CHAPTER 43

WHAT IS CHRISTIAN ROMANCE?

BY GAIL GAYMER MARTIN

With romance permeating all areas of the music, film, and TV industries, it’s not surprising that the Christian romance novel is a major fiction genre. At its simplest, romance is the story of boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy finds girl, boy and girl have a happy ending. The element of the happy ending is what truly defines romance.

My personal expanded definition of Christian romance is the story of two people with individual goals and needs, the physical and emotional attraction that holds them together, the conflict that separates them, and their coming together, through a deeper purpose and God’s guidance, to embrace in love and commitment.

The main elements of Christian romance are: believable characters, realistic conflicts, a solid faith message, and, as with all romance, a happy ending. Most are written through the eyes of the hero and heroine (two points of view), have few subplots, and run from 45,000 to 80,000 words.

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN SECULAR AND CHRISTIAN ROMANCE

Though Christian romance follows the basic pattern of a secular
romance, it differs significantly in a variety of ways. While secular romance develops two story threads (personal growth, which is the characters’ struggles to obtain their goals; and romantic growth as they fall in love), the Christian romance applies three threads: personal, romantic, and spiritual growth. Spiritual growth is the characters’ deepening relationships with God and greater understanding of their spiritual needs as they work through their problems.

Four other major differences between secular and Christian romance deal with the use of: violence, profanity, physical sensuality and explicit sexual content, and spiritual elements and a take-away faith message.

Violence

Christian publishers are opening the door to forms of violence in some genres; for example, Ted Dekker’s thrillers. However, readers have expectations of what is appropriate in Christian romance and will avoid purchasing books that present offensive scenes. Further, they often will be wary of the publishing house’s books in the future.

Some violence can be found in most thrillers, suspense, police procedurals, and war stories. Violence is necessary, to a degree, in Christian romantic suspense, and most publishers allow violence if it is needed for the story line and handled in a nongraphic manner. The difference between secular and Christian novels is the level of detail. Gratuitous violence, explicit descriptions, details of blood and gore, and any scene depicting violence to women and children must be handled with extreme sensitivity.

If violence is part of a story, it is important to include the elements of righteous justice for the criminal, meaning punishment for the crime, and justice and redemption for the hero and heroine who may have had violent tendencies in their pasts.

There are ways to handle violence in Christian romantic suspense while avoiding details; for example, begin a scene with the aftermath of the violent action, or focus on the internal struggle of the character as he battles against the impending evil. Let the emotion, rather than the physical description, provide readers with the drama of the scene.

Even in romance, topics such as rape, unfaithfulness, domestic violence, and other acts of immorality are found; but again, details can be communicated without a real-time, play-by-play account. Dialogue, introspection, or nightmares can provide enough information to understand the event’s impact on the character. In Upon a Midnight Clear, I chose to have a rape in the heroine’s past become known through dream scenes. With each dream, the image moves closer to the rape. The final dream provides the rape scene, but without detail: “… she couldn’t breathe; she was sinking into some deep swirling ocean of icy black water. She heard her blouse tearing and felt her skirt rising on her thighs, and she died beneath the blackness.”

Readers know what has happened without the physical details. They experience the pain, fear, and humiliation of the rape and how it has affected the heroine’s life. Dwelling on the emotion and providing only a suggestion of detail allows readers to use their imaginations as much or as little as they want to fill in the blanks.

Profanity

Many people, even some Christians, use swear words out of habit or when angry. In secular fiction, profanity is common in the dialogue of both the average cop and the “bad guy.” In Christian fiction, however, the use of profanity is unacceptable. Find a way to work around those words and instead show the anger through action, internal monologue, or acrid dialogue that jumps from the page with bitter sarcasm or caustic comments.

Christian fiction authors should not fall back on common euphemisms—indirect or vague terms used to replace cursing—to suggest profanity. Gosh, gee, gee whiz, geez, and golly are all words created to replace God and Jesus’ name; dang, drat, heck, shucks, shoot, and numerous other four-letter words are euphemisms for words like damn, hell, and other offensive phrases, and they are as inappropriate as their original counterparts. Some publishing houses prohibit euphemisms, so avoid their use. Instead, let readers imagine the language by using such lines as his filthy words filled the air, he bombarded the room with vile language, or he cursed under his breath.

Physical Sensuality and Explicit Sexual Content

Sexual desire is a natural part of human emotion, but the ideal approach is to provide the emotion without exploitation. Christian romance stresses chastity for the unmarried, and married couples close the bedroom door when it comes to sexual intimacy. Allow the writing to be evocative rather than explicit. Handholding, embraces, gentle caresses, and tender kisses can create a touching love story without details of body parts and descriptive scenes of lovemaking. The romance can be tasteful while still recreating the delightful emotion of falling in love.

