I am so happy, to have the wonderful Lynn Lorenz today on the blog. I asked her to share some thoughts on interracial love, and she graciously accpeted.
So help me welcome Lynn Lorenz to Pants Off!
Variety is the spice of life!
I remember when I
was a young teen growing up in New Orleans in the late 60’s and early
70’s, my entire life seemed filled with boys of all sorts, but few of
them were Caucasian, or “white” as we used to say. I attended a
primarily “black” high school and my neighborhood, like most in New
Orleans, had people of all races, religions, and economics.
I
never let any of that narrow my fishing grounds. How could it? All
those youths, running the streets, playing touch football on our beaten
up lawn, or roller skating in the cemetery, only gave fuel to my
youthful hormone-driven imagination.
At the time, my
father would probably have killed me if he’d known, but I dated hot
Hispanic guys (we had a kick-ass soccer team when no one knew what
soccer was). I dated dark and dangerous African American guys. I dated
mixed boys with lovely green eyes and skin like caramel. What I never
dated was “white guys.” That came much later in my life.
In
college, my tasted turned to foreign men – Arabs, Greeks, Turks, Asians
– if he had dark skin and dark eyes – I was there! My friends called my
apartment the U.N. and I was the goodwill ambassador.
So
writing about interracial romance, well, that’s a sure thing for me.
Natural. Been there. Done that. Got the hat and the T-shirt.
To
date, I’ve written several IR romances and will probably do more. I
love them. I see these couples everywhere – on TV, at the store, at
restaurants, and at parties. Love, it seems, knows no bounds, no color,
and no religion. The heart wants what the heart wants.
And
that’s true in my books. My first IR was It Takes a Hero, about an Iraq
vet – one leg amputated below the knee – who falls for his African
American physical therapist. Then I wrote No Good Deed, about a bisexual
5th generation Chinese American police officer in a small town in Texas
who falls for a gay Caucasian guy who’s been emotionally damaged by a
previous lover.
My love of Asian men once again came
through in My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys, when Simon, a young
Korean man meets Charles, a Caucasian wine seller with dreams of being a
cowboy. Cute Asian guys in eyeliner? Yummy!
In Breakfast
At Tiffany’s, I wrote about Hurricane Katrina survivors, Scott, a
Caucasian red neck kid, and Tony, an inner city African American, who
find each other amid the damaged city and try to make a new life
together.
I know these books won’t be my last IR
romances. I still have characters I’d like to mix it up with and untold
combinations of men!! The mind boggles at the possibilities, just like
the myriad possibilities in real life and love.
And
although I happily settled down with what I like to call “the whitest
guy I know”, I still find men, with all their differences, basically the
same. All of them are sexy and interesting. And fodder for my fevered
imagination as I channel my youth in my writings.
I can’t
wait to mix it up again. I hope you can’t either. And if you’ve never
ventured into IR romance, try it. You might find that you’re looking at
men in a whole new light, whether you’re Caucasian, Asian, African
American, Hispanic, Arabic, or Polynesian.
Cross the street with me and other writers. We’ll take you there.
You can also find Lynn
website... http://lynnlorenz.comtwitter … http://twitter.com/LynnLorenz
facebook …. Lynn Lorenz
* Remember you can win 2 books by Lynn Lorenz in the IRL Week Giveaway*
Great article Lynn. I grew up in the opposite environment in mid-northern Canada. There were many Aboriginal people, but as for other colors/shades it was slim. The only black person I knew was my doctor, and the only Asians were the family who owned the local grocery store who eventually moved away. 95% of my graduating class were white European decent Canadians. However I find myself fascinated with other cultures and people and maybe part of that is my desire to travel.
ReplyDeleteI am thankful my daughter is growing up in a more diverse environment. Her best friend is Pakistani Muslim and probably 45% of her school is "brown" as they call themselves. Muslims and South Asians with also East Asians and kids of Caribbean descent. I would say European descent white kids are the minority. There are far too many interesting people in the world to limit yourself to friendships or love with only those that fit in a very narrow color box.
Lynn, thanks for the post. While both my husbands were Caucs I do have a thing for Asian men, especially that rare breed the tall Asian man. When my daughter was in high school the father of one of her friends was Japanese, over 6 feet and completely drool worthy. Ah well, an old broad can dream.
ReplyDeleteI have read all your books with the exception of Duty Bound and of course Tor. Loved them bunches. Will there be anymore Rougaroux Social Club books? And how about more Common Powers and Hearts of New Orleans? I would buy them in a flash, if I wasn't broke. Social Security only goes so far.
Tam - thanks for posting! It's a problem we faced with our kids - put them in a neighborhood where it was predominately white or one that was mixed.
ReplyDeleteWe went for the mixed one. I wanted my kids to know and experience kids of all colors/religions/races - and grow up without preconceived notions about people who aren't like them.
Nancy - thanks for posting and letting me know you like my writing! It's so good to hear!
ReplyDeleteYes, I'm working on a new Rougaroux book now - Bayou Loup and I just turned in a new Hearts of N.O. book - with Charlie the guy from the shelter in Breakfast at Tiffanys.
And Tor will be out soon.
I hear you about the tall asians!!! definitely drooling!!