FRANCES ROBERTSON has been an avid lover of fantasy ever since she read The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe at a tender age. Romance followed somewhat later, and when it did, it seemed like a perfect complement to spaceships and dragons. Frances recently sold her first story to Tales of the Talisman magazine. She lives with her husband in the desert Southwest, and has a backyard full of bunnies, lizards, quail, the occasional bobcat and a gopher named Rasputin.
Robertson's contribution to SUM3 is the historical short story, "With Heart to Hear”, definitely the spiciest entry in the anthology. In Robertson's story, the troll under the bridge is converted into a romantic hero. For an excerpt click here.
“Love makes the world go ‘round.”
Well, not really. That honor probably goes to money. But I’ll wager that love is number two.
There are a lot of different kinds of love. Parental. Filial. Fraternal. Patriotic. Romantic. Love can drive men and women to heights of bravery and self-sacrifice. And unlike money, love makes us better people.
That’s why I like to write about love. I grew up reading fantasy tales of heroic deeds done by people who loved. Loved their ideals, their people, their country. And if there was a little romantic love thrown in too, all the better. :-) Later, I discovered romance, first in my personal life, and later on the printed page.
Yes, romance fiction is fantasy too. The relationships evolve too fast, and the tortured soul (usually the man) is redeemed by love; all his flaws are eliminated through the love of a good woman. In real life, the woman probably would (or should) run away from this damaged character. But the kernel of truth in that story is more important than what’s on the surface. Love redeems us. It makes us aspire to be better. To be our best selves.
It was that truth that made me want to write “With Heart to Hear.”
The word “love” is easily spoken, but not so easily demonstrated, unless the feeling is truly there. When we’re in the throes of infatuation, it’s easy to confuse desire with love. It’s really only by our actions that we show what it is that’s in our hearts to those who can hear.
– Frances Robertson
SUM3 at Amazon
SUM3 at Fictionwise
SUM3 Website Extravaganza
No comments:
Post a Comment