the penguin five: guest post by andrea cremer

Ladies and gentlemen, introducing the lovely Andrea Cremer, author of NIGHTSHADE and today's guest post. (Isn't her author photo cute?) If you want a chance to win the first of two signed copies of NIGHTSHADE, please leave a comment!

Triangulation

Thank you so much for having me, Ally. (Your book rocked my socks off!) Since you and I joke about sharing a muse I thought I'd spend today's post examining something our books have in common: the love triangle.

Ah, the love triangle. While they certainly existed before Twilight it probably was Ms. Meyer's vampire + human + wolf trio that got this geometric relationship so much attention. Now you'll find love triangles all over the place, some more convincing than others (I'd like to think that Ally and I pulled off some dazzling romantic triangulations in our books, but we'll let you be the judges of that!).

Love triangles are tricky and I'm going to assert a couple opinions about them.

1) In real life love triangles are bad. For a love triangle to exist it means that someone's affections are divided and this division of self usually extends into dishonesty and heartache for at least one if not all members of the triangle. Good, lasting relationships (and yes I'm talking about hot-as-Hades passionate relationships too) won't manifest under deceitful circumstances. In the lives we lead each day, romance triangles are simply a romantic bust and generally a recipe for disaster.

2) Love triangles are fabulous in books. It's different on the page than in the real world because love triangles offer what every novel needs: tension. If crafted carefully love triangles can provide enough electricity to power a jet engine. I would argue, however, that some of the real world rules still apply. For a love triangle to be convincing you have to have some sympathy for the character whose affections are torn in two. This aspect is yet something else Matched and Nightshade have in common: the heroines of our novels aren't sure who to give their hearts to because they never expected to have a choice to start out with. When the interloper appears, he introduces a key piece of the internal struggle for the heroine: doubt. Doubt adds yet more tension to the narrative. The debate between fate and free will pivots on this very point. Where does your faith lie: in the system you've always been part of or in your own heart?

I'm frequently asked whether I'm Team Ren or Team Shay. Amongst readers it's an even split, which makes me very happy. My answer is always, and will always be, the same: I'm Team Calla, because it's her choice not mine, and therein lies the most important part of the love triangle equation.

Great post, right? Let Andrea know how much you enjoyed hearing from her by leaving a comment (and you will also automatically be entered to win a hardcover copy of NIGHTSHADE). You have until Friday night MST to enter–and the contest is open to US only. Sorry about that!