The title of the thread makes it clear enough--I'm trying to figure out romance fanfiction. Analyze it, in other words. Yes, I like that word much better--analyze. I'm analyzing romance fanfiction. Or maybe romance fiction in general? I'm analyzing it. Sounds so scientific.
Tell me, please, if I miss anything or get something inaccurate.
Also, what I've written may be more true for hack writing than actual, good romance fan/fiction. Your opinions on this?
-Hook. Where the protagonist first notices the subject (Is that a good word to use? Subject? Well, whatever). "Notice" meaning "really notices", as opposed to "hey, it's so-and-so in the background, okay, moving on". Could be anything from one of them falling upon the other or a brief conversation the protagonist finds interesting.
-Repeated encounters. Wherein the protagonist "starts to fall in love" with the subject. Difficult to pull off, because how the heck do they manage to keep coincidentally bumping into each other? Protagonist gets progressively smitten.
-Indicators. The protagonist thinks something to indicate how far he's fallen for the subject, but himself dismisses the thought. You know--"He thought she looked beautiful"--no, wait, that's a stupid one. Let me hunt through my favorites list and see if I can find something. "Her smile caught him off-guard"--no, wait, that's stupid too. You know, the sappy-but-not-definitive stuff. "He felt something twist within his stomach when she smiled". Stuff like that.
-Problem. Self-explanatory, but really really hard to come up with, in my experience, anyway. For example, in a Kyon/Tsuruya story, the problem could be the pressure from both Haruhi's world-destroying potential, and Tsuruya's Agency-supporting family.
-Realization/Confession. When they realize/confess their love, obviously. Stereotypically, it somehow involves an unplanned kiss. It might branch off from a bit of tension--he falls on her, and both their faces go red, and their faces come closer, closer, et cetera, et cetera. Or, some tragedy brings the two of them closer together but not definitely classified as a couple--the vagueness of "what are we, good friends or something more" can be a good source of tension as well. Or, perhaps as they're just normally parting, and one of them takes the initiative. It can occur after the problem, being a precursor or part of the solution, or before the problem, causing them to face the new problem as a couple.
-Solution. Actually entirely optional, because sometimes things don't fit into nice little conclusions. A solution might be found (I can't think of one for my "problem" example). Or, a solution might not be found, and the protagonist and/or subject might go "forget the rest of the world; it's our right to live our lives like this".
Anything else anyone want to add?
Tell me, please, if I miss anything or get something inaccurate.
Also, what I've written may be more true for hack writing than actual, good romance fan/fiction. Your opinions on this?
-Hook. Where the protagonist first notices the subject (Is that a good word to use? Subject? Well, whatever). "Notice" meaning "really notices", as opposed to "hey, it's so-and-so in the background, okay, moving on". Could be anything from one of them falling upon the other or a brief conversation the protagonist finds interesting.
-Repeated encounters. Wherein the protagonist "starts to fall in love" with the subject. Difficult to pull off, because how the heck do they manage to keep coincidentally bumping into each other? Protagonist gets progressively smitten.
-Indicators. The protagonist thinks something to indicate how far he's fallen for the subject, but himself dismisses the thought. You know--"He thought she looked beautiful"--no, wait, that's a stupid one. Let me hunt through my favorites list and see if I can find something. "Her smile caught him off-guard"--no, wait, that's stupid too. You know, the sappy-but-not-definitive stuff. "He felt something twist within his stomach when she smiled". Stuff like that.
-Problem. Self-explanatory, but really really hard to come up with, in my experience, anyway. For example, in a Kyon/Tsuruya story, the problem could be the pressure from both Haruhi's world-destroying potential, and Tsuruya's Agency-supporting family.
-Realization/Confession. When they realize/confess their love, obviously. Stereotypically, it somehow involves an unplanned kiss. It might branch off from a bit of tension--he falls on her, and both their faces go red, and their faces come closer, closer, et cetera, et cetera. Or, some tragedy brings the two of them closer together but not definitely classified as a couple--the vagueness of "what are we, good friends or something more" can be a good source of tension as well. Or, perhaps as they're just normally parting, and one of them takes the initiative. It can occur after the problem, being a precursor or part of the solution, or before the problem, causing them to face the new problem as a couple.
-Solution. Actually entirely optional, because sometimes things don't fit into nice little conclusions. A solution might be found (I can't think of one for my "problem" example). Or, a solution might not be found, and the protagonist and/or subject might go "forget the rest of the world; it's our right to live our lives like this".
Anything else anyone want to add?