“My name is Ellen Parker and I write romance.” This is how I started a short presentation at a library event a few years ago.
Romance? People wave it off as insignificant. Or they titter behind their hands.
I ask you to wait a minute. Have you thought about the definition — yes, popular fiction genres do have definitions and readers have expectations when they see the labels.
Romance (in my definition) is a piece of fiction with a central love story and an emotionally satisfying ending of “Happily Ever After” or “Happy For Now”.
A radio announcer once described the genre as “optimistic”. I considered his words a compliment.
Perhaps the world needs a little optimism. Within a romance, the path to the happy ending is not smooth. A well-written story presents characters with problems, (sometimes of their own making) living in the real world (or a historical world, or a future world, or a paranormal world) and presents one way the challenge is met and conquered.
Skeptical? Try one before you knock it.
This trio is set in small-town Wisconsin and keeps the bedroom door closed.
Check out the back cover copy by clicking on the title tab at the top of the page.
Happy reading in 2022!
