Clean Romances discussion

Hi All,

Please don't take this the wrong way...I am an active Christian myself and clearly have nothing against Christian or Inspirational romances!...but please remember that titles that fall strictly into that category are not the purpose of this group. This group is especially designed to build a bookshelf and support group for romances that are clean but are NOT Christian/Inspirational themed, as such books are often excluded from Christian/Inspirational groups and have no other place to go. That's what I want this group to be. A place for "Sweet Secular Books" to have a place to go. References to God are certainly acceptable and will not disqualify a book from being added to our bookshelf, but if it's a heavy theme in your romance and you're writing exclusively for the Christian market, you might like to check out some of the following groups on Goodreads and place your titles there, instead:

http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/7...
http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/2...
http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/1...
http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/1...
http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/1...
http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/5...
http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/8...

See? I told you Christian/Inspirational romances have lots of "homes". Clean/Sweet secular romances don't. So please add your Inspirational titles to the groups above, and remember this group is for "Sweet but Secular" romances.

Thank you!
Joyce DiPastena
Clean Romances Moderator

PS Please don't be offended if some titles you added to our bookshelf are removed. I just don't want this group turned into a "proselyting" group for one religion over another. I'm sure your favorite Inspirational titles will find very good homes in some of the groups I've listed above. :-)

Thank you for understanding!

I must say I agree with Joyce here. I think there is a major hole in the market for mainstream sweet/clean romance.

Religion varies so much, and while I have enjoyed Christian romance in the past, sometimes the religious perspective has been a little too different from mine, and a little too heavy for my tastes. A more mainstream romance with “high moral” undertones that everyone would relate to is what I’m looking for.

As a reader I want a sweet romance without all the graphic love scenes, and vulgar language. Plain and simple. The way the industry standard for romance is right now is part of what got me writing in the first place. (That and the stories that kept spinning in my head.) In the three novels I’ve written, they’re all heavily romantic, but also clean. When I get published I hope to add them to the list here. Until then, I’m looking for clean romance I can read, and can safely pass on to my teenage daughters.

I don't write inspirationals, but I love a good romance book, though I also want more than just romance. I crave a mystery or suspense to go along with it. Guess that's why my books tend to lean more toward the mystery than the romance.

But my romance is ALWAYS G-rated, no kisses between h/h go beyond her neck. No bedroom scenes, nothing to embarrass my grandmother, my husband, my daughter, ME, or the dogs! And certainly not God. I respect Him too much to write anything so offensive.

Had an interesting review from Coffee Time on my latest release, "It's Elementary, My Dear Winifred". She made the comment, "There is no sex at all in this book--just want to get that out of the way." Made me curious to wonder why she had to "get that out of the way." Don't get me wrong. I was quite complimented by that, but curious too. She had to let all the readers know IMMEDIATELY there was no sex, because ALL they're looking for is sex? If so, I wonder if it shocked them she gave the highest rating of 5 cups and she said she "loved" the book.

It's good to know reviewers can see there are great books written that contain absolutely no vulgar language, or sex scenes but they aren't inspirationals either. :)

It sounds like you got a gem of a reviewer, Miss Mae.

I also write sweet secular fiction as well as more inspirational fiction. My work doesn't really fit into a set home for other reasons since they are more fantasy (not magic and dragons, but more of a parallel world kind) which makes it difficult to place in the inspirational genre. I am working at it though.

It has been great to find more like minded writers (and readers), though. It is always nice to know that I am not completely out there for enjoying and writing sweet secular romantic fiction. :)

That's right, Rachel. I think the truth is, no-holds-barred sex/erotica is not as popular as it once was. I believe readers are coming back to our "cleaner", gentler, more traditional stories.

And we need to be sure we're available for them to find us. :)

So how do we do that? I’ve been told as I’ve submitted my book to agents who take romance that while they liked my book, it wasn’t “industry standard”. They pretty much said it wasn’t dark enough or dirty enough.

And I think you’re absolutely right, Miss Mae, people are tired of reading so much violence and graphic sex, but they want those secular type fantasies and fiction too. Inspirational stuff has found a nice place for itself, which is wonderful! But for some reason, clean mainstream has been forgotten.

Rachel, I write the same as you, more fantasy, mainstream stories that should relate to almost anyone no matter what their religious denomination is. And it’s true; I can’t find a place in either world of publishers when I know many readers want it. I’m not published yet, but I already have quite a large fan base.

