Another day, another article about genre fiction, including romance, selling quite happily in digital format. And the reason?
Wait for it….
Reader embarrassment!
Kindle-owning bibliophiles are furtive beasts. Their shelves still boast classics and Booker winners. But inside that plastic case, other things lurk. Sci-fi and self-help. Even paranormal romance, where vampires seduce virgins and elves bonk trolls.
The ebook world is driven by so-called genre fiction, categories such as horror or romance. It's not future classics that push digital sales, but more downmarket fare.
Lovely.
Here's the thing:
I hear from many readers weekly that they do feel embarrassment about their love of romance. Sometimes they are conflicted about finding that their feelings of loving what they read are at cross-purposes with their feelings of dislike or even revulsion when they identify problematic elements within it. Others say they feel shame and embarrassment about what other people say or think about the romance genre, or better yet, the people who read it.
The people who write to me about these subjects do not ever, and I mean EVER, include a statement that they are embarrassed because they are reading books that aren't any good.
They usually go on and on about the books they did find incredible, the ones that made their brains fire up and made them stay up all night long, and how they love finding new books to enjoy.
Never once do they say they are embarrassed because the romances they read aren't any good.
It's the opposite: they know romances that are high quality narrative stories, and they can identify books that made them think and consider abstract conflicts and emotional tangles as much as any other lauded piece of fiction.
They are embarrassed and ashamed by the reputation of the genre among those people who care about what it is you're reading. They feel awkward about the packaging, the covers and the descriptions, the bare chests and the o-face heroines depicted in lurid colors.
They may not want to defend the genre to anyone, and thus hide it and keep it an intimate secret.
I personally don't feel any shame about what I read, even though I'm still asked by people whether I read “other things,” (so my brain doesn't atrophy, I am guessing). I have romance everywhere in my home, and I'll recommend a romance to anyone who asks me.
So when someone sends me an email, begging me not to publish it (which I wouldn't) but wanting to share their conflicted love and shame about the romance they read, I don't yell at them that they should stand up and defend themselves. Often they are thanking me for running this site where so many romance-reading book addicts hang out (my response: Just wait until you see how many romance communities there are online now. We're freaking everywhere.) There is often a sense of relief and comfort in finding people with whom they can talk about their romances.
Thus every time one of these articles comes out that reinforces all the negatives that romance readers face when they select the reading material they love, it makes me want to yell louder because the key fallacy is the repeated supposition that romance isn't any good and that's why people are embarrassed about it.
No one should be ashamed of what they read – and no one should be made to feel ashamed about what they read. But look, here's another article that rests an argument on exactly that kind of reader shaming. This article today does it: Ebooks sell because people are embarrassed that they love crap. Digital readers proliferate because they allow privacy. (NB: this isn't actually true because buying a digital book ties your name and credit card transaction to the title purchased, a data point that can be shared with bloody anyone).
Articles like these imply that everyone is ashamed of their reading when they read romance or any genre fiction for that matter. Terms like “boundless idiocy” and “God help us” and “reading public in private is lazy and smutty.”
I am not an idiot, I am not lazy, and neither are you. None of this is true.
But there are many readers who do judge themselves harshly for liking romance, and these are the types of articles that make me infuriated on their behalf, which is why I don't shut up about them, and ignore them. Some readers internalize these messages, feeding their own shame with the reinforced idea that they should be embarrassed. And that is why I yell.
Julia, who reviewed Everything I Know About Love, I Learned From Romance Novels recently, said at the end of her review: Never feel guilty for reading something. A book can mean anything to anyone.
Romance means a lot to people who love it, even those readers who harbor shame and embarrassment for loving the genre so much. Articles like this one infuriate me because they are saying someone should feel bad for loving romance, that readers should feel ashamed that they enjoy books that this writer thinks are dross.
No. No, you should not. Read what you like, then read more of it, and go on with your badass self.
snerk 🙂
I am never ashamed to admit what I read. It’s posted loud and clear on the windows of my jeep, thanks in part to some awesome authors at Dragon*con the last couple of years. I don’t care who sees the covers of the books I read, but I read digital because I can get away with it at work, because I can have hundreds, if not, thousands of books on me at once. And buy more when I need it.
