Please welcome Ylva author Chris Zett, who recently released Irregular Heartbeat.
Why I love lesbian medical romance by Chris Zett
I discovered lesbian or woman-loving-woman fiction by chance as I read a fantasy book set on a world inhabited only by women. I’ll always be grateful to Jane Fletcher to introduce me to a new experience I didn’t even know I craved. At the end of this novel were a lot of little teasers that hints at a multitude of different subgenres, all with women loving women. And they led me to medical romance or more specifically lesbian medical romance. Something I’d never read before.
What is medical romance? It is defined on Wikipedia as a subgenre of romance, depicting a relationship between “tall, husky and chiseled” male doctors and female doctors or nurses. I’d like to broaden that definition for the lesfic world. For me, a medical romance contains at least one protagonist in a medical profession (doctor, nurse, paramedic, etc.) and either a setting or a story arc with medical themes. I believe the setting and the story are as important as the characters for the medical vibe of a novel. If, for example, the protagonist is a doctor on vacation who meets a paramedic while snorkeling, and their jobs are only mentioned in passing and nothing medical related happens, I wouldn’t call it a medical romance. But if a catastrophe occurs and some rescuing takes place where their respective medical professions come into play, that would totally work for me.
Why do I read medical romance? When I return home after work, I usually switch off my doctor brain and like to forget all about medicine until my next shift. I don’t even like medical drama on TV that much (except for ER, that show was one of the things that brought my wife and me together).
Reading romance is a wonderful form of escapism. So, why do I return to the medical world during my free time? One explanation is, in a romance novel you can trust the book to have a happy ending. That is not always true in the real world. Plus, I love the versatility of the sub-genre. In the medical romance world, almost anything can happen. The protagonists are varied as are the story arcs. They can be family doctors, surgeons, army nurses, and former rock stars. To prove this point during a facebook discussion, I did a mock-up Lesbian Book Bingo card with all the squares filled in with lesbian medical romance. (If you haven’t heard of the Lesbian Book Bingo, the fabulous invention of Jae, head over to her website https://jae-fiction.com/lesbian-book-bingo/ and have a look. But come back here to finish the guest post for a chance to win a book.)
Why do I write medical romance? Most of my stories start in my head with one or two characters and their backstories. I try to give them complete personalities with flaws balancing out the positive traits. Then I throw them together in what-if situations and see what unfolds. The medical setting is perfect for that, hospitals are a fertile ground where personal drama between the staff blooms. If you spent enough time in this environment, you witness people falling in love or in lust, fight over positions or partners and anything is possible. Even I contributed once to the staff’s entertainment. I met my future wife during an adrenaline filled emergency that led to a beautiful friendship and almost a year of not-quite-being-together, during which several colleagues bet on the time it took us to figure out our mutual attraction. So, maybe the answer to why I write medical romance is simple: I’m living it.
Irregular Heartbeat is my addition to the genre. For a chance to win either a signed paperback or an ebook (winner’s choice), visit the giveaway on my website.
IRREGULAR HEARTBEAT
Contemporary Medical Romance
When drummer Diana Petrell leaves her rock-star life to return to ER medicine, she won’t let anything stop her—not even falling for aloof mentor, Dr. Emily Barnes.
Emily isn’t happy having to babysit an intriguing resident with a ten-year gap in her résumé.
But every time they work together, it’s not just their patients’ heartbeat that gets a little irregular. Soon, the once-clear lines between work and personal life begin to blur.
What happens to their careers when Diana’s secret comes out?
A lesbian romance that asks how much we’d risk for love.
MEET THE AUTHOR
Chris Zett lives in Berlin, Germany, with her wife. TV inspired her to study medicine, but she found out soon enough that real life in a hospital consists more of working long hours than performing heroic rescues. The part about finding a workplace romance turned out to be true, though.
She uses any opportunity to escape the routine by reading, writing, or traveling. Her favorite destinations include penguin colonies in Patagonia and stone circles in Scotland.
CONNECT WITH CHRIS ZETT
Facebook / Twitter / Newsletter / Website
Thanks so much for stopping by today.
