The Fantastical Elements of Romantic Fiction, part 2
Among writers, there exists, for some, a latent sense of snobbery when it comes to the romance genre. Perhaps, they feel as if romance is easy to write. Like, it doesn’t take any effort. As my good friend Travis Perry jokingly mocked to me once when we worked on a romantic fiction project together, “Kissy, kissy.”
It should be noted that some speculative fiction writers will add a romantic element in their stories. Often, the romantic element is under-utilized because the writers have a preconceived bias about romance. They don’t feel it’s important.1
Romance is just as fantastical. Romance writers create an engaging couple that, despite the ups and downs, survive and thrive. 2
Relationships – the glue of a romantic story
Relationships make the world go around. Regardless of the genre, every story is built upon relationships. No relationship, no story. Humanoid or not, sentient beings or instinctual predators, plant life, angels, demons – every story is built upon relationships.
Romance tropes and why they work
Here’s a secret: people read what they are familiar and comfortable with. Chances are, if you like dragon stories, you’ve read dozens of books about them. It doesn’t matter if the story has twists and turns, or even a fresh spin. What drew you to the story is that it contained dragons.
Some popular romantic tropes are:
First love – Exploring the characters’ first awakening feelings of romance.
Enemies-to-lovers – Friction between two seemingly aggressive and opposing characters that hide a romance.
Second chance – Presenting or gaining an opportunity to regain a lost romance ripped apart by conflict.
Best friends – Transforming an intimate friendship into a romantic relationship.
Forbidden love – An external or internal mandate or perception creates a taboo romance.
There are plenty more and while it is true that tropes can be overused, they aid in helping to defining the pathway of the couple’s journey. It should be noted that tropes are reflections of real life. There’s not a person who is reading this blog post that hasn’t a relationship that started in one of these ways. Or even a combination.
When authors who are trying to write a romance ask my advice, if they are married or in a relationship, I often tell them to remember what it was like for them. Often, I hear, “Well, our relationship was different.” “It’s complicated.”
Great! Go from there.
Hopefully, through the tropes I’ve provided, you can see how a speculative fiction story can utilize them. Starman (1984) What if an alien came to Earth and took over a man’s dying remains and falls in love with his wife?
Worldbuilding through romance
Retrieved from https://cherylwalsh.art/mermaids
Understanding the fantastical elements of romance is to understand that the dynamics of the couple is central to the storyline. We experience the world through the couple’s eyes, interactions, and responses to external stimuli. A story can have romantic elements in it, but simply having those elements doesn’t make it a romance.
In the movie Her (2013), our protagonist develops a relationship with his AI virtual assistant. Through their relationship, we learn about the world our protagonist lives in. Yet, it’s not the relationship that is core of the story. It plays a major role but at the end, the movie tackles other questions besides their relationship.
In Ex-Machina (2014), our protagonist learns the hard way that his AI Robot romantic interest passed the Turing Test with flying colors. We learn about the blurred line between the natural and programmed. Whether AI consciousness, allowed to develop, would be able to deceive us.
In these two movies, the romantic element moves the plot along but ultimately, the couple doesn’t end up together. In my opinion, and in the romance world, opinions differ, a romance is when the relationship, through the ups, downs, twists, or turns, the conclusion is the cemented relationship of the main characters.
That’s right — happily ever after!
In Jupiter Ascending (2015), the main story revolves around the relationship between June, the cleaning woman come galactic princess and her protector, a half human/half canine soldier Caine. Through our couple, we learn of the worldview, conflict, and more. I wouldn’t call the movie a romance as the couple’s relationship isn’t front and center. In the true nature of a space opera, other points of view intersect but at the core, you have strong romantic element.
C. S. Johnson’s book, Northern Lights, Southern Stars is a great example of romantic fantasy. A retelling of Snow White, we experience our world through the dark-skinned princess Ebony of the Southern Colonies and her love interest, the pale-skinned Prince Rion with commentary from his stepmother, the evil Queen. The romance is the core of the story with their relationship moving the action and plot along.
Plot development through romance
In Terry Goodkind’s Sword of Truth series, we follow the main characters, Richard Rahl and Kahlan Amnell through twenty-five books. Their relationship throughout the books evolves in ways through the external happenings all around them. Richard’s love for Kahlan remains true despite a dumpster truck of happenings. Goodkind considered his books to be fantasy, but I think he was shocked when his fourth book in the series, Temple of the Winds, won a Romantic Times award because, like it or not, the romance between Richard and Kahlan appealed to romance readers.
