SANTA BABY...

Over at Smart Bitches, Trashy Books, a call for gossip devolved into a genuine discussion of a favorite topic: what readers expect from paranormal romance.

I wouldn't want to be an editor looking for the next hot read in speculative romantic fiction, because everyone seems to expect a different experience, or bring a different reader need to the bookstore aisle. I think that our subgenre has to work the hardest in any of romance, because of the varied tastes and desires of its fans.

And although this reality too often leads to angry readers demanding to know why a favorite series has turned the corner into something they don't want to read, I think the diversity in speculative romance is a strength.

I'm sure my letter to Speculative Romance Santa is very different from yours, and not just because I'm weird. It's because speculative romance whispers so much to so many, that we must be flexible in our definition of genre, and be understanding that what tosses your confetti might sink somebody else's tugboat.

So share your wish list for 2007 with the Speculative Romance Santa.

Here's mine:

Dear Speculative Romance Santa,

Please forego the diamonds and dark chocolate confections in my stocking this year, and deliver some good specrom reads, like…

Stories so well crafted that the romantic conflict grows directly from the circumstances of the author's speculative vision.

Stories that challenge my emotional boundaries through characters that so move me, I must transcend my "squick" factors to appreciate their love story. Even if it's only for the time it takes to read the book.

Real aliens to fall in love with. Tentacles and everything.

Historical speculative romance.

More stories like early Dean Koontz, but with more speculative content. I'm tired of re-reading Watchers and Lightening, Santa, please?

Love and chills,

Joyce