{"id":43785,"date":"2014-07-29T16:35:39","date_gmt":"2014-07-29T06:35:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.booktopia.com.au\/?p=43785"},"modified":"2016-03-01T09:28:19","modified_gmt":"2016-02-29T23:28:19","slug":"guest-blog-oh-what-fun-by-anna-campbell","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/2014\/07\/29\/guest-blog-oh-what-fun-by-anna-campbell\/","title":{"rendered":"GUEST BLOG: Oh, What Fun! By Anna Campbell"},"content":{"rendered":"

Anna Campbell has been one of Australia’s favourite romance writers for a long time now, charming readers everywhere with her unforgettable characters and turn of phrase. <\/strong><\/p>\n

In this exclusive blog, Anna talks about the F word. Fun.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Recently there has been a spate of very earnest articles about how reading romance can improve your mind, your health, your fine motor skills, and your love life, not to mention help you win the lottery and give you a free mowing service for the next twenty years. I\u2019ve even written one, \u201cRomance Mythbusting\u201d, which appeared in the Queensland Writers Centre <\/a>newsletter and is now available on my website here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Anna

Author Anna Campbell<\/p><\/div>\n

While all these articles (including, I hope, mine!) make a lot of sense, I think in many ways they miss the point. Do people read romance because it makes a feminist statement or because it helps people to understand the intricacies of a Regency wardrobe? Well, partly, I\u2019m sure. I have to say I personally love the clothes in a historical romance, but that\u2019s by the by.<\/p>\n

However I suspect the most honest answer to that question would be no.<\/p>\n

I think people read romance because it\u2019s fun! Even when it\u2019s packed with angst, as some are.<\/p>\n

\"the-wickedest-lord-alive\"There\u2019s the delicious thrill of watching two people who are perfect for each other slowly wake up to the fact \u2013 or wake up at the start of the story and struggle past whatever barriers are keeping them apart. Any good romance involves that lovely simmer of sexual tension that frequently blazes out into a full-scale inferno. There\u2019s watching the characters make mistakes and try and correct them, often by making bigger mistakes. There\u2019s great dialogue! Read a Georgette Heyer<\/a> or a Christina Brooke<\/a> or a Susan Elizabeth Phillips<\/a>, and you\u2019ll find yourself chortling away at the way the prickly dialogue goes nowhere near hiding how deeply drawn the hero and heroine are to each other. There\u2019s the chance to go through a profound emotional journey with these people.<\/p>\n

And the best fun of all? The fact that if you pick up a romance, you know there\u2019s going to be a happy ending. Whether it\u2019s in a dramatic, emotion-racked story or a sweet romantic comedy, these people will end up together, better, wiser, happier. There\u2019s something marvelously reassuring about that. And when you\u2019re going through a tough time in your own life, believe me, knowing that somewhere holds a guaranteed happy ending is reward enough on its own!<\/p>\n

Is that unrealistic? Personally I don\u2019t think so. I don\u2019t believe that all human effort comes to dust. I think most people have as much chance for happiness as unhappiness. Hmm, perhaps you should call me a cockeyed optimist. Or a romance reader!<\/p>\n

\"what-a-duke-dares\"<\/a>This August, I have got a new historical romance out. What a Duke Dares<\/em><\/a>, book 3 of the award-winning Sons of Sin series<\/a>, was great fun to write (I hope I\u2019m not overusing the \u2018F\u2019 word!). Partly because I love the characters \u2013 falling in love with your own creations is an occupational hazard in romance. Even if they don\u2019t start out as people you\u2019d want living next door, they often end up that way. Partly because I got to travel through Italy in the company of my hero and heroine and observe how hard they\u2019re fighting against succumbing to irresistible attraction. Partly because I got to hang out with the great and the good in the London season of 1828, not to mention visit a few extravagant stately homes along the way. I must say I\u2019m a sucker for the glamour elements! Partly because when Cam and Pen from WHAT A DUKE DARES<\/em> finally get their happy ending. They have\u00a0really had to battle for it. Watching two people work their way, despite everything ranged against them, toward each other is always a wonderful experience.<\/p>\n

And I guess there in a nutshell, you have the secret of why reading romance in any setting is fun!<\/p>\n

So why do you read romance? Do you think it\u2019s fun? Why?<\/p>\n

My website is: www.annacampbell.info
\nYou can read an excerpt of What a Duke Dares<\/em> here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n

Sons of Sin Trilogy Pack – Exclusive to Booktopia<\/h2>\n

Three Great Books – One Low Price!<\/em><\/h3>\n

by Anna Campbell<\/h3>\n

Click here for more details<\/a>
\n<\/em><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/em>Click here for more details
\n<\/em><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Anna Campbell has been one of Australia’s favourite romance writers for a long time now, charming readers everywhere with her unforgettable characters and turn of phrase. In this exclusive blog, Anna talks about the F word. Fun. Recently there has been a spate of very earnest articles about how reading romance can improve your mind, your health, your fine motor skills, and your love life, not to mention help you win the lottery and give you a free mowing service for the next twenty years. I\u2019ve even written one, \u201cRomance Mythbusting\u201d, which appeared in the Queensland Writers Centre newsletter and is now available on my website here. While all these articles (including, I hope, mine!) make a lot of sense, I think in many ways they miss the point. Do people read romance because it makes a feminist statement or because it helps people to understand the intricacies of a Regency wardrobe? Well, partly, I\u2019m sure. I have to say I personally love the clothes in a historical romance, but that\u2019s by the by. However I suspect the most honest answer to that question would be no. I think people read romance because it\u2019s fun! Even when it\u2019s packed with…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[593,2433,6481],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43785"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43785"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43785\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":56294,"href":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43785\/revisions\/56294"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43785"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43785"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43785"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}