My Confession

Today will be a bit of a confession from me with a healthy dose of justification. See, in the world of romance writing, I’m a bit of a rebel. What can I say, I see a rule, I just have to break it. Maybe it’s because I’m already a renegade simply being a man writing in the romance genre.

What kind of sin are we talking about?

“And it came to pass that JK greatly sinned against the gods of romance writing.”

Okay, that might be a bit dramatic. Let’s try a different approach. See, as many of you know, there are some things the average romance reader expects out of a romance novel.  One of these is a happily ever after. Another is a story told from only the hero and heroine’s perspectives. And of course, depending on the level of “heat” in your story, readers have a certain level of expectancy when it comes to the bedroom. By the way, my stories are “sweet,” meaning any lovin’ happens behind closed doors.

Let’s start with the Happily Ever After, or a HEA as it’s referred to in the romance writing world. It’s not that I don’t like or write HEA’s, in fact, I prefer them most of the time in the stories I read. I just don’t guarantee them in my stories. Maybe this goes back to my rebel side and not liking being told I have to do something. Also, a HEA to one person may mean something else to another. I’m just not comfortable with this restriction. Again, this doesn’t mean it won’t happen, I’m simply not making you any promises.

Next, we have a story written from only two perspectives. This is a bit of a problem for me. Perhaps this is because of a lack of talent on my part. I know it’ll sound arrogant but I don’t think this is the case. As I mentioned in an earlier blog, I grew up mostly reading action, suspense and intrigue novels. Tom Clancy is one of my favorites and he’s a perfect example. If you’ve ever read his stories, they have multiple plot lines with many characters. Usually there’s one or two who are the “main” characters and the others play more of a support role. This is more my style. Personally, I enjoy stories like this and in my opinion, this way of storytelling allows for a much more suspenseful ride for the reader. Of course there are different views on this and there are many authors who can write from just one or two perspectives and do it well. That’s just not me.

The ladies in the Romance Writers of America taught me early on to learn the rules. They fully admit that many very successful authors break all the rules and are massively successful. The example who most directly relates to me is Nicholas Sparks. He’s a big fat rule breaker (who’s sold over 50 million books). “But first they learned the rules of their genre and then, and only then, consciously broke them,” I was told. See, there’s a BIG difference between someone who inadvertently writes in contradiction to the norm and someone who knows what they’re doing and the end result will differ greatly!

I know the rules but you know what they say about them. So that’s my excuse… um, reasoning for writing how I do. This is the way I’ve chosen to tell my stories. I think it’s important to be upfront and honest with you… my readers. I’ve always been that way and I don’t expect that will ever change. I also believe that you’ll enjoy it. Yes, this style is much more intense and there will be times when you’re left dangling for a little while. Just breathe and keep reading. Everything will be revealed in time.

The first person in the world who ever read Shattered and Second Chance was a friend of mine who’s very kind but also very honest regardless of anyone’s feelings (a quality I greatly respect by the way). When I asked her what she thought, her answer perfectly described what I’d been trying to accomplish. I must admit, I’m very proud of her reply. She took a deep breath, put her hand on her heart and said, “I felt like I just got off the Tower of Terror.” For the few of you who don’t know, The Tower of Terror is an intense ride at Disney’s California Adventure theme park. I couldn’t have asked for a better response.

Now tell me what you think. Many people I’ve discussed these rules with have responded with something like, “Huh, I’ve never paid attention to that.” Many others have agreed with my opinion and prefer that style of story telling. I’d love to hear if you notice when these are broken and how you feel about it so please let me know.

Until next time...

 

Can Men Write Romance?

Well, can they?

Coming to terms with the title "Romance Writer" was not an easy pill to swallow. Growing up on authors like Tom Clancy, Michael Crichton, Clive Cussler and of course, my all-time favorite, Matthew Reilly, I expected my first story to fall under the action packed, suspenseful category. How does one go from being a gun, sports, and survival fanatic, to being the voice of Avalon and Kate? After several comments from readers, it quickly became clear that I spoke "woman-eeze" better than I'd like to admit.

So this is me coming out of the closet (so to speak). Hi, my name is JK Broadwell and I write romance. There, I said it and I feel SO much better! Actually, I came to terms with this some time ago. Once acceptance came, I learned to embrace this new title. Instead of dreading the question, "What kind of books do you write?" I began to enjoy the puzzled look on the inquirer's face when they heard my response.

So how is it I can take my readers on a journey so accurately through the eyes of a woman? After all, in my personal life, I'm the guy who's more likely to say the wrong thing at the wrong time. So how is it that a man like me who grew with football, wrestling, martial arts and action movies, can so accurately depict the inner thoughts of women in my stories?

Well, I have a theory. Be warned, it may seem a little anti-climactic. Here it is… I believe many men, if given a LONG time to think about what to do or say in a given situation, will eventually come up with the right answer. They'll be able to see things from the woman's perspective and use that information to come up with the correct response, answer or action. But let's be honest, the male animal is more likely to say the first thing that pops into his head. This is what usually gets us (especially me) in trouble. This ability to see through a woman’s eyes is what allows (a few) men to successfully write romance.

I'd like to think I have a talent for understanding the opposite gender and perhaps this is the case. I really wish that was the answer. However, the reality, more than likely is like most men, if I think about all the possible reactions and weigh the consequences of each, I can eventually determine the correct response. Not that this guarantees my characters will react this way, in fact more often than not, they'll screw it up too. See, I like it when characters act realistically. One of my peeves is when someone in a book or movie does something a real person would never do. This drives me crazy! Give me a story about real people or at least someone who acts real. You know what I'm talking about. "Hey there's been a string of serial murders in our city, let's throw a costume party this weekend and invite the whole town. What could go wrong?" I could give dozens of examples but you get the idea. I can't stand that kind of thing.

Oops, enough of that rant. Sorry, back to my original topic.

In my opinion, men can write romance and do it very well. It takes a lot of thought and work but it can be done.

Now tell me what you think. Can they?

I’d love to get your feedback.