Escapism?
2009 November 9
Barnes & Noble allows you to classify books when you rate them. Mine are classified under Escapism.
When I first saw that, I did a double-take. I’m toiling for months and months and months to write a book and readers are calling it escapism?
Wait a minute…
We all NEED a little escapism lately, don’t we? We need to immerse ourselves in other people’s problems, see them have a happy ending, thereby giving us a little hope that we’ll have a happy ending, too.
Okay, never mind.
Escapism is a PERFECT label, thank you!
My first thought was… No matter how delightful your books are, you do know you write—fictional—novels with guaranteed happy endings, right?
“We all NEED a little escapism lately, don’t we? We need to immerse ourselves in other people’s problems, see them have a happy ending, thereby giving us a little hope that we’ll have a happy ending, too.”
Yes, I think we do. To me reading and relaxing with a great romance novel is one of the most enjoyable and satisfying forms of entertainment—and stress relieving escapism—we have at our disposal. There’s a good reason romance novels are so popular.
It’s funny because one of the first definitions—and certainly the most apropos—for “escapism” I found listed on the web was this…
Escape: escapism… an inclination to retreat from unpleasant realities through diversion or fantasy; “romantic novels were her escape from the stress of daily life” wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn
So thank you, Ms Ranney, for consistently providing your readers with such perfectly wonderful diversions.
And, as one of the guilty parties who classified your novel as “escapism” in a B&N review, I’d also like to say… You’re welcome!
Great definition, Irene! And what better diversion than reading, right? (Scrubbing floors is NOT a diversion. It’s punishment.)
Cleaning again, Karen?
I do believe scrubbing floors and house cleaning are some of the stresses of daily life we are looking to escape from when we pick up a romance novel. Maybe that’s why I love a good Cinderella storyline? I much prefer reading about someone other than me having to perform those menial—though, unfortunately necessary—domestic tasks.
But if MY prince were to provide me with a couple of actual servants—that would work quite well for me too. I take my HEA’s however I can get them.
I’m always complaining about cleaning. I actually do so little of it. I think about it more than I actually DO it. “Gosh, I’ve got to do that floor…” Maybe if I did a little at a time…nope, not gonna happen.
You know something I’ve NEVER understood? Men can tinker under the hoods of a very expensive car. They can understand the innards of computers. What’s so difficult about running a washing machine? Oh well.