In my opinion, the HEA in romance doesn’t make it any different from other popular genres. Would you read a thriller where the terrorist or serial killer wasn’t stopped (at least from carrying out his immediate threat)? Or a mystery where the detective never figured out whodunit?

I think it’s odd that finding love is so maligned in books, yet in movies it’s a prevalent part of the storyline, even if not the main thrust of the story. Even in a lot of action films and “guy” movies.

Anyway, sorry I’m late getting to this, but thank for so eloquently expressing the importance of romance.

I love the idea of the ‘happy ending’ being just about the woman finding happiness within herself. Certainly, in modern romance, the idea that a woman just needs a man is frowned upon and the romance needs to come about as much from the woman’s growth and finding herself as it does from the sexy shenanigans of the hero

It would be great to see stories were a man wasn’t necessary for the Happily Ever After. I think that’s where we need to ensure the other genres get more of a view of women’s stories and women’s worlds. Fantasy and science fiction, for example, have a great opening for these types of stories.

Here’s hoping! Maybe I’ll get the time to write one myself.

Best of luck with your book – and congrats for sitting down and writing and working on it. So many people say they will and they don’t. We’re ahead of the pack already just for having done so!

However, do you forsee a future where a ‘happy ending’ can also mean that the woman finds happiness within herself and ending up with the man doesn’t necessarily figure into that?

I’m thinking of “The Way We Were” suddenly.

Great post!