Recently, I met a very nice twenty-something guy. We were chatting about this and that. He'd recently been studying in Scotland, a medieval history course, plus he's a journalism major. Well, I LOVE history, especially medieval, and I'm Scottish, so talking history, books, and writing soon followed. He also told me he was single, but not really by choice, so we talked "relationships" a little, too. When he found out I had written and self-published a book, he wanted to know all about it. He said from all the writing he's had to do for journalism, he knows the dedication it takes to write a book. I gave him a brief, sedate spiel about Ms. Anabel that included me waving my arms and jumping up and down. He replied that he'd never read chick lit and I answered that most men don't. I went on to say that's because most men, no matter how smart, are very, very, VERY dumb.
I had to laugh at his expression, but quickly explained myself. I asked him first to think about what he' d been telling me about women and relationships. I then pointed out that the "Romance" genre was probably the largest, biggest seller of any book genres out there. Men always complain they don't "get" women or know what they want. Knock-knock. There's a zillion roadmaps out there staring men in the face, just begging to tell them exactly what women want and exactly how to give it to them.
I reminded him that we were having a fun conversation (in case he didn't know) because I like to read what guys like to read, too. To name a few; I love military history, zombie/apocalyptic, legal thrillers, and sci-fi/ fantasy. (Sorry ladies--I'm talking magical fantasy. Think trolls, damsels in distress, and quests, not role-playing sex romps. We're talking men here. They're such prudes when you get down to basics...)
He was nodding slowly, I could see the wheels turning. Such a fun moment. He asked for more specifics of how him reading chick lit would be helpful for a guy. I used my book as an example. Specifically gift-giving.
I asked him to think this concept over. How impressive would you be to a woman you liked if you brought her "a little something" in a gift bag? For absolutely no reason, no special occasion.
I emphasized to him the totally key thing was making sure whatever was in that gift bag was something HE wanted her to have--NOT what he thought she'd like, but he could care less about.
This gift would be saying he wanted to see her wearing something she'd look hot in, or some scent reminded him of her, or there was somewhere he wanted to take her--depending what he bought, or could afford. I stressed it doesn't have to be expensive. It could be free, that wasn't what counted.
What counted and would make the women insane for him (assuming they liked him to begin with, he wasn't a stalker, and he liked insane women), was the attention he was paying to her. It would make her feel beautiful and incredibly desired. He would then be a very, very, VERY happy dumb man.
The smart guy wrote down the name of my book.