Spring is springing and there’s no better time to jump into the world of romance! The new season of Bridgerton is just around the corner, a new Bridget Jones movie was just announced, and we may even see a Legally Blonde TV series in the future!
Over at THE LOVE LIST, we’ve been having a grand old time connecting with industry folks and authors who are just as excited about the romance boom as we are. Lots of fun things in the works!
But without further ado, let’s jump into our April agenda!
ROM-TALK 💬
The romance community has recently been very vocal about spice or the lack thereof. “Spice,” for anyone not on Booktok, is the word used to describe the sex scenes in romance novels. Some books are heavy on the spice, some are what the romance community would call “closed-door romances.”
It’s a very interesting topic because as romance either gets adapted for TV and film, and/or original romance scripts get produced, sex is often if not a point of contention, then something that has to be thoughtfully approached.
In book-form, these scenes are often the thing that lets people discount the genre as frivolous or pornographic (not that there’s anything wrong with that — it’s called erotica!). But, in romance novels, these scenes are much more than titillating descriptions of sex. In fact, sex scenes usually go to the heart of big character shifts, for what is more vulnerable a moment in a story about a romantic relationship than sex?
In movies and television, sex onscreen has been treated differently depending on the era we’re in. There was the pre-code era (1929-1933), where films actually pushed the envelope in terms of displaying sexuality. Many films of this era were suggestive, rather than explicit.
But then, in 1933, the film production code came in and there were rigid rules about what could and could not be shown. This is why Hitchcock had his characters break kisses every few seconds in Notorious, and also why Lucy and Ricky sleep in separate beds in I Love Lucy. (The latter was the result of another code - The NARTB Television Code).
After the production code ended, how sex and romance were depicted largely went in the opposite direction. Filmmakers began pushing boundaries, and the media from the 1970s-1990s largely reflects that. Fast Times at Ridgemont High was a great example of that middle period, much more risqué than anything during the production code. If you want to know more about this period, check out Karina Longworth’s Erotic Cinema seasons of You Must Remember This.
Now, we are in a sort of post-period, with our media still deeply colored by the puritanical nature of our society, but also things like Outlander exist, so y’know, it’s kind of all over the map.
All of this to say, spice or how much sex is shown onscreen is a big question, and to us, the answer largely depends on the project and what the scenes are trying to accomplish or communicate in a story. Still, it has to be said, in stories about romantic relationships, sex is often an inextricable component.
How do you feel about spice in romance?
ROMANCE 📚 WE RECOMMEND
For our archive title… this month we’re recommending Tessa Dare’s WHEN A SCOT TIES THE KNOT. Tessa is a big voice in historical romance and this one has such a fun premise. It follows Madeline Gracechurch, a girl awkward in matters of the heart. So she does what any imaginative heroine would do: make up a beau. And then one day, the man she made up, with the actual name…shows up at her front door, and he maybe blackmails her…but then of course THEY FALL IN LOVE. An absolute delight. You can buy it here!
For new and soon-to-be-released titles…our April pick is Yulin Kuang’s debut romance novel HOW TO END A LOVE STORY. This is very exciting for us because Yulin’s feature romantic drama script was on our inaugural list in February. Yulin’s book is a Hollywood-set love story, following a YA novelist whose book is being adapted for television. She scores a seat in the writers room, and OF COURSE, her former high school classmate is the number two in the room. And to say they have a bit of a tortured past is putting it lightly! Romantic, sweeping, and unputdownable, you need to add this book to your TBR list ASAP. You can buy it here!
LOVE LIST WRITER PROFILE: YULIN KUANG 🖊️
Yulin is one of the most exciting voices in romance right now, both in the book world and on the screen. We first became aware of her with her celebrated web series I SHIP IT, a highly addictive fangirl romance. Now, she is currently set to adapt two of Emily Henry’s biggest novels: PEOPLE WE MEET ON VACATION and BEACH READ, the latter of which she’s also set to direct.
We were absolutely obsessed with her romantic feature FILTHY!!
What drew you to writing romance?
I started writing fanfiction when I was a teenager because there was never enough romance within the canon of the books I was reading / TV shows and movies I was watching. I liked how romance made me feel, and I wanted to chase more of that feeling.
What is your favorite romance movie/tv show and why?
"Hors de Prix" is a French romcom that I have returned to often over the years; it's so smart and sexy and funny and sad at the same time!
How would you like to see the genre evolve in film and television?
I would like to create space for more than the flattened concept of 'rom-com' that has evolved in the minds of contemporary audiences - it seems if your story ends happily, then there's pressure for it to be a rollicking comedy the whole way through because of what everyone *thinks* the audience seeking out these stories want. As a romance lover, I of course want a happily ever after, but I also want to be taken on a full spectrum of emotions on my journey to get it.
ROMANCE FILM AND TV RECOMMENDATIONS
From the archive this month… we recommend FAR FROM THE MADDING CROWD, the 2015 adaptation of Thomas Hardy’s famous novel. Starring Carey Mulligan as Bathsheba Everdeen, this movie is a sweeping 19th century romance set in England. It has all the promises of the premise and more. The score stays in your head, the setting is lush and picturesque, and the romance is exactly what you want it to be. Side note: Yulin also revealed at her book launch that this film is also a favorite of hers! You can currently watch on Max!
For new titles… we recommend Rudy Mancuso’s MUSICÁ. This feature rom-com is as much a coming-of-age story as it is a romance. Co-starring Camila Mendes, who recently starred in another rom-com UPGRADED, the film explores Brazilian culture and navigating the pressure of living up to expectations of one’s family. You can watch it on Amazon Prime!
SUBSTACK SPECS!
There are so many great romance scripts we need more than an annual list to highlight them. Starting today, we’ll be accepting romance scripts for a series called SUBSTACK SPECS. Each month, we’ll be reading scripts from studio and prodco execs and recommending one script we believe is the most exciting romance script on the market. If something great passes your desk and doesn’t fit your current mandates but you would desperately like to see it get made, send it our way!
We’ll be reviewing them on a rolling basis. Please send them to our email at lovelistsubmissions@gmail.com.
See you in May!