Thursday, August 30, 2012

Top Ten Signs You're Reading A Romance: Romancing the Hop Blog Hop





There's no question I absolutely love the romance genre. Love it. Even when I tried to write a mystery the hero and heroine looked over the dead body and there was insta-lust going on. Hence the beginning and the end of my mystery writing career. It lasted shorter than my romantic suspense writing career. 

All that aside, here are some signs that you're reading a romance novel.

1.      The hero describes heroine and you can almost imagine wind blowing through her hair and she's walking slowly, even if she's standing still. His loins are filled with lust despite everything he should be feeling.

2.      The heroine describes the hero and you can almost imagine him shirtless pouring water down his body, even if it's winter. Her loins are filled with lust despite everything she should be feeling.

3.      If one and two weren't dead giveaways...boy meets girl. Or boy meets boy. Girl meets girl. Or boy, girl and girl...Ok. You get the picture.

4.      Either one, or both, of the characters have a deep, dark secret that keeps them from loving on anyone.

5.      Speaking of which… secrets, there's a secret baby. Now how exactly a baby could be a secret still confounds me. A secret is only a secret if NO ONE knows.

6.      A friend looks over at a friend and thinks I would so totally be more than friends.

7.      12 hearts-a-leaping. Or two if you want to be technical about it. And then there's...

8.      2 loins-a-burning. Yes, I know how wrong that sounds but I'm totally leaving it.

9.      The hero, at some point in the story kidnaps the heroine to make sweet, aching lurve.

10.  I love you doesn't need to be said but they both better say it.

Ok. This list is by no means complete. There are many, many more signs. You can tell me some in the comments. 

Don't forget to leave a comment with your email to get your name thrown into the Grand Prize hat for the Romancing the Hop Blog Hop. Here are the grand prizes:

*1st Grand Prize: A Kindle Fire or Nook Tablet*

*2nd Grand Prize: A $130 Amazon or B&N Gift Card*

*3rd Grand Prize: A Large Swag Pack*



*****
*Out of the comments left only on my blog I'll pick a winner to get my upcoming release Weekend Lover.*

The weekend that started it all... 

Sebastian Clark's and Nicole Harrison's boundaries are clear—no last names, no shared details. One single night of giving into temptation. One night turns into three, and their naughty little weekend becomes more than just sex. 

One night of consenting pleasure sets Sebastian Clark and Nicole Harrison on a course that could ultimately destroy them both, or bring them a love for all time...


You can read excerpts here.


*****

To find out more about this blog hop, the grand prizeyou can go here to Carrie Ann's blog for the full list.

 

57 comments:

Sharon Cunningham Cooper said...

Lol! Based on the 10 signs, I'm definitely reading a romance. :) Nice post. sharon@sharoncooper.net

LaRonda said...

Gotta read romance - hot romance at that! Thanks for the giveaway.

atchison@oasisol.com

Not Now...Mommy's Reading said...

I absolutely love your list! I literally LOL'd my way through it - especially with all the loins a'burning! Great post!

Natasha said...

Great list! Thanks for the chance to win!
natasha_donoho_8 at hotmail dot com

Melissa Blue said...

Hi, Sharon!

My list does not include all the signs, but I think it's a pretty good guide. :) Thanks for stopping by and good luck on the giveaway!

Melissa Blue said...

LaRonda,

You are right. You gotta read romances. I do love hot romances but I leave room for ladyfingers and cresting waves.

Melissa Blue said...

Not Now...Mommy's Reading,

That is sweet music to my ears--I made you LOL. After I wrote the list I literally couldn't get "5 golden rings" out of my head.

Melissa Blue said...

Natasha,

Thanks for stopping by and good luck on the giveaway!

Holley Trent said...

You're so wrong for #1. I'm going to be flipping my hair for the rest of the night now. Might even go get the industrial fan out the basement so I can take a picture of my romance heroine look. It'll be my new avatar.

Unknown said...

Love the top ten list. Thanks for sharing

fencingromein at hotmail dot com

Anonymous said...

I just love your list... you had ne grinning from woe to go especially with your 12 hearts a leaping
2 loins a burning....

I was waiting for the 2 golden rings and the partridge in the pear tree!!!!

Great post

Melissa Blue said...

(Moved for a commenter:)

Congrats on your new releases! I love escaping into a book. What a fun hop! delphinareadstoomuch at yahoo

Delphina

Melissa Blue said...

Holley,

You know I'm telling the truth. lol But, you gotta get yourself a Beyonce fan or it won't work. She has hers specially made. *nods*

Melissa Blue said...

Thanks for stopping by ShannonRo.

Melissa Blue said...

Shirley Wine,

I was () that close to putting it down. Thanks for stopping by and good luck!

Sharon Clare said...

You know you're reading a romance when the hero or heroine is in love with a person that is strictly taboo.

sclare(at)sharonclare(dot)com

Melissa Blue said...

Good one, Sharon. I love the fordibben romance trope. It's right up there with I-Hate-You-On-Sight trope. lol

JeanMP said...

Love that list. Laughed when I read it. Thanks for the fun post.
skpetal at hotmail dot com

Jesse Kimmel-Freeman said...

I love your list! :0)
Jesse
jesse.kimmelfreeman@gmail.com

Celeste Jones said...

Great list! It's funny because when I'm reading I know all those hokey things are happening, but I want to read about it anyway.

celestejones215 at rocketmail dot com

Foretta said...

I love the list!! very funny!!!

thanks for the contest!!
forettarose@yahoo.com

mariehahn13 said...

That list is spot on! :) Another to add... There's typically someone making some form of sacrifice for the other person. At least, that's how most of my romances tend to work :)

Thank you so much for the giveaway! :)

songbird1613 at yahoo dot com

JanD said...