I spent the day cleaning out my office and going through stuff- I have an entire box of autographed books I need to find more room for (all romances with a couple sci-fi/fantasy thrown in for good measure). But what I really am trying to get together is all my book covers and such from authors so I can get them framed and up. I love the art work. My biggest loss with reading digital is I don’t have the pretty covers to look at, so I beg, borrow and steal the author giveaways when I can. (Just ask Silver. :P)
I was taught to never be ashamed of what I read and I’m not going to let a bunch of bigoted, narrow minded idiots stop me either.
And as a warning- I tend to squee loudly when I meet an author I’ve read.
I starting using protective bookcovers long before I started reading romance. I’m going to date myself by mentioning that computers were still mainframes with punch cards back then. I’ve found that many of the hecklers don’t read unless necessary because they never really learned to read. There’s a certain amount of jealousy against those of us who can read freely, no matter what we read.
For years, I didn’t like telling people I liked romance novels. Heck, I didn’t even like admitting it to myself. I’d say “I read that book because it was interesting sci-fi,” not mentioning that the reason I LOVED that book was because of the romance brewing beetween the main characters. I didn’t mind admitting that I liked sci-fi and mysteries, but admitting I liked romances or that I liked genre-bending books because of the romance in them was much harder. This went on through college.
Then I had a wonderful professor who had absolutely no problems standing in front of the whole class and saying that he read a romance novel and liked it. I figured, if he could do it, so could I. Not that there aren’t still people (as that article illustrates) who would judge me for my reading choices. I hate that, but, so far, only my manga reading has gotten any negative comments when I’ve gone book shopping. Granted, there are certain books (m/m for starters) that I only get through Amazon or e-format, simply because they’re not available at my local bookstore.
100 years from now, snobby people will have accepted that many of today’s romances are classics. But they won’t call them Romance and they will have less cheesy covers. (Or less cheesy icons.)
I do read more romances now that I have a Kindle, but it’s not because I’m ashamed. It’s because I’m busy and I don’t have time to go to a store to browse, and ebooks make reading much more accessible for me. It’s not just romances that I’m reading more of; it’s all books (and that includes classics, which, for Ms. Senior’s information, I do not read to impress people, but rather for my own enjoyment). But even if I only read romances ever, neither Ms. Senior nor anyone else would have the right to shame me for my personal choices. To Ms. Senior and all her elitist ilk, I have a message that is most succinctly communicated by this t-shirt: http://image.spreadshirt.com/i…
I’ve had a love affair with romances starting with the first Harlequin I read at age 12 (I’ll be 50 this year). When I ran into an old high school boyfriend who was aware of my passion for romance novels, he asked me if I still kept my nose in one of those books I used to read. I said, “You betcha.” Now more than ever. I read so much of it that most others I know can’t introduce me to ‘something new’. I’ve already read it or I’ve been reading that author for years. I will never be ashamed of my choice of reading material. No matter how insignificant a value most place on romance, one can always learn something new. I’ve visited new places, tried new foods, opened my mind to many unique experiences because of my love for romance novels. I don’t know many people personally that can say that. I’m sure that many people who post here can claim these things as well. My Kindle just makes it easier to carry around more of the things I love. I can read just about anything I want with the push of a button. No shame in my game.
Articles like this tend to fuel my pugnatious state of mind. Who cares what literary types think about genre fiction? I like what I like. If someone has the bad manners to actually try to deride me on any of it, they’d better watch out. I’ve been storing up annoyance and it will come out. lol Either sweetly, with subtle sarcasm so they can try to figure it out later, or in rather direct language that starts with, “So what’s the last book you read?” 🙂
I like the way Betty Rosenberg, author of Genreflecting: A Guide to Reading Interests in Genre Fiction put it the best: “Rosenberg’s first rule of reading: Never apologize for your reading tastes.”
LG—Michael Dirda, long-time Washington Post reviewer, wrote very favorably of several Harlequins a number of years ago. And, in preparation for the review, he openly read them on the train with no qualms whatsoever. Hey, if they’re good enough for the amazing Michael Dirda, they should be good enough for anyone. (But I’d still be too shy to display them.)
I think it’s payback time. Can’t one of you clever writers produce a newspaper article deconstructing the sad, futile, unimaginative lives of people who only read to feel despair and heartbreak? What does it say about someone who feels satisfaction when an entire cast of characters they have nurtured for 600 pages dies in the last chapter? Why is being confused about the theme, context, symbolism, or conflict in a novel inherently superior? How many coming-of-age stories does the English-speaking world need? If I have a happy family life am I doomed to insignificance?
