Harlequin Presents! Goodness. Do you know I first found these at my elementary school library? Yup. Not even junior high. I was eleven years old. It was on for me and romance from then on. Of course I became a shipper. :-) I used to keep a list when I was little of how many romances I read and I quit listing when I broke 150. I could write that Harlequin Presents formula novel. So predictable! So addictive too. :-)
Penny Jordan is still writing? For reals? She sure made her money. And she used to be one of my favorites too! You read one recently? I can't imagine reading one now because they are so silly! But she did write good schmoop and I can appreciate schmoop.
Ooh, his name is Alessandro. :-) Sorry, getting distracted. :-)
There are several scenes where you think the lead couple will "consummate their relationship" but they don't until much later in the book. Yes, the consummation fakeout! Let me tell you it really did confuse my 11 and 12-year-old selves. Lest you worry about my then tender age know that sometimes when the romance was finally consummated and I didn't really even know it had happened because it was so fraught with flowery euphemisms or I'd been faked out so many times I just didn't notice. I'd read back and go, what?! I hope that this writing has grown clearer but somehow I don't think so. And back in my day, they didn't always consummate in Harlequin Presents, either. They'd get married at the end, or there would be consummation-interruptus or something would happen to prevent it.
many teenage girls read romance novels, even when they're not labeled for them. I found Twilight about four years ago in the YA section of the library and skimmed it and didn't deem it worthy of borrowing on my card. But as a young girl? I read everything. As I said, I found the Harlequins in the school library so I thought that was okay. Preteens will find whatever if they want to. Then I used my allowance to buy a few. I think I still have the first one I ever purchased. I do: Infatuation by Charlotte Lamb. It only cost $1.95. Charlotte Lamb was one of my favorites too. :-)
Romance novels can be trite and formulaic but if I had more discipline I'd churn them out. Good money. And entertaining. And I learned about the UK and different spellings of words like 'prioritise' and what 'fancying' someone meant. :-) As a young girl, I knew the difference between these books and reality. I think young girls are smart and they know the stuff in Twilight or Harlequin Presents are just . . . fantasies. I'll speak for myself. I think I was smart enough to know the difference and probably found more harm in books like Sweet Valley High or those YA Wildfire books that made every American town seem sweet and wholesome and that was the norm. Believing that caused me more harm than reading about vampires would. But that's just me.
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Penny Jordan is still writing? For reals? She sure made her money. And she used to be one of my favorites too! You read one recently? I can't imagine reading one now because they are so silly! But she did write good schmoop and I can appreciate schmoop.
Ooh, his name is Alessandro. :-) Sorry, getting distracted. :-)
There are several scenes where you think the lead couple will "consummate their relationship" but they don't until much later in the book.
Yes, the consummation fakeout! Let me tell you it really did confuse my 11 and 12-year-old selves. Lest you worry about my then tender age know that sometimes when the romance was finally consummated and I didn't really even know it had happened because it was so fraught with flowery euphemisms or I'd been faked out so many times I just didn't notice. I'd read back and go, what?! I hope that this writing has grown clearer but somehow I don't think so. And back in my day, they didn't always consummate in Harlequin Presents, either. They'd get married at the end, or there would be consummation-interruptus or something would happen to prevent it.
many teenage girls read romance novels, even when they're not labeled for them.
I found Twilight about four years ago in the YA section of the library and skimmed it and didn't deem it worthy of borrowing on my card. But as a young girl? I read everything. As I said, I found the Harlequins in the school library so I thought that was okay. Preteens will find whatever if they want to. Then I used my allowance to buy a few. I think I still have the first one I ever purchased. I do: Infatuation by Charlotte Lamb. It only cost $1.95. Charlotte Lamb was one of my favorites too. :-)
Romance novels can be trite and formulaic but if I had more discipline I'd churn them out. Good money. And entertaining. And I learned about the UK and different spellings of words like 'prioritise' and what 'fancying' someone meant. :-) As a young girl, I knew the difference between these books and reality. I think young girls are smart and they know the stuff in Twilight or Harlequin Presents are just . . . fantasies. I'll speak for myself. I think I was smart enough to know the difference and probably found more harm in books like Sweet Valley High or those YA Wildfire books that made every American town seem sweet and wholesome and that was the norm. Believing that caused me more harm than reading about vampires would. But that's just me.