The
romance novel has come a long way since I read my first Harlequin in the ‘60s,
but I have to confess I loved those early stories. They transported my
small-town teenage self to exotic locales, from London
to the Mediterranean to Africa to the
Australian Outback. They portrayed young, inexperienced (in every sense of the
word) heroines, many of whom were only several years older than I was at the
time. Best of all, they introduced me to handsome heroes, men who were business
tycoons, doctors and sheep farmers, although they’re probably not called
farmers in Australia.
Back
then no one called them sweet romances, they just were. There was no sex, not
even behind closed doors, but every story ended with a kiss and a promise of happily
ever after. I suspect a little alcohol may have been consumed, at least by the
men, although I don’t specifically remember that. I do recall some sardonic,
cheroot-smoking heroes, though. And while plain old cigarettes were just plain nasty,
the teenaged me imagined cheroots were the epitome of elegance.
In
the ‘70s I stopped reading romance and when I got back to them in the ‘80s...well,
times had changed. The focus was still on the romance but it seemed to me that
every book I read included a love scene. So in the late ‘90s when I decided to
try my hand at writing romance, that meant I had to write love scenes, too. In
the very first rejection letter I received for my very first manuscript, the
editor said the love scene was clichéd, and she was right.
My first published book, The Man for Maggie (Harlequin
American Romance, 2006), was the sixth complete manuscript I’d written and,
interestingly, it did not have a love scene. If I had tried to include one, it
would have been forced and, yes, clichéd. Many readers have told me they loved
the sexual tension between the hero and heroine, and for them it was enough to
fuel the love story.
Last
year I was thrilled to get a call from Senior Executive Editor Marsha Zinberg
at Harlequin, saying they would like to revise and reissue The Man for Maggie as part of their new Heartwarming line of
wholesome tender romances. Of course I said yes, and Maggie’s Way
was released on May 1st.
Marsha
says, “Our Heartwarming stories, which have
enjoyed growing success, give readers a novel very well-developed in terms of
conflict and plot, so that it satisfies on multiple levels and does not
necessarily depend on the romance to move the story forward. The romance is present and satisfactory, but
the readers’ ultimate satisfaction derives from all the other elements we
usually attribute to great story-telling, as well as an upbeat ending, of
course.”
As a
writer, I find it gratifying to know that many readers want romances that
exclude sex and profanity. Inspirational author Merrillee Wren
supports this by saying, “I have many readers write and tell me they like my
stories because there aren't any swear words or explicit sex scenes.”
Debra Holland, USA
Today bestselling author of western historical romance, says, “Historically,
women needed to remain chaste (to use an old-fashioned term) in order to avoid
a pregnancy outside of marriage and to keep their reputations unsullied. Having
premarital sex meant they risked being socially ostracized from the community,
which in turn, could impact their survival.” So along with meeting readers’
demand for sweet romance, there’s also a cultural authenticity to her stories.
According
to Marsha Zinberg, “there is a growing niche readership of women who really
enjoy a wholesome romance...they may have just become weary of love scenes that
to them become repetitious after overdosing on them, or simply be more private
people or no longer interested in a depiction of the physical aspects of the relationship...and
they do not necessarily want to have to rely on faith-based romance in order to
read this type of story.” For writers who want to explore this niche, the
guidelines for Heartwarming are on
Merrillee
says, “Many readers don't want sex scenes in their books, and others like all
different kinds of heat levels--from sweet to spicy, as long as the story is a
good romance.”
I’m
one of those readers who enjoys the full spectrum of sweet-to-spicy romance but
as a writer, I’m thrilled to have moved away from the expectation that every
romance novel should include a love scene.
I’m
also offering a copy of Maggie’s Way
to blog readers today. To enter the draw, simply leave a comment and share your
reading preferences. Sweet? Spicy? Sweet, spicy and everything in between?
And
to all the mothers out there, I wish you a heartwarmingly happy Mother’s Day!
Lee
McKenzie…writing fifty shades of pink!
Bio:
From the time
Lee McKenzie was ten years old and read Anne of Green
Gables and Little Women, she wanted to be a writer like Anne and
Jo. In the intervening years she’s written everything from advertising copy to
an honors thesis in paleontology, but becoming a Harlequin author is her
proudest achievement yet. She’s written seven books for Harlequin’s American
Romance line and now she’s excited to be writing for Heartwarming, too.
