Bitchery reader and aspiring writer Sarah (not me) writes in with a request:
I am an aspiring writer, and am working on some of my first manuscripts after years of anime fanfiction and original fantasy shorts. Most of my readers have been saying I should get published, even if I’ve never taken one creative writing course, and am finally breaking down to maybe give it a try. Most of what I write currently is almost kitchen-sink type stories, some action-adventure, some suspense, plenty of humor, deep philosophical discussions, and lots of sex and romance.
Problem is, I’ve never picked up a full-blown romance before. I’ve been a fantasy/paranormal reader for the longest time, but after getting down right pissed after reading Sara Douglass assassinating her own female characters in the Troy Game series, I gave it reading mass-market fiction of all kind . . . except the last book of Harry Potter. I’ve been working on my own stuff ever since, and want to try to get something published. Only, I don’t know if my ideas would even stand a chance of being publish since the one I’m really rooting to research and start is completely off the wall with what I know of all the books floating around out there.
So, here’s where I need the bitchery’s help.
Has anyone ever written (or read) a romance set in Medieval Japan involving ninja? That’s right, I said ninja. I asked a friend who reads a lot more than I do and whose husband actually studies ninjitsu, and neither of them has seen ninja novels outside of Japan. Are there any ancient Asian culture novels outside of the East? Historic romance maybe?
Jade Lee’s books come to my mind first, but what recommendations do you have? And would you as a reader be interested in romances set in historical Asia?
I’d read a Japanese-set medieval any day. No ninjas, though. They creep me out. And whoever said the real question is not “would you read it?” but “is there a market for it?” forgets that we readers ARE the market. Enough of us, and any savvy publisher should be frothing at the mouth to get them into our eager hands.
Of course it’d have to be nicely researched and well written or I’d wallbang it like I did the last ridiculously poor English-set medieval I read. Think it was called THE BRAT. I wanted to smear Grey Poupon on it and feed it to the garbage disposal.
Like the SB above, I loved MISS ONE THOUSAND SPRING BLOSSOMS. Those characters (Dick-San—really—and Fujikoma) stay with me to this day. Good writing!
I love stories, but i never read romance set of stories which involved ninja. Thank you!
Martial arts shcools