First, let me state that I love
paranormal romance and SF romance, for both reading and writing. Speculative
romance in general (a broad term that incorporates all romances with woowoo
content) is my favorite reading material, followed closely by Southern fiction
about cranky old ladies, feline narrators, and Sandra Boynton, but we're not
here to talk about that. This won't be a "versus" article, as in,
which is better or worse, but a straight up comparison.
1) SFR and PNR both contain romances as
a primary plot. When the romance plot isn't primary, you're shuffling into the
SF/F genre, which is also dandy, but not what I'm comparing today.
2) SFR and PNR both contain
non-realistic content (the woo) as a defining element. Sometimes that element
is light, such as humans who accidentally summon genies or genetically modified
super people. Sometimes the element is a lot more influential. Both methods
have their charms.
3) SFR and PNR both increase the odds
the book will be about saving the world / high octane adventure instead of
slice of life / small-town, character-based plots. (Not that I'd object to SFR
and PNR with that type of plot at all! I'd read that.)
4) SFR and PNR both increase the odds of
extra-human/alien protagonists and characters. Which increases the odds of a
character being the mostest importantest chosen one savior. I would say this is
slightly less common (savior-itis) in SFR than in PNR, but still—the world’s
gotta be saved, right?
5) SFR and PNR, in my experience,
increase the odds the book will include secret organizations, governmental issues,
and/or worldwide upheaval. This may go hand in hand with the saving the world
element.
6) SFR and PNR also increase the odds
that the potential alien-ness of the character(s) will affect the sexxoring.
Will the characters mind meld during intercourse? Go into heat? Be virgins
because Mars has no women/men? Have supernaturally large...libidos? Require XYZ
during their PDQ to get off? Granted, it’s not really possible to include many
of these elements in woo-free books, but a high percentage of SFR/PNR rumpy
pumpy has...enhancements, shall we say!
What are the differences? When I lay it
out like this, it doesn’t seem as though there are that many, does it? Yet PNR
is a lot more popular than SFR. Why?
I figure it’s because technology
intimidates people, readers and writers alike. Readers may assume SFRs are
going to be physics-heavy science lessons, and writers may be daunted by the
fact you can’t just maestro your woo element without first studying quantum
mechanics. Or something mathy. Granted, there are SFs and SFRs that are tech heavy,
but there are also SFs and SFRs that focus more on the characterization and
plot.
There are also readers and writers who
shy away from the paranormal and prefer a science approach to their woo, though
they are smaller in number, based on what books have become popular with a
broader slice of the public over the past ten or twenty years. Not movies so
much—many blockbusters trend toward comic-book-style SF—but definitely books.
I like all the flavors of SFR and PNR
with few exceptions, though I do wish more readers would jump on the SFR
bandwagon. I really missed seeing the relationship development of Spock and
Uhuru, dammit!
What do you guys see as the similarities
and differences between PNR and SFR?
Jody Wallace
Author, Cat Person, Amigurumist of the
Apocalypse
Blurb:
He’s no angel…
Gregori’s last mission is to save Earth from the demons threatening to take control. He doesn’t care if he survives as long as he does his best to save a world he believes is worth rescuing despite his superiors’ conventional wisdom to the contrary—until, that is, he meets Adelita, a human refugee, whose spirit and determination give him a renewed reason to fight. And live. He’s falling for her, despite the fact he’s told her nothing but lies and there can’t possibly be a future for them.
Adelita can hardly believe the archangel Gregori, sent to save mankind, has lost his faith and his edge. After he saves her from a demon attack, she vows to help him recover both, by any means necessary. But can she keep her own faith when she learns the truth about who and what Gregori really is?
He’s no angel…
Gregori’s last mission is to save Earth from the demons threatening to take control. He doesn’t care if he survives as long as he does his best to save a world he believes is worth rescuing despite his superiors’ conventional wisdom to the contrary—until, that is, he meets Adelita, a human refugee, whose spirit and determination give him a renewed reason to fight. And live. He’s falling for her, despite the fact he’s told her nothing but lies and there can’t possibly be a future for them.
Adelita can hardly believe the archangel Gregori, sent to save mankind, has lost his faith and his edge. After he saves her from a demon attack, she vows to help him recover both, by any means necessary. But can she keep her own faith when she learns the truth about who and what Gregori really is?
Latest SFR: ANGELI (during-apocalypse,
Earth-based, aliens pretending to be angels, FMI: http://jodywallace.com/books/angeli/)
Website & Blog: http://www.jodywallace.com
Meankitty: http://www.meankitty.com
Newsletter: http://mad.ly/signups/104974/join
Twitter: https://twitter.com/jodywallace
Fantasy is currently more popular than science fiction on the non-romance side of the genre as well. I've heard people speculate that it's a reaction to economic times. Not sure I buy that--space opera is just as escapist as fantasy.
ReplyDelete>the similarities and differences between PNR and SFR?
ReplyDeleteOther than PNR being supernatural/magic based and SFR being science based, the two genres share many similarities--as you eloquently pointed out.
However, where they differ is in terms of how familiar readers are with them, particularly women readers.
1) I'd wager more women readers are familiar with supernatural creatures than alien ones (after all, how many of us grew up with fairy tales vs. space opera tales?). Hence, when a few authors began transforming vampires into romance heroes, there was less of a learning curve. The increase of sex scenes probably helped, too.
2) Segregation of various genres over the years translated to the ingrained message that SF isn't for women. We don't belong, we're not smart enough to understand science, etc. That's begun to change recently, but undoing the damage will probably take decades.
How can women even begin to know what SFR is, let alone read it, when they've been shut out of (and have allowed themselves to be shut out of) science fiction for nearly a century?
The technology is intimidating only insofar as a person hasn't had a chance to learn it in some capacity (which admittedly is a challenge if opposing forces are constantly shutting the door in one's face).
SFR has loads of accessible books, though, so in terms of current offerings the learning curve isn't nearly as steep as it would be for science fiction.
3) The concept of a heroine's sexual awakening is an important fantasy for many readers, which is why it replicates itself across various subgenres such as PNR, motorcycle romances, historicals, post-apoc erotic romances, and 50 Shades-inspired contemporaries.
Given that many if not most SFRs to date occur in a futuristic, technologically advanced setting, such a fantasy is a harder sell (as far as I can tell, SFR is similar to contemporary romances in this regard).
That said, authors have certainly attempted it, but for some reason their books haven't broken out in a mainstream way (of course, for all I know, said authors are rolling in the money if not necessarily the fame).
SFR offers really stupendous stories--it's just that they're not of the sexual awakening variety as much as PNR. Or they don't broadcast it as clearly even if they are? Difficult to say if that's a marketing issue or if it circles back to the "SF isn't for women" issue.