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Caligula's Launderette
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 Posted: Sun Dec 10, 2006 9:03 pm Post subject: Too Darn Hot |
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Too Darn Hot
or Musings on Romance
The first misconception I have found about the romance genre is that people think it's all about sex, purple prose, and heaving bodices. Which can be a satifying read for some, but I choose to leave those bodice rippers on the rack in the store for others. So if romance isn't about those things, what is it? Well, truth be told, at the center it is just like any other novel - conflict. In romance there are usually three different types - external, internal, or a mix of both.
External Conflict - She's Jewish, He's a nazi (Summer of My German Soldier)
Internal Conflict - "Your character’s internal conflict should exist with or without the hero or heroine. That is to say if your hero’s internal conflict is that he believes all people expect the worst of him, then this is his internal conflict even if he never meets the heroine. What makes the heroine integral to his conflict is that she’s the reason he decides to change and overcome this belief."
SUBTLETY
I have probably said this a hundred times before, but refrain from making everything known. Keep some things hidden. Subtlety works especially in romance.
A PRIORI
No matter what you think, your characters are not a blank slate, they will always bring something into the story. They will bring their issues, predujidices. Remember that, especially involving romance. In my string of romantic shorts beginning with Mercy, my male protagonist is extremely fearful of losing people, so he overreacts when his girlfriend doens't come home. Things like that are good, and juicy, and cause some good ol' tension.
BEAUTY IS ONLY SKIN DEEP
In most bodice rippers I have read, the woman is always smart and beautiful, and the man is always devilishly handsome. GACK! Stop perpetuating the steroetype. Romance doesn't have to be between two heavenly beautiful people. Look at your own experiences and draw from that.
STEREOTYPICALLY SPEAKING
Speaking of stereotypes, there is one I'd dearly like to get rid of. This idea in many, (I said many, but not all), that a woman needs a man to be fufilled. Another one, I like to bash in, is this idea that most heroine's in romance take that a. they have met the love of their life, b. true love. It seems in countless books I read, true love rears it's head. You don't have to have true love to have romance.
STICK-NOTE: Don't use purple prose, hokey euphemisms, words or phrases that make you, the writer, uncomfortable. Don't let your characters get swept away like they're riding on a cloud of your purple prose.
HUMOR
Use it. For example:
| Quote: |
he felt his breath against her lips and
she waited with her heart beating in her throat as his mouth moved closer and
closer until...
He sneezed.
She jumped back and blinked in disbelief. Her mouth dropped open
and all she could do was gape. He looked completely stunned and
mortified. He couldn't believe it, he sneezed! He actually, honest to
goodness, in the middle of a romantic moment, sneezed on the poor girl!
"This will give her a favorable impression of you as a lover, you
great fool," he muttered to himself. Mentally, he bent over and planted a
swift kick to his bum.
"I-I-I'm sorry," he stammered, cursing himself silently, "this
really is quite-er-well..."
Her eyes grew wide and sparkled with moisture.
"Oh great, you bloody sod," he thought, "you ruined it for her. Now
she's going to cry."
Her shoulders started to tremble and then to Archie's astonishment,
she laughed. She held one arm across her stomach and the other gripped
Archie's upper arm.
"Oh...my...God," she gasped, wiping the tears from her eyes, "I...oh,
heavens!"
He stared at her as if she had gone stark raving mad, then
suddenly the absurdity of the situation struck him as well. He gave a light
chuckle before breaking into a full throated laugh. The garden rang out with
their peels of merriment, as they held each other upright.
"I. Think. I. Could. Fall. In. Love. With. You..." He struggled to
get out and pulled her closer. |
STICKY-NOTES ON CLICHED PLOTS
#1 - If I see another plot formed on the girl hates boy, boy seduces girl, girl loves boy triangle, I will scream, and/or tear it to shreads.
#2 - Opposites attract, this is not always the case. Most relationship form because people have something in common.
And to end this little ditty, a quote by Nora Roberts:
"In the hard boiled league, try the Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett. This is first and foremost a detective novel, one of the best film noirs ever produced. But there is a whiff of romance as Sam Spade falls for the mystery woman -- a woman, who in the end he must not only give up, but turn in. One of Sam's last lines to his love -- and naturally I hear Bogart speaking to Mary Astor -- goes like this: 'I'm going to send you over. The chances are you'd get off with life. That means you'll be out in 27 years. You're an angel. I'll wait for you. If they hand you, I'll always remember you.' That's romance." |
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Incandescence
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| Posted: Sun Dec 10, 2006 9:57 pm Post subject: |
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CL--
Just a thought: people come together because they have a common enemy. I share the same taste in nuts as many, many people do; that doesn't mean we have any potential to become friends or whatever. If, on the other hand, there is somebody else struggling against the institution of higher education, then there is a much, much greater chance of my befriending them. I think this is true of most people.
The vast majority of love stories I read here and elsewhere seem to be lacking this fundamental idea.
Best,
Brad |
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Snoink
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| Posted: Sun Dec 10, 2006 10:14 pm Post subject: |
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Hahaha... don't we love beautiful people who hate each other but end up falling in love? 
