How to Approach the Question

I've been giving a lot of thought to approaching the subject of happily ever after endings. I have a deep prejudice against any form of literature which proscribes plotlines. As a writer, I've been deeply influenced by theoreticians like Eco who view formula driven fiction as a lesser form of literature. As a creative – a writer – I don't think I'm ever going be comfortable with the strictures of having to make sure my characters fall in love, and having to contrive plot devices that will pair them forever – or even for now.  As a reader, the attraction of knowing how a story will end before I begin it still baffles me. To be honest, I look at a piece of erotic romance as a chore to read. It's like reading a text book. I know how it is going to end, so why read it? In her essay "Happily Ever After: The End as Beginning", Guntrum addresses this question head on: So why read a novel when we already know how it is going to end? Because it is the process, not the conclusion, that we are reading for. Indeed, it is safe for us to enjoy [...]