Award-winning author Gayle Roper says this about sensuality: I have a catch phrase I use for Christian romance: chaste but promising. Christian romance need lack nothing in emotional impact. In fact, the restraint on the part of the characters can heighten the tension. In spite of the strong physical and emotional pull of genuine affection, the characters choose to remain chaste because they believe this is right, this is what God asks of them.

Spiritual Elements and a Take-Away Faith Message

Christian fiction is built on the spirituality of the hero and heroine and shows their struggle to remain true to their beliefs while dealing with the life issues and problems that challenge them. The story shows the spiritual growth of characters, whether believers or nonbelievers. Christian characters should present a realistic look at Christians in everyday life so readers can relate and apply the message to their own lives. Basing stories on a scripture lesson will present the theme or focus of the novel; the Bible verse and message become a take-away for the reader.

WRITING REAL

Christian romance provides a modern-day parable to assure readers of God’s promises and give them hope and comfort. When Christian fiction was new, publishers were guarded. They wanted to be trusted, and offending a reader was the last thing they wanted to do. When books are returned for refund, the publisher loses money and, Christian or not, publishers are in a business to make a profit. So the early stories, while pleasant, were often less than exciting—enjoyable tales of families and stories of love with happy endings, but with predictable plots and conflicts too easily fixed. Die-hard fiction readers couldn’t sink their teeth into the stories and stayed with secular fiction, where the subject matter often captured real-life issues. Today, however, Christian fiction has grown into a dynamic force of realistic stories that tackle deep and devastating human problems.

Relevant Plot Topics

A recent survey taken by a group of Christian authors illustrated the topics they considered relevant. The long list included unfaithfulness, divorce, infertility, abuse, domestic violence, physical disabilities, cancer, Alzheimer’s, drug addiction, pornography, aging, abortion, isolation, alcoholism, lying, pride, depression, mental illness, racism, promiscuity, prostitution, homosexuality, and many other real-life issues.

Talented Christian romance writers are challenged to dig deep into the world and create stories that touch readers’ hearts and souls. They create characters with serious problems and real flaws, present complex emotions based on human experience, delve into major struggles of life and faith, and deal with the heartache that affects thousands and thousands of Christians—all while remembering Christian fiction has a happy ending.

To break into the Christian romance market, it is necessary to understand your audience and the parameters set by the various publishing houses. Read books from several Christian publishers to see the depth of conflicts and characterization that go into Christian romance novels today and learn what works and what doesn’t. The problems in the stories cannot be solved with easy answers or by a miracle from God. Instead, they must challenge the characters to use the gifts God has given them to resolve their own problems and, in so doing, find happiness. Writing books about real-life issues and faith struggles common to all Christians is writing “real.”

SINGLE-TITLE VS. CATEGORY CHRISTIAN ROMANCE

More Christian romance novels are published in the category genre (sometimes called series or formula romances) than in Christian single titles (also called stand-alone or mainstream romance). A novel written as a category romance might have a greater chance of selling than a single title. Because of this, it is important to understand the differences in these two Christian romance formats. In order for you to decide whether to write a single-title or category romance, you will need to weigh the pros and cons of both.

Single-title romance refers to novels that stand alone and are placed on the bookstore shelves independently, usually by the author’s last name. In the CBA, these books are usually printed in trade-book size, about 8½″ × 5½″, and are substantially longer than category romance. A single-title romance remains in the bookstores as long as it is selling. If it sells well, the book may go back for subsequent printings.

While single-title books have a longer shelf life, their success depends on the author’s name and established readership. Therefore, single titles are much more difficult to sell because fewer are published each year. Single-title romances are not formula-driven, but instead depend solely on the author’s ability to consistently create a compelling story that hooks readers.

Category-style romances are mass-market size, 6½″ × 4, and are published with a series number and released a month at a time. At the end of the month, any books remaining in the bookstores will normally be removed and returned to the publisher to make room for the next month’s category books. These books are found in the bookstores on the category shelves under the publisher’s Christian romance line rather than the author’s name. They can also be sold directly to readers who order each month’s releases in advance from the publisher’s direct mailing programs. Direct mailings differ from publisher to publisher, but they can be anywhere from 30,000 to 100,000 copies above and beyond the retail sales.

Category books are not reprinted the way a single title might be. Once the books have sold, they are out of print. If a category book is taken off the shelves but has not yet gone out of print, it may be ordered from the publisher or through online bookstores. Some publishers, such as Steeple Hill, will sometimes reissue the out-of-print books a few years later in either an anthology, a duet (two novels in one volume), or as a special stand-alone.