No, but you're right. Fun stuff! Though I suddenly want to critique your story... XD |
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Caligula's Launderette
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| Posted: Sun Dec 10, 2006 10:27 pm Post subject: |
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| Incandescence wrote: |
Just a thought: people come together because they have a common enemy. I share the same taste in nuts as many, many people do; that doesn't mean we have any potential to become friends or whatever. If, on the other hand, there is somebody else struggling against the institution of higher education, then there is a much, much greater chance of my befriending them. I think this is true of most people. |
Brad - Hmm, maybe I wasn't clear enough on things in common building friendship, I love how you explained it though. I am tempted to snag 'common enemy' for my next ramble.
Snoink - *snicker snicker*
Dude, did I just use the term hokey? Sweeet!
Cheerios,
CL |
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Sam
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| Posted: Mon Dec 11, 2006 4:20 am Post subject: |
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Darn you, CL! You're so...thorough!
Hehe...some great tips here, even for other genres. *cough* (The beauty thing...) |
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Poor Imp
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| Posted: Mon Dec 11, 2006 7:02 pm Post subject: |
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Good tips all around--along with Brad's interjection. ^_^
And I'll take Snoink's remark with sarcasm... |
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Suzanne
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| Posted: Fri Dec 22, 2006 4:02 pm Post subject: |
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ah, I felt like reading this little advice 'cause my new story is looming on romance, though not very strongly...
Maltese Falcon is an amazing movie (I love Bogart!) and I just 'mooched' the book So I liked that comment.
Definitely good tips, and I laughed while reading! |
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lyrical_sunshine
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| Posted: Thu Sep 13, 2007 2:58 am Post subject: |
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sexless romances are so very sweet. i actually think the best example of completely sexless romance is the Twilight series. of course, i don't have very many points of reference, cuz i don't really like romance, but i thought Twilight was pretty well done. although it is the cliche beautiful girl and hot guy. (*coughItshouldhavebeenJacobcough*)
anyway. |
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KingKamor
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| Posted: Fri Sep 14, 2007 4:01 am Post subject: |
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*Takes random notes*
So far, my own romance has avoided all but a few of the points that you've made. Hurray for me. =3
Good rant, I must say. Good job. =D |
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lyrical_sunshine
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| Posted: Sat Sep 15, 2007 8:32 pm Post subject: |
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| wow! a guy who writes romance! i'm very impressed. |
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Icaruss
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| Posted: Sat Sep 15, 2007 8:40 pm Post subject: |
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I've written romantic stories, but they're mostly pretty crude. You know, not mushy-mushy stuff, but things about phillandering, and failed romances, or one night flings, or guys... who feel guilty about doing certain things. I wrote a story which won some awards about a guy who is not happy in a relationship, but can't let go of the girl, becasue she's so pretty and everybody's so envious, and he just doesn't want to lose that. That's the sort of romantic stories I write. Right now I'm writing a Western, and the romantic element is a pretty big part of it but again... it's really crude stuff. Not sexual. I mean, I try never to write sex scenes because they're just plain uncomfortable to the reader, and are not really important unless you wanna make a point. Much important is what comes before, and after a steamy scene. The closest thing to a sex scene I've written is a conversation that begins with an orgasm, and ends with the guy slapping the girl around.
But writing dialogue between a girl and a boy, I think I do it pretty well. Because many times people will just throw things like "You're so beautiful" and "You make me happy" all the time, and it doesn't ring true. Half of life is about saying things you don't really mean, or things that mean something else, and that's how you have fun writing romance. |
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TL G-Wooster
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| Posted: Sat Sep 15, 2007 8:44 pm Post subject: |
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I'll keep these in mind if I ever write a romance... I once vowed that none of my characters would ever have romantic attatchments, and while I still avoid romance, I'm finding that it *does* have its place.  |
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PerforatedxHearts
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| Posted: Sat Sep 15, 2007 10:21 pm Post subject: |
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ditto, snoink. XD
yeah, well, maybe you should post this in quizilla. the ladies and gentlemen over there haven't quite gotten it. I was thinking about writing a story subtly titled "OHMYGOSH This Isn't a Cliche Romance?!?! |Chapter 1|" or something.
Seriously, though. It takes a good touch with romance to not write something cliche or overly mushy.
Take Ted DekKer's books, "Red; Black; White". He's good at action and suspense and everything, but when it comes to some romance in the last book of the trilogy "White", damnnn. It's so...so...'I can't leave you! I can't do this! I love you too much...' he cried. That type of thing. |
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lyrical_sunshine
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| Posted: Sun Sep 16, 2007 9:40 pm Post subject: |
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| i don't like writing romances, but sometimes my characters rebel and develop deep affection for each other. it sucks, because then the whole plot of the story has to change just to accommodate their feelings. *scowls* and I'm too nice of a person to make them hate each other. |
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KingKamor
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| Posted: Tue Sep 18, 2007 6:33 am Post subject: |
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The main characters' relationship in mine is based on a sudden shift in lifestyle for one of them... but the girl kind of hates him at the beginning, so I lose points right off the bat, sadly enough. Although, there are hints of her liking him about three pages after meeting/hating him. =P
I kind of wanna know what everyone else has, so I'll check out everyone's romances, just for fun. <.< >.> |
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