Thanks again for setting this up on Goodreads, Joyce! I’m already adding to my reading list some clean romance I’m excited to try and haven’t been able to find very easily until now.

Well, for one thing, I don't have an agent, and the more I sit back and listen--while they'd be great to have to do my promotion for me--the more I'm sure I'm not going to hire one.

Please understand where I'm going from. An agent is in it for the business, for the quickest way to get money. And since sex sells, they're going to push sex.

But I know from my own experience, and from listening to others, there are TONS of readers who are screaming for true romance books WITHOUT the sex. Right now, agents appear deaf to that cry. So I don't bother with them.

That means the bulk of my marketing/promoting is on me, but at least I'm in control. :)

Not long ago, other authors who feel the same frustration as stated in this group got in touch with me. We were so tired of having to be included in sweet AND sensual groups. We didn't write sensual, why should we have to market with them? So we formed our own Yahoo group, purely G-rated. We knew as a group we'd have a louder voice and was more likely to get noticed. We conduct chats, hold interviews, market the SWEET ONLY books. People are surprised to discover that our clean plots can be so interesting and entertaining! :)

Do you have a website where you have a blurb/excerpt posted? I have a lovely publisher who you may be interested in.

I think I have a lot of questions for you, Miss Mae. ; )

My website, which is under construction, is www.cherischmidt.com I don’t have any excerpts out yet, but there are some blurbs if you look under the Fateful link and FAQ. You can email me directly from there.

I’m getting ready for a round of submissions with a new book (Fair Maiden Ghost). I plan on trying a few agents along with small publishers. So I’d be very interested in adding a new publisher to the list. Thanks!

Ladies, you might try Distractions, Inc. who publishes Marcia Lynn McClure's books. They are clean romances and not inspirational. I have emailed Marcia before and she replied promptly. Her website: marcialynnmcclure.com

I love this group. I think you have something great going here and I'm excited to join in :) It's good to know there are other people out there with some of the same wants and goals! Excited to get reading!!

Hi Devyn,

Nice to meet you, and isn't it great to find some refreshing CLEAN reads? :)

MM

Welcome, Devyn! I'm so glad you've joined us here!

Welcome to the group, Devyn! I love your name! :o)

Glad you're here, Devyn!

I am excited to discover this group! Clean romances are just the thing I love to read but are so hard to find and sometimes I am way into the story before I discover it is not something I should be reading!

I hate it when that happens to me. It is hard to set something down once you have invested time in it. Also, it is agrivating to see a good story ruined with unnecessary elements.

I think you echo the feeling of all of us in this group, Dawn. So glad you've joined us! Feel free to add any clean romances you know of to our group bookshelf. Let's keep it growing!

I was wondering what we should do if we read a book that has been added to the group's shelf that we feel doesn't fit within these guidelines. My example would be The Princess by Lori Wick. It was a wonderful book, but at least 1/4 of the book was spend praying to God and searching the bible. I don't really mind those things, but I think it fits more into the inspirational romance genre. Any suggestions?

If you feel that a book belongs more appropriately in one of the Christian fiction groups, then simply let me know, just as you did, Tierra. I'll research it via its own self-description (in this case, "The Princess" lists itself as a "Thorndike Christian Fiction" book) or read enough reviews about the title until I can get a feel for where it should appropriately be placed.

If I remove a title you've added (not talking to you now, Tierra :-) ), please don't be offended. If you can explain to me why you feel it should be an exception to the description laid down for this group, feel free to consult me about it and if you have a good argument, I may change my mind. And please don't be afraid that merely mentioning God or prayer will get you booted from our group shelf. IT WILL NOT! It is only when a book is clearly aimed specifically at ANY religious group, rather than for a broad, secular audience, that I will suggest another home for your title.

Given what I have read about The Princess, I do feel it would fit more comfortably on any or all of the shelves at the links I referred to in my first message in this thread.

Thank you, everyone, for understanding!

I see The Host has been added to our group. I haven't read it. Is it a romance?

It's a Scifi romance. It's different from the Twilight series, but it's good. I enjoyed it:-)

Okay, if it's romance, I'll leave it on the shelf. Thanks, Jewel! :-)

You're welcome:-)

I personally loved The Twilight Series! It was clean and sweet! I am 25 years old and married for going on 6 years but I read ALOT of young adult books to stay away from the dirty romances. I agree that the Host was a clean romance but I listened to it on audio book because it was a very complicated book to read ( all the inner head talking). I have some clean YA books but not a whole lot to choose from.

