Writers of novels and romance in general bring a double loss to their readers; robbing them of their time and money; representing men, manners, and things, that never have been, or are likely to be.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
Writing a novel is one of those modern rites of passage, I think, that lead us from an innocent world of contentment, drunkenness, and good humor, to a state of chronic edginess and the perpetual scanning of bank statements.
Novelists are no more moral or certain than anybody else; we are ideologically adrift, and if we are any good then our writing will live in several places at once. That is both our curse and our charm.
There's a horrible stereotype of both the romance writer and the romance reader as somehow undereducated and unprofessional, when in fact there are a number of incredibly well-educated professional women who have chosen to leave their other careers and go into writing romance.
Readers of novels often fall into the bad habit of being overly exacting about the characters' moral flaws. They apply to these fictional beings standards that no one they know in real life could possibly meet.
I grew up around writers, and there was always a romance to them. They were charming. They would tell their stories of what they were working on, over the table.
Anyone who reads advice books about romance has one problem to begin with: bad taste in literature.
Novels attempt to render human experience; that's really all they are. They are meant to convey empathy for the character.
Serial novels have an unexpected effect; they hook the writer as well as the reader.
I know when I go and see a writer, the first thing I think to myself is, 'Are they the character in the book?' You just can't help it; it's the way people are.
Writing novels preserves you in a state of innocence - a lot passes you by - simply because your attention is otherwise diverted.