I confess. I’m an emotional slob and did I prove it this weekend!

First I took my kids to see the new version of CHARLOTTE’S WEB. When I first read this book as a child, I cried at the end. I apparently still haven’t grown up because I had to surreptitiously wipe away a few tears in the movie theatre. The movie was pretty well done, the celebrity voices only occasionally distracting (and Julia Roberts was great as Charlotte). The special effects used to show Charlotte spinning her web were lovely. But it was the ending, of course, that got me, when Wilbur says “It is not often that someone comes along who is a true friend and a good writer. Charlotte was both.” May we all deserve such a eulogy!

Apparently this wasn’t enough exercise for the tear ducts. I also happened to finish THE TIME TRAVELER’S WIFE (a New Year’s resolution of sorts) this weekend. It’s a polarizing book. Some people are put off by the nonlinear storytelling, some people are disappointed because they were expecting science fiction, not a love story, others complain it’s not a love story because Harry and Clare have too much sex (we Riskies have never heard that complaint, have we????) But there are many who love the book, including my friends at Writer Unboxed, who did an interview with the author, Audrey Niffenegger. One of my friends commented how she cried over Henry. Well, slushbucket here cried too, not just over Henry, but over Clare, too (and maybe a little for myself because I may never write anything half as powerful).

Of course I had to think about why these stories affect me so much. I think it’s because by taking a different view at life (through a friendship between a pig and a spider, through a love relationship whose ordinary events unfold in an extraordinary way) they remind me to live in the moment more, to cherish love and beauty whenever and however they come into my life, and to be willing to risk the pain of losing what I love.

I try to get some of that into my stories, though it’s harder in romance where the reader is primed to expect a happy ending. The thing is the characters don’t know it’s going to be OK and one has to get the reader to feel that. One can also plumb wounds from the past or sacrifice secondary characters, though these things can’t be contrived or they feel like cheap ploys. And rosy as we might make those final scenes, the bittersweet is there in the vows “til death do us part”. Maybe that’s why people cry at weddings. (Of course this whole issue is moot if it’s a paranormal and h/h are immortal, I suppose!)

So do you like tear-jerkers? What are your favorites? Any favorite romances that get you going? What do you think makes them work? Are we authors evil for doing such terrible things to our characters?

And lastly, could you imagine anyone ever having wiped a tear (let alone do anything so unladylike as to blow her nose) into this antique hanky c.1850? (Image from Karen Augusta Antique Lace & Fashion.)

Elena, resident Risky Regency Watering Pot
www.elenagreene.com

I’ve been spending this week trying to ditch the post sinus infection and holiday blues. I’m back to lifting (lighter weights so I don’t snap something!), swimming (fewer laps) and telling myself that no matter how rusty I am, I need to get back to work on my mess-in-progress (which WILL happen once I finish this blog post).

Also, while pushing the dual rocks of fitness and writing back uphill, I’ve been noodling around for fun things to look forward to: projects to do, books to read. Movies to see.

Here’s one that’s on my list: a new version of JANE EYRE from BBC, starring Ruth Wilson and Toby Stephens. It’s coming out on DVD in February. (Read more at www.bbc.co.uk).

Although I’ve enjoyed the three versions of P&P I’ve seen, I haven’t yet seen a version of JE that totally worked for me. The version with George C Scott and Susannah York is a classic but mucks with the story more than I like. The William Hurt version–well, I like him in some movies but think he was terribly miscast as Rochester. The Ciaran Hinds and Samantha Morton version felt rushed though I liked her as Jane. The version with Timothy Dalton and Zelah Clarke is my favorite so far but he doesn’t look quite right for the part.

As for this new version, I’ve heard some buzz that the dialogue has been adapted for modern audiences. As I’m not a purist, this doesn’t particularly scare me but I hope they keep the flavor of the dialogue between Rochester and Jane, my favorite bits where he barks out rude questions and she refuses to let him unsettle her. Toby Stephens may just work as Rochester. And he’s got floppy hair, too. 🙂

Here are some links to YouTube, a trailer for the series and the scene after Jane saves Rochester from being burnt in his bed.

I’m feeling better already. How about you?

Elena
www.elenagreene.com

Why does hair on a man’s forehead somehow make him suddenly seem sensitive, or artistic, or deep?

It’s all due to those….those Romantics, isn’t it?

Shelley… Keats… Byron…. They have a lot to answer for, don’t they?

They left us with the unwavering feeling that a man with hair falling over his forehead, or even into his eyes a bit, has a profound and passionate soul.

Or was it the Romantics?

What is it about men with hair falling in their eyes?

