You’ve Got Your Romance in My Fantasy—You’ve Got Your Fantasy in My Romance!

Continuing our theme for this month, genre blending in fantasy, in this post I’ll compare and contrast two blended subgenres—best I can since this one confuses me—romantic fantasy and fantasy romance.

Regardless of how we use those terms, romance works well with fantasy. Novels must have conflict to engage a reader. Love is filled to the brim with conflict. Maybe two characters are afraid to admit their feelings, or can’t let their feelings be known outside of the two of them if their families dislike each other. Plenty of tales are woven with a prince falling in love with a milkmaid, or a princess escaping her ill-tempered, intended royal husband to be with a stable boy. These difficulties add a sense of reality to fantasy novels, a lifeline for readers to be able to identify with those characters.

This is the subgenre of my own writing, so I’ve obviously given a lot of thought to these categories. But, it seems the longer I look, the more confused I get. Maybe I’m in the forest too deeply to see the trees. I’ll list characteristics to aid discussion, and then would appreciate some interaction to make the distinctions clearer.

Similarities:

Houses have published romantic fantasy in fantasy lines, as well as the expected placement in romance lines. That fact alone is enough to confuse writers and readers alike.

The protagonists of both subgenres often begin their journeys by escaping abusive or oppressive environments. But because of the romance element, their goals are not to become free from all social ties. Instead, most characters search for a new community or social group where they truly belong, and eventually love blossoms. A true loner protagonist does not exist in either romantic fantasy or fantasy romance.

Common plot archetypes of both subgenres:

A teenager from an overly strict or abusive family runs away and discovers he/she possesses magical or psychic powers. These newly-found powers open the character to a hope-filled destiny. Typically, the character finds ways to earn his/her place in a new society, through saving a city, kingdom, or other large group from harm by a dangerous villain or monster.

An adult who is a minor noble or someone who has recently lost a loved one strikes out in search of a new life. The character may already be magical or discover his/her abilities as in the above example. Their powers enable them to save a world from outside invasion. In the process, he/she falls in love. The book or series is expected to have a typical happily-ever-after ending for the couple, following accepted romance form.

A group of adolescents are drawn together through circumstance and destiny to form a collective that is larger than the sum of its parts. These young people are often outcasts, orphans, or somehow on the fringes of society. Each possesses magical powers, which complement different abilities of the others in the group. The bond which holds them together allows them to experience a new sense of belonging. The characters mature as they find friendship and love. The group ultimately overthrows some threat no one else is able to face in the larger community.

Differences:

Magic is often handled differently in the two subgenres. In romantic fantasy the magical abilities are typically innate and simple to use. An example of this would be precognition, oriented towards affinity for or control of a particular natural element, commonly the four Greek elements of fire, air, earth, and water. This difference in the magical system is because more story time is taken by the romance. Less is spent developing a complex, secretive body of customs which requires long study and great personal sacrifice. Fantasy romance would be expected to have more complex magical systems, approximating more closely what we see in high fantasy.

Some publishers claim romantic fantasy is the correct label where the romance is most important and fantasy romance where the fantasy elements are most important. Others state that the division between fantasy romance and romantic fantasy has essentially ceased to exist.

From my personal experience, when a work rides the line, with the romance and fantasy elements being of near equal importance, publishers are often stumped. I submitted such a manuscript over and over, answering detailed follow-up questions so the editors could determine if one outweighed the other, to guide their acceptance. Being equal, they were stymied. Those extended reviews by numerous houses took plenty of time. In the end, I didn’t wish to rewrite, making one element sing louder as I was requested. I like my heroines to work hard to become good at their magic craft, spending as much time as they do falling in love. The first book of that series, Enchanted Bookstore Legends, will be released next March, as my own publication.

Examples:

Anne Bishop’s Black Jewels Trilogy

C. L. Wilson’s Tairen Soul Series

Maria V. Snyder’s Poison Study Series

Sharon Shinn’s Twelve Houses Series

Catherine Asaro’s Lost Continent Series

Mercedes Lackey’s Five Hundred Kingdoms Series

I would attempt to categorize these examples as romantic fantasy or fantasy romance, but the line is a subjective one and subject to debate.

