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Happy publication day to Julie Garwood!! – Why write romance?

By Piatkus Entice
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Fast Track is out today and we are so thrilled to have Julie Garwood celebrating here with us! We asked why she wrote romance novels – or basically, how did we get so lucky? Below is her wonderful answer . . .

Why do I write romance novels?

The answer is simple.  I love happy endings.  And to me the one essential element that absolutely has to be in any romance novel is a happy ending.  In my stories the hero and heroine must eventually find true and everlasting love.

I suppose there are those who would say, in this age of cynicism and doubt, that my thinking is a bit naïve, but I would disagree.  I contend that soul mates do exist.   For the rare lucky ones, it’s love at first sight, but for others it takes a while.  The characters I create usually fall into the second group.  Outside forces might distract them or throw obstacles in their path, but eventually, despite all the turmoil, they are drawn to each other.  My heroes and heroines have to get past the chaos before they realize they’ve met their soul mate.

I get a lot of satisfaction out of creating terrible predicaments for them, and I do my best to come up with some really sticky situations.  For example, in KILLJOY a house was wired to blow up if a door or window was opened, and in HOTSHOT a dream job became a nightmare when the boss turned out to be a lecherous jerk.   In my newest book, FAST TRACK, the heroine is faced with a father’s lies and a mother’s betrayal, a revelation that upends her life as she goes after the truth.  Throwing the characters into the middle of these dilemmas and then watching how they react is what makes writing so much fun.

For the few hours the readers spend with my characters, I want them to escape into another world, a world where good is good and bad is bad, and they can tell the difference.  Of course, woven into these elements of suspense and danger is a passionate love story.  After all, it is a romance.

When I hear that someone got lost in one of my books, I feel I’ve accomplished my goal.  I’ve received letters and emails from readers who tell me how important those moments of escape are.  I was touched by the cancer patient who said, while she was reading one of my historical novels during a chemo infusion, she was completely unaware of the IV’s and the needles because she was off falling in love with a Highland laird in medieval Scotland.  And I was thrilled to hear from a soldier serving in Iraq who said she picked up one of my books and forgot about the hot sand blowing outside her makeshift barracks because she had been swept away by a handsome hero on an adventure in the Louisiana bayou. These kind and thoughtful remarks make all the hours at the typewriter (yes, I use a typewriter) worthwhile.

I write romance novels because I know there are people out there who are just like me.  They want books that will make them feel something.  And most of all, they want a happy ending.

 

Fast Track is available from Entice on ereaders everywhere!