At the very least we could have a caption the cover contest. Something like –
Literature: How the printing press has contributed to depression rates in Western Society. Available soon at your neighbourhood pharmacy!
I’ve loved reading the defense of romance, not because I write it, but because I’ve loved reading romance ever since my grandmother handed me my first Mills and Boon when I was twelve. I’m connected to romance so strongly, again not as a writer, but as a reader. When life was hard (as it often is for an overweight, not so popular girl going through puberty) I lost myself in tales about knights, cowboys and delicious CEOs, knowing one day, I’d be just like that heroine and find someone who’d pour me a glass of wine and tell me my lips were kissable. Someday. And as I grew, it affirmed in me what love really was. I was never lonely with my romance books – they were the mac and cheese to my soul and someone would have to pry them out of my cold dead hands to get me to give them up.
I really don’t give a rat’s ass what anyone thinks. A good story is a good story…and there are plenty of wonderful stories in the world of romance. I, too, have a Bachelor’s degree in English and History, and I’ve found value in the classics, but if it came down to The Grapes of Wrath or Susan Elizabeth Phillips’ latest book, I know which one I’m choosing. Life’s too damn hard to live in the dust when I could be reading about football players, penniless actresses and revenge.
Oh, and I got my hero, but he never tells me my lips are kissable…he just kisses them 😉
I blame the covers. I have no problem saying that I read romance but there are plenty of romance novel covers that I’d be embarrassed to be seen with.
I have to admit that basically the only books on my Kindle are erotica, and they are on there because I am too embarrassed to buy/read them in public. I don’t want my friends/family to know that I like to read sexually graphic books, so the Kindle is a terrific option. I guess, when you get down to it, that means I am ashamed of what I read on some level.
I am not ashamed of liking romance but I am embarrassed by a lot of the cheestastic covers – one of the reasons my ereader comes in handy…
That’s hardcore SF readers for you, constantly defending their favoured genre by bashing other genres. And when you call them on it, they get really stinky, too.
Yes, some people are embarrassed to admit they read romances, especially when articles like this keep cropping up to remind us of our ‘shame’.
*massive sigh*
I always think these articles are more about the reporter’s personal issues than about the books/genres they’re writing about.
Some people are disproportionately proud of the things they don’t like.
Meh. I’ll simply keep reading.
The blithering ignorance of her snobbery is hilarious—apparently she has never read any of the “classics”! Most of them were the cheap pulp fiction of their time… only they were particularly good and entertaining and so survived. As for “future classics”—if an author stays in print for multiple decades in spite of being, well, dead and not writing more books, I’d guess that his or her books are incipient classics. JRR Tolkien, Edgar Rice Burroughs, H.P. Lovecraft, and Robert E. Howard all come to mind thuswise.
I read more classics than I used to now that I have an E-book reader—they’re free from Project Gutenburg and places like ManyBooks, that format the Gutenburg texts a bit better. Right now I’m wading through Xenophon’s “Anabasis”, and gee this plot looks familiar—(looks at John Ringo & David Weber’s “Prince Roger” series). I suspect most genre snobs are completely unaware how much borrowing from “the classics” there is in genre fiction. I’ve read more than one scifi novel that was a retelling of “The Odyssey” (cf. David Drake), a comic book story arc that was almost a scene-for-scene replay of Euripides’ “Medea” (Marvel’s X-Men), and I’m pretty sure I’ve seen bits of the Illiad pop up here and there, too.
And then there’s the classics that are romances, like Jane Austen’s books. Where do they fit in the snobbish literature hierarchy?
“And then there’s the classics that are romances, like Jane Austen’s books. Where do they fit in the snobbish literature hierarchy? “
The literary snob answer to that would be: “Those aren’t romance novels. They’re love stories.”
I took a History of English Literature class for fun a year or so ago, I got there early one day and pulled a romance novel out of my bag to read, I was the first person and chose to sit by the door, every single person walked in, looked at what I was reading, and made a condescending/sneering comment about it. EVERY F***ING PERSON in a class of 50+ supposed adults.
On an side note, are we allowed to swear here or will that get our comments mod’ed?
Sigh. You know, sometimes you just gotta say “MYOB.” Or, as a former coworker of mine used to say, “Nunya” (none of your business.) Really, life is awfully short to be so frakkin’ judgmental.
