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Romance is where it's at...
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Theodore
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Jan 22, 2018 08:16AM
http://www.bbc.com/capital/story/2018...
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Yes, it is. But you first need that One. Great. Book! :D
And it’s an already hugely populated genre. But apart from that...
Alex wrote: "Not to be a naysayer, but could romance writers be earning more because it's the most popular genre and romance writers, based on anecdotal evidence, publish more books and quicker.I'm sure the RW..."
Woman readers (who dominate book sales) + sex = sales
Pretty straight forward, from where I sit.
Theodore wrote: "Alex wrote: "Not to be a naysayer, but could romance writers be earning more because it's the most popular genre and romance writers, based on anecdotal evidence, publish more books and quicker.I'..."
Its not as much about the sex as you would think. Fifty Shades of Grey is an outlier, most bestselling romance writers don’t have the hero giving the heroine oral sex every ten pages.
Women look to connect with the characters. The smut is a bonus.
Alex wrote: "Amy wrote: "I wish I could write romance."Me too. I'd like to spread my wings and hit every available genre."
Amy & Alex, I've read a book from each of you. I believe you could write romance if you... excuse the pun, put your hearts into it. You both have the ability to make the reader feel. Give it a shot. Try a short story. Good luck. Hugs
Mod
I like the bit where it says something like more and more romance writers are making a six figure income. I must try harder!
Edit: just joking really. I prefer to write non-formulaic books, and they take longer for people to take a liking to. (Just kidding myself here, but a gal can hope.)
Mod
Thank you, Carole. I struggle to work out which genre my series is in and I've recently started wondering whether it came under 'saga'. I thought that had to cover several generations but you've encouraged me to rummage further around the types of genres and I think I can run with saga, especially as the one sooooooon to come out has a new generation introduced. I loved the Thorn Birds.
Alex, I always think that crime/mystery/detective novels are the most sought after. Whenever I look up how many readers a site has different genres, that seems to come top most of the time, if I remember rightly.
As for what's on TV, well you know that here in the UK, detectives are the big hits.
This will cheer you up, Alex:https://www.bookbub.com/partners/pricing
Your genre has many more subscribers than mine. Of course, as you say, it might be that Romance writers can flick books off their wrists, like Barbara Cartland who wrote over 700 books, whereas Agatha Christie wrote about 70-80 books. Therefore, Barbara Cartland and her ilk have earned so much more.
And yes, I know that with BookBub crime writers have to pay more for their ads. This world gets you every which way you turn, eh?
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Oh good! Thank you!I was slightly miffed when the Poldark TV series came out because I thought people would think I'd latched onto it when I'd started writing my first book in the series in 2006 and the TV series started in 2015.
Now, of course, I'm over the moon when someone says it reminds them of Poldark. In fact - may I quote you on that?
Zip a dee doo dah... Thank you. Zip a dee day...
Thank you!I think they're filming another few episodes of Poldark- hurray! There was a Poldark series in the 1970s but I was living in NZ and missed it. I wish they'd show it again on one of the Freeview 'old repeats' channels. I guess the US has similar channels.
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The characters drive what happens - just like real life - then something drops on them - just like real life. Sometimes I feel it's hard to keep up with them. I guess there's a lot of authors who'd say the same!DVDs? I'll be round to your place tomorrow night. Choccies? Nice bottle of something?
Alex wrote: "Thanks for the kind words, Sam. I suspect the main reason I haven't written a romance yet, other than being busy with other projects, is that the right idea hasn't popped into my head. If I get an ..."All you need is a bachelor billionaire and a woman with a heart of gold.
I hope to one day write a "manly romance," where I gleefully smash every trope of the romance genre.
Will he throw it all away for the woman who may be The One? Uh...nope. There are plenty more fish in the sea.
Will this simmering love ever burst into white-hot flames of passion? Maybe, but only if it doesn't interfere with the male protagonist's hunting trips and Call of Duty sessions.
How will he respond when she reveals the dark secrets of her past? "Huh, you sound like that tormented Final Fantasy character. Wanna play the game and, uh, commiserate and stuff?"
I once set out to write the woman with heart of gold and 'knight in shining armour' type but the silly woman fell in love with the farmer's son. I knew this was not what most romance readers want so the genre shape-shifted a bit, then a bit more... it now covers about 4 genres. Romance, historical (but not really historical romance), saga, romantic suspense.. and perhaps a few others.Enjoy your writing - I'm sure you will!
I always saw romance books as a feel-good kind of read, which was always why it was more popular. Plus the smut, but that was always my outlook on it. Tried to give it a shot, and holy crap there is more to romance than mushy gushy sex sex sex. Gotta give props to those that can successfully get theirs written.
Anna Faversham wrote: "I once set out to write the woman with heart of gold and 'knight in shining armour' type but the silly woman fell in love with the farmer's son. I knew this was not what most romance readers want s..."it sounds much more interesting this way..
Thank you, Judy. I think it is too and I decided there were enough good writers for the usual sort, and I wouldn't be missed!
Michael wrote: "I always saw romance books as a feel-good kind of read, which was always why it was more popular. Plus the smut, but that was always my outlook on it. Tried to give it a shot, and holy crap there ..."
Romance is character driven, so you've got to have a handle on how people feel. The dreaded emotions! This generally means you've got to be close to your own emotions. And it can be hard work to describe these and put them down on paper.
Julia wrote: "Michael wrote: "I always saw romance books as a feel-good kind of read, which was always why it was more popular. Plus the smut, but that was always my outlook on it. Tried to give it a shot, and ..."
Exactly. Even building believable relationships that fall into romance with each other is very hard. Much respect to those that can pull it off
Matt wrote: "Alex wrote: "Thanks for the kind words, Sam. I suspect the main reason I haven't written a romance yet, other than being busy with other projects, is that the right idea hasn't popped into my head...." Writing is hard period, regardless of what genre someone writes in. You don’t just need “a billionaire hero and a woman with a heart of gold” to write a good romance novel. Suggesting ad much is dismissive.
