A few months back, I wrote a blog post about my worst habit. Trying to do too much is something I’ll always have to watch out for. There’s a flip side to this coin that I’m only just beginning to notice. I wouldn’t be surprised if you’re doing this, too. Continue reading “Give Yourself Credit”
I’ve read voraciously for as long as I can remember. Listening to the inner monologue of characters, seeing them work through challenges, and learning how different people relate to each other and their world fascinates me. In middle school, I discovered one of the stories that would haunt me for the rest of my life—Gaston Leroux’s The Phantom of the Opera.
I was obsessed with Poe and ghost stories at the time, but this book was something different. Continue reading “Haunted by the Phantom”
You’ve had a chance to meet not only Winston but Elsa, the heroine of Wandering Soul. It seems only fitting that I should introduce you to the hero as well.
Dante’s backstory piece is quite the opposite of Winston and Elsa’s. It’s the tragic and very permanent ending of one of Dante’s most important relationships. It’s also one of the most pivotal moments for Elsa and Dante—the first time they see each other. She’s in her astral form, traveling back in time. He’s experiencing the worst moment of his life.
The characters in my Paranormal Romances have to walk through the fire to reach their Happy-Ever-After. Have some tissues handy.
Recently, I noticed that most of my friends are radically different people. They have different hobbies, different beliefs, different backgrounds, different values, even. But when they get together in a room, everyone is kind to each other beyond simple manners. I’ve often wondered what it is that makes them gel, and finally think I’ve found the answer. They’re all avid readers.
Stories, especially written stories, show us what is happening in another person’s heart and mind. We can share the characters’ life experiences, their thoughts and emotions, in a singularly intimate way. Whether we like the character or not, we learn by watching them, and we take that knowledge with us when we meet others in the real world. I think readers might be more empathetic because they have “walked 300 pages in another person’s shoes” over and over again.
But what brings us to the page in the first place?
Books and stories delight people in various ways. Some people like to be frightened, others like to be inspired. For me, it’s about connection. That’s why I tend to read romance novels. I want to know that, by the end, the characters I’ve spent so much time with and learned to know and care about will be all right and living a better life than at the start of the story. Life has enough uncertainty. At least with this, with the books I choose to read and experience, I know I’m heading toward a “Happily Ever After.”
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