While I have to agree that the case of self-publishing you described does sound unprofessional, you might want to know that there is a thriving Christian romance industry. They are not bodice rippers but great stories of love. Francine Rivers is a great contemporary writer, best known for her book Redeeming Love, which takes the Biblical tale of Hosea and Gomer (Hosea was told to marry a prostitute) and puts it in the historical time of the gold rush in California. Well researched and written, it is a book I would recommend even to Islamic friends who enjoyed the historical romance scenario. It actually was written originally as a bodice ripper but has been "cleaned up" as Francine is now one of the main doyennes of Christian Romance writing. Grace Livingston Hill is now dead, but she left a legacy of over one hundred romances, some pedestrian, but some wonderful. White Orchids is one that I read as a teen and returned to as an adult. Spice Box is one that is exceptional as well. Neither of these are historical by design, although since they were written in the middle of the last century they now have a historical feel.
So while I agree that having a slave say to another slave "You go girl" is anacronistic and jarring, I disagree that one does not think of Christian and romance in the same sentence. As a woman who loves chick-lit and romance novels but could really skip the sex scenes found in the bodice rippers, I am glad that there is plenty out there to keep me in books for a good long time.
This link pertains to Kristen Billerbeck, a Christian chick-lit author, and was published in the New York Times.
2 years ago
2 comments:
"Gomer" throws me off, and I blame "Gomer Pyle USMC" for that.
-J.
I was surfing Technorati and this post caught my attention. Let's see if I can stop chuckling long enough to respond to your teacher's comment.
No such thing as a Christian romance novel? In fact, Christian (often called "inspirational") romance is one of the fastest-growing subgenres in all of romance. Even the mighty Harlequin empire jumped on the bandwagon more than eight years ago, creating Steeple Hill Books, which has seen phenomenal growth and is now publishing six mass-market "category" romance novels every month, plus at least two trade-size paperbacks each month--and they're planning to expand again this fall.
In addition to being available at Christian bookstores, Barnes and Noble, and the rest, Steeple Hill's "Love Inspired" books (which I write) are available in every Wal-Mart in the U.S. and Canada, plus stores like Target and Meijer.
If your teacher has never seen a Christian romance novel, she just hasn't been paying attention. They're everywhere!
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