I loved the Twilight series too. Other youth series I like are: the Eragon Trilogy, the Luxe Series, and the City of Bones series.

I loved The Host. At first it is kinda weird, I'm not too into the Sci-Fi, but after awhile it catches you and I couldn't put it down. I really enjoyed it!

Who wrote the Luxe and City of Bones series? I am always looking for great YA reads, too. Ann

Anna Godbersen wrote the Luxe series and Cassandra Clare wrote City of Bones (The Mortal Instruments) series.

HI all! I am new and am very excited to learn more about this group! I love me some good, clean romances. I saw that someone mentioned Marcia Lynn McClure and I have to say that she is wonderful. I hope you'll check out her adorable website. Truly I can't wait to read more about what's out there that is clean and beautiful. I also enjoyed "The Host." I would really love Stephenie Meyer to keep putting out her great books!

Welcome, Lisa! We're so glad you found our group. Please look through our bookshelf, and if you have any favorite "clean romances" that haven't been added yet, please add them. We want to keep our bookshelf growing!

Welcome, Lisa!!!

Welcome, Lisa!It's nice to see you here!

Wow, you guys are so nice. I am really excited to be a part of this group! I need some really great books. The list already looks awesome.

Hey Everyone! We're up to 91 members!!! Should we do something to celebrate when we hit 100? Any ideas?

Is it possible to throw some kind of cyber party? LOL

That'd be fun, but we'd better brainstorm in a hurry. Now we're up to 94!

Joyce wrote: "Hey Everyone! We're up to 91 members!!! Should we do something to celebrate when we hit 100? Any ideas?"

Here's an idea--and I'm really tired, so bear with me--since there are quite a few of us authors in this group, perhaps we could have a drawing of some sort and a bunch of us could donate copies of our books, entering each group member and drawing names until each book has found a new home.

Or turn it into something more elaborate...just a thought...

Welcome to the group, Lisa! :o)

Considering I feel kind of loyal to my author friends here and have been scrambling to find y'alls books to read. I think Jaimey's idea is GREAT!

I'd be willing to donate a book. Shall we start a special thread, Jaimey, for authors to list their name and donation title, so we know how many books we have lined up? (Since the thread here is getting a little long.) We won't hold the contest until we hit or surpass the 100 member mark, though, and only members of this group are eligible to win. What do you all think?

Seriously! I think it is so great that there are authors on here! How cool is that? I can't wait to find some of your books out there to read!

Okay, let's do it! I'm gonna start a new thread over in the Contests & Giveaways area. Willing authors, please follow me over there!

Joyce wrote: "Okay, let's do it! I'm gonna start a new thread over in the Contests & Giveaways area. Willing authors, please follow me over there!"

Where is the contest area?

Miss wrote: "Joyce wrote: "Okay, let's do it! I'm gonna start a new thread over in the Contests & Giveaways area. Willing authors, please follow me over there!"

Where is the contest area?

"

At the top of the "Contests & Giveaways" heading, MM.

Thank you Jesus! I'm a Christian myself but I don't narrow my reading horizon on just Christian books. I have been searching for someone to show me good reads that don't have sex in them. It makes me sick that every book seems to have it. So I hope this group can she me some cool books.

I hope we can, too! You're definitely not alone out there, J-lizette. I'm so glad you've joined us, and we'd love for you to share any "clean" titles you love that are not already on our shelf. Feel free to add any favorites of your own and help our shelf "grow"! :-)

J-lizette wrote: "Thank you Jesus! I'm a Christian myself but I don't narrow my reading horizon on just Christian books. I have been searching for someone to show me good reads that don't have sex in them. It makes ..."

My sentiments exactly! I'm a Christian, but for some reason I just really can't get into Christian fiction, lol... :D

I find that secular fiction writing is superior to the Christian fiction. A sad discovery, but so far, it is holding true.

I've read most of the books on our group bookshelf and have found them to be fantastic books that are well-written with endearing characters. I'm so glad to have this group to help me find clean romances without all the overt preachiness of most inspirationals!

How do you all feel about fantasy romances?

Donna wrote: "I've read most of the books on our group bookshelf and have found them to be fantastic books that are well-written with endearing characters. I'm so glad to have this group to help me find clean ro..."


I have a friend looking for clean fantasy--not necessarily has to be a romance...if anyone knows any clean fantasy writers, let me know!

daniellethorne