In the same way, romance can help develop a plot. In Carole McDonnell’s tribal speculative fiction book Wind Follower, Satha and her husband Loic are forced to deal with a long separation, invaders, and other elements. Through these events, they are changed and grow but the plot moves along because of them.
Every relationship experiences conflict. No conflict means no growth. You don’t know what type of hardships you can live through until you live through them.
As in life, a couple who experiences hardship and survives them, often grow stronger. In the agonizing slow-burn series, Colony (2016-2018), we follow husband and wife, Will and Kate Bowman as they navigate their life through the occupation of an alien race that dominates Earth. Will becomes a collaborator while Kate becomes part of the resistance. Will is acting as a double agent, pretending to be a collaborator but trying to gain information about his missing son. He’s forced to kill resistance members, which puts Kate in danger as this is a secret from her husband. Throughout the series, their relationship is attacked from all sides, all while the plot of the story moves it along.
Romance makes the story.
I tell myself he’s not real, but it’s hard to remember that when he’s sitting across from me in the bathtub.
“Read my audiobook,” I command him.
His electric blue eyes gleam for a second. Do they gleam because he’s processing my request? Or because he’s excited to read this juicy part of the book just as I am excited to hear him read it in that deep, milk and honey voice?
He speaks, his full lips moving, reciting the sensuous words as I slowly sink deeper into the bubbles. I try to remember that the man in the tub with me is only a visual representation of millions of lines of code, a force field, and holographic technology. Layers of artificial means to simulate reality for my pleasure.
A jarring series of knocks almost…almost…takes away the magic of the moment, but I ignore them. The man before me may not be real, but he’s more real to me than my husband knocking at the door, begging to be let in.
The above snippet is ‘fan fiction’ of the Michael B. Jordan commercial I alluded to last week. In it, I ask the question: “What if a woman finds herself in a love triangle with her distant husband and a computer program?”
To conclude, the fantastical elements of romance are just as strong. Crafting a story utilizing the relationship as the main vehicle is a skillset to be honed and improved over time. Speculative fiction writers need to consider that in their great worldbuilding, can a couple fall in love and grow together?
As a pastor told me last week: Our whole relationship with God is romance, of the right kind.
Ah! Isn’t that romantic?
What are some ways you can explore your speculative fiction world through romance? Do you think romance is overrated? How does your own real-life romance show up in your stories or books you read? Share your thoughts!
- Look, the thing about romance, in fiction and in life, is finding the person that gets you on you on a bad day. Who flows with your crazy and you can flow with theirs. They live life with you, no matter what. These ideals sound trippy in today’s cynical world that turns it’s back on a loving God. Divorce, affairs, failures seems to be norm and there doesn’t seem to be an end in sight. ↩
- The journey of finding that person is the exciting part of romance. It’s being privy to their thoughts, emotions, and interactions. There are those who say the idea of ‘soulmates’, the man or woman who is builds your world and makes it better, doesn’t exist. I disagree. I believe we’ve forgotten to ask the Lord to lead us to our soulmates. But that’s another discussion for another time. Those of us who are believers, know we can only find true completeness in the Lord. Which is very true, don’t misunderstand. But can you see how when Adam was in the garden, the Lord said, “It is not good for man to be alone.” With that, he created Eve. ↩
Great article as always Parker. I love romance in any genre. Brings more to the story
Thanks so much for responding!
Eh, I don’t believe in soulmates, but I don’t think that diminishes what you can have with your partner of choice. But I prefer choice over destiny and a comfy relationship over dramatics.
Auntie Notleia could tell the youngins some tedious stories about how high school romance tropes can bite you in the butt and an engagement ring doesn’t do anything to solve underlying problems in the relationship. Don’t be a prop in someone else’s grand heroic narrative about themselves, children. They get upset when you diverge from your assigned NPC script, and it’s just not worth putting up with.
A lot of people feel the same way. Thanks for the responding.
I think you mean Carole McDonnell’s Wind Follower.
Thank you! I made the update!
