Monday, June 13, 2016

#ScienceFictionRomance by Diane Burton

I love Science Fiction Romance (SFR). Love to read it and love to write it. My SFR roots go back to being enthralled with the “space race” of the 1960s. When the USSR launched Sputnik, our national pride wouldn’t let us sit back and marvel that someone had gotten a projectile through our atmosphere and into space. Oh, no. We had to not only match it but surpass it. Thus came the challenge to put a man on the moon. In that decade. And, by golly, we did.



Every space launch had me glued to the television. Not really effective in black-and-white, but who cared? My enthusiasm became contagious. The posters I brought back from Cape Kennedy Space Center hung on my classroom bulletin boards. I knew the names of the first group of astronauts. No, I didn’t make my students memorize them.

So, anything space-related grabbed my attention. I’d watched the corny, old TV shows B-movies with silly aliens and dorky plots. (Doctor Who wasn’t on American television yet) What really captured my imagination was Star Wars: A New Hope. Fast-paced adventure, a hint of romance, fabulous music. And the good guys won. What more could you ask? Now I was infecting a new generation, my children and their friends, with my enthusiasm by taking them to the movies.

The combination of space adventure and romance captured me and hasn’t let go. Not enough movies so I looked for books. Jayne Ann Caste came out with Crystal Flame, followed by Gift of Gold, and Gift of Fire. All right. From then on, I searched for “futuristics” as SFR was known then. When I couldn’t find enough to read, I wrote them.

Nowadays the choices are overwhelming. Good news, bad news. Great that there are so many choices. Bad that there are so many choices. How do I choose? I mean, my book “budget” isn’t that big. Word-of-mouth is always great. That’s why I have guests on my blog (Saturday Sampler) showcasing books. Still, so many choices.

Here’s a word-of-mouth recommendation. PORTALS: A Gateway To The Worlds Of Science Fiction Romance. Portals is a way to check out books by your favorite SFR authors and new-to-you authors. Each volume contains the first chapters of ten published books. Three volumes are available with three more in the works. While my math skills aren’t the best, even I can figure out I can “test drive” sixty books. Read the first chapter, if I like it, click on the link, and buy.

The best part is Portals is free. Yep, free. I’m sure you’re asking where you can get Portals? Everywhere. Maybe I’d better qualify that. It’s at the following online book vendors:

PORTALS: VOLUME ONE

PORTALS: VOLUME TWO


PORTALS: VOLUME THREE



Shameless plug here. The first chapter of the first book in my Outer Rim series, The Pilot, is in Volume Two.



If you like SFR, you’re sure to find some new books to read. I did. Oh, my poor book budget.


Diane Burton combines her love of adventure and romance into writing science fiction romance (as well as romantic suspense and mystery). She blogs here on the 13th of each month, on The Roses of Prose on the 30th, and on her own blog on Mondays.

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