Certainly, both Colin Firth’s Mr. Darcy and Matthew Macfadyen’s Mr. Darcy have their moments of romantic hair glory — the former’s curls, and the latter’s wisps, falling over the brow, showing emotion, and beauty, and….. love?

Is this what makes a woman’s heart turn over? Hair falling forward?

If so, is it really all due to the Romantics?

I suspect that it was indeed the great hippie-like passions and philosophy and art of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, and the hair the era loved, which have imprinted us forever.

And just in case you think I’m merely making fun of this idea, let me assure you that I’m not.

I am a total sucker for floppy hair.

Case in point: Peter Petrelli.

On the new TV show “Heroes”, Peter Petrelli (played by Milo Ventimiglia) is the sensitive younger brother of a conniving politician.

Peter, though, is a nurse, and a good son, and falls in love with women who prefer heroin-addicted artists, and feels oh-so-much pain, and love, and longing…

And when he gets a chance to lay down his life to save someone, he takes it.

Sigh.

And you knew it all the minute you saw the hair.

Cara
(who actually whined excessively about the long hair of the guy on the cover of MY LADY GAMESTER, because Stoke is no romantic, and that guy on the cover just looks like a smug, self-satisfied twit)

Last year around this time, I joined a book discussion group. I was getting stale reading only romance novels and historical reference books. I figured my life and my writing would both improve from reading outside the genre. So far, the experiment is going well. I found something to enjoy in each of the group’s selections and I’ve enjoyed the socializing, too.

BUT.

If I thought that this year I’d read some literary novel that blew away all my favorite romance authors along with Georgette and Jane and the Brontes, or even came close to the reading pleasure they’ve given me, it didn’t happen. I think the other book group members were also somewhat disappointed in this year’s reads. So first I’ll describe some that came close but were NOT my favorite reads of 2007.

One was ATONEMENT, by Ian McEwan. Brilliantly written and the characterizations and dense but evocative (slow for some readers) prose appealed to the Anglophile in me. Still, parts seemed too self-consciously clever and I was disappointed to learn of the controversy regarding what certainly appear to be barely modified passages from the autobiography of Lucilla Andrews, an author of hospital romances.

Another beautifully written book was MY SISTER’S KEEPER, by Jodi Picoult. It deals with a difficult and heartwrenching topic and the writing is strong and eloquent, but I was disappointed in the ending. Not because I expected anything but a bittersweet one, but because it felt contrived, as if Picoult had burned out near the end and fell back on deus ex machina. Nevertheless I hope to read more of her books.

THE MERMAID CHAIR, by Sue Monk Kidd, author of THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES, was a bigger disappointment. Her writing is truly lovely but characterization and plotting fell short for me. It was also galling to read a B&N reviewer’s statement that it read like a cheap romance novel.

Anyway, my point, FWIW, is that pretty wordsmanship is not enough for me. (Neither is it the exclusive hallmark of literary fiction any more than cliches are necessary in romance.) To love a book, I have to love its bones too, regardless of genre.

Based on recommendations from friends whose taste is similar to mine, I expect I’ll love THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES and THE TIME TRAVELER’S WIFE, previous book group selections I have high on my TBR list. But I haven’t gotten to them yet, so my two favorite reads for 2007 are romances.

Having loved MISS WONDERFUL, I was eager to read Loretta Chase’s MR. IMPOSSIBLE and I wasn’t disappointed. It’s Loretta Chase at her witty, heartwarming best. The setting is different–Regency Egypt, and the characters are delightful and different. I love that she has been writing heroes who are younger sons–although I look forward to catching up on the story of the oldest brother in this series, LORD PERFECT.

My other favorite read of 2006 is THE PROPOSITION by Judith Ivory (aka Judy Cuevas). It’s her RITA-winning Victorian historical featuring a hero that’s a rat-catcher and the lady who undertakes, a la Professor Higgins, to transform him into a gentleman. It’s warm, funny, sexy, and in places just brilliant. I’m slowly trying to catch up on Ivory’s backlist while hoping for many more.

For 2007, I look forward to reading more book club selections and catching up on the books I mentioned before. But along with those, I’m also going to continue savoring the works of favorite romance authors.

For Christmas I received this hardcover copy of SEIZE THE FIRE, by Laura Kinsale. It’s definitive proof that bad covers happen to wonderful authors. It also goes a long way toward explaining why some members of my book discussion group would never pick up a romance. But based on how I feel about Kinsale’s other books, I’m pretty confident I’ll love what’s inside. 🙂

OK, without spoilers, has anyone read any of the books I mentioned and what did you think of them? What genres do you regularly read besides romance? What are you looking forward to reading in 2007?

Elena
LADY DEARING’S MASQUERADE, RT Reviewers’ Choice, Best Regency Romance of 2005
www.elenagreene.com