Fic Talk > General Discussion
The romantic debate
RokofAges75:
--- Quote from: colorguard_diva on July 12, 2011, 09:26:22 AM ---In my opinion people may feel under attack or get their feelings hurt is because they feel that the romance genre is the one no one takes seriously. Maybe if they are constantly hearing most romance stories are full of fluff and one dimensional Mary Sue characters, one might be led to feel they aren't as good of a writer then say those who write suspense or comedy. Just like the other genres their are cliches that all writer do whether it be suspense, romance, or children's lit. With the constant complaint of too much romance stories on AC it may feel like an attack.
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I don't think it's the romance people are complaining about, so much as it is the lack of variety in genres. I have a feeling if there was nothing but drama on the Most Recent, people would complain about that too. ("Why is everything all gloom and doom? We need more comedies!") If AC was suddenly dominated by AUs, people would complain about there not being enough canon BSB fics. One of the reasons sites like AC do so well is that there are so many stories, in so many genres, that there should be something for everyone, so sometimes it's disappointing to not see that variety represented in what's actually being updated. But romance has always been the most popular genre of BSB fic, and clearly, it's still going strong. Not everyone may love it, but seems like most people do, or it wouldn't be doing so well.
I agree about the cliches, and it's too bad, because like you said, there are certainly romances that are above those cliches and should be taken seriously. It's the poorly-written teeny stuff that has given romance a bad name. I do think that creates an extra challenge for romance writers, to avoid those cliches and prove the haters wrong.
--- Quote from: colorguard_diva on July 12, 2011, 09:26:22 AM ---Being that romance has a lot of stories, as I writer I definitely feel the need to come up with something new and original. That can take a lot of work. Romance has a lot of interpersonal connections between characters. You have to show that in dialogue and actions like any other genre. Genres may be different, but they use the same writing skills to write them.
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I think romance is tough to write! Good romance, anyway. Like you said, there has to be something fresh about it so that it stands out among all the others, and because it's based on those interpersonal connections, the characters need to be strong, or they fall flat and the story loses its credibility. In some other genres, the writers can rely more on action and events to drive the story, but that doesn't really work for romance if the characters don't hold up.
--- Quote from: colorguard_diva on July 12, 2011, 09:26:22 AM ---In my opinion, not anyone elses because I only speak for me...lately all I see is negativity towards everything and everyone. You can't voice a single opinion without people calling you a bitch. Unless you agree with a person, your opinion is crap. You may not even be talking to a person and they will attack you because you said something. This is still America, everyone has the right to an opinion. Let's be the adults we are, where we respect each other and our opinions. Agree to disagree.
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I hope this opinion is coming from Twitter and not here on AC. I don't think these debate threads on AC are meant to be negative at all; they're just intended to get us talking. It was pretty dead on this board before the romance conversation started, and I've enjoyed the fanfic discussion that resulted from it. I think we do a pretty good job on this board of expressing different opinions without attacking each other or resorting to name-calling. The forum as a whole is pretty harmonious compared to most other BSB forums I've been to. We may not all agree on all points (and it would be pretty boring around here if we did), but we all like fanfiction, and almost all of us like the Backstreet Boys, so we have enough in common to get along and respect each other's opinions even when they differ from our own.
--- Quote from: colorguard_diva on July 12, 2011, 09:26:22 AM ---We should be applauding each other for our writing. For some people it's hard for them to even post a story. Take time and read a story in a different genre you may just be surprised.
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Agreed, and great idea! I wonder if it could be made into some kind of challenge, a reading challenge instead of a writing one?
mare:
Yup, I started this thread because of the way the answers from my survey turned out like I have already said a bunch of times. I never did it to make people feel attacked or belittled.
