“After reading all the replies on the blog and thinking about the subject a little more, I’ve come to the conclusion that if we took all the books off the shelves written by authors with no actual firsthand knowledge of their characters’ occupations, affectations, afflictions, lifestyles, etc. and also those where the author has never once stepped a foot in the place where their story is located,. there would be almost nothing left. Other, of course, than hefty tomes on economics, etc. etc.

Fiction is supposed to be escapist entertainment–a pinch of reality with a healthy dose of fantasy all conceived and constructed with the author’s imagination. I’ve never traveled through time or met a shapeshifter or strayed into a parallel universe, and while I’ve had a couple of paranormal experiences, I’ve never sat around and chatted to a ghost the way the characters do in my books.

One thing I do know, is that there are a lot of lonely readers out there who live vicariously through our stories of perfect love and romance, or enjoy to fantasize about satyrs and faeries or ghosts, or maybe having two gorgeous lovers to keep them company through their long lonely nights. It’s safe, it’s harmless, and so long as there is reader demand, who are we to deny them their fantasy fix?

Christiane France

Cool mysteries and hot romance – http://www.chrisgrover.ca