Irene Vartanoff

About my novels ...

Sometimes I get an idea for a romance that centers on one woman and one man. If so, I turn it into a stand-alone, sweet contemporary romance, such as Second Chance Reunion. (Which actually is more like a classic Gothic novel à la Rebecca, but you get the idea.)

If I think up a far more complex situation involving multiple characters, what started out as one book turns into a series of novels that can be read independently of each other, such as the Selkirk Family Ranch contemporary western romance series, which details the romances between Baron and Addie, JD and Paula, and Tess and Rolf over a period of several years and then continues with other extended family members.

Then there are stories I create which have multiple main characters in several age groups, such as Cleaning Her House, Summer in the City and A Daughter’s A Daughter. They may be struggling with complicated life situations, personal and family issues, life goals issues, even diseases or griefs—the works, in other words. These I call women’s fiction, and these novels tend to be nearly twice as long as my sweet contemporary romances. I like happy endings, but not all my characters in my women’s fiction tales will be walking off into the sunset with a partner.

You ask: What about heat level? (Code words for: What about the sex?) My sweet contemporary romances are closed door, but my characters behave credibly for today’s world, each according to their individual personalities. In general, though, I don’t detail (and sometimes I don’t even mention) sex scenes in any of my novels unless there is a story element that makes it absolutely important to show how the characters interact at a crucial moment in their relationship.

I also write superhero adventure novels with a chick lit vibe, the Temporary Superheroine series. Chloe, the heroine of this series, is young, sassy, and apt to get into occasionally sexy situations with various men, but I keep the content of these stories PG because they’re mostly comic book–style adventure, with the focus on roman à clef elements and goofy supervillains.

ABOUT MY COMIC BOOK PAST AS A FAN AND A PRO

If you came here because you saw my name in a comic book or a comic book database: Yes, I am the same Irene Vartanoff who had so many fan letters published in DC Comics, over 100 letters in about a two-year span. Many people have contacted me through the years to say that they enjoyed my letters. Thank you. I appreciate your interest. I am glad you loved those comic books, too. That was sixty years ago. (Let that sink in for a minute.)