I'm glad I missed out on whatever drama happened on twitter. I tend to not follow many people so, not sure exactly what went down but, I do hope that people feel like they can post whatever opinion they want on here and not feel attacked. Although feeling attacked usually has less to do with what's actually said and more to do with your own personality and how you handle situations. Some people tend to think anything anyone says is about them when most times it's a general statement about something. I think as writers sometimes we all need thicker skins and just enjoy writing what we write and not care so much about what everyone else thinks. Weird that I came up with that other thread this morning. I must have a psychic thing happening. LOL
I also think we have all tried to read other genres, I know I have tried to read several romances, sci-fi's even slash. Have I thought some of the writing was high calibur? Absolutely! but sometimes it just is something that doesn't hold my attention.
As far as Romance goes, since that's the hot topic, I Don't think it's all fluff, or stereotypical, but for me personally, it's boring to read about a relationship. If it's a small subplot within a bigger context, it's one thing but if it's mainly focused on the relationship, it just isn't my thing. I know i'm in the minority and I also know that it's extremely hard to write about a complex relationship and keep it going through an entire story. I have said many many times, I give romance writers credit for being able to write realistically, especially the love scenes because I just can't lol
I do think it's important to support new writers and make them feel comfortable and I think AC is a great place for that to happen.
So, yeah...lol
I do like the idea of a reading challenge. Maybe we can do that next month?
RokofAges75:
--- Quote from: mare on July 12, 2011, 10:16:33 AM ---I also think we have all tried to read other genres, I know I have tried to read several romances, sci-fi's even slash. Have I thought some of the writing was high calibur? Absolutely! but sometimes it just is something that doesn't hold my attention.
As far as Romance goes, since that's the hot topic, I Don't think it's all fluff, or stereotypical, but for me personally, it's boring to read about a relationship. If it's a small subplot within a bigger context, it's one thing but if it's mainly focused on the relationship, it just isn't my thing. I know i'm in the minority and I also know that it's extremely hard to write about a complex relationship and keep it going through an entire story. I have said many many times, I give romance writers credit for being able to write realistically, especially the love scenes because I just can't lol
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This is pretty much how I feel too. While there are a few pure romances (where the main focus of the storyline was on the couple) that I've read and enjoyed, I generally need some outside plot to keep my attention. I prefer event-driven stories with good characters to character-driven stories. I get bored easily without life or death situations, whether it's an illness or a disaster or someone trying to kill the main characters. If the author can work some romance into that, awesome! If not, that's okay too. But in most cases, romance without that excitement doesn't hold my interest. That doesn't mean there's anything wrong with pure romance or romantic comedies; they're just not MY favorite thing to read. But again, judging by the amount of romance on AC and the sheer popularity of it in terms of reviews and favorites, I'm right there in the minority with Mare LOL.
RokofAges75:
I also just wanna point out, I think people who love romance may not understand how frustrating it can be for people who love reading fanfic, but don't like romance, to find new stories to read. I think that's where this complaining comes from. It's frustration.
Speaking from experience, I've clicked on many of the romances that are popular and highly-recommended or that I see on the Most Recent page all the time because they're updated so frequently. I would love nothing more than to start reading one of them and get sucked right in and have a new story to follow that actually gets updated a lot. Unfortunately, it doesn't happen all that often because, regardless of the quality of writing, the plot just isn't for me, and I don't get sucked in.
I remember what a breath of fresh air Pengi's "Something Beautiful" was for me last summer because that story is totally MY type of story, drama with a romantic subplot and plenty of comic relief. With the exception of Rose's "Remember Me This Way" (which doesn't have the romantic subplot, but does have plenty of drama and comic relief), it had been a long time since I'd read a new story like that. It sucked me right in without me having to force myself to keep reading it, and I hadn't had that experience in awhile. It reminded me of why I love reading fanfic.
I wish there were more new stories being written that could give me that experience, so if you ever see me complaining, that's where it's coming from. It's not an attack on romance or any other genre; it's not an attack on certain writers; it's just general frustration that there aren't as many of the kind of stories that I truly love being written.
mare:
That sums it up for me exactly! I think we complain generally about the limited choices, not so much who is writing the stories. I'm excited there is suddenly a multitude of sci fi stories popping up on AC and i'm not even a fan of sci fi lol it's just nice to see some more variety out there.
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