Over the holidays I had something that truly felt like a gift: time. I juggle two full-time jobs—writing and working as a public sector attorney—so time is truly precious to me. And while that may seem clichéd, clichés have their basis in truth. Which ties right into what some people might call the ultimate cliché of the romance genre: the happily ever after. But I’m getting ahead of myself.

So here I am, between WIPs, finished with edits, and with a brand new Kindle Fire in my greedy little hands. What do I do? I indulge in my two favorite pastimes: reading MM romance and watching anime. I blame my kids for that last vice, but if I’m really honest with myself, I’d admit I loved animated movies and shows well before my son started watching “Naruto” when he was 9 years old. For me, reading and watching anime are escapism, pure and simple. I love to lose myself in someone else’s creative universe.

So I’m binge watching episodes of anime, with the occasional animated movie thrown in, and surprise, surprise? I watch not one, but two movies in a row with bittersweet endings. Anyone who knows me knows that I avoid those like the plague! I need my happily-ever-after (HEA)!

That got me to thinking about why the majority of romances end with a HEA or at least a HFN (happily-for-now). And while I don’t claim to speak for everyone, I came up with two general ideas about why I personally need and love HEAs.

Escapism. Most of us had (and have) high hopes every time a new year rolls around. We hope it will be better. We hope the new year will bring all the things we dream of. The reality of a new year almost always falls short of what we dream of. Life doesn’t magically change with January 1^st. Bad things happen. 2015 is hardly an exception here. But a new year sparks hope in us. That’s the one of the reasons I personally crave a HEA.

As a kid, I gobbled up romance novels and romantic fiction at an alarming rate! I’d often stay up into the night reading. I was too young to understand what adult love was, but old enough that I craved it. The need to be with a special person to the exclusion of all others. The need to find the person to complete me. As a woman who’s been happily married for more than 20 years no, I know that most of what I craved back then really was fantasy (not that the reality is bad, it’s just different!). But whether it’s something in our DNA that craves it, or whether it’s simply what society tells us to do, most of us dream of that perfect romance.

Emotional Satisfaction. Two bittersweet endings in a row, and I had to go back and read a book with an over the top HEA to get my creative brain back on track! By the way, before I did that, I wrote several angsty scenes for future WIPs. That shows you how deeply those sad endings affected me personally. There is something enormously satisfying about a well-written HEA. It gives you closure. It gives you the warm fuzzy to combat the ache that romantic tension in a story creates. It satisfies a deep emotional need that many of us have. Like eating something sweet after a good meal. Or, musician that I am, like a chord that resolves after dissonance.

I’m not knocking bittersweet/sad endings in romance. Not at all! But I’m not going to be writing one any time soon. I always smile when a reader emails, pms, or posts on Twitter that they’re not sure they see how the HEA will come in one of my books or series. And I can honestly say that it will (although in a series, it may not come until the final book).

So I’m tossing this back out to you. Tell me. Do you crave a good HEA? Why? I’d love to hear from you! –Shira

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Shira’s most recent release, Blood and Rain, is the first in the three-book Blood series from Dreamspinner Press. And yes, it ends with a HEA. Three, in fact.

In her last incarnation, Shira was a professional opera singer, performing roles in such operas as “Tosca,” “i Pagliacci,” and “La Traviata,” among others. She’s given up TV for evenings spent with her laptop, and she never goes anywhere without a pile of unread M/M romance on her Kindle.

Shira is married with two children and two insane dogs, and when she’s not writing she is usually in a courtroom trying to make the world safer for children. When she’s not working, she can be found aboard a 35’ catamaran at the Carolina coast with her favorite sexy captain at the wheel.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shira.anthony
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4641776.Shira_Anthony
Twitter: @WriterShira
Website: http://www.shiraanthony.com
E-mail: shiraanthony@hotmail.com

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Blood and Rain (Blood #1): Adrien Gilbert has spent several lifetimes searching for the love he lost. Born in the 1800s into a clan of fabled vampire hunters, Adrien once wanted nothing more than to tend his family’s vineyard in southern France or read a good book. But Adrien’s peaceful existence ends abruptly when his older brother, François, is murdered. Bound by his hunter’s oath, Adrien sets out on a path that will forever change his life when he agrees to execute his brother’s killer, the vampire Charles Duvalier.

After months chasing the elusive Charles, Adrien reluctantly makes a bargain with Nicolas Lambert, an ancient vampire. Adrien will escort Nicolas to Paris for his marriage to a rival clanswoman, and Nicolas will help Adrien find Charles. Nicolas’s quiet strength and gentle heart soon convince Adrien that Nicolas is nothing like the vampires he has sworn to destroy. As the wedding date draws nearer, a force intent on destroying the fragile peace between the vampire clans threatens to tear apart both the vampire realm and the world of the hunters. To secure both past and future for those he loves, Adrien must find a way to stop the looming war between hunters and vampires. But first he’ll have to let Nicolas go.

You can buy Blood and Rain at:
Dreamspinner Press: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=5805&cPath=55_484
All Romance Ebooks: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-bloodandrain-1686465-145.html

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00QNVAPFA