Why Don't More Men Read Romance Novels?

By Alyssa J. Montgomery

My husband is an avid reader. He's frequently asked whether or not he reads my novels and the answer is a resounding ‘No.’ Now, he’s a pretty romantic guy who has penned me quite a bit of verse over the last 30+ years for special occasions (birthdays, anniversaries, Valentine’s Day) and they’ve been better than any Hallmark Card he could’ve bought.

I have never asked him to read my contemporary romances because I know if he did he’d simply shake his head at them—wouldn’t be able to relate to all the emotional push-pull and would probably have a very cut and dried unemotional way to get the hero and heroine together on page 1. (Men are from Mars and Women are From Venus!!)

I insisted he read my medieval romances (after all the first is dedicated to him and he is the Knight of My Heart!) and his comments were that it was ‘pretty good’, that I wrote ‘hot sex scenes’ and that ‘there was way too much introspection’. He explained that men don’t think like that—they don’t ‘go back and forward and think about all the things that could be’ they just ‘pick a course of action and go for it’!! Well, there’s one male perspective.

According to the Romance Writers of America, 18% of romance readers who took one of their recent surveys identified as male. Of course it may be that an even greater percentage of romance readers are men and aren’t RWA members. Maybe there are some who do read romance and don’t admit it?

                                                      (Below image courtesy of Pixabay)

I know I have male readers and reviewers. I also know that there are many women who would never pick up a romance novel just as I know there are plenty of male romance authors and that there have even been romance books written by a husband and wife team. But why don’t more men read romance?

                                                                                    

Here are a few reasons that have been suggested in a plethora of articles on the topic ...

1.   Some may be afraid of censure for reading romance because romance is stigmatised and many believe the novels are associated with femininity or they simply don’t understand what romance novels are about. This may tie in with societal conditioning with subconscious conditioning that they shouldn’t read romances?

2.     They may be daunted by the fabulous qualities of the hero in romance novels and believe it is too much to live up to?

3.    They may feel that the female protagonists are too strong and too independent?  

4.    The majority of romance books are written by women and so men may feel that the male POV is skewed?   

                                                              (Below image courtesy of Giphy)

5.    Reading may be too cerebral  and not visceral enough for some men?

6.     Fewer men than women read novels regardless of the genre?

7.     They may feel that romance novels are unrealistic?

It’s funny to me, though, that so many other genres have romantic elements to them. Tom Clancy’s character Jack Ryan developed a romance with a doctor who became his wife and there’s plenty of romance in Ken Follet’s Pillars of the Earth and in George R. R. Martin’s Game of Thrones. I wonder if male readers skipped over the development of the romances in these novels? To my mind the developing romances made them much more interesting and realistic!

Love to Love: Men who are proud romance readers!

Love to Laugh: At some of the disparaging comments I’ve heard men (and women) make about romance novels. (Gotta laugh!)

Love to Learn: Why do you think that the number of female romance readers far outweighs the number of male romance readers?

Prologues - Love Them or Hate Them?

 By Cassandra Samuels

It is said that Editors dislike them, new authors don’t know how to use them and readers either love them or hate them. My opinion is…it depends. 

Prologues have their place, but they have to be there for the right reasons. That is where new authors often get it wrong. They often don’t truly understand the true job of a prologue and how to execute one correctly. Like a lot of writing, it is an art to be mastered.

So, what exactly is a prologue?

Photo by INVICTUS Tailoring﹒sneaker socks on Unsplash

The Oxford Dictionary describes the prologue as: A separate introductory section of a literary, dramatic, or musical work.

Or in other words a part of the story that comes before the main story in some way.

So how do so many get it so wrong?

A lack of knowledge is most often the case so:

• Avoid info dumps. You don't need to tell everything.
• Avoid writing a scene that creates atmosphere but has nothing to do with the story.
• Avoid explosions and fireworks to make up for a dull or slow first chapter

A prologue can:

• be in a different POV than the rest of the book. 
• It can be from the villian's POV, 
• the setting's POV or 
• even another character's POV.  

The significance of starting with a different perspective should become apparent at some point in the novel otherwise you are leading your reader astray.

Here are two examples of prologues that really work. I recommend you read them.

Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase

The Dry by Jane Harper

Both these prologues demonstrate how powerful a prologue can be.

In Lord of Scoundrels it is a necessary explanation of the hero's life leading up to where the story really begins, but it is done in such a way as you are only told what you really need to know.

In The Dry it sets up the mystery of the story in a way that is evocative and chilling. Both authors have represented their chosen genre in wonderful ways.

So, do you love or hate a prologue?

Do you have a favourite? Please share in the comments.

Love to Love - finding new authors to read.

Love to Laugh - at my granddaughter learning to clap.

Love to Learn - New things at our annual RWAustralia conference. 

 

Multiple Time Lines

 by Nicole Hurley-Moore

Hi everyone and it’s lovely to be here again.

 

I’ve just started writing a couple of new stories and I noticed that I’m beginning to use multiple time lines more often. I really love that you can give so much depth by using different time lines.

In my latest book, The McCalister Legacy the contemporary story of Berry McCalister coming back to her hometown as an adult is the main focus. She hasn’t been back to Harlington since her family was ripped apart by tragedy when she was a child. However, I also used two additional time periods to add more dimensions and maybe even give the reader a hint of what is actually going on.  The first is in 2007 when Berry is a child and the second is from 1906.

I used dual time lines in Lawson’s Bend as well. The main story takes place in 2018 and the second time line is from ten years earlier. In this book the second time line reveals what happened and you are given an insight into the thoughts and the actions of the characters at that time. This helps to add weight to how they react in the present story line.

Personally, I always get a kick out of reading and writing different time lines. I have to admit I love the 1906 story within The McCalister Legacy. It’s about a little kid who follows a rabbit, gets a bit lost and discovers … well, I guess that that bit is a secret.

So what do you think? Do you have a favourite dual time line story? 

I love to watch Korean dramas (no, seriously they’re great and if you’re a hopeless/hopeful romantic like me, you’ll love them too. Thank goodness for Netflix!)

I love to laugh with my family over a good comedy

I love to learn anything new – from a skill, to a recipe to a new language.

Author Bio: A lover of the quiet and peaceful surrounds of the Australian countryside, Nicole Hurley-Moore lives with her family in a rural town in the Victorian Central Highlands and writes full-time. A fan of happily-ever-afters, she writes contemporary rural stories but being a closet medievalist has her occasionally dabbling in the odd medieval tale. Other works by Nicole are McKellar's Run, Hartley's Grange, Country Roads and White Gum Creek.

You can find Nicole on social media at:

Facebook: https://facebook.com/nicole.hurleymoore.author

Twitter: https://twitter.com/nhurleymoore

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/hurleymoore/

Blog: http://nicolehurley-moore.blogspot.com.au