How To Write A Romance Novel
September 21st 2006 02:55
For starters, a romance novel has to feature two fabulous lead characters. After all, if your hero and heroine are duds, they’re never going to take a reader through the entire book. Or, if they do, it’ll be a ‘bad read.’
And we’ve all had several of them!
To start with, the hero. I’m not starting with the male lead to be sexist, probably the opposite, for the heroine is so fantastic, we’ll deal with her after.
The hero. Above all else, he has to be bad. Women, after all, like bad boys, even if they’ll never admit it. Being a romance writer, your main job is to find out what women want. They have to be able to read your book and get goosebumps from the hero. They have to sigh, and then look at their husbands, boyfriends, lovers, etc., and murmur ‘Why can’t you be like this?’
Delve into your own deepest wants and desires. Perhaps certain movie stars you find sexy. Maybe even merge a few movie stars, or real men you know, or qualities about your father, brother, best friend, that you like (no, this isn't something sick and incestuous; this is about stealing other people's traits and using them in your writing! Come on, we all do it...). Use them, and create the perfect man.
But, remember, he has to be bad.
He can’t be too bad, however. He can’t slap his mother or elderly grandmother about. He can’t kick dogs. But he has to be bad enough to be sexy.
Perhaps he can leave a string of beautiful women in his wake – women love to feel like they were the one to finally tame a man.
Perhaps he can just be tough. Smoke a pack of cigarettes a day, but in a sexy way (if there is such a way). My heroes never smoke, however, but they do drink. They are Scotch drinkers, and they slam their tumblers of scotch on the rocks back, without feeling any effects whatsoever.
He has to be rough, tough, sexy and completely in love with the heroine, but determined, for his own reasons (character background here – he was abandoned by his mother, his heart broken by the only woman he ever loved, etc., etc..), not to succumb to her allure. He has to deny his feelings, even after they finally get down and dirty with one another, and for the length of time to write 500 pages (or less, depending what you, and the public, are in to).
Now, the heroine (my favourite part!). She has to be tough, too. A true woman of the new millennium. Gone are the dutiful women that pirates once captured. Gone are the heaving bosoms – although my heroines definitely have heaving bosoms…they’re heaving throughout a fight with the hero, while she’s throwing various items at his head.
Today’s heroine is independent, fun, outrageous, and she talks back. This isn't 1950 anymore. There is no catering to a male - unless its in the bedroom, and its mutual. And she’s got glib down pat. Sarcasm, too.
She also should be fantastic at something that makes her truly her – my favourite heroine, from my own series of book (yet to be published – watch out for them!), is Kit, and she’s an archaeologist. A fabulous archaeologist, who unearths treasures and kicks butt along the way.
Yes, you’re probably all groaning now and thinking of Lara Croft, but, sadly, its all been done before. You just have to give it a new twist – and, trust me, Kit Sawyer is a new twist.
But enough of the self-promotion, and back to the ‘how-to’s.’ The heroine has to be so fun, intelligent, independent, savvy and top of her field of choice that she doesn’t need the hero. She’s fine just on her own, thank you. Or fuck you - that's the type of attitude we're after (apologies if this shocked anyone; if it did, you should pick up a Nora Roberts or Sandra Brown book; they have these romance heroines down pat, and - gasp! - they swear)!
And what man doesn’t find this sexy above all else in a woman? Not the swearing aspect (although I do believe men these days do appreciate a bit of mild swearing in women), but the aspect of her not making him her whole life. She has more important things to do (I really want to do the 'thank you, f@#! you' line again, but feel you may all think its too much).
To her, this is no longer a man’s world – this is the heroine’s world. What she says goes, or watch out.
Perhaps scary for the average man, but not for our hero. He secretly loves her mad, fiery streak, while also being pissed off about it. And aroused.
I believe a romance novel is all about arousal (nudge, nudge, wink, wink), but not in the traditional sense (okay, somewhat in the traditional sense). A romance novel should arouse the romantic within all of us, but also the adventurous, fun streak we, for some reason, keep hidden, just because we’re adults and have ‘responsibilities.’ A romance novel should capture us from the get go, draw us into all the excitement, the anticipation, the, well, romance.
Personally, I like my romances to have a lot going on throughout the story, apart from the big R. I like my books, both those I read and those I write, to feature plenty of action, either in an adventurous, treasure-seeking kind-of-way (think ‘The Goonies’ but for adults and full of sexual tension – one I’m currently working on and copywrited to K.L. Almeroth!), or in a murder-mystery type theme. There’s perhaps some comedy, some fabulous side characters (who, I believe, can totally make a book), an exotic location. Or a location everybody knows of but that you’ve given a new twist.
Oh, and the hero no longer gets to save the day – the heroine does.