Category also differs from single-title romance in that it has a basic formula expected by editors and readers. Novels that do not fall into this formula will likely be rejected by publishers. The formula is as follows:

• The hero and heroine meet within the first couple of pages of the story. Awareness should be immediate, but the romantic journey should be slow and based on Christian attributes as opposed to physical attraction.

• A meaningful need brings the hero and heroine together, something more than being neighbors. Something important connects them so they must work or spend time together.

• Every scene should involve the hero and heroine. If they are not together, the scene includes their thinking or talking about the other.

• Subplots are limited because of the book length. If a subplot is included, it must make a direct impact on the faith or romantic journey of the hero and heroine.

• Lengthy details and flashback scenes are avoided.

The fact that more category romances are published each year than single titles may make it slightly easier to break into the industry. Though the royalty rate to the author is a smaller percentage than for single titles, retail sales and direct orders can result in receiving more money overall.

The success of category romance is based on a book line that is enjoyed by readers, allowing books to sell without the author being well known. But whether writing single-title or category romances, your goal is to write a compelling story that readers will remember.

FINDING A STORY

I am frequently asked where I find my ideas. My imagination is triggered in all kinds of ways. Sometimes song lyrics create word pictures, or newspaper and magazine articles offer a nugget for a plot idea. Life experiences, special occasions, or events can present scenes or a skeleton plot.

Listening to scripture in church or reading the Bible can present a theme or central truth that I want to explore in a novel. Sometimes the new settings of vacations have captured my imagination, or my own talents and abilities have evoked a storyline.

Imagination is amazing. You are not limited by boundaries, only by possibility. You’ve heard that sometimes truth is stranger than fiction; allow your creativity to turn everyday life situations into meaningful fiction stories. Don’t limit your vision to the tried-and-true plotlines, but search those tried-and-true ideas to create the unexpected, then weave them into creative narratives.

Having a unique ability, talent, or hobby can provide fodder for the creative mind and supply details that bring a story to life. My husband’s military experiences and background in music, stained glass, catering, and cooking allow me to go beyond my own expertise and extract information and ideas from his background.

The lives and faith struggles of family and friends can also produce new ideas, but their privacy must be respected. This can be done by putting a twist on the true incident or premise and making it new.

When I interviewed Louise Gouge, author of the historical Christian romance trilogy Hannah Rose, Ahab’s Bride, and Son of Perdition, she said her idea came from doing a study of Captain Ahab in Moby-Dick during graduate school. She formulated her thoughts around what kind of woman Ahab would have married: “What I’ve done in all of these stories is play off of something already written, first Melville’s character and then my own.”

Marta Perry, whose novel Hero in Her Heart, a finalist for the Romance Writers of America RITA Award, says she found her winning plot reading a short newspaper article on service animals, which included brief mention of seizure alert dogs:

The article didn’t have nearly enough information, but once I started researching I found so much that I wondered why I’d never heard of it before.

I even found online diaries kept by people who trained with seizure alert dogs, which provided exactly the sort of information I needed and sparked so many ideas for my characters that I couldn’t keep up with them. An initial tidbit plus a lot of research can add up to a winning plot!

Lyn Cote, author of The Women of Ivy Manor series, says, “I always begin with setting, which gives me the type of people (characters) who would live there, which gives me what they would be doing in that area and what challenges they’d be facing, and that leads me to their conflicts and then I have a story.”

Christian author Lenora Worth says, “I’ve gotten several ideas singing in church. My In the Garden series came to me while we were singing that song.”

Kathi Mills-Macias, author of The Ransom, says, “Plots usually come first in the form of a ‘niggling’ thought, chewing on my poor, overworked brain. When I can no longer ignore it and start actively exploring it, excitement starts to set in.” Kathi continues on to say that her niggling thought is often a theme:

An idea came to me one day as I was walking against a very stiff wind. It was a difficult time in my life, and the wind seemed to symbolize my struggle. The thought expanded to the Christian walk, but instead of symbolizing the struggle, it spoke of the never-changing One who has walked the hard road ahead of us and triumphed. The novel was my very first sale, Yesterday, Today, and Forever, published in 1989. I believe all creativity originates from Him.

Stories come in a variety of ways, and research can add to the plot, so let your mind and notebooks collect ideas. One day, these ideas can connect to form wonderful Christian romances that touch readers’ lives and spirits.

  GAIL GAYMER MARTIN is the award-winning author of more than forty Christian romance novels and Writing the Christian Romance, from which this chapter is adapted. She is a cofounder of American Christian Fiction Writers.