One of the biggest subjects is the Happily Ever After. Why oh why cry some people does Romance have to have a Happily Ever After? I have gone over this before -- basically it has to do with the commercial nature of the genre and the need for an arch plot type structure..
However, I want to add a further requirement,and maybe this will make the why oh why brigade happier.
I have been thinking about this because of Swain.
Any good fiction must have a satisfying end. It is when the pent up tension is released. If the tension is released to early and all that the books has going for it is the tying up of the external conflict, it feels flat. If it isn't released, the reader will feel cheated.
In a Romance, the reader should feel that the only emotionally satisfying ending is the HEA. They can stop holding their breath, these two people will get together.
If a writer writes a HEA but there is no release of tension, no culmination of fear, the reader is going to feel cheated. The ending has to be emotionally satisfying as well as happy.
The reason readers read is the tension. In the case of a romance -- romantic tension between the couple. It is why I read, it is why books are popular. But where there is tension, there must be resolution or the reader will be left feeling unsatisfied.
Showing posts with label HEA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label HEA. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Monday, July 23, 2007
HEA -- a requirement
One of the periodic issues that raises its head is the Happily Ever After and why a romance has to have one.
It always amazes me. People don't want an emotionally satisfying ending? They don't want the major plot arc resolved?
If all that happens in your book is that the people take up the threads of their ordinary life at the end, it does not work. It is the sort of -- it was all a dream. Characters need to grow and change.
Because Romance belongs to the archplot category of genres, it does mean at the end of a story, all major threads should be tied up. In particular the spine of the story must be resolved. Time has shown that a greater percentage of the audience prefer a happy ever after.
Think of this another way -- would a crime novel be enjoyable if the killer was never caught, and the mystery went unsolved?
This is not a rule but a very important part of the form that has to be mastered. If a writer does not want to master this form, they are free to write in another genre. And there are other genres -- for example sagas where the romance is secondary and the spine of the book is held by the character's growth.
But if a writer DOES want to use the highly successful romance format, they do have to adhere to its most basic form.
The emotional satisfaction that readers get at the end is why people read romance. They want that buzz.
The real trick is to create a situation which gives the reader a white knuckle ride.She is positive until that last climatic scene that the principals won't get together. She wants that. And the writer should never cheat the reader. Well not if she wants her readers to come back for more.
For my part, I write historical ROMANCE and that means an emotionally satisfying ending with threads tied up.
It always amazes me. People don't want an emotionally satisfying ending? They don't want the major plot arc resolved?
If all that happens in your book is that the people take up the threads of their ordinary life at the end, it does not work. It is the sort of -- it was all a dream. Characters need to grow and change.
Because Romance belongs to the archplot category of genres, it does mean at the end of a story, all major threads should be tied up. In particular the spine of the story must be resolved. Time has shown that a greater percentage of the audience prefer a happy ever after.
Think of this another way -- would a crime novel be enjoyable if the killer was never caught, and the mystery went unsolved?
This is not a rule but a very important part of the form that has to be mastered. If a writer does not want to master this form, they are free to write in another genre. And there are other genres -- for example sagas where the romance is secondary and the spine of the book is held by the character's growth.
But if a writer DOES want to use the highly successful romance format, they do have to adhere to its most basic form.
The emotional satisfaction that readers get at the end is why people read romance. They want that buzz.
The real trick is to create a situation which gives the reader a white knuckle ride.She is positive until that last climatic scene that the principals won't get together. She wants that. And the writer should never cheat the reader. Well not if she wants her readers to come back for more.
For my part, I write historical ROMANCE and that means an emotionally satisfying ending with threads tied up.
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