R.W. Richard's Blog, page 8
November 2, 2020
Karla Kratovil is here today
I'd like to introduce a terrific author. Yesterday I talked about her a little and today Karla Kratovil will write about epilogues:
In Defense of the Epilogue:
Like many authors, I enjoyed creative writing as a child, writing stories born from my overactive imagination. But for me, the path to writing my first book was born out of a big birthday (the big 4-0) and my mini mid-life crisis. As my birthday approached, I contemplated my life's bucket list and decided it was time to tackle, Write a Book. I wrote for many months without telling a soul what I was doing, but as the story poured out, I watched the word count grow and grow. I gained confidence that I could reach that happy ending for the two lovers.
But what happens after the happy ending?
Epilogues are about closure. I use the epilogue as a way to show the payoff that my main character received in return for their choice to shed their old misconceptions and accept love. As a writer, I would probably write an epilogue for my main characters even if it never made the published novel's final cut. Crafting that glimpse of the characters' life after they say I love you is deeply satisfying. I believe this is why the series is king (or rather queen) in romance. As readers, don’t we all want to see what that happy ever after looks like for the characters we have come to love?
I write steamy historical romance set in the late Georgian/early Regency period. My current series, The Hearts of Stoneleigh Manor, revolves around the three Langdon siblings. The Langdons are a tight-knit family, so in each book, the reader will get to see what's happening with their favorite characters from the last book. Captain of My Heart and Thief of My Heart are available now, and book three will be out in 2021!
If you would like to know more about my books swing by my website, www.karlakratovil.com or my Amazon author page: https://www.amazon.com/Karla-Kratovil/e/B083QPPBCD
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/19952463.Karla_Kratovil
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/karla-kratovil
Here is a blurb for my newest release Thief of My Heart
The Duke of Gilchrest spends his days restoring his inheritance, raising his two young sons, and forging a path past his guilt over his wife's death. Then one night, he catches a thief breaking into his bedroom, and his well-ordered world is turned upside down.
Emma Whittingham is leading a double life. Her father's suicide leaves her to care for her five younger siblings alone. Her estranged uncle is in no financial position to be their guardian, but he does teach her the only skill he knows, how to be a jewel thief.
The trouble is she can't seem to stay away from the sexy duke. Each time she visits him under cover of darkness is another chance he will figure out her real identity. Then one job goes terribly wrong, and she must ask for help from the only man powerful enough to protect her and her family from ruin.
Buy link: https://www.amazon.com/Thief-Heart-He...
November 1, 2020
Why a politician is like a writer
Writing a genre novel is a bit like running for office. In my example I’m going to choose an ethical, honest politician. I know they’re out there, right?
The person elected is often the person more people feel comfortable with. They identify with the person’s ethics, morality, and expertise with the legal system. A New York Times best seller is read and enjoyed by more people than the average book. One reason an NYT pick is a winner (like the politician) is that the author doesn’t sugar coat his charac6ters, making them unbelievable. The reader/voter identifies with the book/politician. They fell like the story speaks to them, just as a platform speaks to peoples’ needs.
When you an uncommon man/woman you have empathy for your reader/constituent. Your characters struggle in a world full of pitfalls garnering empathy along the way. They can and should change into someone better than when they stared the book’s journey. The empathetic politician’s goal is to make things better For his/hers constituents. If they don’t the people will soon figure it out and boot them out of office.
I excluded the literary novel because it can and does sometimes show things falling apart. But here too, a different lesson can be learned. Instead of the theme of growth in a genre novel, the whole literary story becomes a cautionary tale if the reader sees it that way. There are nihilist authors who believe the world is absurd, and they’re going to tell you about it.
As always choose your candidate book that suits you. Write the story that suits you and be honest, the voter/reader can tell.
............................................................................................................................
Once I saw this cover I could not resist crowing about it and the author.
I'd like to introduce an author friend of mine also with my publisher The Wild Rose Press: Karla Kratovil. Karla writes on Amazon: The Duke of Gilchrest spends his days restoring his inheritance, raising his two young sons, and forging a path past his guilt over his wife's death. Then one night he catches a thief breaking into his bedroom, and his well-ordered world is turned upside down.
Emma Whittingham is leading a double life. Her father's suicide leaves her to care for her five younger siblings alone. Her estranged uncle is in no financial position to be their guardian, but he does teach her his only skill, how to be a jewel thief.
