tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6908284284859079079.post296646271511298983..comments2024-03-28T16:42:57.054-07:00Comments on Sweet Americana Sweethearts: Just How Romantic Can Sweet Romance Be?Zina Abbott Authorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06514497895329220725noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6908284284859079079.post-4132202120885138602020-04-17T03:49:20.297-07:002020-04-17T03:49:20.297-07:00At the time of the war, Rossellini believed there ...At the time of the war, Rossellini believed there was a desperate desire for truth in film. This is why he attributed a moral position to his filmmaking.<br /><br /><a href="https://fmovies.co/" rel="nofollow">Fmovies</a>tike mikhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07646994462395287119noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6908284284859079079.post-13185753450490332732015-11-11T10:52:25.532-08:002015-11-11T10:52:25.532-08:00Thank you, very much, IreAnne, for your thoughtful...Thank you, very much, IreAnne, for your thoughtful contribution to the discussion. I'm so glad you decided to speak up (as the contest is only to sweeten the pot, and really has nothing to do with the importance of the conversation). I'm pleased to hear you use the TV rating system to alert readers and browsers to the heat level they can expect in your books.<br />My understanding is that "clean" is frowned upon because the flip-side of that definition/coin is that books with more heat are therefore "dirty" (opposite of clean). It's a challenge-- readers often search for books they want to read by "clean" (among other search words) but it's almost non-PC to use such a term, but "sweet" misses the mark.<br />I agree with so many readers and authors that the publishing industry *needs* a better determining label, standardized, and easy to understand (not unlike TV ratings or movie ratings).<br />Hmmmm. I wonder how a small army might make that happen?<br />THANK YOU, IreAnne--<br />With warm appreciation,<br />Kristin HoltKristin Holthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12998253281628770747noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6908284284859079079.post-134597951792174892015-11-09T19:37:46.163-08:002015-11-09T19:37:46.163-08:00I know this is past the contest deadline, but I st...I know this is past the contest deadline, but I struggle with this question also because I have also found there is no standard like this. I really believe there should be since there is one for television. I write traditional regencies for now and I have been able to describe my writing as just that. Traditional regencies because most everyone knows the definition of a "traditional" regency and the heat level associated with it. But, when I write another genre I still want to maintain the same heat level so I have used the TV rating system to best describe my writing. I also do this for my reviews because I feel that is what most people are familiar with. I usually state whatever you can expect to see in a PG or PG-13 movie, you can expect to read on the page. Something I recently learned, however, from two writer friends who are attending Seton Hill MFA is the instructors frown on referring to "clean" romance. They prefer "sweet" romance. I found this interesting because it is the first I have heard of any attempts at clarifying this issue. And, "sweet" is not necessarily indicative of a heat level. More confusion to the mix...Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09196537650791167313noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6908284284859079079.post-10014888729715778852015-11-09T09:51:08.142-08:002015-11-09T09:51:08.142-08:00I used a random number generator online to select ...I used a random number generator online to select one winner (in a most unbiased fashion) from the three responses: #1 Angela Raines/Doris McGraw, #2 Shanna Hatfield, #3 Connie White. The Random Number generator drew #2! Congratulations to Shanna Hatfield, who may select any one of my seven current titles in ebook form. Shanna, I'll email you the winning news. Thank you so much for your responses, ladies! ~Kristin HoltKristin Holthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12998253281628770747noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6908284284859079079.post-16288630095428323322015-11-08T21:04:32.928-08:002015-11-08T21:04:32.928-08:00Dear Connie White and all other readers,
