A woman posted on a Facebook group recently how insulted she was that some of her friends and family do not appreciate that she writes romance. She commenced to explain why she wrote it and loved it and how it was the largest selling genre, therefore, it deserved respect. Others on the group echoed her concerns. Everyone was hating those who did not appreciate the romance genre.

They had no business complaining. None at all. As a matter of fact, they were convincing people NOT to read romance with behaviors like that.

The people they were fussing about had just as much right to dislike romance as the complainers did to like and write it. You might as well convince someone who doesn’t like broccoli that they ought to like broccoli. It makes that much sense.

I’ll be wide open honest right here and now. I do not like to read fantasy, scifi, dystopia, cozy mystery, AND romance. However, I am friends with writers who write them and readers who read them. Just like not everyone eats broccoli, nobody reads all genres. That is their right and their choice. They are just trying to make their lives enjoyable by doing what they love. Why entertain something you do not love?

Ironically, those writers brought attention to the fact they are not very accepting of people different than themselves. They brought more attention to their whining than they did the work they write. Instead, I remember them as whiners instead of as writers.

Be careful what choices you align yourself with. Choices mean just that, choices. Some will agree and others will not agree, and you have to be careful making people justify their choices.

Instead of fighting against the ones who disagree, why not court the ones who do. Write for them and enjoy each other. Wouldn’t that make for a much better day?