How to Write a Brilliant Romance: The Easy, Step-By-Step Method of Crafting a Powerful Romance (Go! Write Something Brilliant) (22 page)

Remember:
Backstory
Breadcrumbs
are
soft,
tasty,
small
morsels
that
lure
your
reader
into
the
story.

In
the
beginning,
what
is
the
essential
information
the
reader
needs
to
know
to
give
sufficient motivation
for
the
character?

Basic
Bio, Name, Age, Profession.

Tell me about yourself:

• Who
  are
  you?
  (Identity)
  How
  do
  you
  express
  this
  identity
  through
  your
  appearance?
  
• What
  sort
  of
  behaviors,
  mannerisms,
  and
  trappings
  go
  along
  with
  that
  identity?
  
• What
  monumental
  event
  in
  your
  past
  shaped
  you?
  Journal
  it--with
  details.
  (Tell
  the
  story.)How
  did
  that
  event
  mold
  your
  goals
  and
  purposes
  today?
  (What
  does
  she
  want?)
  
• What
  skills
  do
  you
  possess
  that
  you
  might
  use
  to
  save
  the
  hero?
  (Competence)
  
• What
  is
  the
  one
  thing
  you
  would
  never
  sacrifice
  or
  do
  for
  love?
  
• What
  is
  your
  wound,
  and
  what
  would
  reopen
  that
  wound?
  (We’ll
  explore
  this
  more
  in
  a
  moment.)
  
• What
  Lie
  do
  you
  believe,
  and
  what
  Truth
  will
  set
  you
  free?
  
• What
  is
  the
  happiest
  moment
  in
  your
  past?
  (This
  helps
  you
  determine
  what
  they
  want.)
  
• Why
  do
  you
  think
  you’ll
  never
  get
  it?
  (Obstacles)
  

In
the
beginning,
what
is
the
essential
information
the
reader
needs
to
know
to
give
sufficient motivation
for
the
character?

Reminder
of
his
Noble
Cause:

• What
  underlying
  cause
  are
  you
  “fighting
  for”
  that
  makes
  us
  love
  you?
  

Make him
likeable:

• What
  sweet,
  kind,
  and
  sacrificial
  “Boy
  Scout”
  moment
  can
  you
  insert
  into
  the
  story
  early
  on to
  stir
  the
  readers’
  love
  for
  the
  hero?
  

Find his Flaw and
Fear:

• Why
  did
  your
  last
  girlfriend
  break
  up
  with
  you?
  Or:
  Why
  haven’t
  you
  found
  true
  love?
  
• What is the fear behind the flaw?
  

Give him
Courage:

• What
  will
  you
  do
  that
  shows
  your
  courage
  to
  change
  in
  order
  to
  get
  the
  girl?
  

Reiterate her
Goal:

• What do you
  want?
  

Find
her
Flaw
and
Fear:

• What is your biggest
  flaw?
  
• Why?
  What
  fear
  drives
  this
  flaw?
  

Build her
Confidence:

• What
  are
  you
  good
  at,
  and
  how
  does
  that
  skill
  help
  save
  the
  day?
  
• What
  can
  you
  do
  at
  the end
  of
  the book
  that
  you
  couldn’t
  do
  at
  the beginning?
  

Make her
Beautiful:

• How does your heroine complement or balance the hero?
  

What does your heroine do that affirms the hero? How does she accentuate his strengths? How is your heroine irresistible to the hero? (Ask the hero: What draws you to her? Why can’t you live without her?)

Build
the
Meeting:

Ask the
Hero what
about
this
meeting
and
this
woman
stands
out?
What
stirs
your
interest
about
her?

Why
would
you
like
to
fall
in
love?

Ask the
Heroine what
about
this
meeting
and
this
man
stands
out?
What
stirs
your
interest
about
him?

Why
would
you
like
to
fall
in
love?

A hero and heroine complete each other. The hero and heroine make each other better
people.The hero and heroine share essential
values.

Ask the
Hero what
can
the
heroine
do
for
you
that
you
can’t
do
yourself?

How
does
she
affirm
you?
How
does
she
accentuate
your
strength?
How
do
you
become
a better
person
when
you
are
together?

Ask
the
Heroine what
can
the
hero
do
for
you
that
you
can’t
do
yourself?

How
does
he
affirm
you?
How
does
he
accentuate
your
strength?
How
do
you
become
a better
person
when
you
are
together?

What
core
values
do
you
share?

As
you
build
your
characters,
you
want
to
look
at
their
inadequacies
and
see
how
they
complete
each other. I’ll often make a chart. First,
write the name of your hero at the top of one column, and the name of your
heroine
in
the
other. I usually compare how the main characters complete each other, how they better each other, and what core values they share.

When you are building your story, you’ll want to build in moments and scenes where readers see them building their romance. Brainstorm some Why scenes for each element.

Building the plot Why Nots: (The External Obstacles)

What realistic, External Obstacle in the plot pushes your hero and heroine apart?

When you’re building
your
romance,
sometimes
it
helps
to
make
a
chart,
putting
the
hero
on
one side,
the
heroine
on
the
other,
and
comparing
and
contrasting
their
Noble
Cause
and
Goals.
It’s
a great
way
to
find
those
External
Obstacles
that
keep
them
apart.

