I should feel terrible about this crazy publishing idea...

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Honestly, I don’t mind romance to some extent, but I am crazy about it like a large majority of people who are. I can do without and be 100% fine. It’s nice to see people fall in love, I am just not actively searching for it and it’s not like I will die if I do not get it. Needing romance in my fiction is something that comes and goes, it NEVER stays. When it does come, it comes in various ways and it still never stays.

I don’t write romance not because I never experience it, I just write stories where I don’t need it to be a part of the plot or some subplot. There’s no room for it, I refuse to forsake a damn good plot for two people to fall in love with each other, when I don’t deem it necessary.

But, I want to grow as a writer, I want to do new things. I would love to write fantasy with some romance in it. I will NEVER WANT TO WRITE ROMANTIC FANTASY, even done in my own way.

I’ve thought about writing urban fantasy WITH SOME ROMANCE in it, but the two characters are already in a relationship not trying to be in one for the end to be will they or won’t they.

I do the same with mystery thrillers and horror.

The point I am getting at is yes I want to grow as a writer to do trial and error with some genres. I still want to write science-fantasy, yet I want to do some other genres too. I want to have a start, but I honestly worry that will doom me in the end.

I end up writing stories with romance in it, mystery thrillers, and some horror but never getting the chance to focus on science-fantasy as much. Unless, I figure out how to change that later on.

TL;DR: I want to publish other genres to make money to have time for getting better at the genre I want to publish.

I feel bad because people will call me a “sell-out” or “greedy”, when the truth is that I just want some money to help me out. I don’t give a damn about being famous, I mentally cannot handle fame. I just want to be at a point in my life when I am financially stable and get help myself mentally and physically.

So, take this anyway you want. Nothing has happened yet and I don’t know if it ever will…yet.

Thoughts and feelings?

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There are plenty of successful fantasy writers who don’t write romance. I haven’t read every Neil Gaiman book ever, but the ones I have read don’t have any romance in them. Does Brandon Sanderson write romance? I’ve never read any of his books.

In any case, to me the average romance novel actually has very little romance in it, since the whole draw is two people getting to know each other and come together. When they finally succeed in getting together and get romantic with each other, the book is done, finished, ended. All the tension was about how these two people who don’t get along finally overcome the obstacles keeping them apart. The more you can keep them apart, the better! So writing romance is easy if you don’t like romance. (>‿◠):v:

The point is, you don’t have to add any sex scenes or kissing or any of that mushy stuff if you don’t want. The best part of a romance novel is usually two people bickering and insulting each other until one of them gets into trouble somehow, and the other one comes to the rescue for no other reason than because they’ve realized they actually care about the other one. ¯\_(ﭢ)_/¯

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I don’t think so.

Is this what people truly want in a “romance” book? A will they or won’t they situation, leaving the readers to wonder if the now couple was worth it in the end? They genuinely do not want two people already in a relationship with the plot forcing the readers to ponder if they are meant for each other or not towards the end?

You’re saying they rather have a tug-of-war start with the finish cementing them as a true couple?

Wow…

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@Akje

What about slow-burn strangers to lovers? Two strangers who come together do to the plot or whatever incident, start to get closer because of it, then slowly fall in love.

They DON’T hate each other at first, they get treat each as strangers until the plot shifts in a way that they get to know each other in a way that they slowly fall in love, with the close to the ending of the series leaving readers to wonder if they will make it or fall apart.

I would read that. Would anyone else be interested?

Honestly, I hate enemies to lovers. I prefer to have two strangers who don’t hate each other at the start, but they get to know each other and spend time with each other then romance comes into it as the story progress.

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Oh definitely! That’s another popular scenario. There are a myriad of ways you could write it. Use whatever tropes you like! (*＾-‘) 乃

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I need more stories like that to read.

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No issue with being a “sell out”. Writing for market is a perfectly viable way to make ends meet. It’s not the easiest, and does require planning and a lot of effort (rapid releasing etc), but it’s definitely not a bad thing.

If you do not want it being tied back to you, there’s no shame in using multiple pen-names, and abandoning them if the project(s) don’t work out. I have only abandoned a penname once, and it wasn’t because the projects didn’t work out, but it’s perfectly fine.

However, what I will say is that you can’t just throw a steamy urban fantasy out into the world and expect it to make you money. Pocket money, probably, but you will need to put care and effort into this if you want to do it. Try to study what other people who write for market do and how often they release a book.

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Thank you very much.

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Interesting. Where to do that? Where to go?