This Thing Called Love: Why I Write Romance

In the past few weeks, I've lived enough reality. I have no desire to dive into a novel where the main character's misery is worse than my own and his or her tragic death at the end of the book makes me sob uncontrollably. No thanks.

I don't write romance to delve into the deep world of human misery or tragedy or any other harsh reality. I write romance because I want to ESCAPE reality for awhile. I want to delve into a world where the man says he loves the woman, she says she loves him, and they live happily ever after. It seems like a trite formula, but not to me. Happily ever afters give us all hope.

When writers finish writing a romance or readers finish reading one, we all have a warm fuzzy nestled in our hearts. Of course, we're not stupid - yes, we know that life doesn't always end happily ever after. But that is the entire point. We want to read a story where it actually DOES end on a good note. We get enough of reality just by living life. What's wrong with wanting to escape reality for awhile?

Nothing, in my opinion. I think we all need that break. Too much reality and we'd all be throwing ourselves over bridges. But escapist fiction, and that's what romance writers create, has always been a popular form of entertainment. Movies cater to that demand all the time. So do romance novels. And mystery novels. And science fiction novels. The list goes on...

Next time someone sneers at your choice of writing material, or lifts their nose to a point well above your head, just politely smile and vow to put him or her in your next novel - as the villain. :-)