Excellent article! I believe that if you ask the Lord, He’ll lead you to the mate he has chosen for you. I believe you’re a fool if you ignore this possibility. He’s the one who designed you. Certainly, he’s the one who has a person he designed to complement you in the oneness which is marriage.
Wonderful thoughts, David. Thank you!
It may sound idolatrous, but scripture itself makes it clear that God has made us so that human relationships fill a void that he cannot. Jesus in his humanity had the most perfect relationship with his father ever, beyond our imagining. Yet, in Gethsemane, in his perfect humanity, he expressed the need for his three best friends to draw close to him in addition to drawing close to God, and he was clearly hurt and disappointed when they let him down. His relationship with God didn’t supply what they could. So, God alone wasn’t enough to satisfy God himself when he became a man. I don’t think anyone would accuse God of idolatry. LOL! No, as you say, it goes back to “It’s not good for man to be alone.” Didn’t Adam have God? So, how was he alone? In the realm of humanity, and God himself put it in Adam to find ultimate society and perfect bliss in a sexually fulfilling relationship with a woman. So, in essence, God said, “it’s good for the man to get ‘im a girl.” But was this just for procreation, as you hear argued? Check it out: not one word about having babies in the Gen. 2 detailed account of the creation of Eve. It’s all about the unique romantic relationship. In English, I understand we lose the full quality of Adam’s excitement at first seeing the new girl on the block that’s present in the Hebrew, something along the lines of: “WHOOPEE! HOMINA-HOMINA!” Ah…isn’t it romantic? And every guy who has gotten his first look at a girl THAT way (probably around the 6th or 7th grade) ever since knows what that excitement is like. God esteems romantic love so highly that he closes the Bible and opens the door on our eternity in a new heaven and a new earth by describing our relationship with him in those terms. Someone said that Shakespeare ended all his comedies with marriage because theatrical comedy, by definition, must have a happy ending, and there is no happier ending than young love satisfied. In this, God and Shakespeare were on the same page, for the Bible ends with his people described as a beautiful bride and God seeing her come down the aisle to him. “And they lived happily ever after.” Thanx for this great piece, Parker! In fact, you’ve given me some helpful leads in promoting the first two books in my own epic fantasy romance series.
I’ve thought about that same thing many times. Thank you for responding!
I’m coming back and taking a moment to poke the bear with a stick.
Consent should be able to be withdrawn: otherwise what you’re operating under is coercion.
As concerning the Word of life, Luke 10 section 25-28 says: On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?” He answered: ” ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.'” “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”
Luke 18 section 18-25 says: A certain ruler asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good–except God alone. You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery, do not murder, do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.'” “All these I have kept since I was a boy,” he said. When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was a man of great wealth. Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”
Matthew 5 section 43-48 says: “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
In Old Testament, the Jewish people and their ancestors were given the Law to observe. First, What Adam and Eve should observe was that they could not eat the fruits from the tree of wisdom. Then, their son Cain was told that he should not kill. As sins became increased, the laws were also added more. Up to the generation of Moses, the Law in Old Testament was given to Israelites. We know that the Law is good and the Law is used to punish people who commit sins, but people cannot obey the Law because the sinful spirits are in people. Even that we know stealing and giving false testimony are sinful, but greedy and pride spirits in us drive us to do sinful things. So as Old Testament prophesied we need to get rid of our sinful nature from our spirits.
Jeremiah 31 section 31-33 says: “The time is coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them,” declares the Lord. “This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,” declares the Lord. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.
Ezekiel 36 section 24-27 says: “‘For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.
The prophecies are fulfilled when Jesus begins to teach love. The two greatest commandments are ” ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.'” Love is above the Law and if people have love they are free from the law of sin and death. People who are full of love will not think about stealing or giving false testimony but are merciful and they feed hungry people or give thirsty people something to drink or invite strangers in or clothe people who need clothes. The Law is for people who commit sins. Nobody will say that he will get reward because he does not steal before. But love is the grace we get. And with love we will get eternal life.
Romans 13 section 8-10 says: Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law. The commandments, “Do not commit adultery,” “Do not murder,” “Do not steal,” “Do not covet,” and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.
Luke 17 section 20-21 says: Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, nor will people say,’ Here it is,’ or ‘ There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is within you.”
John 4 section 23-24 says: Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.”