I prefer my fantasy with romance rather than my romance with fantasy. What is your preference?

~ ~ ~ Marsha A. Moore is a writer of fantasy romance. The magic of art and nature spark life into her writing. Read her ENCHANTED BOOKSTORE LEGENDS for adventurous epic fantasy romance: Book One, SEEKING A SCRIBE, Book Two, HERITAGE AVENGED, Book Three, LOST VOLUMES, and Book Four, STAUROLITE.. For a FREE ebook download, read her historic fantasy, LE CIRQUE DE MAGIE, available at Amazon and Smashwords.

Romance: A Real Life Fantasy Quest

This month at the Speculative Salon, we're discussing blended genres in fantasy fiction. It’s easy to see the popularity of adding romantic elements to fantasy, as evidenced by the thriving paranormal romance and urban fantasy genres. Even many epic tales include stories of love, yearning, and passion. Why?

Two good reasons. Fans of fantasy crave an escape from ordinary life. Authors in the genre pride themselves on world-building techniques that will deliver those thrills. Give an epic fantasy book to a non-fantasy reader and their heads will spin with the number of characters and details of setting. To me, I love to visualize nooks and crannies of an alternate world, looking for hidden joys and treasures I might never find in real life. Why then would an author be wise to include something as ordinary and commonplace as a love theme? 

While escapism does fuel the need for most to read fantasy, readers usually don’t want to become totally lost from all known mores and customs. Without some familiar elements, it’s difficult to judge character development and interactions. As much as we eagerly anticipate the wildly imaginative worlds, we also need a thread of normalcy to allow comparison. Otherwise, readers would be incapable of feeling connected to the characters. The depth of emotional commitment to even the most rigorous fantasy quest would be intangible—the thrill of the adventurous ride meaningless. So authors seek to include a universally known element. Love relationships are part of our everyday lives. The associated feelings transcend language and culture. What could be better as a commonly understood theme to allow the reader a comparative ruler? 

Using that technique, romance can serve as a lifeline back to reality for a fantasy aficionado who becomes overwhelmed by the newness of the fantasy world. Also, readers can hold onto the love theme while cautiously immersing into the newness, like sticking a toe into the unfamiliar environ. Urban fantasy is an entire subgenre that purposely employs this writing device as a foundation, requiring the works be set in a known city. 

While that reason is a highly technical, writerly answer, there’s another that is more alluring. Consider all the highs and lows the average person faces during a lifetime—schooling, career, finding a partner, caring for family, aging. The part that most closely approximates the otherworldly rush of emotions, where you feel like you’re living in a fairytale, is romance. It’s an everyday magical experience, where you expect your dreams to be fulfilled. Of course, many times they aren’t and we suffer heartache, but most often we soon get back on the horse and renew our faith in the promise of magic in someone’s smile. 

That fantasy is too tempting to avoid. We yearn to find someone who believes we’re special beyond compare. That tendency is imprinted in our human nature, as evidenced by psychologist Abraham Maslow in his Hierarchy of Needs.  The need to be loved is level three of five, just after safety and security. This is more important to the human psyche than self-esteem or self-actualization of individuality.  Considering the importance of being loved, it’s not hard to understand how adding romance to our fantasy plays on our inherent nature. Romance undeniably enhances that dream-world. Little else so immediately recognizable releases such a rush of oxytocin and dopamine neurotransmitters, transporting us to another place—our own cloud nine where the birds sing more sweetly and the sun shines a bit brighter. A perfect complement to a fantasy plot.

Art credit: By Creator:John Anster Fitzgerald ([1]) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

   ~ ~ ~ Marsha A. Moore is a writer of fantasy romance. The magic of art and nature spark life into her writing. Read her ENCHANTED BOOKSTORE LEGENDS for adventurous epic fantasy romance: Book One, SEEKING A SCRIBE, Book Two, HERITAGE AVENGED, Book Three, LOST VOLUMES, and Book Four, STAUROLITE.. For a FREE ebook download, read her historic fantasy, LE CIRQUE DE MAGIE, available at Amazon and Smashwords.

