I also, honestly, believe the (as a boa owning and wearing person; I love my boa because it represents something special to me) RT fans are not representative of the genre’s readership. I also don’t believe romance can’t win the war. The first step is authors, especially, treating the genre seriously, and that starts with serious criticism of the genre. Just in the past two or so weeks (sorry, this work thing has destroyed my sense of place and time), I read a posting from a newly published author who declared (and I paraphrase) she can no longer “criticize” her fellow authors because she’s joined the club….

What??? If we cannot be honest about the work, the genre, no, it’s never going to be seen as serious. You do not have to be cruel to be honest. But I think we’ve lost a lot of honesty in the attempt to be polite. This comes from authors participating on readers’ lists (where it is taboo to criticize), but also from a belief in solidarity in the genre.

RT and its convention serve a purpose, and, for some, is probably a lot of fun. For me, no. I don’t think what’s largely a fan publication needs to change its tactics. But the romance community wants respect — there’s nothing wrong with that — and I’m not sure this convention is the ideal way to achieve that goal.

I’ve never attended a Romantic Times convention because costume parties at which a bunch of silly women drink too much and fawn over shirtless cover models has never been my idea of a good time. But I don’t believe RT owes it to the romance industry to present a more dignified convention or tone down the giddiness of their magazine. They are who they are, and plenty of authors and fans love them for it. I might roll my eyes at their silliness, but I recognize their right to define the genre in their own way.

Many of us may wish for (and work to gain) more respect for romance in the literary world, but as long as there are fans and authors who delight in donning pink feather boas and drooling over clinch covers, the sensation-seeking media will continue to focus on that segment of the industry, no matter how small it becomes. So although we may triumph in a battle here and there, we “serious” romance writers are fighting a war we can never win.