(Originally posted on August 2, 2013. Have at it.)
This is not my genre and I barely get it to function in my own books. I think. I’ve glossed over romance, but I think I gravitate toward lust or awkward beginnings. Not the smoothest romantic plotlines, but it’s better than nothing.
There are so many varieties of romance that you can put into your story and it seems some kind of romance turns up in every series. Even a one-night stand needs something behind it like lust, loneliness, or spite. You’re writing characters to be believable, so you need to factor in their social relationships. Again, this is not my area of expertise or knowledge, so I’ll get to the point.
I like romances to be natural, which is probably why the awkward stumbling romance appeals to me. That feels like how most relationships begin and move on until the wrinkles are ironed out. Sure, you have your smooth James Bond characters, but I don’t really believe many of those exist. I’ve met one or two smooth operators, but even they would come across a ‘target’ that they couldn’t sweep into the bedroom. I have to admit that watching people like that fail is highly entertaining.
Now, I can get behind a love at first sight story or one that runs surprisingly smoothly at the beginning. Those exist and they can work for a series as long as the author challenges the relationship. Throw in doubt, loss, betrayal, and whatever you can think of to test the characters. Make them work for the happy ending even if they got a happy beginning.
So, what do you look for in a romantic plotline? Do you stay away from them entirely? Is erotica the best kind of romantic plotline?
Legends of Windemere 
I like a romance plot or subplot. Those seem standard in YA fiction. 😊 I realize some people don’t like romantic entanglements in adventure series, particularly in long-running series where the characters remain single for a while. The relationship dynamic changes sometimes in a bad way, especially if a breakup occurs. But I don’t mind a good romance. I read two mystery series where the amateur detective was single and wound up married. One marriage occurred at the end of the series and another was in the middle of the series.
The only time a relationship seemed tacked on to me was in Age of Ultron when Black Widow and Bruce Banner suddenly had a romance. That seemed to end quickly.
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I’m trying to remember if there was any sense of Hulk and Widow going that way in the first movie. Doesn’t ring a bell.
Marriage additions are always risky. It changes the relationship and some readers get turned off. Either because they hate the general concept of figure the story will now be about romance.
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They didn’t in the first movie. He chased her down, which led to her injury in the first Avengers movie. So the romance in the second movie came out of nowhere.
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I feel like it was done solely for the ‘I’m a monster too’ line she uttered at some point.
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I find myself more and more drawn to it as a sub plot. Still like all my speculative elements, and adventure, but it can enhance a story.
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It definitely works as a subplot.
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I don’t write romance as such, nor really read it. Having said that, in my fantasy series, two characters have a strong attraction for each other, but are hiding it. Neither knows how the other feels.
At the end of the series. I intend tend for them to get together, once the spouse of one has disappeared.
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It’s interesting how romance is both a genre and a common subplot. So people can’t always tell which one we’re talking about.
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I’m not a romance reader, so I don’t really focus on that in most of my work. My romances are more in the background. I don’t understand the expectations of the genre, and I think my readers would be disappointed.
But, I do think a romance can bring interest to stories, either as a sub plot or a more prominent role. Readers do like to cheer on their favorite “ships.”
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Good point on the shipping trend. Seems that can really help a non-romance series at times.
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