The trouble is, she can't seem to stay away from the sexy duke. Each time she visits him under cover of darkness is another chance he will figure out her real identity. Then one job goes terribly wrong, and she must ask for help from the only man powerful enough to protect her and her family from ruin.
This story is an excellent example of how writing true, garners more readers.The buy link is: https://www.amazon.com/Thief-Heart-He...October 29, 2020
Mike Torreano is here today
Today I have the good fortune to be visited by an author whose understanding of the western genre is much deeper than anything I have read. Please welcome, Mike Torreano:
Mike Torreano has a military background and is a student of history and the American West. He fell in love with Zane Grey’s descriptions of the Painted Desert in the fifth grade, when his teacher made her students read a book and write a report every week.
Mike recently had a short story set during the Yukon gold rush days published in an anthology, and he’s written for magazines and small newspapers. An experienced editor, he’s taught University English and Journalism. He’s a member of Colorado Springs Fiction Writers, Pikes Peak Writers, The Historical Novel Society, and Western Writers of America. He brings his readers back in time with him as he recreates western life in the late 19th century.
A Score to Settle
https://www.amazon.com/Score-Settle-Mike-Torreano-ebook/dp/B08HJ2WSTC/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=mike+torreano&qid=1599683925&s=audible&sr=1-1-catcorr
THE CODE:My latest western, A Score to Settle, was just released by The Wild Rose Press. The story takes place in 1870 on the Goodnight-Loving cattle trail in the New Mexico Territory. I’ve heard some people say the traditional American western is dead, and it’s true the golden age of westerns was some time back. But more recently, several big box office western movies have been released.
Are they coming back? I hope so. If they are, perhaps it’s because the Old West embodies timeless values, outcomes where right triumphs over wrong. Not always, but you get the idea. The American West in the nineteenth century was a land of clear-cut rules—there were things you were supposed to do and things you weren’t. And if you did wrong, there were consequences, usually immediate, many times violent.
There was a Code of the West¾simple rules for simpler times. Unwritten, but adhered to, nonetheless. The Code drew its strength from the underlying character of western men and women. Life back then was hard, but simple. Things that needed to get done got done. Whining wasn’t tolerated. Complainers were ignored. You weren’t offended, you just played the hand you were dealt. If you’re getting the idea I like that kind of culture, you’re right.
The world we live in today sometimes baffles me. Everything seems to be different shades of gray. Honor and fidelity don’t seem to be in fashion. Our culture is filled with victims.
While the Code of the West was unwritten, there were certain common elements that everyone—from the hard-working sodbuster, to the law-abiding citizen, and even the hardened criminal—typically abided by. Granted, there were exceptions, but generally that held true. The Code gave westerners a guide to live by that they broke at their own peril. But even today, I’d wager we still have values that are non-negotiable. After all, values don’t really change, only times, circumstances, and people do.
I don’t believe the Code’s values have vanished, but sometimes it seems they’ve been driven from our national narrative entirely. Popular culture tends to dismiss old-time values, or should I say timeless values. We’re an instant gratification society focusing on the here and now, dismissive of lessons of the past. Imagine a world where you sat with your family at night talking with each other. Imagine a world where a man or woman’s word was their bond. Where handshakes took the place of long-winded contracts.In his poem, ‘Out Where The West Begins’, Arthur Chapman says,
Where there’s more of singing and less of sighing,
Where there’s more of giving and less of buying,
And folks make friends without half trying—
What inspired this particular story?
A Score to Settle is set on the Goodnight-Loving cattle trail in 1870 New Mexico Territory. I was drawn to this locale by the iconic western series, Lonesome Dove. Author Larry McMurtry used an incident in Lonesome Dove that paralleled something that actually happened on Goodnight-Loving. On an 1866 cattle drive, Oliver Loving was shot by Comanches near Fort Sumner, NMT. After he died, his partner, Charles Goodnight, carried out Loving’s last wish by wagoning him back home to Texas. To me, this is one of the Old West’s most famous legends and I decided to weave a story around it. Hence, A Score to Settle, which also features a strong romantic element throughout.
Mike Torreano’s latest western, A Score to Settle, has just been released by The Wild Rose press. Find it, and his first two western mysteries, The Reckoning, and The Renewal, using the links below.
