What’s the Difference Between Romantic Fantasy and Fantasy Romance?

There are few stories that aren’t improved by a strong romance; but this does not make every story a Romance in the sense of belonging to the Romance Genre, i.e. a book that would be shelf-mates with Bodice Rippers and Regencies.

The same distinction coheres to the difference between a Fantasy novel with a strong romance (what we might call a romantic Fantasy) and a Fantasy Romance. The former may be High Fantasy or Urban Fantasy or Epic Fantasy, albeit with a satisfying romantic subplot. The latter is a Bodice Ripper with dragons.

By the way, I intend no condescension by the term Bodice Ripper. My purpose is not pour forth contempt upon the Romance Genre, as a cheap way of making some other kind of book look more sophisticated by implication. I enjoy Fantasy and I enjoy Romance, and I like most ways of combining the two. The distinction is not terribly important to me as a reader. As a writer, however, it is very important, since the genres target overlapping but different readerships.

Genre Romance will have the Romance front and center to the plot. It will usually be the first element introduced and the last element resolved, but even if a subplot appears on stage first, or a battle with the Baddie adds the finishing touch to the climax, the Heroine and Hero realizing their love for one another will be the most important and highly developed storyline in the novel.

This means—by necessity—all other storylines will be less developed. In a Fantasy or Science Fiction or Historical novel, that means that if the book is Genre Romance, the worldbuilding, scientific exploration, or historical events will be less complex than in a straight Fantasy, Science Fiction or Historical novel. This is isn’t because Romance writers are idiots who can’t research history, science or mythology, it’s part of the Genre requirements. It meets the needs and expectations of Romance Genre readers.

However, a Fantasy novel, like Enchantment by Orson Scott Card, can still contain a storyline that qualifies as “Romance” with a capital “R.” Enchantment, in my opinion, has too complex and rich a presentation of mythology, history, and characterization to quality as Genre Romance; many readers who prefer more Romance to Fantasy won’t have the patience for details about when the Cyrillic alphabet evolved. And Card eschews traditional roles for his Hero, such as “Alpha Male,” and his characters don’t spend nearly enough stage time pinning over one another (or lusting for one another) to make Enchantment even close to a Dragon Bodice Ripper.

Yet a Romance is still at the heart of the story in a way that will reward the more fantasy-tolerant Romance fan. Even more importantly, Card obeys all the Rules of Big R Romance.

So what are they?

Romance with a capital “R” must go above and beyond a story with a male and a female character who fall in love, a couple in love adventuring together, or a couple in love separated by an external force.

The first set of rules have to do with Conflict During Courtship:

• The Heroine and Hero must spend most of the novel interacting—not apart
• The novel must spend time demonstrating how the Heroine and Hero are strongly drawn to one another
• The Heroine and Hero must have internal needs or fears that cause conflict between them which keep them apart emotionally despite being physically together and being strongly attracted to each other

This may seem counterintuitive. Hero and Heroine fall in love at first sight—wicked Wizard captures Heroine—Hero defeats minions of Wizard and finally the Wizard to save her—they live happily ever after. Isn’t that a love story? Sure. Isn’t that a Romance? Not in the sense of Genre Romance, no.

Romance in the capital “R” sense must be driven by conflict between the Heroine and the Hero. Most Romances will also have an external force trying to pry the couple apart—whether it be a rival suitor, a jealous jade, an evil wizard or a nasty mother-in-law. But a good Romance must have an internal conflict that keeps the couple apart as well. At least one or both lovers must have some secret need or fear that keeps each from trusting the other. Falling in love isn’t easy—it’s the hardest thing they’ve ever done.

The second set of rules have to do with the Resolution of the Relationship:

• The Heroine and Hero must attain a emotional and physical union
• The Heroine and Hero must choose to be together exclusively
• The Heroine and Hero must live Happily Ever After (HEA)

In a Sweet Romance, the physical consummation of the relationship may be kept behind a closed door. In a Hot Romance, the legal niceties of marriage may less relevant or explicit. And in a Young Adult Romance, both sex and marriage may be more implied as a future possibility rather than explicitly explored. But exclusivity, monogamy, and happiness are all absolutely necessary. This is called the HEA.

By the way, this is often a distinguishing feature that divides Women’s Fiction from Genre Romance. In Women’s Fiction, the Heroine might fall in love with a married man. The Heroine and Hero might not end up together. One or the other or both might die tragically. Or the story might extend far beyond their realization of physical and emotional closeness to a period of time when they are again riven apart, by changing emotions, by time, by death or by fate.

