A couple of weeks ago an new author I met on Twitter sent me a message telling me that our romance books were very much alike. Of course, I panicked because Lottie Loser was written in my head for two years before I ever sat down at a computer, and there was no way our books could be alike! Turns out they aren’t, but there are a few similarities, and that got me thinking about just how different books in the same genre can have some of the same features, without being identical.

Romance has a set style. A protagonist, often a beautiful woman, an antagonist, a handsome man if the protagonist is a female, some conflict along the way and ends with an HEA, Happily Ever After. But the nuances, like the storyline, the character’s personalities, even the setting is all determined by the author.

So why is it that after Lottie was published I was reading a book and the protagonist had an elderly neighbor, like Lottie’s Mrs. Danvers, that she befriended? Or the times since when a book I was reading vacillated between today and another period in the characters life, and even though it was presented differently, it still felt very similar.

Then last week I was reading a brand new book and all of a sudden I thought, “Hey! This is a lot like my series.” Old friends, whose relationship ended uncomfortably meet again after several years, and you guessed it, the connection between them is still strong. There was even a little back and forth in time, but presented differently than my books do.

At first I was concerned, but pretty quickly realized that this new book was just like the ones I read after Lottie was published. I hadn’t taken anything from another author, and this one hadn’t taken anything from me. We each had a concept for a book, and when we wrote them, we each thought we were brilliantly coming up with something fresh and new.

So is there really any brand new way to present a romance story? Of course, and lots of authors find them, but there are still a lot of books out there that are totally different, but subtly the same. The good news is, if a reader falls in love with your books, they don’t seem to mind.

Until we read again📚…

Blessings,

Dana L. ❤️

💝February is the month of love so beginning February 2, my wedding anniversary, through February 13, I’m holding a giveaway for one winner to receive a signed copy of both Lottie Loser and Call Me Charlotte. Be watching for more details next week and for the posted links.💝