Welcome again to CentreStage!
CentreStage showcases fantastic authors from around the world, introducing in particular my fellow featured authors at loveahappyending.com as well as fellow authors in the Sapphire Star Publishing family. In this new, exciting feature, these authors might write for you about their lives, or their writing journey, or anything else that matters to them. Every feature will be different in format and flavour, so watch out for a variety of stories and tales.
Today, it is my honour and my pleasure to host a fellow Loveahappyending.com author, namely the amazing Janice Horton! Welcome Janice–and I look forward to hearing about an event that really moved you just lately!
Janice writes: RomCom for Men…!
An amazing thing just happened. My latest eBook, a contemporary romance novel entitled Reaching for the Stars has received its seventeenth review on Amazon.co.uk!
You may understand that I’m pleased – it was a very complementary review – but why was it amazing you ask? Well, you see, it was from a man. Now, there is no reason why a man should not read and enjoy this novel – as it does have a strong, topical and a humorous storyline, which is told in part from a male point of view.
It’s about a man, after all. A disillusioned and media stalked celebrity chef who has just won his third ‘star’ at the same time as losing his third wife. An irony lost on no one, least of all the infamous chef himself.
But you see, this particular male reader (having at first confessed to downloading ‘Reaching for the Stars’ by accident and reading it anyway) said he really enjoyed it and has since also downloaded my previous novel ‘Bagpipes & Bullshot’. He entitled his review ‘Romcom for Men’.
Well, to say I was delighted is an understatement because here at last was a man who didn’t think that reading a book with a romantic thread in it was not for him, and by posting his review has singlehandedly exploded the myth that my books (about relationships) are written exclusively for only half the population.
And it’s not just books, mine or otherwise, that get those misleading gender genre labels. Take movies for example; even the ones labelled War/Crime/
Action/Adventure usually have a strong thread of romance in the storyline. So why market Romance exclusive as ‘Women’s Fiction’?
Thank you to my lovely male reviewer. You not only moved me with your generosity in taking the time to put up such a wonderful review – you also made my day. RomCom for all!
Hear, hear! I couldn’t agree more! What a fabulous occasion, Janice, I am thrilled and I share your excitement about ‘wowing’ the male of the species.
Let’s find out more about Janice Horton
Janice writes romantic and descriptive novels with humour. Look out for her Amazon bestselling Bagpipes & Bullshot and latest novel Reaching for the Stars. Janice is a regular blogger and you can find her on Twitter and Facebook. When not writing novels, Janice writes lifestyle articles and has had work published in national and international magazines and regional newspapers. She has also been involved in BBC Scotland’s ‘Write Here Write Now’ project. She is a member of the Romantic Novelist’s Association and an Associate Author and Editor at Loveahappyending.com. Janice will be speaking at the Loveahappyending.com Summer Audience Event in Tetbury, Gloucestershire, on the 16th June 2012.
You can find Janice’s books on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com.
A big Thank You to Janice for visiting CentreStage today and sharing her fabulous anecdote! 🙂
Now then… calling all men! Are you a closet RomCom lover? I know at least some of you are, because I know you’ve read Janice’s book and a few of you have read my book, too… but will you own up here?
Calling the ladies: what do you think about genres? Why shouldn’t men read romantic comedies? And you, do you read crime? Horror? Do you read them out in the open, or in secret? Let’s have the genre/gender discussion, see what shakes out!
Nicky Wells: Love & Thrills 