Return to story

Romance writer 'Haunts' the city

April 6, 2007 12:36 am

Hope Tarr doesn't try to convert literary highbrows into romance readers.

Some people will never appreciate a 250-page mass-market paperback love story, no matter how well told.

That's fine. Tarr's not writing for them.

Instead, she writes for those dedicated readers who make romance the biggest-selling genre in publishing.

Romance novels accounted for $1.4 billion in sales in 2005, according to the Romance Writers of America. That's more than mysteries, literary fiction and sci-fi combined.

Tarr, a 42-year-old Fredericksburg resident, has just published her sixth novel, a Harlequin Extreme Blaze contemporary set in Fredericksburg.

Told partly in flashbacks, "The Haunting" is the story of a University of Mary Washington history professor who kindles a romance with a ghostly hunk--a Union soldier unjustly executed for treason after the Battle of Fredericksburg.

The book features many sites Tarr has frequented in her six years as a Fredericksburg resident.

The heroine, Maggie, has coffee at Hyperion, dines at Bistro Bethem and shops at e.e. smith and kybecca. She finds a tintype of her 19th-century counterpart at Beck's Antiques.

The photographic twist was inspired by an experience Tarr had a few years ago at a city estate sale.

She felt drawn to an image of a woman in 1860s dress, whose expression suggested intelligence and wistful sadness. Tarr imagined that this woman was bookish, and she felt a kinship.

She bought the photo for $3 and glanced at it for inspiration while writing "The Haunting."

Two city locations--the building that now houses the Fredericksburg Visitor Center and the National Cemetery--were slightly altered to work with the plot, Tarr said.

Other locations are true to life. Heroine Maggie does research in the Virginiana room of the Central Rappahannock Regional Library and lives in a historic home on Caroline Street similar to one in which Tarr lived for five years.

Tarr still lives in the city but in a smaller space, with two cats to keep her company during long hours of writing.

Tarr is under contract to produce three books a year for romance juggernaut Harlequin and one per year from the newer, smaller Medallion Press.

Whether set in the present or the past, 21st-century romances tend to share a few basic elements. A conflict separates heroine from hero. There's a bad guy, often a rival for the heroine's affections. The heroine-hero conflict is ultimately resolved.

In the meantime, there are steamy scenes galore.

But Tarr's characters, situations and stories are unique creations. She doesn't go in for old-style romance heroines--imperiled, helpless and virginal.

Instead, she said, her stories feature strong protagonists and emphasize personal empowerment.

"The hero doesn't come along and fix everything, and neither does the heroine do that for the hero," Tarr said. "You've always got to get it together yourself."

Only then can the story end happily, with the lovers uniting for eternity.

In recent years Tarr has been active in community affairs, particularly in advocating for what she sees as the architectural integrity of the city's Historic District. She's passionate about animals, and in 2002 saw the result of years of lobbying with the release of a postage stamp supporting spaying and neutering.

These days, though, she's focused on a heavy schedule of writing and book promotions. She updates a Web site, hopetarr.com, and does book-signings whenever one of her novels is published.

She'll make three local appearances this weekend and next to promote "The Haunting" and plans similar support for her next book, "Enslaved," due out in June.

"Fortunately it's all stuff I love," Tarr said.

"With writing, if you can figure out how to make a living, it's the best job in the world."