Some examples of extremely romantic stories are therefore not Romance in the sense I mean: Titanic, The Notebook, The Time Traveler’s Wife…. These are fabulous love stories but they violate the Resolution of the Relationship by either denying their lovers a Happy Ending, or going past the Happy Ending into a bittersweet addendum.

It’s fine to have a romantic relationship in a story that doesn’t hit all the “rules.” But if you do intend to put in a Romance that will increase the cross-genre appeal of your novel, it’s important to understand what notes to hit to make that romance sing.

Recommended for Writers: Characters & Viewpoint by Orson Scott Card

Since month we’ll be celebrating Fantasy Romance… and characters are at the heart of Romance, I wanted to recommend a good primer on creating believable and likable (or loathsome) characters.

Orson Scott Card’s book, Characters & Viewpoint, is, in my opinion, the absolute best book on Character and Viewpoint out there. An experienced writer might read it and think, “Gosh, I know all this…”; it is a writing primer, meaning it covers the basics. Nonetheless, even for experienced writers, it’s a worthwhile read.

You may know the difference between First Person and Third Person, but do you know the difference between Close Third and Distant Third? You may know how the difference between a hero and a villain, but do you know how to ensure that your hero is likable (but not boring) and your villain is enthralling (but doesn’t steal the show from you hero)? What is the difference between a Superman and an Everyman? Should you ever employ flat characters–spear holders?

In fact, characters are at the heart of any good novel. Even if you don’t write “Character Focused” fiction, you’ll need characters, though they will serve a different role in your story than in a Romance or Literary novel.

 

And do read this book.

Buy Characters & Viewpoint by Orson Scott Card.

Tara Maya’s Book Review: Enchantment by Orson Scott Card

Caveat—Reader Beware!

My reviews are written from a writer’s perspective, with an eye to dissecting good novels to find out what makes them work. Although I try to avoid explicitly discussing book endings, I am not as careful about avoiding all spoilers as some reviewers. I find if I employ too much caution about giving away plot twists, I am not able to provide a concrete analysis of the book’s structure. And frankly, I hate vague reviews.

So… there may be spoilers. If that bothers you, read the book first. Then come back and read my analysis and let me know if you agree…or what I missed!

Title: Enchantment

Author: Orson Scott Card

Genre: Historical Fantasy / Urban Fantasy / Time Travel

Read: First Time

Style: Third Person Past

Type: Kindle ebook

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Overview:

At heart, Enchantment is a retelling of Sleeping Beauty and several Russian fairytales, and yet also so much more. It’s hard to pin down the genre. Fantasy? Absolutely. It’s well-researched enough to be Historical Fantasy (magic that takes place in our own history); involves Time Travel Romance; and also involves magic back in our own time—Urban/Contemporary Fantasy? Orson Scott Card is an excellent seer of the human heart. His romance is not a Genre type, with your usual Alpha Hero, but a realistic (yet fantastic) portrayal of love building a bridge between people from two vastly different cultures.

 

Plot Summary:

Ivan is a Russian Jew, whose family is forced to leave the Soviet Union in the last decade of its existence. But before Ivan leaves Russia, he encounters a mystery that haunts him the rest of his life: a beauty asleep in the forest. As an immigrant and later graduate student in America, he dismisses the encounter as the overactive hallucination of a child. He even becomes engaged to a local girl. But fate draws him back to Russia when he returns (post-USSR) to work on his thesis. He visits the same forest … and finds that not only is the sleeping woman there, but she is guarded by a vicious Bear and a magic bridge.

His kisses her awake, but that’s not enough to escape the danger; he must pledge marriage.

She’s been asleep not just a century but a millennia. This is where the story has the first unique twist. How does it happen that Sleeping Beauty has slept both a thousand years and yet not long at all? The answer is that the pedestal where she slept existed outside of time. When Ivan follows her across a bridge, he finds himself back in the dark ages, in a lost kingdom of Slavic Russia. His bride is a princess, and now his role is to help her defend her kingdom against the quintessential witch of all Russian lore—Baba Yaga.

And that’s just the first twist in the story. For the bridge across time works both ways….

Characters:

Hero /MC: Ivan or “Vanya” a Russian American Jewish graduate student

Heroine: Katerina, princess of Taina

Villainess: Baba Yaba, powerful witch

Bear: A pagan god enslaved by Baba Yaba

Setting/Worldbuilding:

Every setting in the book is detailed and alive and convincing, from the late Soviet Union, to suburban America and, especially vivid, the medieval Slavic kingdom of Taina. Card did his research, and it pays off. There’s nothing more aggravating to me (I confess to being a historian) than Time Travel or Historical fiction that is poorly researched. In Card’s hands, I can relax and enjoy the tour of the past, confident that if time travel were possible, this is exactly what I’d see.

