Anyone with even a passing interest in Christian romance must have noticed the stampede of cowboys sweeping their way into the bestseller charts. Seeing as I’ve never met a cowboy and can just about distinguish the hindquarters of a horse from its face, I’ll probably never write in this niche. But I like to keep […]
Tropes in Fiction and Real Life
If you’ve been around romance books long enough (and I’m fairly confident we all have!), then you’re familiar with the concept of tropes. This is the literary device authors use as the theme of their romance—the means of which they center their meet-cute all the way to their happily-ever-after around. And, if we’re being honest, […]
Best Friends in Love
(Did you ever watch the original Muppet Show? If you did, you really need to read the title for this post like they did the intro to “Pigs in Space.”) One of my favorite tropes is best friends to love. One of my least favorite tropes is also best friends to love. Why do I […]
Loving the Unlikable Character
A few years back, there was a certain novel people couldn’t stop talking about (I won’t name the book, but it was secular, not Christian and not romance). The reviews were fantastic and everyone seemed to love it—so I decided to give it a read. I have never been so disappointed in a book in […]
Shoulders, Jawlines, and Pecs, Oh My! Beneath the Hero’s Surface & Giveaway
Poor, poor men. They’re always being judged on their appearance, shape, and size instead of their personality. The pretty ones have it the worst because people assume they are all beauty and no brains. Just imagine how unappreciated romance heroes feel with their broad shoulders, thick hair perfect for a good hand rake, and ideal […]
Creating Your Own Reading Challenge
Do you like reading challenges? I was thinking about books to read, other than my own, and I thought that it might be fun to categorize them into various little interesting groups. Have you done that, and if you have, what were the results? Was it entertaining or was it a disaster? Just assuming it […]
Romance in the Workplace + Giveaway
Do you work outside the home? It’s been a while since I had an office-based job. I’ve been a stay-at-home mother now for far longer than I was a single, working woman. But for over a decade, I worked long hours in a professional role and my career was a huge part of my life. […]
The Third Annual Inspy Romance Awards
It’s February! The month of love! Well, every month around here is the month of love. But February is unique because it’s the month of the Annual Inspy Valentine’s Awards. You may recall that I created these awards a couple of years ago as a way to share some fun little tidbits about Inspy Romance […]
The Ins and Outs of Unrequited Love
I’ve been watching a lot of C-dramas this past year and one recurring theme I’ve noticed in these shows is how there’s usually a character who’s in love with another character, but the latter character doesn’t love them back. Eeks and sigh, right? As an observer, it’s so painful to watch this type of relationship […]
All I Want in a Christmas Story
Raise your hand if you’ve already watched a Christmas movie this year?? Raise your hand if you’ve already watched five? Aren’t Christmas movies the best? I’ll be honest, I don’t watch a lot of romance movies during the year. Mostly because if I’m watching something it’s either with my kids or my husband. My […]