And now I'm not sure I can come up with anything else, LOL. I really dislike the obvious stalker situation when it's thrown in just to create some action/conflict. I know people get stalked, but seriously? Come on.

There. An opinion, and I haven't even had caffeine yet. ;)

Anne
www.annecalhoun.com
www.annecalhoun.wordpress.com

Great to have you here today, and I love the cover and the title, and this is a great topic, and one that's always more complex than meets the eye, I think, because it's so difficult, I think, in genre fiction, to know which stereotype is convention, the thing that many readers enjoy and expect, which is why we see them over and over again, and which things should be left by the side of the road. It is fun to play with them though.

I always remember one of the Jennie Cruisie novels, I think it was Faking It which took on the same issue, and the first sexual encounter with the h/H is horrible, LOL, and their relationship is really topsy turvy, and interesting. I think Rachel Gibson does a lot of that, too, which is probably why I have enjoyed so many of her books, especially the sports books, where heroes tend to armpit sniffing, and so forth, LOL.

I am in complete agreement with you on the controlling alpha male thing, although a well-crafted alpha who has layers and growth can be a great character (like the guy on Lie to Me, who is SO alpha, but in a very interesting, layered way.)

If there is one thing I see in books that probably is the most wearing for me is the girlfriend shopping trip. I tend to skim over any scenes of girlfriends shopping. Especially for shoes. LOL Isn't there some other way for women to bond and spend time together?

This will be fun today -- looking forward to the comments.

Sam

Hi Ladies!
I thought this would be fun . . . and, as a writer, informative. I'm going to be putting out a romance in the near future that goes against the grain as far as stereotypes are concerned.

Samantha, I do understand that readers absolutely love certain themes, and also that there are only so many to go around. But I've also read (or heard about) a lot of fresh takes on established themes, so I'm surprised that there is so much similarity in so many of the books, to the point where I feel like I've read the story before.

So let's have some fun, everybody!

P.S. I'm just seeing something in my post that I thought I'd changed. Most of us know that Farrah Fawcett is seriously ill. No disrespect meant to her. The fact remains that her Charlie's Angels haircut was all the rage circa 1976, which was 33 years ago, and that's the point I was trying to make. Again, I thought I'd changed it to something less sensitive, so my apologies.

I can't wait to get my hands on this book. I LOVE love love the concept. Brilliant. And I'm totally on-board with your list of cliches to avoid. Brava!

ha! I just love your list, lol
I'll be honest, though, I do like to read some romances that feature these stereotypes, but too much too often can be a pain :)

Ooh, as for A New Kind Of Bliss... I love the twist to the story, it's so different but real.

How about... going off of your #9 where characters have more money than God, lol... is the fact that it's usually always the male that makes more than the female.

~Ali
http://simplyali.blogspot.com

I love your list!
# 9 is my favorite---why are they all rich?
Why not an ordinary guy?

I see those wealthy heroes are starting to wear a bit. I actually did write a romance where the heroine suffered from what I called "the Oprah factor," that is, she outearned just about every man she met, including the mailman she fell in love with. Unfortunately, CLOSER THAN CLOSE is no longer available.

However, my next romance, which I'll be putting out as a POD book because it didn't sell and it's too good a story to be left to gather dust, is about a wealthy illegal immigrant (three words you don't often hear in the same sentence) whose chemist father was "eliminated" by his government, who, while hiding from the INS in a rented room in a New York brownstone, shares a floor with a broke law student (he already has his MD degree but decided he'd rather be a malpractice attorney than practice medicine) who's struggling to raise tuition money for his last semester. I don't know if the concept of having a broke hero was too out of left field for the editors who saw it, but I personally think it's refreshing! Look for it this summer.

I really like your twelve issues. I agree with several of them, some of them are gettin pretty old arent they.
I thought of one for you:
The "Too stupid to live heroine" who in the face of mortal danger stand there and screams, or waits for the hero to save her. Stop screaming already pick up somthing and start wacking away, or run like heck!

Those women always kill me, come on get a clue. You hear a scary noise in the basement on a stormy night with the power out. Yeah, i'd be going to check out the noise by myself. NOT!

You're book sounds great, and you have a wicked sense of humor.
have a great evening.
jody
(P.S. If you hear a strange noise dont check it out alone, unless your well armed. Like a cast iron skillet, or a 44 mangum. Yeah that would work!)

Bettye,

I'm sorry to be dropping by so late. I read your post early this morning but this is the first minute I've had to myself since then.

I love your list!

Here's the one that always bugs me. In books with babies or toddlers, the single mom or dad can park that kid somewhere for a nap or at a table with a coloring book and crayons or two pieces of string or something and not be disturbed for hours at a time. Grrr. Gets me every time. If you're going to put a child that young in the book, then deal with the reality at least a little bit.

Very interesting post. The book sounds like a winner.
Ellen

Absolutely fabulous post, Bettye! Those are great stereotypes ;) I'm totally on board with having smart women who aren't always the baby of the family, and realistic heroes AND heroines who aren't always setting the standard of physical perfection and aren't permanently off the idea of a relationship because they've been burned before :) I also can't stand the TSTL heroines who are determined to prove they're smart, capable, and independent by marching off by themselves to confront the villain, sometimes unarmed. Unless she's a trained professional, that's just proving the opposite point :P

Ah, yes, the "TSTL" heroine. I thought about her, but she's been mentioned so often she's practically a staple of Don't Do This of romantic fiction.

I've learned a few things today, and I promise to never show two female friends out shopping, or to have a scene with very young children who are blissfully quiet while they amuse themselves with the simplest of toys (the sleep-deprived moms must really hate that one!) And definitely no stalker stories.

BTW, I always sleep with a loaded (battery-wise) flashlight next to my bed. It stormed something awful here in southeastern Wisconsin last night.

It's been fun, ladies! Thanks to all of you for sharing your thoughts on this!

The winner of Bettye's book is...

Fedora! Congrats!

Just email Bettye at bettye AT bettyegriffin.com and she'll get the info to send out your book. :)