Heroes/ines in Contemporary Supernatural Fiction

[fjeastman]

So over in the Vampires in Contemporary Supernatural Fiction thread we've started talking alot about the male/female breakdown in the genre today.

I.E., it seems that 3/4+ of the fiction currently on the shelves in your local Big Name Bookseller (can't say anything for presses too small to get into BNBs, etc) billing itself as contemporary supernatural/occult/fantasy features strong female leads, is penned by female authors, and contains strong elements of romance (not just relationships between characters, but a focus on romantic interludes and sexual encounters between the lead and characters in the work). 

What does everybody else think of this?

Talking Points:

Are male authors uninterested in working in this subgenere?  Discouraged from doing so? 

Are male readers uninteresed in this subgenre?  Discouraged from being so because of the current face of content?

Is there a PERCEPTION that male readers are uninterested, and is that perception borne out in the numbers? 

Does the subgenre require romance elements?  (not Romance in the literary sense, of which the whole bag is included, but romance in the "her soft womanhood yeilded to his turgid prominence" sense.)

Discuss!

--fje

[Amber]

I certainly don't think that it's necessary.  Our man JB shows that you don't have to have romance as a major element of this genre for it to work.

Quite frankly, the trend makes me a little ill.  I HATE HATE HATE HATE books with strong elements of romance in them.  I trudge through them.  (And, note here... romance and erotica aren't really the same thing.)

[BigMama]

My opinion is that the whole paranormal sub genre sprung from some basis in Bram Stokers Dracula legend--which is very strongly sexual. It fits most easily into the romance genre and many of the best selling authors of paranormals come from romance writing backgrounds, either in mystery or fantasy. The type of books that these authors write seem to appeal more strongly to women and the publishers market these books specifically toward the female reader. Obviously the genre does not have to depend on romance, based on Jim's success, but it seems that few male authors have been  drawn to this genre.

[Richelle Mead]

Well, I love romance and sex in books.  However, I need it to be a subplot and not the only plot--which is why I almost can never read 'traditional' romance novels.  So while I don't think romantic/sexual elements are necessary for this genre, I certainly enjoy when they're present.

I can't speak for sure on whether or not men aren't interested in writing this genre, but my impression is that some certainly are.  I do think the current face of the genre might be discouraging to male readers and writers, however, because 1) there is a perception of requisite romance, and 2) so many of them have a light, comic voice that I guess is more female than male.

Oddly, my editor bought another succubus series, and I've become chummy with the author.  We asked our editor how he was going to distinguish us, and he said hers would be billed as paranormal romance, and mine would go as urban fantasy and "appeal to more men."  I haven't read hers, so I'm not really sure what it is that makes mine hit that bar yet.

Honestly, I'd like to see more men write in this genre.  A lot of the female voices are starting to sound alike, so I like Jim's freshness a lot.  Makes me wonder if I really could even pull off the book I was talking about in the other thread with a male narrator. The woman who likened me to an 18-year old boy aside, I don't think I think like a guy.  And amusingly, even in just looking at Jim's sex scenes (and scifi writer Richard Morgan's) and comparing them to some of the other female perspective ones...well, yes, men and women think differently--and have different priorities.   

(Ok. I'm stopping now. I drank a ton of Coke tonight--something I never do.  The sugar and caffeine are scattering my brain all over the place).

[Cathy Clamp]

I haven't read hers, so I'm not really sure what it is that makes mine hit that bar yet.

I've read Jackie's, so I do know why hers is being billed as Paranormal Romance. The romance is the PRIMARY PLOT. The heroine's motivations to save the hero/be with the hero are what cause her to change her mind about her original goals.  Since I haven't read yours (although I'm looking forward to it), I can't say if yours meets that goal too, or if there just happens to be a romance within the plot.

As for why men aren't writing paranormal romance, I wish I could tell you. I've wondered the same thing. I think probably that for most male fantasy/paranormal authors, making the romance a primary part of the plot just doesn't occur to them.  Killing the baddies comes more naturally. Frankly, it comes more naturally to ME (which is why we constantly get gripes from romance readers that our books don't have enough romance--despite being in a romance line! )

It really is that element that turns an urban fantasy novel into a paranormal romance. If the goal of the Hero and heroine getting together is central to the book, that's where it's shelved.  If the parties just HAPPEN to get together, off it goes to the SFF shelves.

But for those who like a good urban fantasy with SOME romance, try the Tor line. It's 50/50 or less (ours are probably 25% romance.) Thankfully, our editor doesn't complain...too much. 

[becroberts]

A lot of the female voices are starting to sound alike, so I like Jim's freshness a lot.  Makes me wonder if I really could even pull off the book I was talking about in the other thread with a male narrator.

Agreed. And most of them have much flashier cars, too. 

How about this: try writing a scene from a male POV but don't mention anything gender-specific, then give it to someone to read and ask them to identify the narrator's gender.

I prefer to write men, myself. I do so mostly in the third person and haven't yet had any complaints of feminising the narrator - of course that may change if I ever succeed in getting my books published! How much having a cross-gender author-narrator matters varies with the plot and what the author chooses to emphasise; if a female narrator spends a lot of time complaining about period pain, it will probably sound more realistic if the author is female.

[fjeastman]

One of my favorite authors is Robert B. Parker.  He's been writing the Spenser series for, oh, 30 years now.  First person, male POV, hardboiled crime fiction.  Though Spenser has gotten a little less hardboiled now that he's getting older.

Parker's newest series is with Sunny Randall, a female P.I.  First person POV again.  I think he "pulls it off", but he does so differently than female authors do.  Different places of focus, different means.  I'm not a female reader, though, so I don't know how true it rings for a female reading audience.  He certainly has been sticking to themes of "strength" and "self-reliance" with the character. 

I hope when my current project is complete I'll be able to shop it out.  It's first-person, male protagonist, set in the southeast, and features some strong Native American - particularly Muskogee, Cherokee, and Navajo - mythological elements.  (I'm male, living in the southeast, and am of Muskogee heritage.)  It's hardboiled supernatural thriller/crime without much in the way of romance or sexy vampires. 

There IS kissing by Chapter 2, though!  And murder.  Murder is first, then the kissing.

--fje

[becroberts]

Murder is first, then the kissing.

As it should be.    (Unless it's leading up to necrophilia in which case I'm not sure I want to know!)

[JDuncan]

The light, comic, tone and female protaganist does seem to be pretty prevelant these days.  That whole sarcastic, butt-kicking female lead has made it into a few genres the past couple years.  Of course it's likely a trend that has peaked and to try and write that would mean near impossibility getting published. 

I have attempted a little different approach with my novel, and have alternating first-person pov's between the male and female mc's.  It's certainly a challenge to write more than one first-person pov in the same story and make sure you keep the characters clearly defined.  That has probably been my biggest challenge in writing this story, and I hope it works because I kind of like writing this way, even if it tends to be viewed as kind of a no-no.