Can We Talk 2

Happy Endings--Do We Need Them?

         Years ago I posted a romance that didn't end well on this site site. A reviewer told me I should have a happy ending as required by the genre. I couldn't go back and redirect my characters. They had a life of their own. I have mulled this over ever since, noting in Nicholas Sparks stories they usually "get together", even for a bittersweet ending, I finally concluded that this was not my genre, and stopped trying. I hadn't given much thought to it before then,

         I concluded that I could not write romances with happy endings because I had no real experience to lean on. I've only had bad relationships, and a very bad marriage. Why would I think I could write a romance except as a fantasy?

         Then last night, while I was sick and unable to sleep, I watched the 1937 version of Prisoner of Zenda. Holy Moley! A romance with a very sad, if noble, ending. This started the ball rolling. What about Romeo and Juliet and all those great classic operas? No happy endings there. So I checked it out on The Web. It turns out to be a big controversial topic. You get into "feminine" versus "masculine" writing. The great romances are usually classified with another genre such as history or adventure. It turns out you don't have to have a happy ending unless you're catering to the cheap paperback audience.

         So if you want your romantic leads to go astray, commit murder or move to separate countries, go for it. You're just writing about real life.