Writing romance is in some ways a whole different beast than genre fiction (I write both, by the way, but under this name, it’s romance all the way!). Romance while it has a few things it always has, is different because our readers are smart. It’s not that we’re into the technological world of hard science fiction or the world building in high fantasy, but we’re smart. We understand the way the world works, and we want to see that in our books. We don’t want to have to suspend disbelief.
There is a pattern for romance books. Boy and girl meet, there’s some angst going on, they eventually fall in love, then they have to admit they’re in love, then the happily ever after or the happy for now. But the way that basic plot can happen is endless, and that’s what we romance authors try to do. We try to write believable characters, our best friends, who we’re watching go through this love story, where we root for them, support them, love them.
It’s not easy to always write lovable, best friend characters. But we do it.
Emma Penny 