Social Media
Facebook author page https://www.facebook.com/Mike-Torreano-Author-107581914412283/
Facebook personal https://www.facebook.com/miketorreano/
Goodreads author page https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/10187716.Mike_Torreano
Bookbub page https://www.bookbub.com/profile/mike-torreano
LinkedIn page https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-torreano-0a407929/
Twitter https://twitter.com/mtorr4650
Website miketorreano.com
Buy Links
A Score to Settle
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-sc...
The Reckoning
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-...
The Renewal
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-...
Email mtorr4650@comcast.net
Website https://www.miketorreano.com
October 26, 2020
Dr. Randy Overbeck is here today
Hi, this is Bob. I'm excited today to host an outstanding author, Dr. Randy Overbeck. I have just finished his great novel Crimson at Cape May and highly recommend it. You will find his post today intriguing and informative:
SO YOU WANT TO BE A PUBLISHED AUTHOR
At a recent author event, an excited eighteen-year-old stepped up and asked me about my new novel, Blood on the Chesapeake.
After I’d given my elevator pitch, he pivoted and asked “How hard is it to get a novel published?”My response threw him. “The hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life.”
“Really?” He looked unconvinced. “I mean it looks like fun. First you hole up in your room and write your story and then you get it published. I mean, you sign books and everything.”
I plowed on. “The book you see here took years to research, write and edit, and that doesn’t include all the time and effort it took to find the right publisher.”
The young man said he had a friend who wrote a fantasy novel and published it himself. “Jeremy said it took him only about three months. No big deal," he said.
I nodded, not answering right away. “The self-publishing route wasn’t right for me, but some authors do it like that. But getting it ‘published’ is only a start. Maybe a few stats about the business will help make my point about the challenge ahead.”
He shifted his weight from one foot to the other and I could almost see the glaze roll over his eyes.
I went on, “Do you realize that there is a new book title released on Amazon every two minutes! Just to be clear, that means about 33 books every hour, 800 new titles every day and that’s more than a quarter million every year. At last count, Amazon listed over 6,000,000 books on Kindle—and that’s only one tenth of the total number of books on their site.!
He started shaking his head. “That’s unbelievable.”
“And on Amazon, guess how many copies of an individual title are sold, on average.” I paused.
He took the bait. “A hundred. Uh, no, maybe a thousand?” He looked up hopefully, his brown eyes narrowing.
“Six.”
“What?”
“The average number of copies of any title sold on Amazon is six.” I stopped, letting it sink in. “And that includes adding in the million seller titles too.”
He shook his head.
“So why do you do it?” The young man pointed to the paperback. “If it’s really that hard and you don’t sell that many books, why do you even bother?”
I smiled. “Because I love it. The only reason you should choose to do something this hard is because you love it.” He looked unconvinced. “When I’ve spent hours, days and sometimes weeks to get a paragraph, a page, a chapter just right, I’m thrilled with the result.”
He started nodding his head.
“After it’s published and readers write back or post 5 star reviews, saying how much they love the book, or how the book was hard to put down, or how reading the novel late into the night made them lose sleep…well there’s no feeling like it.”
He grabbed up my other novel, now holding both in his hands. “I’ll check them out. Thanks for the explanation.”
I gave a quick wave. “Just decide if writing is something you love.”
With the tsunami of books out there and the pandemic wreaking havoc everywhere, I’m grateful my novels made it this far. And I am truly thankful that readers continue to discover and enjoy my new series, the Haunted Shores Mysteries. These novels have been described as a cold case murder mystery wrapped inside ghost story, served with a side of romance, set in some of the most beautiful locations in the country.
The first entry in the series, BLOOD ON THE CHESAPEAKE, was published last year by the Wild Rose Press and earned rave reviews and even picked up two national awards. BLOOD ON THE CHESAPEAKE takes place on the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay, where Darrell Henshaw—teacher, coach and paranormal sensitive—encounters the spirit of a student murdered years before still yearning for justice. When the ghost haunts Darrell, he finally agrees to help, only to discover a much uglier crime than he could have imagined.
The second installment in the series, CRIMSON AT CAPE MAY, was released this summer and it quickly garnered two ★★★★★ reviews and a national award, the Gold Award from Literary Titan. (Insert graphic of Gold Award) CRIMSON follows our hero, Darrell Henshaw to the incredible resort town at the tip of New Jersey. There, he is stalked by the Haunted Bride, who is desperate for him to seek justice for her, and for many more victimized girls.
