Love Between the Covers, directed and produced by Laurie Kahn, is a fascinating documentary about the world of romance fiction, with feature interviews from well known authors in the industry including inspirational and imaginative women such as Mary Bly (also known as the best selling author, Eloisa James), Len Barot (who goes by the pen names Radclyffe and L.L. Raand), Beverly Jenkins, Susan Donovan, Celeste Bradley and Joanne Lockyer and many more.
Love Between the Covers invites you into the world of romance fiction novel writing. This multi-billion dollar industry is female dominated; in the world of romance writing, the women are winning. Women of all socioeconomic classes, all professions, all sexual orientations, all colors, all creeds, women of all backgrounds from stay-at-home moms and domesticated housewives to surgeons and scientists are writing romance fiction.
A Community of Sisterhood
All writers, of any genre, were readers first. As writers, they continue to be readers. They read each other’s works and suddenly the writers you read are now your peers. Sometimes that evolves into a mentorship or friendship. At other times it’s just cool knowing they are a part of the same thriving community that you are and that they may critique your work. These are all things that happen in various elements in the real life stories the writers and readers share in this documentary.
These women got to know each other and became friends. Often, their only bond is the books they read and write. But it unites them in a community of support, the way I would like to see women act towards one another in the film industry. There’s a powerful connection in women supporting each other’s works. Inspiring, too, about these women is that they don’t care about their critics. They care about their characters, their stories, their fans and their community.
Sexuality in Between the Covers
The documentary takes you on an a brief tour through the history of romance fiction from past to present and discusses tragic romance and star-crossed lovers with a failed love versus happily ever after stories. Personally, I’ve always felt that there was nothing romantic or beautiful about Romeo and Juliet. I know, I know, I have the unpopular opinion. So I was delighted to hear author Nora Roberts echo my sentiments.
She is quoted as saying Romeo and Juliet is not a romance story, it is a tragedy of “two stupid teenagers who committed suicide.” And she goes on to say that a good romance novel has “a great story with interesting people who go on an adventure together”. The film does touch upon the fact that stories of tragedy versus a happily ever after ending seem to grab the high ground though, and tend to be perceived as being more realistic. But why? Why are we drawn to a failed love? What is a culture saying and exploring when it explores tragic love?
Author Jennifer Cruise states that a lot of great literature is toxic to women, telling women that if they are openly sexual and they go after what they want, they will die a horrible death or be branded with a scarlet letter, she says, “but then you get to the romance fiction and it’s not there…and you can have sex without dying horribly, which I thought was a plus.”
Happily Ever After
Beverly Jenkins, author, believes in happily ever afters and that she experienced one. Her husband and she had 31 years together and ten of those years were before kids. After work he would play tennis and she would read, which led to her writing stories for herself of characters who were more like her. She wanted stories of African American women, so she started writing them and gave herself a voice. The friends she’s made through the world of romance writing helped her through the death of her soulmate. It really showed that these bonds go far beyond the books that bound them together in the first place.
Fiction is meant to flirt with your fantasies, giving the everywoman a voice and fantasy to relate to. The subgenres within the umbrella of romance are so varied, no matter what your taste is, there is a flavor just right for you. Love Between The Covers suggests that romance novels are sneered at by the mainstream because they are written for, by and about women.
The Final Chapter
There is a reality that all writers must face, though, and that is the business side of storytelling, if you hope to be more than a novice writer. The film does a good job of touching upon this too. Beware that when you sell your story, you are creating art but you are selling a package.
Editing, what editors are looking for and the importance an editor is discussed, as is pitching and publishing. With the digital age, we find ourselves with opportunities that didn’t exist for many of the great writers who came before. If you’re rejected by a major publisher, you can always turn to self-publishing. The pros and cons of self-publishing are also talked about. If you’re a writer, whether you write romance or not, you’re sure to learn a thing or two from this film. I did.
The interviews kept my interest and were informative. After watching this documentary and getting to know some of these authors, in a behind-the-books sort of way, I’m now interested in picking up a few of their books myself. This was a well done film on an interesting subject that I previously knew very little about and am now intrigued by. But more than anything, I loved seeing these women work together, support one another and bond over the work they do.
What is your favorite romance novel?
Love Between the Covers is available on demand and digital HD from July 12, 2016.
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