Have I been writing Bummer Fic?

My next release will be on September 25, and it will be this one (which you can currently pre-order for a mere $2.79 because it's a young adult story! Oh, and the same YA sale at Dreamspinner / Harmony Ink also includes The Zero Knot. The reduced prices will be in effect through the end of August.)

Now that the announcements are out of the way, let's move on to the title of this post.

I have the impression some readers are avoiding Resurrection Man, my August 6 release, because they assume it's depressing. They'll probably think the same of Ben Raphael's All-Star Virgins. I can't blame them, really, because the blurbs for both books contain certain words and phrases that don't exactly scream happy-happy, joy-joy! 

But here's the thing. We writers of GLBTQ* fiction, whether romance or not, seem to have a penchant for tackling unpleasant subjects: bullying and bashing, HIV/AIDS, childhood sexual abuse, homelessness, religious intolerance, social prejudice, family rejection, etc. As most of you surely know, such experiences are all too often a part of living outside the heteronormative mainstream. Some of us don't want to ignore how our characters' "otherness" has impacted their lives.

Okay, so there's that. There's reality, which can be damned harsh but which some authors respect nonetheless. I, for one, try not to shy away from it. But also keep this in mind: romance writers are committed to optimistic outcomes. Even if you see dreaded words and phrases in our book blurbs, rest assured we'll manage to extract some measure of hope and fulfillment for our main characters. (After all, many people enjoy their sweetest triumphs after suffering through trials that seem defeating but turn out not to be.) We're definitely not penning "Bummer Fic" (except, maybe, in smallish, digestible doses). We want our characters to grow and learn through adversity, and be rewarded for their endurance, as much as you do.   

So don't be skeered! We'll never put you through the wringer without fluffing you up at the end. ;-)