Reviewers have been generous in their praise of my writing.
“A haunting, yet fast-paced whodunit that captures the reader’s attention from page one. A wonderful book!”—Alexandra Ivy, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author
“Delivers an unpredictable mystery along with a powerful look at people…Completely engaged by the intrigue.”—Long and Short Reviews
http://www.longandshortreviews.com/bo...
“With both elements of mystery and suspense, readers across genres will find this second book about Darrell Henshaw intriguing…I highly recommend it.” ★★★★★—Literary Titan
https://literarytitan.com/2020/02/04/...
“It’s a ghost/mystery story filled with suspense and action. The plot is so engrossing it had me hooked from the very first page.” ★★★★★—Nana’s Reviews, Greece
https://nanasbookreviews.wordpress.co...
“The well-plotted storyline keeps a steady pace through two-thirds of the book and then gradually ups the ante, adds tension, grit, drops more pieces of the puzzle then explodes.”—V. Williams, Rosepoint Publishing
https://rosepointpublishing.com/2020/...
BIO
Dr. Randy Overbeck is an award-winning educator, writer and speaker who has earned recognition in the Midwest and beyond. As a member of the Mystery Writers of America, Dr. Overbeck is an active member of the literary community, contributing to a writers’ critique group, serving as a mentor to emerging writers and participating in writing conferences such as Sleuthfest, Killer Nashville and the Midwest Writers Workshop. When he’s not writing or researching his next exciting novel or sharing his presentation “Things That Go Bump in the Night,” he’s spending time with his incredible family of wife Cathy, three children (and their spouses) and seven wonderful grandchildren.
Randy Overbeck
randyoverbeck@authorrandyoverbeck.com
@OverbeckRandy
FB: Author Randy Overbeck
Purchase Links
https://www.amazon.com/Crimson-Cape-H...
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/crim...
https://www.bookbub.com/books/crimson...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9nWi...
#1 BLOOD ON THE CHESAPEAKE—winner of the Gold Award from Literary Titan and ★★★★★ from ReadersFavorite.com, Long and Short Reviews, Literary Titan, Chanticleer Reviews and Readers Views“Timely and original. A terrific, one-sitting read!”—Hank Phillipi Ryan, Best Selling Author“Kept me turning pages until the totally surprising conclusion.”—Kings River News and Reviews#2 CRIMSON AT CAPE MAY—★★★★★ and winner of the Gold Award from Literary Titan
“A haunting, yet fast-paced whodunit that grabs the reader’s attention from page one.”—Alexandra Ivy, NY Times best-selling author
“Delivers an unpredictable mystery along with a powerful look at people.”—Long and Short Reviews
“So engrossing it had me hooked from the very first page.” ★★★★★—Nana’s Book Review“The mystery and suspense kept the pages turning.”—Creative Deeds Review
October 18, 2020
Literary Novels
Why do literary novels as a whole not sell as much as genre fiction?
First, what are literary novels?
They’re character driven.
I’ll say they’re more artistic, in that they employ to a greater degree, similes and metaphors, poetic descriptions or poetry itself, flowery language, impressionistic scenes meant to invoke visceral reactions to get the author’s point across or to have the reader fall in love with the character. Yes, genre fiction employs these technics, perhaps not too much poetry.
I’ll dare to say that without a plot who will sit through 300 pages? After all poems are short and effective and therefore instantly rewarding. So, to have a successful literary novel I’d recommend a plot. Some people think that, oh, that person had an interesting life, I’ll fictionalize it. This writer is better off writing a biography, because the moment you label it as literary fiction, there must be a sweeping theme, points of high drama, character arcs, etc. All good fiction must be compelling (I can’t put it down), and IMO, tension at nearly every turn, either internal, external or both.
Literary fiction often turns genre fiction plots upside down and on purpose. The moral of the story might be there is no moral, Things Fall Apart (Chanua Achebe). There might not be a HEA, The War of the Roses. The detective might not solve the crime, the aliens might win, evil might triumph over good, or worse than that, there is no right or wrong (due to the author’s idea of reality). Hopefully, the effect on the reader is not to make them sad and despondent, but to arm them to the horrors of life so that they might avoid them. Although the author has the right to paint a bleak picture. Or, the author really doesn’t care, and being an artist at heart, he/she will paint the truth as they see it. Any fiction, genre or literary, can be heavy or light. The reader decides how absorbed they want to get into the finer details, the subtleties.
