings that sustain them through difficult marriages, child-rearing, the death of children, poverty, and war. Their communication is via a secret form of writing (and this truly exists) call nu shu – it’s for women only. This ancient form of communication and storytelling is one that sustained women during one of the most repressive eras of female existence.
This brings me back to the question at RWA. People who don’t read romance novels think they are about men and/or about sex. I would argue that they are not about men or sex and maybe not even about love. I think they are a part of the timeless tradition of female storytelling. It is how we make sense of our world, how we work out our frustrations, how we escape the often mundane plodding of daily life. It’s how we stay connected to other women, and how we build community.
At RWA, the highlights were not the parties, the book signings, or the SWAG. It was the small moments of hanging out with other women who read and write these books. It was talking about our husbands, our children, our mistakes, our fears, and our struggles. For many of us at RWA, the greatest romance will always be the magic of putting pen to paper (or computer keys to screen) and finding that in the end, what we have created is as timeless as love.
6 comments:
Good post. And yes, I think lots of people have lots of misconceptions about writers/readers of romance. Seems like it was a really good convention...Hmm...maybe next year.
I am sure you said something witty and insightful. I stole the answer Saranna forgot to say about how we don' t live what we write. Hey it was a good answer and if I have to come up with material on the spot I start blathering about public restrooms.
Good post, Logan. I agree, being around so many other writers was the best part of RWA. And I'll have to check out that Lisa See book. Yet another addition to the TBR list, sigh...
My favorite thing about romance, and why I read it, is the relationships within the pages. I love watching people fall in love, and I love it even more if it's one hell of a struggle to get there/stay there. For me, that and the promise of a happy ending keeps me coming back for more.
Although, as a writer, I've seen some pretty amazing things from the romance community over the past few years. Shows of solidarity that blew my mind (hello, Judy Mays), and support from complete strangers. It's one of the reasons I love networking and meeting people at conferences. We're all in this together, after all. Why wouldn't we help each other out as much as possible in this tough industry?
I've been meaning to pick that one up. I couldn't justify buying it with all the books I have on my TBR list. But it sounds like a beautiful story.
I think that's a lovely way to look at romances. It makes sense. For me, reading romance was a tradition handed down from my grandmother, to my mother, to me.
And now my mother has passed it down to my daughter.
Amazingly enough, we're all still reading some of the same authors.
The feminine heroic journey is, by our very nature, internal. After all, life begins and is nurtured in a woman's womb. Is it any wonder the storys we read, and the ones we most long to tell are ones that plummet the depths of human emotion, of hearts and fated souls? For me, romances are redemption stories....the redeemer, of course, being true love!
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