started this
Genre convention says yes — the HEA is close to definitional. Plenty of great love stories say no.
Is a tragic love story a romance that broke the rules, or a different genre altogether?
Hopeless Romantics Anonymous
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Nishant Kumar
Started the club
Romance without apology. If you've ever turned the cover face-down on a train, you're among friends here. This is a Chaptra house club — set up and moderated by us to get the conversation going. Open to everyone; jump in anywhere.
Discussion
Does a romance need a happy ending to still be a romance?
Started by Nishant Kumar 1 reply1 views
Genre convention says yes, and conventions exist for a reason — readers are making a contract about how they'll feel at the end.
But Brokeback Mountain is a love story and nobody would call it a romance. Perhaps the honest answer is that "romance" names the contract, and "love story" names the subject.