Ever since she could remember, author Jane Robinson has been weaving stories in her head, a habit she later found out was inherited from her lovely mother. Finally, Robinson has decided to put down these stories on paper and she begins with her latest romance novel, Jacquet (ISBN 978-1952263170). The story follows the love life of a young girl in high school and spans out for the next thirty years or so. The protagonist of the novel has always been in search of her one true love. She finds him and loses him. But this was not the end of their story. When two people are meant for each other, they will always find their way back to one another, no matter what. Robinson’s writing is touching and magical.
Romance is one of the most popular literary genresin every era. It is an entertaining and beautiful way of telling a story. But writing romance is not as easy as it may seem. There are many mistakes that writers can make, that can take away a lot from a good story. Here are some of the most common mistakes writers make while writing romance, listed by Stephanie O’Brien:
· Dragging out the “will they or won’t they?” phase too long
Some people love the chase.They enjoy the suitor’s passionate pursuit, the tension of wondering whether the characters will get together or not, and the lovers’ journey from ambivalent attraction to deciding that they couldn’t live without each other.
This can lead some writers to drag out the courtship phase for so long that it becomes implausible, frustrates the audience, and prioritizes the status quo over satisfying and realistic character development.There are no hard-and-fast rules for determining how long is too long because every set of characters has their own unique personalities, inner challenges, and outer circumstances to overcome before they’re ready to get together.
· Killing the girlfriend when you run out of ideas
How many times have you seen writers spend a whole book, movie, or graphic novel building a beautiful romance between two characters . . . only to run out of ideas once they’re together and just throw the whole thing in the trash by unceremoniously murdering the hero’s love interest?
This method has been overused, and it tends to function as a sloppy reversion to the status quo. It’s lazy, generic, and predictable, and it disrespects both the previous development of your plot and characters along with the audience you’ve encouraged to get attached to those characters.
· Turning the relationship into a war zone for the sake of contrived conflict
Sure, couples fight. Your two lovebirds may have bickered during the courtship phase, and it’s hard to spend one’s entire life with another person without having disagreements now and then.
But some writers, at a loss for how to keep the characters interesting when they’re happy together, overcompensate by turning a once-good relationship into a battlefield.
· Making one corner of a love triangle implausibly bad
Not all love triangles are supposed to be balanced, and not every romantic quandary will have two equally good choices.
But sometimes, writers take it too far.
In some cases, they take an established and beloved character and make them less likable, out of the blue and without explanation, to make their rival look better.
In others, they make the choice so uneven that the audience wonders how the person who’s choosing could possibly be torn between the obvious soul mate and the disaster waiting to happen.
· Portraying abusive behavior as romantic
Many readers like the idea of someone coming into their life, finding all their flaws endearing, wanting to take care of them, and single-handedly meeting all their needs for validation and love.
Unfortunately, these desires are easy to twist and exaggerate into something dangerously unhealthy.
If your character finds her interest’s flaws appealing, be careful not to have her emphasize those flaws to the point where they’re actually degrading her lover in the process of supposedly “complimenting” him.
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