Thoughts on Romances

Another post from 2022 that I never published–

I read a bunch of romance novels earlier this year. I haven’t gotten around to writing one yet myself, but I had some thoughts about how I’d approach the work, based on what I did and didn’t like about the romances I’ve read so far. I wrote my thoughts down, and now I’m going to share them.

1. A romance needs some sizzle, clash, and struggle. There are few things more boring and frustrating than a romance in which the characters like each other from the get-go and are kept apart only by their own stubbornness. I want to root for the romance, not waste time waiting for the leads to see the light.
2. Swearing is risky and ought to be kept to a minimum. Not only can it be offensive, but if a swear is intended to denote emphasis, then swearing repeatedly erodes its power.
3. Leave out the sex scenes. I can’t remember ever being really impressed with a sex scene, but I can remember being turned off by some of them.
4. Short novels need to be focused. Real life is big, random and full of trivialities. People, places, things, and events aren’t always interconnected and most of them don’t mean anything. A book is different. It’s a tiny, enclosed world. Everything in it needs to work together. Keep random elements to a minimum and limit the cast of characters. Use the available space to develop the big picture, providing details that help the readers “see” the story. Everything you write into the story is a resource that you can draw on later. Leave nothing underutilized.
5. Cell phones are romance spoilers. Texting, dating apps, and social media are a big part of modern life, and that’s important to acknowledge. Romance can be fostered over a phone or social media, but that’s not where it lives. People do a lot of socializing on their phones, but deep down they know (or ought to know) that in-person is better. Keep texting to a minimum unless it’s an integral part of the story.
6. It’s convenient when the point of view switches back and forth between two people within a scene, because you get to know right away what both characters think about what’s happening, but it can be jarring and/or distracting. It’s best, even in a romance novel, to stick to one point of view per scene and/or chapter.
7. Diversity among characters is good, even when it’s obviously deliberate. Better to be heavy-handed than noninclusive. The world is not the way it ought to be, and we need to “fake it until we make it.”