She kicks ass.
And we’ve all had several of them!
To start with, the hero. I’m not starting with the male lead to be sexist, probably the opposite, for the heroine is so fantastic, we’ll deal with her after.
The hero. Above all else, he has to be bad. Women, after all, like bad boys, even if they’ll never admit it. Being a romance writer, your main job is to find out what women want. They have to be able to read your book and get goosebumps from the hero. They have to sigh, and then look at their husbands, boyfriends, lovers, etc., and murmur ‘Why can’t you be like this?’
Delve into your own deepest wants and desires. Perhaps certain movie stars you find sexy. Maybe even merge a few movie stars, or real men you know, or qualities about your father, brother, best friend, that you like (no, this isn't something sick and incestuous; this is about stealing other people's traits and using them in your writing! Come on, we all do it...). Use them, and create the perfect man.
But, remember, he has to be bad.
He can’t be too bad, however. He can’t slap his mother or elderly grandmother about. He can’t kick dogs. But he has to be bad enough to be sexy.
Perhaps he can leave a string of beautiful women in his wake – women love to feel like they were the one to finally tame a man.
Perhaps he can just be tough. Smoke a pack of cigarettes a day, but in a sexy way (if there is such a way). My heroes never smoke, however, but they do drink. They are Scotch drinkers, and they slam their tumblers of scotch on the rocks back, without feeling any effects whatsoever.
He has to be rough, tough, sexy and completely in love with the heroine, but determined, for his own reasons (character background here – he was abandoned by his mother, his heart broken by the only woman he ever loved, etc., etc..), not to succumb to her allure. He has to deny his feelings, even after they finally get down and dirty with one another, and for the length of time to write 500 pages (or less, depending what you, and the public, are in to).
Now, the heroine (my favourite part!). She has to be tough, too. A true woman of the new millennium. Gone are the dutiful women that pirates once captured. Gone are the heaving bosoms – although my heroines definitely have heaving bosoms…they’re heaving throughout a fight with the hero, while she’s throwing various items at his head.
Today’s heroine is independent, fun, outrageous, and she talks back. This isn't 1950 anymore. There is no catering to a male - unless its in the bedroom, and its mutual. And she’s got glib down pat. Sarcasm, too.
She also should be fantastic at something that makes her truly her – my favourite heroine, from my own series of book (yet to be published – watch out for them!), is Kit, and she’s an archaeologist. A fabulous archaeologist, who unearths treasures and kicks butt along the way.
Yes, you’re probably all groaning now and thinking of Lara Croft, but, sadly, its all been done before. You just have to give it a new twist – and, trust me, Kit Sawyer is a new twist.
But enough of the self-promotion, and back to the ‘how-to’s.’ The heroine has to be so fun, intelligent, independent, savvy and top of her field of choice that she doesn’t need the hero. She’s fine just on her own, thank you. Or fuck you - that's the type of attitude we're after (apologies if this shocked anyone; if it did, you should pick up a Nora Roberts or Sandra Brown book; they have these romance heroines down pat, and - gasp! - they swear)!
And what man doesn’t find this sexy above all else in a woman? Not the swearing aspect (although I do believe men these days do appreciate a bit of mild swearing in women), but the aspect of her not making him her whole life. She has more important things to do (I really want to do the 'thank you, f@#! you' line again, but feel you may all think its too much).
To her, this is no longer a man’s world – this is the heroine’s world. What she says goes, or watch out.
Perhaps scary for the average man, but not for our hero. He secretly loves her mad, fiery streak, while also being pissed off about it. And aroused.
I believe a romance novel is all about arousal (nudge, nudge, wink, wink), but not in the traditional sense (okay, somewhat in the traditional sense). A romance novel should arouse the romantic within all of us, but also the adventurous, fun streak we, for some reason, keep hidden, just because we’re adults and have ‘responsibilities.’ A romance novel should capture us from the get go, draw us into all the excitement, the anticipation, the, well, romance.
Personally, I like my romances to have a lot going on throughout the story, apart from the big R. I like my books, both those I read and those I write, to feature plenty of action, either in an adventurous, treasure-seeking kind-of-way (think ‘The Goonies’ but for adults and full of sexual tension – one I’m currently working on and copywrited to K.L. Almeroth!), or in a murder-mystery type theme. There’s perhaps some comedy, some fabulous side characters (who, I believe, can totally make a book), an exotic location. Or a location everybody knows of but that you’ve given a new twist.
Oh, and the hero no longer gets to save the day – the heroine does.
She kicks ass.
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Comment by Shirazi
Comment by K.L. Almeroth
Motherhood
Thanks for reading! I'm glad you're inspired...I don't believe the world can have too many romance novels!
Comment by Katrina
Comment by Shirazi