What I never got was the scorn for romance from people who read junky pop novels. Gratuitous sex? Check. Implausible plot? Check. Wooden characters? Check. But if it doesn’t have a pink cover, it’s not badly written trash. And if it does have a pink cover, then they don’t have to open it and actually read what’s inside, because if your best friend’s brother’s third cousin once read a few pages of a Barbara Cartland, you know all there is to know about every romance novel ever written.
I don’t have kids, and my Mom doesn’t read romances, so I’ve never thought about this before, what is the appropriate age for romance novels that include sex? I’m extremely curious what the SBTB crowd thinks…
Brava! Very well said. Thank you.
No-one should make you ashamed of doing or loving anything. If your family, colleagues, or so-called friends make you feel ashamed of loving romance novels, then they clearly aren’t people you want to be around. Same goes for anyone in your life who needs to make the people around them feel small. They clearly have issues.
Can you guess? I’m a loud and proud romance reader!
I am an unabashed romance novel reader and have never been ashamed of it. I love to read period. Also, just because something is literature, doesn’t mean it’s any good. I’ve read some dreck over the years that some people consider classics.
I have been ashamed, I read romance and I am proud of it. But there was a time where I for some reason were I hid that I loved fantasy. Why? Dunno. it was a time where everyone said it was bad, low sort of literature and all that. But I was younger then, if I had read romance then I am sure I would have felt like that too.
People who judge people about what they read, well they obviously have nothing better to do in their lives
My son calls them my naked man cover books. But on occasion i will start a discussion about one of them and not tell him what it is and he becomes as intrigued as i am. He loves my black ops and seal stories (Call To Duty in Romance form) and even some of the paranormal mystery/romantic suspense ones he listens to with me in the car (we skip my favorite parts if he is in the car – i go back later :)). He is a fabulous reader and i want him to know there are so many genres out there and he should read WHATEVER he wants, just read and enjoy.
I write romance, and among my hoity-toity neighbors, what I do is kind of a joke. They say things to me like, “Oh, here she comes, cover your necks.” Ha, ha. Yes, I frequently write about vampires. In the past, I’ve chuckled demurely, and then quickly changed the subject, embarrassed to elaborate. From now on, I’m going to say, “Yes, you’d better cover your neck. I could drain you in about thirty seconds.”
My students in genre fiction classes—fantasy or sci-fi or similar genres; I keep meaning to develop a romance class to complement them—sometimes get snide about romance. I take the time to set them straight by leading them through a discussion of sf stereotypes. And then I ask if they’ve ever actually *read* a romance. It usually works. Plus, I gave up being embarrassed long ago. I rather enjoyed sitting in the halls of my grad school brazenly reading a romance novel. It was a nice way to thumb my nose at the stupid pretentiousness that surrounded me most of the time.
You’ve maybe seen these already, but Eric Selinger’s put some “Resources for Teaching Popular Romance Fiction” online and he sometimes blogs about his courses too (the posts should all be listed at Teach Me Tonight under the “teaching romance fiction” tag).
I love love this post more than anything i’ve read on a blog before. I’ve loved romances for a while and when i was younger i definitely was slightly ashamed that i read romances and i would hide it and keep it a secret people i knew people would be like.. really? That garbage or something of that nature(had that said to me).
But to say that the only reason ebooks sales are for embarrassed people is not the reason at alll. Its convenience. I read books like no ones business and its a perfect way to have many books in one place easily accessible. I do have the random time that i go to the book store to get an ACTUAL book(Yes i still do read those occasionally), and i hesitate when i look at the romance section because of those overly sexual covers, but when its all said and done, I love that they are half naked men and ladies draped over fabios’ arms.
I’M NOT ASHAMED TO SAY I LOVE ROMANCE. I openly tell people that is what i read when asked now, i love these books and i wouldnt change it at all.
Do people not know that when you show someone your ereader(which is pretty sacred) they still see the covers of these books. Not really easily hidden.
Just loved this post all around <3 This blog is amazing.
“That’s hardcore SF readers for you, constantly defending their favoured genre by bashing other genres. And when you call them on it, they get really stinky, too.”
@Cora – I don’t believe the author of the piece was a SF reader… unless SF means something other than Science Fiction. She does say: “My own downmarket literary fetish is male-oriented historical fiction (histfic)”.
I could say that science fiction is just as maligned as romance – but, that is a different argument and doesn’t even begin to touch on ‘crossover’ genres such as Urban Fantasy…
So, I am simply sorry you have not encountered more open minded Scifi fans.
