Hi everyone,
Well, it is beginning to look like spring is just around the corner. Am I ever grateful. I was getting a little sick of the snow, and I'm one of those people that really likes the snow. In the garden the tulips and daffodils have just pushed through the soil. The butterfly garden is a complete mess.
I don't think it's quite time to get out and clean everything up. I have a feeling another snowstorm or two might roll through our way, but it is heartening to see signs of life out there. I can't wait to be blogging about butterflies again.
In the mean time, I've gotten back on the writing horse. I'm working on a paranormal/fantasy romance. There's nothing urban about it, but I'm finding a lot of little elements that are reminding me of Beyond the Rain. I'm enjoying that, and hoping for the best with it.
It will be a new direction, but it is a direction that I'm really enjoying. Especially when I get to write the really intense conflict I enjoy in a good romance. This story also has a secondary romance, which is new territory for me.
So, here' s my question of the day. What do you think of secondary romances? Is it jarring to have a second set of characters with their own perspective in the story, or is it twice the fun?
And just for giggles, I'm going to give away a copy of Beyond the Shadows to one lucky commenter who answers this burning question. You can comment as much as you like, but only one comment will count toward the prize. The contest will be open until I announce the winner next week.
Have fun, and happy reading!
Jess
11 comments:
I've read a couple of series with secondary romances happening in the background. I think my favorite example is the romance between Kynan and Gem in Larissa Ione's Demonica series. (It goes full circle.) It seems to me the biggest danger is when the secondary couple eclipses the primary couple. Or maybe that's a personal problem since I tend to fall for secondary characters rather easily. LOL
I tend to love secondary romances and characters--I lean towards the twice-the-fun side, unless for some reason, I feel short-changed and the secondaries are more interesting/compelling than the main OR somehow it means that someone doesn't really get their story told properly. But usually I adore getting to know the whole community around the main characters--the more the merrier ;)
And please don't include me--I LOVED Beyond the Shadows... Might there be more to come, Jess? (Very glad to hear about your new work--yay for getting back on the ol' horse!)
I, too, toyed with a secondary romance in my current book. I was afraid I didn't have enough of the main couple to last a whole book, but managed to get some more conflict in there, so the romance is sort of there, but not in their POV.
I think I've only read one book like that, but it happened too late in the book, I was thrown. I think if you do it earlier, it won't be such a shock.
You also don't need to include me in your giveaway. I have the book sitting in my TBR pile!
I'm not really a romance reader. I do like to see relationships develop, but I'm happiest when something else is going on, too. That something else is what holds my attention long enough to get me thru a novel or novella. Oh, i'm interested in some of the charcter developement can show, but more romances just mean you're developing more characters. I don't even care if they flip-flop in importance. Something else has more of my attention anyway. {Smile}
Anne Elizabeth Baldwin
I do like secondary romances. Especially when those characters end up with their own book.
Hi Jess! For me, it depends on how well the secondary romance is handled. Like Hailey and Flchen said, as long as it doesn't overshadow the romance brought forth for the hero and heroine, it could be fun! --Compex but interesting too.
Please don't enter me in the contest (I have both book *grin*).
As to the question, I like having two romances in one novel, whether of equal importance or a main and secondary romances.
It's all in the writing!
I already have Beyond the Shadows (Great story BTW), but I wanted to say I love secondary characters. It can make a nice change of pace. If the primary characters aren't able to be together, the secondarys can, and it lets me be happy for them and quells my impatience for the primarys to get together.
Thanks everyone, in this particular book, I've got some things that have to happen for the bigger scheme of the plot to unravel in a city that the Hero and Heroine are away from.
At first, I thought I'd just have two secondary characters give us the update of the bigger picture, but then I thought it would be a lot more fun to do that within the context of their own love story on the side. I think it's going to be fun.
The only problem I have with a secondary romance is that I usually enjoy the secondary romances enough that I want to see them have their own book. Like Hailey, I loved Kynan and Gem in Larissa Ione's Demonica series. I think they worked well as a secondary romance because their story extended across several books, so we got more of them than if their love story had been forced into one book as a secondary storyline.
Another secondary romance that comes to mind is Syndil and Barack from Christine Feehan's Carpathian series. While I also enjoyed this secondary romance, I feel like the readers didn't get to hear enough of their story and I know that Christine's fans are always pestering her to write a book just for them.
I also enjoy when we see two secondary characters who are already in a relationship that can be used as a guide for the primary characters - although I often still end up wishing they had their own book so I could see how their romance developed.
In short, I'm not against a secondary romance. It leaves me wanting more, which is usually a good thing.
Congratulations DonnaS,
You won a signed copy of Beyond the Shadows!
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