“I understand that marriage is not always the goal”
Alexandra TurnerLe Chevalier
In addition to writing romance, I also read my fair share.
Today I have a minor, minor pet peeve to share – ending with a wedding.
One of the things that knocks a book down a notch, for me
anyway, is the tacked on wedding scene at the end of the book. I understand the
impulse to create an elaborate wedding, especially if your characters come from
a society set where the wedding is the “event of the season.” Still, I think
some of the authors I’ve read must have been wedding planners before they
became authors.
My advice, as a reader, is to include the wedding if it
moves the story forward. If it doesn’t, skip it. If you can wrap up all the loose
ends with the “I love you and don't want to live without you scene” by all means do it.
I can fill in the rest of their history without having it explained to me.
For some reason, I don’t feel quite as strongly about the “baby
epilogues.” Those are the short chapters at the very end of the book that jump
ahead and show the happy couple with a child. While I don’t consider them necessary, I can certainly fill in that detail as well, they don’t bother me
too much. Perhaps it’s because they are usually quite short.
In Le Chevalier, I skipped the wedding scene and concluded
with a scene that held much more significance to the future of the happy
couple.
Of course, I’m just one reader and I would love to hear what
others think. Do you like the wedding scenes, or do they leave you a little
bored as they do me?
MJ
P.S. If you love discussing 18th Century Fiction, remember to join one of these two new groups:
P.S. If you love discussing 18th Century Fiction, remember to join one of these two new groups:
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