FROM A MAN'S POINT OF VIEW THIS WEEK

Today we welcome John Jackson as our guest blogger. 

John writes about 'life, love, history and, hopefully, all sorts'. And we mustn't forget his love of hedgehogs. He's also very keen on photography and does a lot of back-office stuff for the RNA of which he is a stalwart member. Here he talks about being a man writing in a predominately female genre. Welcome and over to you John.

The 1%

Walking into a Romantic Novelists Association function can be an ear-splitting experience, especially for someone like me – a mere male. However, it only takes a few minutes to get accustomed to the RNA Roar, and if not, there are always ear-plugs.

Men ARE rare when it comes to membership, though. I did a quick count-up and found that – at the time I counted – there were just 10 out of 1000 – or 1%. 

Its not as if male writers lack talent. I am more inclined to think its because they see romance as a predominantly female readership, although various surveys show that up to 30% of readers are, in fact, male.

There have been some very successful male romance authors too. Peter O’Donnell, writer of the Modesty Blaise cartoon strip and subsequent action / adventure novels also wrote romance as Madeleine Brent. In 1978, his novel Merlin's Keep won the Romantic Novel of the Year Award. He didn’t appear in person to collect his award, though. 

In more recent times, we had the late and much missed Roger Sanderson. Roger wrote medical romances for Mills and Boon for many years, using his wife’s name as a nom-de-plume. When not busy writing, he was to be found up a mountain or cliff as an experienced and keen mountaineer.

Up here in Yorkshire, we have the wonderful Bill Spence. Bill served in the RAF during the war, as a bomb-aimer in Lancasters. Peace brought him back to civilian life and a career in teaching and store management, where he tried writing westerns. Eventually his publisher suggested he tried his hand at romantic fiction. To date he has written 23 romances, generally sagas set in North Yorkshire. He is STILL writing at the age of 96, and still attends his local chapter of the RNA for occasional lunches.

I joined the RNA quite by chance. I met and got to know two lady novelists, and through them, met several more. They seemed perfectly nice, and normal, and one thing led to another. Two years later I found myself in the New Writers Scheme.

I was fortunate in that, as a male, I didn’t shy away from the idea of reading romance. My father was a big Georgette Heyer fan, and passed them all on to me, and, at the end of the day, good writing is good writing, and makes good reading. 

Of course, like all tyro writers, I thought Draft 1 was the best thing since sliced bread. It took a Conference or two, and a very helpful NWS Reader’s report to make me realise that, like most things, writing is a craft, and that we all have to learn it. What’s more, we don’t stop learning it. We should all be continually “sharpening our pans” 

I would urge ANYONE who wants to write, and who wants to write something that has some element of romance in it, to try and get into the New Writers Scheme. There are few, if any, schemes like it. 

John (One of the 1%)

Heart of Stone", now available at http://viewbook.at/Heartofgoldlink

You can learn more about John here:

Email: jjackson@btinternet.com Web: johnjacksonauthor.com/

And follow him on Twitter: @jjackson42

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/johnjacksonauthor/

And John would like to put the following call out: Calling all writers who were born in Yorkshire or currently live there.Join Us at http://www.promotingyorkshireauthors.com/