Hello, friends!
Last time I had a look at how the SCI-FI genre looks and how to write it, and today I'm going to do the same with ROMANCE!
Romance genre puts romantic relationships in the center of the story. Let's now look further into what it means from a writer's point of view!
One of the most important rules for writing romance: HAPPY ENDING! The story should explore the main romantic relationship to the core and give the reader a satisfying, POSITIVE ending.
But the road to the happy ending shouldn't be all milk and honey. Come up with a plot that will include odds against the main pair, their struggle, personal tragedies, insecurities, fears.
And of course, the main characters have to be CAPTIVATING enough for readers to care about them! That doesn't mean they have to be heroes - even “negative” characters can be captivating.
In order to write a good romance book, you should be knowledgeable about people and interpersonal relationships.
WATCH OUT:
→ cringe failed “romantic” scenes are unwanted - you can study how to write them by reading famous romance books and researching interpersonal relationships
→ the story giving too many sexual details when unasked for. If it's erotica then it's understandable, but if the story is more on the soft romance side, then meh.
→ unnaturally acting characters and awkward interactions can destroy the whole book - keep that in mind!
Examples for plots in the romance story:
→ the MC hasn't dealt with their trauma from the previous relationship yet and is now unknowingly to them being toxic towards their new love interest
→ the pair has a crisis because they struggle financially and don't know what to do
→ the MC gets pregnant but doesn't know who's the father
→ highschool sweethearts reunite after years of no-contact
→ the MC said no to a marriage proposal from their partner and now they have to figure out what to do next
Additional info…
ROMANCE GENRE has many popular tropes to choose from, like enemies to lovers or political marriage. I won't be exploring tropes today, so if you're interested, definitely check it out online🩵
And now, into the few subgenres I chose we go!
HISTORICAL ROMANCE
It's a romance set in a historical setting. While the historical background and events are important, the focus stays on the MC’s romance.
To write a good historical romance, not only you have to make sure you know how to write a romance - you also have to have knowledge about the historical, societal and cultural aspects of that time. Accuracy is important.
→ is their love reachable? Are they of the same status? Are their families okay with the relationship?
→ what daily troubles does the pair meet regarding the period they live in?
→ how does the period affect their expectations, dreams, wants?
EROTIC ROMANCE
While romance is still in the focus, erotic romance has much stronger, often explicit, sexual content.
→ how do your characters discover themselves and each other through sex?
→ is their sex life healthy, or is there something dark hiding behind it?
→ are they satisfied with their sex life? What would they like to change? Why don't they mention it?
→ what are the ways the pair communicates through sex?
→ why is sex important for the story?
→ are they in love, or is it lust?
ROMANTIC SUSPENSE
It's a genre that combines romance with mystery or/and thriller. There's usually a theme of crime that needs to be solved or a revenge to take place.
→ how is the MC connected to the crime?
→ how is the relationship affected because of the crime?
→ does the pair have trust in each other? Do they share their assumptions openly?
→ are they the victims? Or… not really?
→ what motives do each of the characters have?
SOME GOOD ROMANCE BOOKS TO READ:
“Pride and prejudice”, Jane Austen
“Jane Eyre”, Charlotte Bronte
“Gone with the wind”, Margaret Mitchell
“It ends with us”, Colleen Hoover
“Outlander”, Diana Gabaldon
“North and south”, Elizabeth Gaskell
“Maurice”, E.M. Foster
“Rebecca”, Daphne du Maurier
horror • science fiction • adventure • fantasy • mystery • slice-of-life • historical fiction • folklore • inspirational • western • thriller
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