I use my Kindle for the storage and the convenience, absolutely. And while I read a lot in several different genres, most of what is loaded onto my Kindle are romances. I agree with some of the covers being embarrassing and honestly, having what I’m reading hidden saves time. I’m not the leader of the Anti-Socialites but never have I been stopped with more questions about “what ARE you reading” and “what is it about?” than when I’m seen in public reading a romance. (No one asks that many questions with mystery books. Hell, they practically run away screaming when they see a historical lit in my hands – I think its the fear that they will be treated to a lecture regarding the Battle of Pinkie, or somesuchother.) Which just goes to show for as much as people snark about it, there is a kind of weird fascination/curiosity about romance novels, even among the snobbiest literature snobs.
But back to my original point, the storage is definitely a factor, especially because of all the series/prolific nature of romance authors in general. Once I find an authorial voice that rocks my socks, I turn into a whirlwind of MUST READ ALL THE BOOKS. So it saves space and my aching back muscles that all the books can be on one handy dandy device I can shove in my purse. 😉
I don’t get it. Maybe it’s a demographic thing, but reading romance is what women do where I’m from. I’m from the deep South and reading romance isn’t something anyone I know is embarrassed to admit.
We don’t read romance exclusively,but it’s in the top 1%. My momma and my aunts and my friends’ mothers all read romance from as early as I can remember (mid-1960s at least). Phyllis Whitney and Jean Plaidy(and her more romance-heavy pen name) and Jennifer Blake were staples in our house. While my mom was into historicals and gothics, I was more into Regency, via Georgette Heyer. It never crossed my mind that other women might feel sheepish about reading what they want to read.
By the way, all my Momma’s friends and all my friends come from households full of very strong-minded women. Maybe it’s not a cultural thing, but like minds befriending each other?
I know literally no one in real life who reads romance. No one who has admitted to it, anyways. And no one I know seems to have a very good opinion of it. 🙁
Really? I know tons of people who read romance. All the women of my family did. All of them and several had college diplomas (gasp!) And many of my friends read them – we did lots of trading. Of course, I know some who still apologize for liking “trashy” romance.
Are my books burning a fire in the souls of men and women everywhere? Nope. But that’s not my intent. I’m not trying to get you to think, I’m trying to get you to NOT think. My books are pleasure reading. Boy meets girl. Girl runs over boy’s foot with her car. H-jinx ensue with lots of kissing, laughter and a few misunderstandings. Happily ever after delivers warm glow. Nothing earth-shattering…just a good couple of hours spent hopefully leaving a gal feeling happier and more apt to look at her significant other with lovey dovey eyes.
How can a woman (or a man) not like to feel a warm glow? To remember what it’s like the first time? I don’t get what intrinsically wrong with the no-so-guilty pleasure of romance? The only thing I can think of is that it’s a genre by women for women (mostly) and thus not deemed as high brow as those who write about slavery, abortion, death and all the other ‘isms of the world. Cripes! Do we all need study questions at the end of a book?
I don’t think there is a magic answer to this question. My kids are at an age where they tend to be pretty good at self-editing. They are boys. They don’t like books (or shows) that are too violent or scary and I absolutely respect that. They are pretty innocent/naive at the moment about sex, and they are not even very curious about it yet. So my “age appropriate” reference is directed more towards things that contain graphic violence at the moment. I will have to think later about what “age appropriate” means in the context of sex. I know that I discovered romance when I was about 12, and in those days there wasn’t much explicit sex in them. When I was about 16, I came across other books (literature or otherwise) that contained more explicit sex (which would still probably be viewed as pretty tame to today’s audiences). I was singled out and embarrassed by my family about these reading choices, and I absolutely will NOT do this with my kids. However, I will have to give some thought to how to help them avoid exposure to really graphic material that they are not ready to see, while at the same time maintaining an open mind and a willingness to let them explore and ask questions. Interested to hear what others think about this…
I started using book covers long before e-readers were invented not because I was ashamed of what I was reading, but because I was tired of being pulled out of my story by random people announcing they would never read SF/Fantasy because it was so *weird*. Personally I would never drink Diet Coke, but I don’t feel compelled to interrupt strangers’ lunches to tell them so. People can’t complain about what I’m reading if they don’t know what it is, and I don’t have to waste valuable minutes of my very short lunch break listening to their opinions on it. Of course, now I have to listen to them tell me how they would never use an e-reader because paper books are best…
When I go to read fanfictions I usually only read romance ones (outside of fanfictions I read a wider variety) and I’m not ashamed of admitting it.