It seems ...Dear Connie White and all other readers,<br />It seems this post is a duplicate (just spaced by 3 minutes) of the post just one higher in this thread. I responded to Connie, above. Please take a look there!<br />With warmest appreciation for Connie's meaningful response--<br />KristinKristin Holthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12998253281628770747noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6908284284859079079.post-25901403920076863642015-11-08T21:02:39.160-08:002015-11-08T21:02:39.160-08:00Thank you, Connie, for your most thoughtful and de...Thank you, Connie, for your most thoughtful and detailed response. I read and then re-read, as your contribution has opened my eyes, given me words I didn't previously have, and I find myself nodding in agreement. Thank you. Thank you for validating sweet/clean romance. Thank you for speaking up for the skill it takes, for the truth of history and the reality that violence (of war and beyond) must be limited in 'sweet reads'. My congratulations to you, to Heather Frey Blanton, and my sincere appreciation for your time and effort to visit, read, and comment. Thank you!Kristin Holthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12998253281628770747noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6908284284859079079.post-1584940143799057252015-11-06T19:46:40.591-08:002015-11-06T19:46:40.591-08:00It would indeed be very helpful to readers and aut...It would indeed be very helpful to readers and authors alike to have a uniform system to better define exactly what is in the different types of romances. I also think authors should be up front with readers as they communicate and share on FB. I have liked certain authors only to find that they write very sexually explicit scenes which I do not support. I'm actually a TV scriptwriter and find the same sort of situation with many TV shows, especially on cable where they don't often give viewer warnings. I personally know that a book can be incredibly romantic and create a "sexual" type of tension without using any bad language or scenes that show nudity or "bedroom" scenes. I think a certain amount of kissing without going overboard is acceptable; but as you already said, romance and sexual tension can be conveyed by the way an author words things such as a look or an innocent but meaningful touch on a shoulder or the face or their hands. To me, it takes a much more skilled writer of novels and scripts to make their writing sizzle with romantic and sexual tension without resorting to showing a couple having sex. The great writers of the most romantic novels of history prove that to be true as you told about and showed in the video of Pride and Prejudice. For me, however, the word, "sweet", means a romantic novel with no bad words and very little violence. As a history major and former US history high school teacher, I really appreciate the truth and realities of the Era one is writing about or reading. I love The Western Movement, The Civil War, The Old West and the wars that our country has been through, especially the Vietnam Conflict and have written scripts over many of these topics. I don't try to sugarcoat the realities of the pain and sruggles of the Era I'm writing about, even its violence which can be quite bad, especially if I'm writing about war or periods such as The Old West. I would then not consider my stories/scripts or any writer who does the same as "sweet" writers. I wish there was a word for this sort of writing. I also am a very committed Christian who tries to incorporate my faith, who Jesus is and how and why having a real relationship with Him is so important into every script I write without preaching to my viewers or readers of my scripts. So...I find myself in a difficult position to really define my writing and friends who write novels with the same parameters as mine . My close friend, author Heather Frey Blanton, writes the way I do and describes herself as a Christian Historical Western author who writes clean Western stories with some grit. I have recently helped her as she was asked to adapt one of her novels into a TV script as a possible TV movie or series by a well-known Producer. He said he would market her stories on netwoks like Hallmark and those like it. My script is a bit harder to decide a market for because while I have a strong Christian message in it, I have a much grittier story since my script often flashes back to the Civil War and is set in 1867 Reconstruction Texas. However, I enjoy reading "sweet" romance novels because, like I already said, I think it takes more skill to write a great story that moves people and conveys rich emotional conflict with exciting romantic involvement without resorting to describing the details of the physical act.Conniehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06839703242412564968noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6908284284859079079.post-28836996225043491262015-11-06T19:43:21.034-08:002015-11-06T19:43:21.034-08:00It would indeed be very helpful to readers and aut...It would indeed be very helpful to readers and authors alike to have a uniform system to better define exactly what is in the different types of romances. I also think authors should be up front with readers as they communicate and share on FB. I have liked certain authors only to find that they write very sexually explicit scenes which I do not support. I'm actually a TV scriptwriter and find the same sort of situation with many TV shows, especially on cable where they don't often give viewer warnings. I personally know that a book can be incredibly romantic and create a "sexual" type of tension without using any bad language or scenes that show nudity or "bedroom" scenes. I think a certain amount of kissing