I hate when people say romance is boring and formular. Yes, the couple always end up together in the end, but it is the journey that's important. Still, I think there can be some merit to those complaints. At times plotlines can be tedious and predictable...and I agree. Most often these complaints are made about category romance, and I play for the HQ/M&B team, soI know they want fresh and new...but they must not be getting enough of it if they publish a whole box of boring. So...
What do you do to keep your plot from growing stale?
In Just One Spark I challenged myself not to have the heroine say "I love you" and simper the way sometimes happens. And through the whole book...not one I love you from her. Sure she shows him how she feels, but no words. Kept it fresh for me, and hopefully the reader too.
With Breaking His Rules (the agented ST) I reversed the hero and heroine archetypes. I compensated by making him huge and her mini - like Incredible Hulk and Betty Boop. But it's the story of her saving him, she's the one with the backbone.
I was in the mood for romance with If You Say So. I've never read two such romantic characters. Sometimes the romance is what's missing from romance novels.
Now...what about you?
1 comment:
Hi Jenna!
I've been struggling with this very question as I attempt to move ahead on my WIP.
I've strengthened my characters as a way to keep my plot from growing stale. The more interesting and complex the character, the more interesting the situations they manage to encounter. Plotting isn't my strength to begin with, so I'm really dependent on my characters to move the story.
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