Image created using illustrations from Pixabay.
Romance stories don’t have the best reputation. They receive more scorn than the average genre novel due to both women and media aimed at women suffering decades of belittlement (read more about that here). But, in addition to the palpable prejudices, historically the romance genre hasn’t helped itself. There is a lengthy legacy of low-to-no diversity, limited character spectrums and leading men who seem unfamiliar with the concept of the word ‘no.’ The romance genre is not alone in this but it’s still good for writers to take responsibility wherever possible and work towards positive change.
Many romance writers are already working hard to change the shape of the genre but understandably, it’s not easy to undo the misdeeds of the last eighty years, and that time period only refers to the modern romance novel. Romance has classical roots so its conventions were established in what we might refer to as less enlightened times – particularly when it comes to issues of gender, equality and consent.
If you’re writing your own romance, there are three key narrative elements you can twist to make it more dynamic than the love yarns of yesteryear. I’ve flagged these elements below and also created a helpful acronym to make them easy to remember (I’m not sure you NEED an acronym. Your memory is probably tip top. But I’m a Word Nerd and acronyms make me purr… so humour me?).
Three key story elements you can manipulate to create a more sensitive and insightful romance story (or in fact ANY story) are: Agency, Representation and Consent (ARC).
Agency. Giving your characters agency means making them active players in their own destiny. This doesn’t mean that they make all the right choices (there probably isn’t much of a story in that) but that they take action towards a goal, dream or desire. Naturally, there are forces in the world that are bigger than us and push us in a certain direction. That doesn’t mean that your characters have to become passive pawns. Write characters that push back. Write characters that react when they’re not supposed to and get themselves into fixes. In a romance context don’t let the love interest destined to unite with your central character call all the shots. In traditional heteronormative romances, the love interest would have been a man, and thus, historically, expected to be more dominant. Regardless of the gender of the love interest, don’t let them take complete control of your central character. Show us that the protagonist has some ideals, principles and plans of their own. Show us they’ve got attitude.
Representation. This is a slightly more complicated area than the first, because the last thing I’m recommending here is that you lapse into tokenism. i.e. including a character from a different background / sexuality / age range in your story just to give the illusion of representation. If those characters don’t have a real journey or an essential contribution to make to the plot, they are just two dimensional vehicles and nothing more. Romantic love is something that happens between two (or more! ;)) people. Show us the body, heart and soul of those people in Technicolor and surround sound. Explore how their mental health status, their background, their age, their sexuality, affects their relationships in a sensitive and compassionate manner. The barriers they face, the connections they create. Give people who don’t see themselves represented in literature very often an opportunity to explore their interior lives. Be a champion for the theory that love is love, and it looks different for everyone.
Consent. This element should be straightforward, but for some reason it gets people in a bit of a twist. Here’s a golden rule: if a character says no to physical contact and the love interest ignores this or tries to verbally pressure the character into physical contact, this is not redeemable behaviour. I’m not here to tell you what to write, but if you wish to show the redemption of a character who doesn’t heed the rules of consent I hope you’re prepared to put the perpetrator through every available wringer. Such a narrative is explored through the character of Spike in the TV show Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Spike attempts to rape Buffy in the season six episode Seeing Red. Whether or not his character is ‘redeemed’ by the season seven finale is down to the individual viewer to decide. But any forgiveness he did receive was hard-won. Immediately after the incident with Buffy, Spike is haunted by the memory of what he’s done, runs away to Africa where he earns back his soul and ultimately sacrifices his life in a final battle. In short, there should be desperate consequences for assaulting a person, usually the price the character pays negates a Happily Ever After. Or at least, a traditional one.
The characters in my own stories who exhibit unwanted sexually forceful behaviour, do not win the heart of their victim. I ensure this breach of trust serves as a clear signal to the protagonist that they should get as far away from this person as they can. That they should instead seek out a lover who respects them, will cherish them and cares more about them than they do their own gratification. I have read historical romances that have carried this off perfectly – even in times when it was deemed a woman’s duty to submit to the sexual desires of men. In those books, a distinction is made between the gentlemanly rogues and, well, characters that are essentially serial rapists. Regardless of the context, it is possible to deal with consent in a sensitive fashion.
Perhaps some confusion arises when exploring darker sensuality. For example, some people find saying ‘no’ or struggling during a sexual encounter with a person they feel safe with tremendously erotic. But it’s difficult to explore this kind of relationship responsibly without the appropriate set-up. If your characters are playing a dark, risky power game I say bravo and wish them all the pleasure in the world. But it is the author’s responsibility to ensure it’s clear that all parties involved are consenting to and enjoying this experience in a climate of mutual trust. Otherwise, we run the risk of reinforcing some very dangerous attitudes about romance and sexual practice.
So, these are my guidelines for writing more dynamic romance stories. There are many other things I could talk about – and I’m sure I will in other articles. But in my opinion, these story elements are core, so when you’re writing remember to ARC.
It’s worth noting that romance is not the only genre to fall foul of these story elements. I’d like to think that most writers now are considering these factors regardless of the genre and medium they’re writing in. The relationship models presented in escapist media for the past eighty years may not have been that empowering, but we can all do our bit to change that.
If you have any questions about writing romance stories you think I can help with or want more guidance on the areas above, tweet me.
Helen writes steamy historical romance novellas. You can find out more about them here.