Love the 2 loins-a-burning which is one of the appeal of reading romance.
bituin76 AT hotmail DOT com

Cassandra said...

Haha I'm definitely a romance reader :)
Thanks for the awesome & amazing giveaway!
cassandrahicks1989@yahoo.com

Liese2 said...

I really love your post!
Thanks so much for the chance to win!
sqwalker2@hotmail.com

Anonymous said...

Great list!
Thanks for participating in the hop and giving us all a chance to share our stories and win.
bidelia78@yahoo.com

Veronika said...

Love your post! I like reading romance books because of the sexual and emotional tension between the characters, and because they're strong and deep feelings.
verusbognar (at) gmail (dot) com

Allyson said...

I love the list:) This has been so much fun! Thanks for being a part of it! Enjoy your holiday weekend!
allysonbrann06@yahoo.com

Melissa Blue said...

Jean MP,

You're welcome and good luck!

Melissa Blue said...

Cassandra,

lol Maybe next time I'll do a Top Ten Signs You're a Romance Reader.

Melissa Blue said...

Liese2,

You're welcome and good luck!

Melissa Blue said...

kittyb78,

Things like the Hop is why I love the romance community.

Good luck!

Melissa Blue said...

Veronika,

Exactly. The sex and the fall for MORE is why I keep coming back to romance again and again. Love it.

Melissa Blue said...

Allyson,

It's my pleasure to be a part of the Hop. It's been fun to see all the drop by and share their love of the genre.

Kaylyn D said...

I like how you included the different options in #3. Thank you for the giveaway.
kaylyndavis1986@yahoo.com

Patti said...

Thanks for participating! Really like the hop so far!! I love reading, especially romance. I love reading contemporary, historical and erotic romance. I love the happy ending that is garenteed at the end. My favorite book is Lover Mine by JR Ward! I love John Matthew and Xhex. My favorite romantic moment was when my fiancé asked me to marry him! We meant two years ago right around when summer was ending when my friend and I went out for our last big night out before classes started again. I think it is romantic when he brings me flowers because no one else has ever done it! Thanks so much! Hope everyone else is having a great long weekend!!

prettyunicorn78@yahoo.com

Melissa Blue said...

Kaylyn D.,

A romance is a romance here on Mel's page. The number of people and sex don't matter.

Especially if there's a deep, dark secret. It's qualifies. :)

Kelly said...

Thank you for your post...

ronnkelly3@aol.com

Shadow said...

Thanks for the awesome hop and giveaways! This is so much fun! Thank you! My favorite thing about romance is the romance. lol I love the characters, the plots, the HEA's, the love. I love it all!
shadowluvs2read(at)gmail(dot)com

Krystal Shannan said...

Thanks for sharing. Love the blog, great hop!
krystalshannan@yahoo(dot)com

Kim D said...

Thanks tons for the hop! I only read romance. My fav is Lora Leigh! Going to parade Monday with brothers and sisters! Should be FUN!
swkimbell@yahoo.com

donnas said...

Thanks for being in the hop!

bacchus76 at myself dot com

Cryscringle said...

Well, I don't have any signs of my own that I've noticed, but your list really got me thinking about most of the books that I've ever read. I mean, some books that I read, I didn't even realize they were a romance novel until just now, haha! Thank you for an amusing post and for the being a part of the hop!

Crystal Craig
craigcrystal(at)ymail(dot)com

Qwillia Rain said...

I would say the words, shaft, staff, or channel are used in an intimate scene and there's no sight of a killer or monster anywhere.
For me, romance is all about the trust and respect built between the characters. Since I write BDSM, these elements are very important.
Thank you for participating in the blog hop!
qwilliarain(at)gmail(dot)com

booklover0226 said...

I love number 8! This is a great list.

Thanks,
Tracey D
booklover0226 at gmai dot com

Rita Wray said...

I love the list.
Kit3247(at)aol(dot)com

Unknown said...

Great list! I actually saw the heroine's hair blowing in the wind, in slow motion too! I am most definitely reading a romance.

mel
bournmelissa at hotmail dot com

Michelle Bledsoe said...

Well then according to your list I am most definitely reading a romance. I love being able to pictures the scenes as the characters describe them. I actually prefer romance books to romance movies...

koonie2888 at yahoo dot com

Sherry said...

You know it's a romance book when the hero's sister is trying to help them get together or sometime break them up.
sstrode at scrtc dot com

Nay Nay said...

What a great hop! Grand prizes, old friends to visit and new ones to meet… and chances to win at each stop too. I’m in Blog heaven! :-}

Loins a burning, Hearts a leaping. ROFLMAO <^_^>

Thanks for being part of the hop and for the chance to win.
reneebennett35(at)yahoo(dot)com

bn100 said...

Nice list.

bn100candg(at)hotmail(dot)com

The Brunette Librarian said...

Love your list - but #10 made me laugh out loud. Doesn't need tobe said, but they better darn well say it!! :)


brunettelibrarian AT gmAil . c0m
The Brunette Librarian's Blog

Catherine Lee said...

Love your list, Melissa!
I like it because of the TOTAL escapism that it is. It is so UNLIKE real life. I love that about romance.
catherinelee100 at gmail dot com

Jo said...

So that is what I was reading! HA! Great list :)

jochibi AT yahoo DOT com

mcv said...

Your list is right on!
I'm enjoying the hop and discovering lots of new authors!
mcv111 at hotmail dot com

jessica said...

love your list of 10 signs! had to copy and save to my computer. :) Thanks for being a part of the hop. I hope that you had a great Labor day weekend!
jessangil at gmail dot com

Melissa Blue said...

Thank you everyone for stopping by. This was so much fun!