So, I’ve been asking this question a lot of places, but I’m curious to get your take on it. What is “dark”? As you know, Harlequin is starting a new dark paranormal line–well, what does that mean to you? What do you expect?
To me dark means creepy. You know the books you read and that night you have uh, disturbing dreams? That is dark to me. While I really enjoy a lot of the “darker” paranormal romances out there, to me they aren’t “dark”. Kelly Armstrong and Kim Harrison (not romances) wake me up at night. That is dark.
I’m reading Maggie Shayne right now. Finished a book by Eileen Wilks not too long ago, and have read a number of others–all really good, but not a sleepless night in the bunch.
Am I too hard to creep out? (Grew up in the era of Night Stalker, remember that series?) Or does that factor not even have to play into it?
How about the hero–for it to be dark, does he have to be evil? What I mean here is, as you are reading it, does there have to be some possibility he will actually turn on the heroine? Or can it be pretty clear he won’t, but there is some other element of danger instead?
So, who’s game? Who can define dark for me–and can you list a few authors too?
Thanks!!
Lori
I’m the wrong person to ask as I’m a light paranormal reader, but my guess would be Stephen King or Dean Koontz.
by Edie Ramer December 22nd, 2005 at 3:54 pmI’d like a definition, too. I’d say Koontz or King, although I don’t think the two writers write the same kind of dark. I submitted an ms to Luna, and they replied in about two weeks, saying it was pacey, well written but just not dark enough for them. I’m writing something now that is darker, but is it dark enough? And as you say, what exactly is dark? The fantasy I’m writing now won’t scare anyone (I don’t think) but the premise is darker, the characters have faced a lot of real pain. Iain M. Banks’ Against a Dark Background is along the same lines. Not Koontz scary, but dark and twisted. One of the review lines on the back cover says ‘Banks warns you up front - this is a dark book.’ So to them, the dark landscape, the pain and suffering the characters go through, the twists and betrayals in the plot, make it dark. Its not the dark that keeps you up at night wondering what that noise was, its the kind of dark that has you pondering for a long time afterwards.
by Michelle Diener December 28th, 2005 at 4:24 pmThat is interesting about Luna. I’ve only read one and I didn’t think it was overly dark - maybe a bit creepy, but that’s it. And my mother has read a lot of them and she doesn’t read what I think of as dark. I’m sure if she thought the ones she had read were dark she would have mentioned it.
by Lori December 29th, 2005 at 10:24 amA couple of my friends said to them in a dark romance the h/h are each others salvation or at least one is to the other–what keeps them from slipping totally to the “dark” side. I think that is certainly common, but to me a romance could be dark without that–of course I can’t think of a book that doesn’t have that right now. So maybe they are right. :)