I’ve always been a sucker for star-crossed lovers stories. Romeo
and Juliet, anyone? When I was trying to come up with a plot idea for the final
installment of the Cupid, Texas series Love with a Perfect Cowboy set
in the rugged Davis Mountains of the Trans-Pecos region, it dawned on me that
I’d never written a book with this particular theme.
But I’m a romance writer, so of course I had to give my Romeo and
Juliet a happy ending. And there began the challenge of writing Luke and
Melody’s story. How to repair the riff of a
hundred-year-old family feud so that my star-crossed lovers could be
together forever? How do you take an enemy, and turn him into a lover? How do
you overcome generations of hurt and betrayal?
While I was mulling all this over, my husband, and I gone to
Pigeon Forge, TN in our RV for a book tour, and as we drove past the Hatfield
and McCoy’s dinner theatre, the entire plot started to unfold in my head. (This
is what authors mean when they say ideas come from anywhere and everywhere. You
never know what’s going to trigger inspiration.)
Still, writing the book was tough. How does a woman, especially in
a small, close-knit town, buck family and friends when they hate the man she
loves, to get her happily-ever-after? This is the central question I
explore in Love with a Perfect Cowboy.
What about you? Ever love someone your family and friends didn’t
approve of? If so, how did the romance turn out? If not, do you know any
star-crossed lovers who made it work? Leave a comment for a chance to win a $25.00 gift card from Barnes & Noble or Amazon! (winner's choice)
Lori
***Lori's winner is Ada! Please contact totebag@authorsoundrelations.com with your mailing details!***
***Lori's winner is Ada! Please contact totebag@authorsoundrelations.com with your mailing details!***
36 comments:
no have not been in this situation
Hi Dina!
Thanks for sharing.
My husband and I met when I was 24 and he was 21. My family was sure it wouldn't last, him being a younger guy. We've been together 12 years this year, married for 9. So far so good. :)
Alas, not with me, or even that I know of... which could be a good thing. :)
Lois
Good for you, Elizabeth!
Yes, Lois, that is a good thing.
I went out with a few guys in my younger years that my family didn't like, especially my mother. Even when I knew the relationship would go know where I would still keep seeing them for awhile just because I knew it drove my mother crazy..
not been in that situation I don't guess. In high school the guys I liked, we didn't go out, were younger than me. My friends used to tease me
Never was in that situation... But my parents were pretty clear about what they deemed acceptable.... they wanted me to be happy, but had expections of college, decent living/lifestyle..
Isn't it tacky how we do that to our moms when we're young, Kathleen?
Regencygirl, so you were a courage? LOL.
Girlygirl, at least you obeyed.
My dad followed my mom across the country when her parents forbade their relationship. They eloped and are still together 57 years later.
Mad, what a great love story. You should write it.
I dated a guy my mom said was "from the wrong side of the tracks" for 1.5 years before we mutually broke up in early August. By the end of September, he wanted to date again. We went out once, but there wasn't anything special for me. I was seeing another a guy by then (actually, I had dates with ten different guys that September - I had never been so popular!) and he bought me an engagement ring in mid October and asked me to marry him on Christmas Day. (He had invited himself to my sister's apartment 2 hrs away with my parents and I, and when he asked me, my MOTHER said yes, while I said I needed 2 weeks to think about it, as I was 21 and he was 31. Two days later I said yes, after writing out the "why I should marry him", "why I shouldn't marry him", "why I want to be married" and "why I don't want to be married" lists. Even though there were three times more reasons to NOT marry him, I decided the quality of the yeses far outweighed the negatives. We have been married for 33 happy years so far.) As for the old boyfriend, he phoned me in early December to say that his girlfriend got pregnant the previous September, so they were marrying. (She was still in high school.) They had 3 very intelligent kids, broke up for a few years, and then got back together a few years back. I wrote his dad a sympathy card when his mom had died, and the old boyfriend phoned me to thank me. He asked me to "go out sometime for coffee with him" and I declined. Much as I trusted myself and knew my husband trusted me, it didn't feel right. I told him I was okay with speaking on the phone occasionally, but we could not go out in public together or people would misconstrue our friendship. That was over three years ago and we haven't spoken again since. No regrets here (other than for my mom's behaviour, LOL).
Thanks for sharing, Laney. Interesting story.
I married my husband against my Mother's wishes. My Dad told me to follow my heart and it was the best thing I ever did!!! I will be married to him for 38 years in November. We have 3 great Adult children and 2 grandsons. Very blessed.
My family never approved of the men I dated. And when I met my husband, I was still married to my ex-husband and his family really didn't like that. He actually didn't speak to any of them for months until they would accept me.
No, not really. It seems that my family approves my taste in men. :-)
Good for you Pat for listening to you heart!
Janine,
Wow, that is a rock and a hard place. Glad it all worked out.
Ana,
Now that's a nice way to have a life. But for fiction, we've got to have that conflict, right?
My mom was not over pleased with the man that I marries. We have been married for 30 years now. My husband is so good to my mom, and I still think she thinks he is not the best. She had a bad marriage so I think in general no man is good enough. My daughter is getting married next month and we love our soon to be son in law!
I have not been in that situation but when I was young my friend got involved with a guy her parents didn't like. She packed up her stuff and moved in with him. Her parents didn't know what to do. She later married the guy and had three kids.
My mom was really not nice to my husband , but we were married 39 years.
Oy Vey... my first serious boyfriend... My mom and I fought like cats and dogs over him and we ended up not talking for about a year. That relationship lasted about 5 years and when it ended, my mom never told me "I told you so". She was just very, very happy to help me move :) Thanks for sharing and congrats on the new release!
Yes, the important thing is as long as they love each other nothing can really stop them!
I thought I was. My family and friends never said a negative word about him, though, until after we separated. THEN they told me how they really felt about him.
I've known lots of couples who were star-crossed lovers. Are they successful? About 50/50. I have a couple of friends who are still married to their star-crossed lovers today and are nothing but happy.
I thought he was the love of my life. No one else did. Happens they were right all along.
Hi Lori! Congrats on your new release, I can't wait to read Love With a Perfect Cowboy! Have to say that I've never been in a situation where my family didn't approve of the guy I was with. But when I hear of star-crossed lovers, I always think of a tragic love affair like Romeo and Juliet, and their relationship definitely didn't work out!
It hasn't happened to me but I had a friend who's parents really didn't like her boyfriend because they didn't think he was the right type of boy for her. I'm glad to say they didn't listen and now they've been happily married for 6 years with a baby on the way! :) That's about it for personal experience though!! Can't wait to read your newest, I always enjoy your books Lori!
No I do not personally know any star-crossed lovers. But I do know some couples that have overcome some odds to be together!
I don't know anyone who has gone through this, but I love to think that they have a HEA :)
I met and married my first boyfriend. And while my friends and family adored him, his friends and family were not so thrilled with me. This wasn't because they didn't like me as a person, but because I didn't share his passion for mountaineering. So they mourned that I would not be the person to share that love. However, our love has endured and while we have witnessed other couples parting ways, we have happily clung together. He shares his love of mountaineering and hiking with others and comes home to me to tell the tales over family meals, snuggling, and laughter.
I don't have a star crossed romance in my past. However, both my older brother and SIL tried second marriages to much younger mates( that the family didn't approve of). My brother's marriage recently ended in divorce after 15 years. She left him for another younger man. My SIL's marriage also ended after 10 years of marriage and 2 children. He left her for a younger woman.
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