Sept 17, 2013 Garneau Pub Patio, Edmonton Alberta
Part
Ten – Romance and Science Fiction – A Hybrid Genre
Question: You are currently writing primarily in the
hybrid genre loosely known as Science Fiction Romance. That’s a genre that combines the adventure
and speculative nature of SF with the relationship focus of romance. Would you agree with that definition?
Answer:
It’s seems alright. The blend can vary a lot - sometimes it’s
mostly romance with a little SF thrown in to carry the plot , sometimes it’s
mostly SF with a little romance thrown in to round out the characters. Sometimes there’s a significant helping of
erotica thrown in.
Question: Where would you place yourself on this
spectrum?
Answer: Somewhere in the middle, I suppose. I like that SF allows me to speculate on
substantial themes and subjects, but that the romance element keeps my
characters grounded in very human realities.
I prefer to keep the romance content more on the emotional than physical
level, but a little bit of bawdy humor can be fun too.
Question: The SF/Romance genre is kind of a new
development, that seems to be a lot more prevalent since the e-book and
independent publishing transitions. Do you
agree, and if so, why do you think that is?
Answer:
I think that probably is true. I think that it may be due to the fact that
women are reading more SF, and they have always been more interested in the
romantic side of human interactions, whether in a SF environment or not. Not to say that they don’t like adventure
too. That’s one of the reasons that they
read Science Fiction.
Question:
You have been reading SF yourself for some time. Would you say that the romance side of the
genre has always been nascent, but is now manifesting much more due to the
lessening of the gatekeeper function in publishing, which may have emphasized
typically male tropes, stereotypes and interests in the past?
Answer:
It’s hard for me to say, as I was a
voracious reader in pre-ebook days, but now my time is more focused on writing
than reading, so I may not be a great judge of changing trends. Having said that, I am inclined to think
there may be something to the idea. I
recall reading writers like Andre Norton, who more or less ignored romance,
even when I, as a reader, thought it was
imminent in the story. But she seemed
unwilling to deal with it or to develop the idea fully. There were times in reading her books where I
thought they ended before they should have, because she never confirmed the
likely romantic feelings of the characters.
But you also had writers like Ann McCaffery, who had a lot of romantic
interaction in her stories.
Question: Ann McCafferey had a lot of romance or
she hinted at it?
Answer:
No, she had flat out romance and
love, though not erotica.
Question: Going back to Andre Norton, she’s an
interesting example. When I was younger
and first read her, I just assumed that the book was written by a male
writer. Do you think she may have shied
away from developing the romantic potential of her characters because she
didn’t want to let on that she was a female writer, and male writers just
didn’t go there, according to the thinking of the gatekeepers of that era?
Answer:
I don’t know that she was hiding her
gender or anything, but I don’t doubt that the publishers were happy with
ambiguity, since they thought of the SF readership as primarily male.
Question: Moving on to some other well known SF
characters, we have the Mulder/Scully or Doctor Who/Female Companion
relationships. In those cases, the
romantic possibilities are always in the air, the viewer or reader is teased,
if you like. Do you think that the
writers were unwilling to consummate the relationships because it would take
away that frisson of sexual tension that was there?
Answer:
Maybe. With a continuing series, you have to keep
the tension going, and you are constrained by the difficulties of keeping a
relationship going, keeping it fresh and interesting to people who are outside
of the relationship itself.
Question:
Plus, it means that the main
characters can’t flirt and canoodle with anyone else, unless they are cheats,
and that detracts from their likability.
Answer: Yes, I have had to deal with this issue
myself, where I had Kati and Mikal consummate their relationship before the end
of the first book. Then I had the
problem of keeping things fresh and interesting between them, from the reader’s
point of view.
Question:
So a “happily married couple” just
doesn’t cut it.
Answer: No, I am assuming that a happy couple can
cut it, since that’s what Kati and Mikal are.
Question:
How do you handle it, then?
Answer: One way I do it, is to split them up for
at least part of the book. That way they
can each deal with different aspects of the adventure for a while, which allows
me to develop two parallel subplots, which eventually mesh together. That can include a nice romantic
reunion. It also allows them scope for a
bit of flirtation with others, while they are separated.
Question:
You say that there are parallel
subplots, but if they eventually meet they can’t really be parallel. Not in a Euclidian story-space anyway.
Answer:
I guess this is some other
story-space, where parallel subplots can meet.
Question:
And meet with a bang.
Answer:
And plenty of sparks.
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