[ SECRET POST #4059 ]

[case]

⌈ Secret Post #4059 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

01.



__________________________________________________



02.


__________________________________________________



03.


__________________________________________________



04.


__________________________________________________



05.


__________________________________________________



06.


__________________________________________________



07.











Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 01 pages, 22 secrets from Secret Submission Post #581.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 1 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Comments

I always thought that was part of the appeal.

[(Anonymous)]

That there was a girl that really wasn't that special, but saw herself as unique (because, really everybody is) and someone else thought that she really was something special.

Re: I always thought that was part of the appeal.

[(Anonymous)]

The problem is that you also have to believe and like the character in question as a reader. And when it feels like it's just paint-by-numbers, that's hard to do.

Re: I always thought that was part of the appeal.

[(Anonymous)]

I think romance fans usually project themselves onto the heroine. So the more generic, the better.

Re: I always thought that was part of the appeal.

[(Anonymous)]

But I think there's a point - at least for some people - where it becomes impossible to even do that.

Re: I always thought that was part of the appeal.

[(Anonymous)]

Not really, not among fans of the genre.

Re: I always thought that was part of the appeal.

[(Anonymous)]

I don't think that's entirely accurate. The idea isn't to have a generic heroine, per se, it's to have heroines that are a specific type that readers find easy to identify with or project themselves onto. So "pretty but with modern attitudes re: gender equality and feminism that's a turn off to most men except the super hot hero who isn't a sexist pig" is a common one. So is "pretty but highly educated and bookish which is totally a bad thing in historical times".

Re: I always thought that was part of the appeal.

[(Anonymous)]

Mmm, I don't know. Because I don't think the issue at hand is that "the heroine sees herself as unique"... like technically that might be true because as you said, everyone is. But that's not generally how it's approached in a romance novel. The problem OP is addressing is when the heroine purports to see herself as uniquely flawed to the point of being unloveable/unmarriageable and the reasoning is [insert a bunch of silly traits that aren't really flaws]. So yeah, you have an insanely beautiful heroine going, "Oh noes, nobody will ever want me because I have enormous breasts and a tiny waist and I'm so petite!" or "Sure I have the body of a goddess and a huge dowry but I also have red hair and read a lot of books!"

That's what strikes readers as being ridiculously fake. #romanceheroineproblems