Nov 7 2010
After last week’s post, there was quite a bit of discussion in a number of areas about the issue of geographical restrictions, some in response to the creation of lostbooksales.com, a site that I, Maili and Keishon created based on a comment made by Suze If I had the time and computer savvy, I'd set(…)
Nov 2 2010
A few months ago, Harlequin category (or series) romances appeared on the USAToday list. The reason for this is two fold. First, Harlequin is now assigning individual codes to each book so that the sales of each book can be tracked individually instead as a general category of “book”. Second, more category books are being(…)
Oct 26 2010
Last week, Robin wrote a great piece on the topic of originality in fiction. There are pretty much no ideas that haven’t already been expressed but the one thing that distinguishes one work of fiction from another is voice. Yet, voice is something that is hard to define. It’s ephemeral. It is, from a definitional(…)
Oct 19 2010
Genre fiction rides a thin line between consistent recognizability and appealing freshness. Often referred to as "a narrative archetype," the form of genre fiction is often denigrated as "formulaic" and derivative (Pam Regis, A Natural History of The Romance Novel, 23). In truth, there has to be something fundamental and formalistic that binds a group(…)
Oct 5 2010
Here at Dear Author, we have a widely known animus toward random dialect in books. Jayne is a particularly vehement protestor of the use of the dialect. What do I mean by dialect? I’ve seen it most often in Scottish romances where authors try to interject authenticity through the use of dialect. From Thirty Nights(…)
Sep 28 2010
Note: I know this is a bit long, but it’s already a drastically shortened version of this argument. Consent at your own risk. When I first started reading Romance, I was stunned by the genre's apparent comfort with sexual force against female characters and uncomfortable with both the contention that it's pure fantasy and therefore(…)
Sep 21 2010
Robin (aka Janet here at the blog) wrote a paper which was presented this past spring’s PCA conference. The core of her paper is the reason that readers have different responses to forced seduction is based on the reader's grant of consent to the act. In essence, the reader is acting as proxy for the(…)
Sep 14 2010
Last week, we ran a poll asking people if there were storylines that people would just not read. A whopping 80% percentage of people said "yes." I received a few private emails by authors despairing over this poll. Fear not authors! For every reader who hates a particular trope, there are people who love them.(…)
Sep 8 2010
If my friend Elle hadn't mentioned, when she read Tabitha King's novel One on One earlier this year, that Deanie Gauthier, the heroine of the book, reminded her a bit of Lisbeth Salander from Stieg Larsson's The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, I might not have paid as much attention to the similarities between the(…)
Aug 31 2010
When the latest fracas over the New York Times Book Review's privileged and privileging coverage of "white guys living in Brooklyn" erupted, I reflexively rolled my eyes and sighed. Oh, great, I thought, another go-round in the perpetual media battle between so-called commercial and so-called literary fiction, and one that promises, once again, to regard(…)
Aug 10 2010
I’ve spent a lot of time ruminating about the business of publishing, on the blog, with other people, and in my own head. I love books, obviously, and I’ve been a reader my entire life. I don’t want publishing to die. I have very good friends who are in the industry, who write books, and(…)
Aug 1 2010
Dear Authors Who Belong to RWA and Read RWR: Romance Writer’s Report is the magazine you get as part of the $100 membership to RWA. Various individuals contribute to the magazine and you don’t need any particular expertise, just an idea that editors of the RWR believe will appeal to the RWA membership. In the(…)
Jul 27 2010
Disclaimer: While I am an attorney, the following should not be construed as legal advice. Each case, the application of law to that case, and each client and lawyer are unique to that particular case. If you feel like this is an issue which may affect you, please seek professional help. On Mike Cane’s blog,(…)
Jul 20 2010
Jul 14 2010
I can't remember when Sarah and I first conceived the Reader Roundtable idea, but we have had a great time conducting these little events, first at Romantic Times and then twice (by accident) at RomCon. One of the greatest things about having a blog is having constant reader interaction. It's one thing I like about(…)
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