Today I want to welcome Nadia Lee.
Fated: You and I Are Meant to Be Forever
In paranormal romance, the fated mate trope is almost a cliché now. How many times have we seen a couple meet, feel instant lust and decide that they're fated to be together forever? (The fated mate realization is usually on the part of the male, who then chases the female around.)
I understand the appeal of the scenario. There's something very thrilling about a powerful man doing everything he can to claim a woman and make an everlasting commitment
But in many books I'm not sure why the couple should spend even a minute together, much less marry. The hero and heroine have nothing in common, they don't seem particularly empathetic, and aren't even nice to each other. Some of them have such a dysfunctional relationship that I feel like they belong on Jerry Springer. However, because the couple is fated, the readers are asked to swallow the unbelievable relationship.
A skilled writer can make me believe that, fated or not, the couple belongs together. When such a writer uses the fated mate trope, the resulting story is cracktastic. I can believe that the couple will be happy forever, and that their relationship will endure whatever difficulties and hardship they may face together in the future.
So what makes me buy into the fated mate trope? The biggest one is shared values. When the hero and heroine both place importance on things such as honesty, loyalty, families and/or generosity, etc. it signals that there's more than just lust between the two. That in turn makes me believe that the couple has a solid foundation for a relationship.
How about you? What makes you buy into the fated mate trope? Answer for your chance to win an e-copy of any one of my current releases plus an early author e-copy of The Last Slayer (December 26, 2011, Carina Press).
CONTEST IS OPEN UNTIL 9/5/11!!!
I understand the appeal of the scenario. There's something very thrilling about a powerful man doing everything he can to claim a woman and make an everlasting commitment
But in many books I'm not sure why the couple should spend even a minute together, much less marry. The hero and heroine have nothing in common, they don't seem particularly empathetic, and aren't even nice to each other. Some of them have such a dysfunctional relationship that I feel like they belong on Jerry Springer. However, because the couple is fated, the readers are asked to swallow the unbelievable relationship.
A skilled writer can make me believe that, fated or not, the couple belongs together. When such a writer uses the fated mate trope, the resulting story is cracktastic. I can believe that the couple will be happy forever, and that their relationship will endure whatever difficulties and hardship they may face together in the future.
So what makes me buy into the fated mate trope? The biggest one is shared values. When the hero and heroine both place importance on things such as honesty, loyalty, families and/or generosity, etc. it signals that there's more than just lust between the two. That in turn makes me believe that the couple has a solid foundation for a relationship.
How about you? What makes you buy into the fated mate trope? Answer for your chance to win an e-copy of any one of my current releases plus an early author e-copy of The Last Slayer (December 26, 2011, Carina Press).
CONTEST IS OPEN UNTIL 9/5/11!!!
About Nadia Lee:
Bilingual former management consultant Nadia Lee has lived in four different countries and enjoyed many adventures and excellent food around the globe. In the last eight years, she has kissed stingrays, got bitten by a shark, ridden an elephant and petted tigers.
She shares an apartment overlooking a river and palm trees in Japan with her husband, winter white hamsters and an ever-widening pile of books. When she's not writing, she can be found digging through old Asian historical texts or planning another trip.
Visit Nadia here
http://www.nadialee.net
