Reposted: Writing Realistic Romance

I’m taking a brief break this Monday, readers, as last week wiped me out. In addition to this article, please consider the pieces here, here, here, and here as well. Hopefully I’ll be back next week with my own Vocational Vivications. Until then, check out this Story Embers article:

WRITING REALISTIC ROMANCE

December 31, 2018

Faith Blum

I’ve read several romance novels, both Christian and “clean,” and made two main observations: many of the stories are unrealistic and follow the same basic plotline.

Female meets male. They can’t stand each other. (Or maybe they like each other, but one person is ugly while the other is attractive and “out of reach.”) They spend over half the book despising each other and resisting their odd attraction—until one of them is seriously injured and may not survive. The other character suddenly realizes that hatred has been replaced by love. The injured person miraculously recovers and the couple confesses their feelings for each other, then they live happily ever after. All of this transpires within two weeks to six months.

Sound familiar?

Ladies and gents, this does not happen in real life. Or, if it does, it’s rare. I hope to provide a few ideas on how to avoid this cliché, but first I must answer an important question.

What’s the Difference Between a Love Story and a Romance?

I was confused about this for a while. Basically, a book that contains a love story will focus more on the rest of the plot with the romance being a subplot. In my book He Hideth My Soul, the plot is centered around the fulfillment of Otis Miller’s desire to become a doctor. His love interest appears near the beginning, but the characters’ interaction isn’t romantic and they don’t see each other for a long time afterward. When they meet again, their romance is a subplot rather than the main plot.

Read more….