Making the Cover Art for Lost Volumes: Enchanted Bookstore Legend Three

In earlier posts on the Speculative Salon, I’ve showed the progression of how I created Books One and Two, and now I’ll continue and reveal the steps I took in this new cover for Lost Volumes: Enchanted Bookstore Legend Three.

My process began the same as before, with limited watercolors of the two figures. They are a tiger owl named Kenzo and a pseudodragon named Noba. Both are helpers to Sire Cullen Drake, the Imperial Wizard of the Alliance. After two books, these little guys received so much attention from readers, they deserved a cover spotlight. And they do play big roles in the adventures of this book.

Then I removed each image from the scanned paper and placed it on the background.

Next came hours of painting and shading. After I added font, I had fun playing with several light effects to produce the final cover. I’m pleased with the result, and it’s one of my favorite covers I’ve done.

Lost Volumes: Enchanted Bookstore Legend Three by Marsha A. Moore

Genre: Fantasy romance

Description:

When Lyra McCauley learns residents of Dragonspeir’s Alliance are suffering with a deadly plague, she doesn’t heed the warnings of her fiancé, wizard Cullen Drake, to remain safe in her human world. After all, she’s the present Scribe—one of five strong women in her ancestry who possessed unique magic, each destined to protect the Alliance against the evil Black Dragon of the Dark Realm. With Cullen dependent upon Alliance power to maintain his immortality, the stakes are doubled for Lyra.

She leaves her college teaching and puts herself at risk for the community afflicted by black magic. To find a cure, she and Cullen travel into the vile, lawless underworld of Terza to strike a bargain with an expert. Their efforts further enrage the Black Dragon, vowing to decimate the Alliance and avenge the murder of his heir.

Lyra must secure the three lost volumes of the Book of Dragonspeir. Written by the three earliest Scribes, each book contains energy. Possession of the entire set will enable overthrow of the Dark Realm. Following clues into dangerous lands, Lyra and Cullen seek those volumes. His assistants, Kenzo the tiger owl and Noba the pseudodragon, prove invaluable aids. Only if they succeed, will the Alliance be safe and Lyra reach closer to the immortality she needs to live a life with Cullen.

Purchase at Amazon

Series Blurb: Enchanted Bookstore Legends

The Enchanted Bookstore Legends are about Lyra McCauley, a woman destined to become one of five strong women in her family who possess unique magical abilities and serve as Scribes in Dragonspeir. The Scribes span a long history, dating from 1200 to present day. Each Scribe is expected to journey through Dragonspeir, both the good and evil factions, then draft a written account. Each book contains magic with vast implications.

Lyra was first introduced to Dragonspeir as a young girl, when she met the high sorcerer, Cullen Drake, through a gift of one of those enchanted books. Using its magic, he escorted her into the parallel world of Dragonspeir. Years later, she lost that volume and forgot the world and Cullen. These legends begin where he finds her again—she is thirty-five, standing in his enchanted bookstore, and Dragonspeir needs her. 

When Lyra reopens that enchanted book, she confronts a series of quests where she is expected to save the good Alliance from destruction by the evil Black Dragon. While learning about her role, Lyra and Cullen fall in love. He is 220 years old and kept alive by Dragonspeir magic. Cullen will die if Dragonspeir is taken over by the evil faction…Lyra becomes the Scribe.

~ ~ ~ Marsha A. Moore is a writer of fantasy romance. The magic of art and nature spark life into her writing. Read her ENCHANTED BOOKSTORE LEGENDS for adventurous epic fantasy romance: Book One, SEEKING A SCRIBE, Book Two, HERITAGE AVENGED, and Book Three, LOST VOLUMES. She has also authored the Ciel's Legacy series, with fast action mermaid/pirate storylines: TEARS ON A TRANQUIL LAKE and TORTUGA TREASURE.  For a FREE ebook download, read her historic fantasy, LE CIRQUE DE MAGIE, available at Amazon and Smashwords.