The Romance of Hope


romance of hope

I recently self-published an essay, “The Romance of Hope”, exploring romance novels not simply and traditionally as love stories, but as stories of hope: stories that show us the power of hope in our lives and how to use it.

As a long time reader of romance novels this is my answer to everyone who asks “Why do you read them?”


6 responses to “The Romance of Hope”

  1. Hi Jenny,
    Love ‘the romance of hope’ – have to agree with you! The treasure of Pandora’s box, Emily Dickinson’s bird with feathers, and Scarlett’s O’Hara’s version of a happy ending in Gone with the Wind … after all, tomorrow is another day! I recently named one of my romance heroines Hope for just this reason. Fantastic piece.
    Eliza Redgold

    • Thanks, Eliza – Hope is a name that needs to return. With Mary Stewart’s passing recently, it reminded me of her heroine from Madam, Will You Talk who was Charity. The meaning of her name was beautifully written into the story.

    • 🙂

      I’m fascinated that you used the word “satisfaction”. I was just email chatting with someone the other day about using a true story with a tragic ending as the basis for a romance novel, and “satisfaction” was exactly the word I used when describing the challenge she faced at producing a version of a “happy” ending. I think “satisfaction” is a sense of rightness, an affirmation that life is good. Anyways, you sparked a thought!

  2. Lovely to read and to learn more about you through your thoughts, Jenny. I like that you used real life romance examples as well as the traditional fairy tales. And the flowers in the background were gorgeous. 🙂

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