Complexity/Series Arc:

The book is quite long, the characters are deep and the setting is rich. This is a stand-alone book that feels lusher and more complex than many trilogies.

Yet the structure of the book is classic and simple. There are 20 chapters exactly, with the first and last chapters acting almost like a Prologue and Epilogue. The first climax occurs in Chapter 4, revealingly labeled, “Kiss.” (And since this is a retelling of Sleeping Beauty, we understand from that alone that it is the Kiss, the kiss of true love which awakens the princess.)

Instead of the Kiss ending the story, however, it ends only the First Act. The real story begins at that point, when the Hero enters the Heroine’s world and discovers that he must prove himself without any of the assets that she and her people expect of a man, never mind a knight.

Exactly at the novel’s midpoint, Chapter 10, a huge reversal occurs. The Heroine must now enter the Hero’s world—and finds herself at as much disadvantage as he was in hers. At Chapter 15, the Third Act begins and reaches the climax in Chapter 19.

Personal Remarks:

I’ve been meaning to read this for a long time, and it was well worth it. This re-telling of the fairytale of the Sleeping Beauty is a historical fantasy, urban fantasy, and time travel book rolled into one. It takes place in the Soviet Union, America and the Ukraine after the fall of Communism…and also in Slavic Russia, in the interesting centuries before the Golden Horde or absolute despotisms of the Tsar. This book reminds (or teaches) us that across Europe, democratic traditions actually had deeper roots than feudalism, which came later. The earliest kings were elected by popular acclaim…and the earliest princesses, such as the heroine here, Katerina, were no blushing nincompoops, but strong women who were much a part of the life of their people.

A lot of time travel Romance features a feisty modern heroine with a brawny, hyper-masculine warrior from the past. As Enchantment shows, when the time traveler is a modern man, especially if he’s a graduate student, he looks scrawny, weak, and womanly by ninth-century standards. Yet the hero, Ivan, doesn’t come across to the reader as weak…and one of the delights of the book is seeing the heroine’s initial scorn for him gradually grow into respect and real love.

I learned many Russian fairytales as a child, so I was also quite tickled to see Baba Yaga and other legendary figures from Russian legends featured in the story. The origin of Baba Yaga’s famous chicken-footed house is given a marvelously novel explanation.

 

Quotes:

[Katerina discusses Ivan with her father:]

“But he does have the heart of a king. When he sees someone in need, he does not hesitate to act. He does not measure the cost, he does not fear criticism—”

“But if there’s anything you’ve taught me, Father, it’s that a king must measure the cost! And he must act in a way that is above criticism.”

“I did not say that this Ivan has the mind of a king. Only that he has the heart.”

“What good is the heart without the mind?”

“Better than the mind without the heart,” said Father.

 

Kindle Locations: 8180

Reading Time: 6 hrs (Standard: 8 hrs)

Buy Enchantment

Other books by Orson Scott Card that I recommend:

Elements of Fiction Writing – Characters & Viewpoint: Proven advice and timeless techniques for creating compelling characters

June Theme: Fantasy Romance

Upcoming Blog Candy

Over the next year, I plan to kick up the voltage at the blog. I’ll be cooking up lots of candy posts for readers and writers. Whether you’re just browsing for your next fave read or whether you’re struggling to write someone’s fave read, I hope you’ll find some gems here in the upcoming months. To keep it fun, every month will explore a new theme and subgenre of speculative fiction. Most of the posts will relate to the theme, and the books featured will be related to the featured subgenre.

First, I’ll be posting once a week, on Friday, about whatever’s on my mind. Generally, I’ll blog about Writing Craft. I have read the advice, probably sound, that writers shouldn’t blog about writing, because most readers aren’t interested in writing, only in reading. Fair enough. But since I’m a writer, writing techniques are mainly what I think about when I’m not writing fiction. I mean, sure, I could write a housekeeping blog, but the advice would amount to: “Ignore that mess. Keep writing.”

So… I’ll just stick to writing, and your kitchen will thank me for it.

On Wednesdays, I’m going to be sharing some of my own Book Reviews. I won’t review every book I read, but only those I think are both (a) excellent, and (b) relevant to the theme & genre I’ve chosen to feature that month.

