How To Be An Incurable Romantic
I am a self-proclaimed romantic, and an incurable one at that. While this may not come as a surprise to those who have read my novels, I’ll admit to the rest that I dressed up as a Disney princess nearly every Halloween in my childhood years and loved every minute of it. Trick-or-treating was an entirely different experience when I was wearing a sparkly dress and a shiny tiara atop my head.
But with the fairy tale allusion came the hope of meeting Prince Charming one day. You know, the tall, dark, and handsome; the knight in shining armor; the brooding compliment to my swooning Cinderella.
In my youthful ignorance, I had yet to learn that Cinderella’s Happily Ever After is something that appears so attainable in Technicolor, and yet, digresses remarkably far from reality. Because not all men are frogs, and we’re certainly not a world full of princes and princesses.
After surviving my teens, and then stumbling into adulthood, I found myself feeling just as drawn to love stories as ever before. Only this time, something had changed. While off gallivanting in the world of romance novels, I discovered that the handsome male lead didn’t have to be charming, or even a prince, anymore. He just had to be real, a good guy, and worthy of our heroine’s love.
Because, if we’re being honest here, isn’t that what we all want?
If I’m allowed to speak for all of us romantics out there, I’d like to say that we all long for a real person (not some character out of a fairy tale), who will pay attention to us, be there for us, care about us, talk to us, sacrifice for us, laugh with us, dance with us, respect us, cherish us, value us, WANT us, NEED us, and most importantly, LOVE us.
So, why continue to read about a fictionalized character when all we want is a real person?
HOPE.
We enjoy love stories, because they provide us with the hope of finding that one person out there, in this great big world, who was meant for each of us. I’m not specifically referring to soulmates, so to speak. But rather, the one individual that you are compatible with, in love with, and loved and respected by. Your equivalent.
And no matter your own personal experiences with love, stories give us the hope of attaining it. Whether you have found love, lost love, or are searching for it again, a good story can make you believe like never before, that the chance for affection and companionship with another is not lost. The opportunity is always out there, looming before us, just waiting to be taken.
Truthfully, love is not easy to find, or even probable under certain circumstances. But love is possible. And as a reader, that is the only thing you need to know. If two fictional characters can fall in love, then so can you.
This is the reason why romance novels are undeniably potent — because of the emotions that are evoked within the reader, such as faith in possibilities. It’s not about the best writer, style, or story; it’s about how certain words make the reader feel. It is what happens in the novel, not the sentence structure chosen to describe what happens, that keeps everyone coming back for more.
We all want to be loved, and just because our own romantic endeavors don’t unfold like scenes in a movie doesn’t mean they are any less ideal.
They are possible. They are hopeful. And they are real.
Now, that doesn’t mean that I don’t still want the fairytale Happily Ever After with my very own Prince Charming. It just means that I have redefined what that means. I don’t want to sit at home knitting all day, while he is off slaying dragons. Honestly, I’d kind of like to be there, slaying them with him.
Well…not kind of. I want to be there slaying dragons with him.
Because the only Prince Charming that really matters, is the one who loves the real, tangible, un-fictionalized version of us all.
Lindsay Miller's Books
Emerald Green - Released June 7, 2015
Synopsis: On a chilly December night in Savannah, Georgia, seventeen-year-old Addie Smith dreams of an alluring young man, too mysteriously handsome to be real. When spring semester commences the following week, at Maple Creek High, a new student, named Tom Sutton, arrives, bearing a striking resemblance to the beautiful stranger from Addie’s dream. Addie feels inextricably drawn to Tom, and his rare, unwavering resiliency, as the enchanting nature of first love takes hold. But when a cold-blooded criminal returns to Savannah, in pursuit of a long-forgotten possession, Addie must confront the darkest secrets of an elusive, hidden past that threaten to destroy her future.
Purchase Links:
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/549668
Also available on iBooks
Me & Mr. Jones - Released October 7, 2015
Synopsis: Finley O'Connell is a shy, reserved college student, who has no intention of ever trusting another man. At nineteen, Finley spends her Friday nights alone, studying clinical psychology to ease her mind of the abusive childhood she has yet to overcome. Her new professor, the young, charismatic Cabel Jones, begins to take an interest in Finley, whose first instinct is to run. But when an ordinary experiment turns to bloodshed, Finley must rely on Cabel, as the two hide away in a rustic, secluded cabin in the wilderness. Plagued by deception and fear, Finley soon finds herself in the arms of the one man on campus who can never truly be hers.
Purchase Links:
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/583385
Also available on iBooks
Author Bio:
Lindsay Marie Miller was born and raised in Tallahassee, FL, where she graduated from high school as Valedictorian. Afterwards, Lindsay attended Florida State University and graduated Summa Cum Laude with an English Literature major, Psychology minor, and Specialized Studies in Markets and Institutions. Lindsay is the author of the romantic thrillers, Me & Mr. Jones and Emerald Green - the first a New Adult novel, the second a Young Adult novel. Emerald Green is the first installment in a four-part series, while Me & Mr. Jones will be accompanied by a sequel. In her free time, Lindsay enjoys singing, playing the piano and guitar, and writing songs. Lindsay currently resides in her hometown of Tallahassee, FL, where she enjoys summers under the sun, in the company of beloved family and friends.
Contact Links:
Twitter: @Lindsay_MMiller
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