Aristotle nailed all this. Tragedy has a downward spiral for the hero which creates pathos in the reader and comedy has an upward trajectory that creates joy in reader.
Somehow I feel, I may have oversimplified this subject. There are those who don’t believe there’s a difference between literary and genre fiction. After all are we not entertained by both. Don't they both have a purpose, a theme, a moral to the story???
October 11, 2020
Why romance novels are so successful
Someone other than oneself
Empathy drives the popularity of the romance genre. We all know love or want it in our lives. We have it and like to see or read others getting it. It validates a purpose for being on this planet. It recalls a moment in time when you knew you have found your person. Or we want love and turn to romance novels or TV for reinforcement that it can and will happen to you.
So, write on.
Clare Crawley will start her search for a happily ever after on ABC’s The Bachelorette this Tuesday. ABC has been expanding their fans with men and women of color in the lead and in Clare’s case, she’ll be the oldest Bachelorette at 39. Since the population is aging, it’s a good move. Also, people can fall in love at any age. So, bravo.
But something strange has happened. In the teaser, Chris Harrison, the host says to Clare, “you have blown up the Bachelor.”
Well rumors have it that Clare falls in love quickly and leaves early with her man. Then ABC, having less than a full season pick up, Tayshia Adams who finishes the season, and I guess it may be extended. Tayshia is a gorgeous woman with a great heart and kindness ofr others. She’s an exotic mix of black and white.
The thing I don’t understand and I’ll find out by watching is that Tayshia is 30 and I assume the men on Clare’s show are older like Clare. So we’ll see if ABC scuttles Clare’s men and rounds up a new batch. Age differences are a matter of personal choice, so we’ll see.
A word of caution. Since the show hasn’t aired yet, all this about Tayshia is speculation, but the investigative reporters swear by it. Stay tuned.
September 27, 2020
The day after HEA
Your book is done.The hero and heroine ride off into the sunset, then what?
The day after HEA (happily ever after).
In the movie Sleepless in Seattle Sam and Greg remark about An Affair to Remember starring Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr, “that’s a chick flick,” when it is actually a romance. They then waxed ecstatic over The Dirty Dozen which brought them to tears.
A guy pursues a gal for marriage with flowers, chocolates, and sweet nothings and then after the wedding it’s football and poker with the boys. Somehow, they forgot (partially) their romantic side.
Here it is. I’m going to say it. Who’s the type of guy who is most likely to forget romance? Alpha heroes. What proof do I have, you may ask. Hang in there, but if it is true, if I make my case, then those alpha romance we write need a little tweaking.
First, consider what men read romance, what men enjoy rom-coms like Sleepless or romances like An Affair to Remember. I’ll add what men write romance genres.
1. Creative types (include some scientists and engineers).
2. Artists, including architects and all those who works with and appreciate beauty.
3. Renaissance men.
4. Intellectuals, writers (lovers of words, their beauty, and what they can do), & philosophers.
5. 16% of men read romance novels and they’re probably from the four categories above.
I’ll suggest two things. The men above (and I probably missed some) are not the type to scoff at their wife’s choice of books or movies, no they’d watch with. And alphas are not likely to be in this group nor would they sit through a rom-com unless they were trying to please their wife. “Yeah, honey. Good movie. No really. I especially like the part…”
Why? Because the alpha male is quite often about competition, winning, to be kind, being the best at something. Of course, there is crossover between the men above and alphas and herein is how you save your manuscript. Give your alpha a romantic ‘flaw.’ They cry watching An Affair to Remember for instance, lol. Show him as more than the handsome star quarterback who has any woman and maybe many women before he settles down. Perhaps he paints (not houses), maybe he’s a patron of the arts, perhaps creates a beautiful building or improves the environment with a breakthrough technology.
I know I haven’t proven my point to QED but I have built a mountain of evidence to the point that you can draw a conclusion.
Does this mean write beta? No. Just remember that some real men have qualities that made them attractive to the heroine in the first place.
In Sleepless in Seattle Sam, for all his teasing about An Affair to Remember with his buddy (peer pressure), says to the radio doctor that his deceased wife made everything better, she was magic... To his son he said your mom could peel an apple in one fluid motion. By the way, Sam (Tom Hanks) played an architect.