On Mondays, a Guest Blogger will either share some advice on writing craft in general or contribute some thoughts on the month’s theme or genre. Regular guest bloggers will be Rayne Hall, Mattie Adams, and Jack P.

Since I can’t review as many books as I like, I’ll continue to post Excerpt from great speculative novels whenever I have a chance. I’ll also periodically share books on writing craft, “Recommended for Writers.”

 

Themes for the Summer Months

June: Fantasy Romance

July: Villains & Anti-Heroes / Urban Fantasy

August: Military Fantasy

 

June Theme: Fantasy Romance

In June, a month long associated with Hera (Juno), the goddess of marriage, our theme will be Fantasy Romance. I’ll be asking, “What’s the difference between a romantic Fantasy and a Fantasy Romance?” Then I’ll look at two different approaches to writing a novel, one beloved by Outliners and one useful even for Pantsers—and finally ask how these might both help come up with a helpful structure for writing a Romance.

Among the books I’ll be reviewing is The Fire Seer, so I was thrilled when the author, Amy Raby, agreed to write a guest post for us, giving her take on, “What is Fantasy Romance?” …and why it’s so rewarding to write and read. Mattie Adams, author of the mystery series The Hot Dog Detective, will write about the special challenges that come with writing romance into a long series of related but stand-alone novels. Rayne Hall will contribute to the blog this month with her usual helpful tips about writing craft and book marketing.

Novels I’ll be reviewing:

• Enchantment by Orson Scott Card
• The Fire Seer by Amy Raby
• Dragon Blood by Lindsey Buroker
• The Reluctant Concubine by Dana Marton

 

Writing craft books I’ll be recommending:

• Characters & Viewpoints by Orson Scott Card
• Story Grid by Shawn Coyne
• Book Architecture by Stuart Horwitz
• Kate Walker’s 12-Point Guide to Writing Romance by Kate Walker

 

How to Write Riveting Captivity Scenes (Guest Post by Rayne Hall)

WRITING CRAFT: CAPTIVITY SCENES by Rayne Hall

If you’re writing a novel, is there a scene where the heroine is imprisoned or locked up against her will?

Here are some techniques to make this scene powerful.

1. If possible, make the room dark or semi-dark. Perhaps she’s locked up in a lightless cellar, in a dungeon where only the flames of the torches flicker in the gloom, or in a chamber where the villain has cut off the power supply. Maybe there’s a single window is so high up and narrow that it lets in scarce light.
2. Solitary confinement is scariest. If your heroine is alone in that room, with nobody to talk to, the reader worries for her. She may shout “Is anyone out there? Can you hear me?” and get no reply. Alternatively, she may have a companion in her captivity – until that person gets led away for execution.
3. Let it be cold. The place is unheated, the protagonist is not wearing many clothes, the air is chilly, the concrete floor is cold, and if a blanket is provided at all it is much too thin.
4. Use sounds. Sounds create unease and fear in the reader’s subconscious – perfect for this type of scene. Here are some ideas:

• Rodents’ feet
• Shuffling straw
• Fellow captive’s sobs and snores
• Agonised screams from another cell
• Clanking door
• Rattling keys
• Screeching lock
• Guard’s boots thudding outside

5. Mention an unpleasant smell or two:

• Sour stench of urine
• Excrement from previous prisoners
• Old sweat
• Blood
• Rodent excrement
• Rotten straw
• Mould
• Food

6. Mention how something feels to the touch. This works especially well if the place is dark.

The fetters/handcuffs/bonds chafing at the wrists/ankles

• Pain from bruises
• The texture of the wall
• Texture of the door
• Cold hard floor
• Rough blanket
• Cobwebs
• Sodden straw
• Chilly air

Perhaps you can involve the sense of taste as well. However, this may not be appropriate for all captivity scenes.

If the villain has gagged her, you can describe how that gag tastes. If she’s in a dungeon or prison, describe the flavour of the food. The food quality is probably appalling, but if she’s hungry, it won’t taste too bad.

8. While she’s imprisoned, she can’t do much beyond explore her surroundings in search of a way out. She will probably think more than she does during fast-paced action scenes. When sharing her thoughts and feelings, make sure she doesn’t wallow in despair. Although she may feel dejected, she keeps searching a way out. Create a tiny hope, let her plan. Later, this plan will fail, but it’s important to show some hope in order to create suspense.

Questions?

If you’re planning or revising a captivity scene for your novel and have questions, leave a comment. I’ll be around for a week and will reply. I love answering questions.