Am I the only one who sees that some people don't understand the difference?

Lots of people think that traditional romance novels are considered chic lit. Just wondering if anyone else has experienced the same.

Yep, I have found the same. I can spot a chick lit a mile away, but I guess you have to love it to know it, huh?

There seems to be a lot of confusion everywhere about what constitues chick lit.  I have seen people calling everything from Nicholas Sparks to Jane Austen chick lit (neither of which I agree with).  I can tell chick lit just by looking at the front cover.

I agree wholeheartedly. Just because the main character is a chic or it's written by a chic, doesn't make it chic lit.

This is my pet peeve. People will advertise chick lit on their shelves in the Book Bazaar. Then I get excited and look. Nope, mostly Harlequins and Danielle Steel. I know both are really popular, but just not chick lit. 

Has anybody seen this website? http://chicklitbooks.com/ It's got chick lit reviews and interviews with popular authors. I found a few good books to check out!

Yeah, it really annoys me when people advertise romance as chick lit. Of course they don't do it on purpose, they just think books that mostly just women would read as chick lit. I can tell the difference, even though I will say that a few books I've read recently were considered romance but actually turned out to be more like chick lit to me. Like Kristan Higgins, it was a thin line between romance and chick lit.

ETA::  Virginia, Great website! Thanks for sharing the link with us!

Thanks Virginia!

Here's one I use:

http://candycoveredbooks.com/

I had never really heard the term chic lit until I joined PBS and having read both, I can totally understand the difference.  I do think it would be hard to see the difference between lots of the current contemporary romances and chic lit, if you aren't a fan of either genre.

Thanks for the links! :) And I agree. Danielle Steel, Nicholas Sparks and Jane Austen are NOT chic lit!!

i know! i get sick of seeing on ebay, lots of chick lit featuring Nora Roberts, Danielle Steel, Jackie Collins, etc.

i agree i don't know why people think just b/c it appeals to women they are the same. the thing that stands out to me the most is that in most romances, the women always is a wimp compared to the guy, and that she always has to get the guy. ugh. not real life!

and at the risk of sounding very petty, it sorta irks me when i see people in this subforum keep creating posts talking about mainstream romance authors who never write chick lit. i mean there's a whole subforum entitled Love and Romance!!! but i dont' want to be the mean girl and say um this person doesn't write chick lit, this is the wrong forum"

Ha! It bugs me too! So much! When I see someone list "Chick Lit" in their specials in the bazaar. You get to their bookshelf and... there's... NOTHING! I think some people do it because they think it'll get us to look, but yes, some just do it out of not knowing. One woman wrote me and said "I believe it means if a woman has written the book." RIIIIIIIIIIIIGHT. I agree with the "chick" who said she can tell it by the cover- so true! Always cute drawings and bright, fun colors!

HEhehe-if it's not pastel it isn't chick lit! Just kidding --kind of!! I can also spot chick lit books from a mile away !

Stcay

Got excited to see a new deal in the chick lit forum but, alas, another bookshelf full of of Harlequin...big sigh

LOL!!! Whose the big chic-tease?!!

Brandi -- great website!  I found a ton of books that looked good! Mount TBR continues to rise!

LMAO Aerika!!!

I can tell chic lit by the cover too.

And they say never to judge a book by it's cover...lol

i wonder if people see the lipstick and the "for women" in the description of this forum since it's near the top and just think anything pertaining to women goes here

Here's a twist though- what romance authors do you see as borderline chic lit? I don't read a lot of romance, but if I am honest with myself, Rachel Gibson is a romance author and Jennifer Crusie is as well. I always love their characters and the humor in those books.

Hmm...good point. Maybe Beth Ciotta?

I agree with Beth Ciotta, although I've only read All About Evie.  I'd also agree on Jennifer Cruise and add Sue Civil Brown, Leanna Banks (Bellagio Shoes series), and some Carly Phillips.

A writer that I think a lot of the time does the borderline between chick lit and strict romance is Susan Elizabeth Phillips, especially in her novel Match Me if You Can (which is a great book btw). 

My big pet peeve about Chick Lit is when people talk about historical Chick Lit... There is no such thing as historical chick lit... one of the aspects of chick lit is that it's a contemporary novel.  The only author/series that pushes this issue is Lauren Willig's Pink Carnation series, but the aspects of these novels that I consider the most Chick Lit are set in modern London. 

And I know I'm going to irritate people, but while I do not consider Jane Austen's novels to be Chick Lit, Jane Austen certainly is the mother of the chick lit novel, she was just way ahead of her time.

I can agree that Jane Austen and the women who followed paved the way for the Jennifer Weiners and JaneGreens of the world.

Never really knew what chick lit was until I came here....and I honestly thought it was romance.  Well...now that I know...it sure helps!! Because I was posting  here not realizing it...never said I was smart..LOL.

Have a great nite Ladies!

I'm still not always clear as to what is chick lit versus romance.  For a long time, if I wanted to buy a chick lit book, I would look for a TB and not MM.  Of course reading the Red Dress Ink line helped too.