This blog was originally about the male POV in its many manifestations and alternative ways to look at the subject until new ideas became harder to come by. This post, however captures what I try to do with my blog.
September 20, 2020
SAVE THE CAT! WRITES A NOVEL
Last week I talked about starting a novel in the right place. In my current work in progress, I thought I had, but the beginning was missing something. It was flat. Something I had known when I wrote my first novel Neanderthals and the Garden of Eden. Picture how it would look and feel if it were a movie.
Inspiration done slapped me upside my head when I noticed and bought:
SAVE THE CAT! WRITES A NOVEL*** [by Jessica Brody]
I just picked this book up and it has already helped me improve the beginning of my latest work-in-progress. I’m about to be published by The Wild Rose Press and have written award winning novels, and yet the CAT book taught me something concrete and as I read along will probably help me again. I have always opened with an extremely visual and memorable scene until me current wip.
CAT says: “It [the opening image] should be a visual representation of your hero’s flawed life.” Before things change at the beginning of the novel.
Eureka. As soon as I read this I put the book down and pounded out a modification to my manuscript.
Before: Special Agent Kapinao arrived at 26 Federal Plaza and took the elevator to the twenty-third floor summoned by the Assistant Director for what would likely be a dressing down or outright firing. [Blah, blah, blah.]
After: FBI Special agent Kapinao, secured her still warm Sig Sauer P226, and ducked under the police tape in Washington Square Park. NYU students and other horrified people froze like statues. Reporters surrounded her, shouting questions. She shooed them as best she could and raced for her Yamaha with them chasing her like buzzing bees.
“No comment. Give me room.” She popped the clutch and in frustration and a little of in-your-face wheelied out of there into oblivion. This could be the end of her career.
Okay you can decide, but to me, I knew immediately. I didn’t start in the right place and the scene was not visually memorable.
CAT has been on sale for two years, has 1155 reviews averaging 4.8 and is number 2 in three categories today. But I just liked the cover, lol.
*** SAVE THE CAT! by Blake Snyder is a classic on screenwriting and highly recommended even if you only save one cat..
September 13, 2020
The Value in Starting a Novel in the Right Place
Hooked
I’m leaning on the book called Hooked by Les Edgerton.
Les suggests in his Tagline: “write fiction that grabs readers at page one and never lets them go.”
Well how to heck are you going to do that while developing your story and characters? You may avoid hooks by writing a literary novel, but I suggest the style of writing replaces the traditional hook with an intellectual or artistic, come on, read more. After all we all want to find that book that smacks us aside the head and says read on, you really don’t need that much sleep.
If a book is book, literary or not, you the reader will know and I might add, immediately.
Back to Hooked:
1. If your book doesn’t catch the eye and heart of the gatekeeper then you haven’t done your job. The gatekeeper is either an agent or editor. If you want to self-publish, then satisfy yourself with the story. But please do be a tough taskmaster. Perhaps a critique group or other authors to pair with will help get you feedback rather than receiving it in reviews in which the risk of one-stars can sink a story.
2. Take a look around at similar books and the very best to see how they handled the beginning.
3. By books on structure and the art of writing. You’d be surprised how these inspire an enhanced story.
4. I’ll stop here and just mention that the inciting incident looms large and it must be in chapter one. In a rom-com or romance they often merge the meet-cute or cute-meet with the inciting incident. Something must propel change and that’s where you start the story.
Something (hooks) compels the reader to keep reading. I suppose I’m not clear (it would take 242 pages) so there’s only one thing to do. Buy the book.
September 7, 2020
The value of labor in romance
All too often I see or read a romance in which the guy or gal gives up their career to be with the one they love. This is wrong if either or both are diminished by it. Man contributes to his fellow man by working. Talents are meant to be cultivated and shared for the good of the many and for financial well being. This doesn't mean looking for the highest paying job.
The days are over when the gal gives up her job to follow her man. That's sexism. And it's also true in reverse.
My rule: there should always be a balance achieved in which the hero and/or heroine retain their commitment to their fellow human beings (and dogs and cats, lol) in some way.
Example: in the UP! movie, Finding Normal, a doctor leaves her job in LA to get to her fiancee in NY to join his extremely lucrative practice. She gets stuck in Normal Louisiana, a small town who needs a doctor and the pay sucks. Okay, perhaps you know what happens. I'll just say Candice Cameron Bure (the actress) is practicing medicine, lol.
Balance your story.