without going overboard is acceptable; but as you already said, romance and sexual tension can be conveyed by the way an author words things such as a look or an innocent but meaningful touch on a shoulder or the face or their hands. To me, it takes a much more skilled writer of novels and scripts to make their writing sizzle with romantic and sexual tension without resorting to showing a couple having sex. The great writers of the most romantic novels of history prove that to be true as you told about and showed in the video of Pride and Prejudice. For me, however, the word, "sweet", means a romantic novel with no bad words and very little violence. As a history major and former US history high school teacher, I really appreciate the truth and realities of the Era one is writing about or reading. I love The Western Movement, The Civil War, The Old West and the wars that our country has been through, especially the Vietnam Conflict and have written scripts over many of these topics. I don't try to sugarcoat the realities of the pain and sruggles of the Era I'm writing about, even its violence which can be quite bad, especially if I'm writing about war or periods such as The Old West. I would then not consider my stories/scripts or any writer who does the same as "sweet" writers. I wish there was a word for this sort of writing. I also am a very committed Christian who tries to incorporate my faith, who Jesus is and how and why having a real relationship with Him is so important into every script I write without preaching to my viewers or readers of my scripts. So...I find myself in a difficult position to really define my writing and friends who write novels with the same parameters as mine . My close friend, author Heather Frey Blanton, writes the way I do and describes herself as a Christian Historical Western author who writes clean Western stories with some grit. I have recently helped her as she was asked to adapt one of her novels into a TV script as a possible TV movie or series by a well-known Producer. He said he would market her stories on netwoks like Hallmark and those like it. My script is a bit harder to decide a market for because while I have a strong Christian message in it, I have a much grittier story since my script often flashes back to the Civil War and is set in 1867 Reconstruction Texas. However, I enjoy reading "sweet" romance novels because, like I already said, I think it takes more skill to write a great story that moves people and conveys rich emotional conflict with exciting romantic involvement without resorting to describing the details of the physical act.Conniehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06839703242412564968noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6908284284859079079.post-78328459607741582062015-11-06T13:45:26.125-08:002015-11-06T13:45:26.125-08:00Thank you, Shanna. I appreciate your kind words......Thank you, Shanna. I appreciate your kind words... and I fully agree, sweet romance can be fiercely romantic. Having just read A Holiday Bargain (your title), I know you comprehend what makes a book romantic. =) Thank you for you kind words as well as your feedback on personal expectations of "sweet romance".Kristin Holthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12998253281628770747noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6908284284859079079.post-29193296682039389762015-11-06T13:43:38.625-08:002015-11-06T13:43:38.625-08:00Thank you, Doris/Angela. I appreciate you stopping...Thank you, Doris/Angela. I appreciate you stopping by!Kristin Holthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12998253281628770747noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6908284284859079079.post-13867567754122973802015-11-06T11:26:50.158-08:002015-11-06T11:26:50.158-08:00Hi Kristin! Great post! As a fellow writer of &quo...Hi Kristin! Great post! As a fellow writer of "sweet" romance, I also am fascinated by the hundreds of ways people define it. To me, sweet romance can be very romantic. One of my readers defined it as romance that steals your breath-away, like a magical first kiss, without being explicit in any way. Too many people confuse romance with s-e-x. Sweet, clean, wholesome - however you want to label it, when I pick up a book that is sweet romance, my expectation is that it won't have any bad language or sex scenes, but it will be filled with toe-tingling romance. And I definitely think your wonderful books fit in that sweet romance category!Shanna Hatfieldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04299112395063586480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6908284284859079079.post-2506406347482410932015-11-06T08:04:32.157-08:002015-11-06T08:04:32.157-08:00To define what has not been defined is a challenge...To define what has not been defined is a challenge. I believe you covered the subject very well. I also believe it is healthy to make the effort to discuss and bring the differences to light. Thank you. Doris McCraw/Angela RainesRenaissance Womenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09045401344374224512noreply@blogger.com