Marching to the Romance Beats
In addition to the twelve pacing points that we talked about previously, each genre of popular fiction has beats that readers are expecting see or hear. If you don't hit these beats in your story its like a record scratch.
It's your job, as not only a writer in the genre but as a reader of the genre to know the beats. I read kissing books, so I know the romance beats forwards and backwards. Wanna know the beats I hear every time I read, write, or listen to a love story? Here it go!
ORDINARY WORLD
In the ordinary world, you introduce the hero(s), heroine(s), and world. All plotting methods have this point.
Here you establish everything the reader needs to know to step into the ordinary world of the main character. But at the same time, hook the reader by showing them the extraordinary situation and/or qualities of the hero or heroine. Here also sets up their want or; that goal they plan to achieve by the story’s end.
Intro Hero
Steve, our hero, is breaking up with his long time girlfriend Jane. But she keeps suggesting they have sex instead, which always seems to derail him.
Intro Heroine
Susan, our heroine, is being broken up with by her fun-buddy Patrick, who thought they were in an actual relationship.
MEET CUTE
The first time the hero and heroine meet on page -even if they knew each other from before. This is the first time the reader sees them meet, so it should be memorable.
In Coupling, Steve and Jane meeting the loo, the ladies bathroom, as Steve is once again trying to break up with Jane who has once again suggests they have sex instead of breaking up.
ADHESION
The adhesion beat is the reason the love interests must remain together for the duration of the story.
Think trope
· marriage of convenience
· office romance, boss/employee
· fake date/fiancé
· scifi romance -alien abduction
Steve asks Susan out in the bathroom, in the midst of breaking up with his current girlfriend. Of course this is going to come back and bite him in the butt!
FUN AND GAMES
In television and film, there’s a term called the montage. It’s typically used as a shorthand to convey a complex idea quickly. On screen, the montage is a series of clips from different scenes and/or sequences to convey that idea. The Fun and Games montage is particular to romance. It’s all the evidence of falling in love -long walks, getting ice cream, sneaking glances, picnics, etc.
In romance novels, this is often told in a handful of scenes and/or narrative summary in Act Two. It’s the scenes the reader can always point back to the pages where they fell in love. The Tests, Allies and Enemies plot point of the Hero’s Journey. The Antithesis phase in Save the Cat that features the Promise of the Premise. The Falling in Love Phase of the Romance Beats featuring the Inkling of Desire, Deepening Desire and Maybe this Could Work beats.
In Coupling, the hero's BFF dated the heroine and that BFF, whose name is Jeff, is nervous about what Susan might say about him.
Meanwhile, after Susan is dumped by Patrick, her BFF Sally asks out her ex.
Poor Steve is still trying to ditch his ex and leaves her a VM that gets cut off at the worse possible moment of his it's not you, it's me break up speech.
Dark Moment
Do they have to break up? I don’t believe so. But there has to be a test; which is why I love the Save the Cat framework of Thesis, Antithesis and Synthesis. They lose what they gained earlier in Act Two and they’re going to have to fight. But they can only when this fight if they use the tools, lessons, tests, allies and enemies that they’ve accumulated along the way.
In Coupling, everyone shows up at Steve and Susan's date including the hero's ex who announces to the room that she's his girlfriend. But when she realizes he's on a date with another woman, she'd incensed and breaks up with him -finally!
Grand Gesture
The character who has the most to lose, or who changed the most, makes the overture. But it’s always more satisfying when it’s the guy who does it. They have to prove they learned those lessons. There’s often a callback to the Fun and Games of Act 2.
In Coupling, Steve and Jane are trying to get their friends and exes to leave the restaurant where they're having their first date. Susan huffs and says "What do I have to do, show you a breast?"
All of them line up to see her boob. Including Steve who doesn't want to be a breast behind the rest of them.
HEA or HFN
Romances always, always, end happily. Either ever after or for now.
In Coupling, everyone stays for Steve and Susan's first date as a new friendship and a new relationship are forged. Susan and Steve determine they'll take this new relationship, one breast at a time.
Seven Beats, eight if you separate the hero and heroine's introduction. All done in under 30 minutes! You have a whole book, thousands of words to hit these beats.
Do you have to hit them all? If you're writing a romance, I would. You want to hit reader's expectations, and if you miss one of these in a romance then it might be like a record scratch to the readers.
Marching to the beats keep readers bopping to your love song, or love story.
Happy writing,
Ines