Saturday, February 26, 2011

Romance Shizzle



Yesterday, I realized that my sister (let's call her "Margeaux" shall we??? heh heh) had rejected my friend request at facebook. The one sent from my author page. I thought it was most likely a grievous oversight on her part. But when I discreetly asked her what was up (I called her a "beeyotch" on facebook), she informed me that she didn't want to be inundated with romance shizzle.

Romance...shizzle.

I was speechless. It's true that my Penny Watson facebook page is dedicated to the wonderful world of romantic fiction, but I wouldn't call it romance shizzle.

And then it occurred to me that yes, perhaps, my life had become somewhat over-run by romance shizzle. Let's look at the facts....

1.) I only read romance novels. (And the comics in the morning paper).

2.) I read romance novels daily. (I do not, however, cook dinner daily nor do I wash the laundry daily).

3.) I have 2 blogs, which take up an enormous amount of time, both dedicated to...well...romance shizzle.

4.) I write romance novels.

5.) I like to talk about romance novels.

6.) I am chairperson of the promotions committee for the New England Chapter of the Romance Writers of America. Where I help writers to promote....their romance shizzle.

7.) I attend conferences about romance shizzle.

8.) Many of my friends are also on the romance shizzle bandwagon (fellow writers, bloggers, reviewers, etc).

9.) My only source of income is the result of romance shizzle (which isn't a hell of a lot, unfortunately).

10.) My favorite songs are romance shizzly. My favorite movies are romance shizzly. I love gardening, which scores high on the romance index (think roses and butterflies). I also love wiener dogs. I'm not sure how weenie dogs tie into the whole romance shizzle thing, but there must be a connection. Somehow. Since I am clearly obsessed with romance shizzle.

After pondering this dilemma for a bit, I came to the conclusion that...
A) Maybe I should expand my interests, or...
B) I should accept the fact that I am full of romance shizzle.

I considered these alternate options....

--start attending church
--get a job not related to romance shizzle
--try reading Shakespeare

After seriously considering these options for at least 35 seconds, I rejected them. (Sort of the way my sister rejected my friend request. But I'm not bitter. Really).

I have decided to embrace my inner romance shizzle in all its lovely glory. Yes, perhaps I missing out on other forms of reading materials. And yes, perhaps I could accomplish many things in my life that would benefit mankind if I stopped reading romance novels. Save the earth. Recycle more. That sort of thing. But the truth is, I like my romance shizzle. It's fun, it's happy, it's inspiring.

So, I am accepting the fact that romance shizzle more or less rules my life, even if certain individuals (sister whose name begins with the letter "M") clearly think my romance shizzle obsession may be problematic.

I have decided to start a new expression. Ro shizzle, instead of fo shizzle.

All my ro shizzly best,
Penelope