Ask your
Hero what
is
the
worst
thing
that
ever
happened
to
you
(preferably
romantically,
but
it
can
be anything
that
involves
the
heart).
What
wound
did
it
leave?

Ask your
Heroine what
is
the
worst
thing
that
ever
happened
to
you
(preferably
romantically,
but
it
can
be anything
that
involves
the
heart).
What
wound
did
it
leave?

How have these affected your past
relationships?

Look
at
your
story
Arc, is it a Why/Why Not or a Why Not/Why?

• What can the hero say or do that reopens the wound of the heroine?
  
• What can the heroine say or do that reopens the wound of the hero?
  
• What event makes your hero and heroine break up?
  
• What is your hero’s greatest fear?
  
• What is your heroine’s greatest fear?
  
• How do these greatest fears come true in a Black Moment Event?
  
• What Truth sets the Hero free?
  
• What Truth sets the Heroine free?
  

• What can the hero do that heals the heroine’s
  wound?
  
• What can the heroine do that heals the hero’s
  wound?
  

• What
  is
  your
  hero’s
  happiest
  moment
  from
  the
  past?
  
• How
  can
  you
  reconstruct
  this
  or
  give them
  a
  taste
  of
  this
  in
  the
  future?
  
• What
  is
  your
  heroine’s
  happiest
  moment?
  
• How
  can
  you
  reconstruct
  this
  or
  give
  them
  a
  taste of
  this
  in
  the
  future?
  

You’ve
built
your
hero
and
heroine,
gathered
all
the
ingredients
.
.
.
now
it’s
time
to
insert
them
into your
story
arc
and
build
your
romance.
Just
as
a
recap,
remember
every
genre
book
has
key elements—things
we
expect
from
that
genre
novel.
A
suspense
has
a
ticking
time
bomb
and
a deadline.
A
mystery
has
a
dead
body
and
red
herrings.
A
romance
also
has
the
ten
ingredients
that we
expect.
However,
the
author
has
license
to
change
up
these
elements,
putting
them
in
a
different order.

And
of
course,
the
author
brings
his
or
her
own
voice
to
the
romance—telling
it
in
a
way
only
her or
she
knows
how.
That
is
why
we
watch
remakes
of
old
films.
Even
though
it
is
the
same
story,
it has
a
different
take,
and
we
love
that.
We
love
seeing
the
new
voice
on
the
old
structure!

Now
that
we
know
the
ten
ingredients,
we
are
armed
to
put
it
together
in
our
own
unique
way. Here’s
the
secret
trick
--
identifying
these
ten
ingredients
makes
writing
your
synopsis
sooooo
easy.
At least,
it
makes
writing
the
framework
easy,
because
you
know
the
basic
elements
that
craft
a romance.

Most
of
all,
they
ensure
that
your
romance
has
all
the
appropriate
beats
to
make
it
satisfying. Now
that
you
know
the
ingredients,
let’s
weave
them
into
Act
One.

Let’s start by taking a look at the main ingredients of Act 1:

Boy
Meets
Girl:
In
this
component,
there
is
an
event,
goal,
or
circumstance
that
occurs
to
bring
our hero
and
heroine
together.
Usually
this
happens
in
the
first
chapter,
but
it
definitely
needs
to
happen by chapter
three.

Some
classic
Boy
Meets
Girl
events:

You’ve
Got
Mail
--
The hero
and
heroine are both
in
a
chat
room
and
start
talking
about New
York
City
in
the
fall.

Sleepless
in
Seattle
--
The
phone
call
to
the
radio
show
causes
the
hero
and
heroine
to “meet”
over
the
radio.

While
You
Were
Sleeping
--
The
hero
and
heroine
meet
at
Christmas
at
the
family’s
home.

The Cutting Edge --
The hero and heroine bump into each other at the Olympics when he knocks
her
down.
But
they
really
meet
later,
when
she
needs
a
skating
partner.

Titanic
--
The hero and heroine meet on the ship.

Chasing
Liberty
--
The
heroine
runs
out
of
a
concert
and
needs
a
ride
to
get
away
from
the paparazzi.

Return
to
Me
--
The hero
meets
the heroine while
on
a
bad
date in
the restaurant.

As
you
sketch
out
your
novel,
you
start
by
defining
that
Boy
Meets
Girl
moment.
Give
it
a
sentence or
two.

Here’s
my
Boy
Meets
Girl
moment
from
my
Love
Inspired
Suspense,
Undercover
Pursuit
.

Boy
Meets
Girl:
They’re
both
there
for
different
weddings
at
the
same
location.
They
get
into
the same
cab,
mistaking
each
other
for
people
they
haven’t
met—but
are
supposed
to.

(And
since
you
don’t
know
what
is
in
my
head,
here’s
some
info
you
might
need:
The
hero
is undercover,
supposed
to
meet
up
with
another
agent.
He
will
pose
as
her
fiancé
and
protect
the bride.
The
heroine
is
supposed
to
be
the
maid
of
honor
at
her
sister’s
wedding—and
the
blind
date of
one
of
the
groomsmen.)